convoyduel

Does anyone have a part number or good source for a replacement radiator core for a '77 CF685? The core in mine is getting pretty bad and I want to replace it. Looks like it will be a heck of a lot of fun getting it out.

Well, the 700 Westerns are rare in St. Louis, but it's everyday here you see R's working, old MB front loader garbage trucks and old MC/MR's. GHG, I agree with your assessment AND I'm a fan of Pete's and KW's.

I'm in and out of there enough with my toys that they know the Rubber Duck truck well. The other Mack was there first and they were telling a few of the newer guys about my truck when I pulled in. The new guys said they were stunned at how beefy the trucks were and how simple they were then compared to all the junk on trucks now. Everyone agreed that there was very little chance that anything built today would be pulling into a tire shop in 35 years.

Apportioned tags and a USDOT number without Common Carrier Authority is only valid if you are a private fleet hauling your own equipment or product OR if you are hauling an "exempt" commodity. Under the FMCSA ruling, soil, sand and gravel are NOT exempt commodities and therefore would require MC authority. . http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/fmcsrruletext.aspx?chunkkey=090163348008ef07 Don't forget that you also need IFTA to cross state lines. I think you are going to find that the cost of compliance will put you at a severe economic disadvantage. Dirt dobbers and dump truckers in general are among the most flagrant violators of weight and compliance laws, largely because the bar to enter the market is so low. Those that are non-compliant work for less and therefore drive the rates down to a point where compliance can be cost prohibitive. Rates are set by the customer, not the hauler, so when it comes to fuel, paying a driver, making a truck payment, insurance or compliance, you know where the first cut comes. Compounding the problem is that quarries, contractor and other customers look the other way and ask no questions. It's not like they are trusting you with a load of flat screen TV's, its something they just loaded with a Cat 966. They can get more. Dump trucking, for the most part, is a race to the bottom. No one ever got work on an hourly job or took over a material haul with a rate that was higher than the previous guy.

I pulled my drop deck today into a local truck tire store to try and get a tube for a 1000x15. When I got there, this RS795LST was in the bay getting 10 new tires and wheels. I wound up buying the ten 1000x22's and wheels they were taking off. They were in great shape, but are old. The truck is in very good shape and has been repowered with a 3406 Cat. Not sure if its a DI A model or a B model, but it is definitely not PC. I talked to the owner by phone and he still uses it to pull some farm Cat's around. All the guys in the shop were trying to figure out the odds of 2 Mack RS700L's in the shop at the same time, much less the same month nowadays.

I'm working on converting a '70 CF600 from pos ground to neg ground. I've searched the forum and read all the posts but I'm wanting to clarify. I'm very good with automotive electrical wiring, but I've never converted grounds before. If I understand correctly, I switch the positive and negative battery leads at the starter end first. What specifically do I need to switch or do on the Generator? Do I need to change anything on the Voltage Regulator? I need to reverse the wiring on the volt meter and water temp gauge, correct? Do I need to reverse the wiring on the fuel gauge?

The changeover occurred in the '73 model year run, I believe in late '72. I have never found anyone who can pin down exactly when. I have seen titled '73's with both the new and old cab from the factory.

We're looking for both driver and passenger side.

Has anyone bought or tried to find the front outer fender for the front axle on a CF? I'm working on a CF that has the usual corrosion through the skirt.

I'm thinking maybe he just got some bad gas. Run a tank of higher octane and a can of Heet and it should clear up. Now I've got a good sense of humor and can come off a bit dry at times, but that post sounded a bit too serious for me.

My son plays with the tractor-trailer lowboy and dozer set all of the time. I have most all of them, including the original boxes (thanks, Mom). They were relatively short lived. The lowboy was the best lowboy of that time, complete with the screw-down landing gear. I would have preferred a different truck besides a MB cabover.

I was touring through a very large truck salvage yard not far from St. Louis and found a couple of items of interest. Among them, I found a complete RW Western red interior in very good shape from the late 70's and a blue R model interior less door panels from a mid 80's Mack from Mack Canada. The blue interior included the headliner, rear wall and A pillar trim pieces, all in very good condition. I have not interest in this, just passing it along as I know how very hard this stuff is to find.

Yes, it appears to be DuBois' ladder. I'm curious to know the history of it, especially the mechanical history. I'm not 100% sure I know the correct story on it. Anything you can provide would be helpful.

Here is a picture of the air starter tank I was referring to. It is aluminum but painted black.

I had a huge aluminum air starter air tank on a '90 CH613 I sold a while back. It was mounted under the driver's side cab, about the size of what you are talking about. Have someone at Mack look up CH613 with the last six of 007999.

I'm gettin' close to starting my own department. I'm just kind of stunned at how cheap these are. A small fire department by our farm bought the 70/88 CF that was listed on here. I can't buy a used engine for these prices.

That was my experience a few years ago with them. No hard feelings, I'm sure they are a very good group of people who mean well. Seemed like a very east coast group, not much incentive for a midwesterner like me or Rob. I do wish them well nonetheless. Hope my experience was the exception to the rule.

I just bought this '78 CF685 100' Thibault mid mount Aerial out of mid PA. Can anyone by chance tell me the history of this particular truck? Thanks in advance. Dan

You'd be trouble and money ahead to just start with a Superliner and update the engine if that's your goal. If nothing else, find a recent RD and start there so at least you've got the cab mounts and everything that you are just moving back on the frame.

While at the local Mack dealer today, one of my buddies behind the counter (that usually groan when I walk in) told me that Mack is updating the system and that any chassis info before 1980 or 81 or so would no longer be searchable. He said they were supposed to get a CD with the older truck info on it. If anyone has any more information, please chime in. I'd like to get a copy of the CD myself just in case. I can't see anyone finding it in 5 years.

The easier way is to open the door and look on the side of the door just behind the handle. There is a little piece of metal about an inch tall the slides out. You'll have to use a pliers or small screwdriver to push it forward and pull out. When it slides out about an inch or so, the whole cylinder assembly will be free to pull out from the outside door skin. The cylinder will be attached to a 1/4" square peg that's about 3 or 4 inches long. That metal tab you pulled out from the side of the door will be free, too. To reinstall, be sure that the metal tab is flush against the inside of the outer door skin when you reinsert the new lock. It will take a bit of wiggling to get the 1/4" peg back into the mechanism. It's just a luck thing and may slip right in or it may take some wiggling. I find it helps if you keep a key in the cylinder when reinstalling. I think both doors and the ignition cylinder kits are around $35 with 2 keys. If the truck is old, you may want to pick up a couple of those metal slides that hold the door cylinders in as well. I hope you understand what I'm trying to describe. It should be a bit more clear when you actually see it in person.

I'd take a good look at the rules and regs if I were you before you miss something. Cargo Insurance filings are required for Common Carrier Authority. There is a process to have it waived for something like gravel haulers or dirt dobbers, but it is rather complicated. Also, be sure your quotes include MC filings. Most carriers are now also rating insurance on company and personal credit history. I don't know nor do I want to know anyone's personal situation, but that will affect why 2 people or companies with the same age trucks and type of operation differently. Sounds like you're getting a better quote now.

The IFTA exemption was pursued feverishly by the ATHS. I helped some with their push at the IFTA convention in St. Louis in 2007. The bottom line is while most IFTA jurisdictions were agreeable to the exemption, some of those in agreement felt the exemption was unnecessary due to existing language that they felt made it clear that antique or historic licensed vehicles did not apply. There were some jurisdictions, including I believe all of the Canadian provinces, that felt that antiques should NOT be exempt either out of principle or due to their feelings that the potential for abuse was too high. Either way, it has been pursued and failed multiple times. Missouri DOT has been working closely the ATHS to sponsor the exemption (has to be sponsored by a member agency). I have worked with MoDOT over the past few years looking for a way to make this easier to get through. One option was to create an Approtioned Historic Exempt plate through IRP out of your base jurisdiction. The theory would be that the Approtioned Historic Exempt plate would be recognized by all IRP agencies and would once and for all establish a unique class of vehicle registration that allowed pulling trailers for hobby use. The problem is that it would likely require a nominal annual registration fee (well less than $100) and I know too many who would balk at that and rather take their chances. At the invitation and request of MoDOT, We have shown the Rubber Duck truck at several of the IRP and IFTA events over the past few years trying to build some positive PR for the hobby and help demonstrate that these vehicles are out there and very much in a grey area. We have received very positive feedback, including at the annual IRP convention here in St. Louis this past May. In my opinion, I believe until there is some defined uniform registration like an Apportioned Historic Exempt plate, it will always be a crap shoot when traveling to shows across state lines.

Nice write-up. I would add a section about IFTA as it is a fuel tax/road use tracking quasi-government entity that often becomes an issue at the port of entry. Many states say that IFTA is not required of a historic-registered vehicle while other states insist collector trucks have IFTA or 72 hour fuel tax permits which can be very expensive. Even at the IFTA convention, there is polarized disagreement. Like the scale houses, I find it easier to have IFTA than not have it. I have an account in my personal name through Missouri and it stops all debate. Some argue it concedes commercial operation, but once again, which argument do you want to have on the side of the road? The other issue is that all of a sudden, out of the blue, I have Hagerty asking me for pictures of my insured truck inside of my storage building. They are now saying they only write retired commercial truck insurance for garage-kept trucks. Is anyone else having an issue?