vision386

Heres a picture of the first truck i ever drove,wish i still had it now,i spent a lot of time in it for sure! 1963 B-61T END 673,triplex it was an old Hess Oil truck we bought at auction for $800.00 and drove it home! we spent a couple months going over it both mechanically and cosmetically i was taking auto shop/ body work shop in school at the time and i did all the bodywork and painted it over the summer. This was MY truck! and some of the best memories i have (profession-wise) were spent in this truck,riding with my grandad and father,and eventually learning to drive in it. I spent pretty much all summer spotting trailers and running locally for next to nothing,but would'nt trade it for the world now!............................Mark

I agree,the B-61T i learned how to drive on was sold as part of the sale of our family farm when my Grandad retired,he did'nt think i would want it,as it was "just a truck" its still in existance up in Jersey,but doubt i will ever get my hands on it as the guy that has it now does'nt want (or need) to sell it back to me,so i'd try to hang on to it,especially if it has any sentimental value,cause trust me, the "i'll get another one someday" will never come,especially one with family history........................Mark

Nice pictures,thanks for posting them,the red white and blue R-model wrecker belongs to a friend of mine from Jersey,its quite a truck,with quite a history behind it......................................Mark

Nice pictures,thanks for posting them,i also like the red-black F-model and the Liberty Edition Superliner,always thought they were sharp.......................................Mark

I'm right there with you,cold- weather man all the way,i don't like or do well in the heat either!...................................Mark

Were you thinking that WAS the before picture too? lol!........................Mark

Thats just what i was thinking,especially when your lucky enough to have that gem allready in the family! great truck,i sure like the last picture too!..........................Mark

I remember going to the Mid-America truckshow in Louisville some years ago when the Argosy first came out,we were standing in line to look at one (why i don't know) i do remember they were giving one away,so this radio guy was interviewing people standing in line for the truckers channel on XM radio,asking them their opinion of Freightliners newest truck,so when he gets to me,he asks "Mark Wright,owner-operator from New Jersey,what would you do if you won this new Argosy?" well,true to form,i answered "I would take it down and trade it in on a new Mack" he gives me a REAL dirty look,and is making the "cut signal" under his throat,needless to say,i did'nt win the truck! but all the other people in line got a good laugh!................................Mark

Yup,thats been the week from hell! Randy and Mike got me laughing and i like the girl in the car,did'nt see any at all like that this week! maybe i'm missing something,but why would ANYBODY want to live or work around Detroit? i don't go to too many places that i'm scared for my life,with the exception of Detroit!.........................Mark

Difficult week syndrome? lol! thats the first time i've ever heard that! nice to be able to turn to my friends on here for a much needed laugh!...............................Mark

Ok,so no picture! but as some of you may know,i had to stop hauling out of Virginia because of a plant closing,and did my first load out of Indiana this past week (well,technically one trip took two weeks) not a damn thing went right,i was supposed to start delivering 18 stops on tuesday two weeks ago,but was still being loaded at 8pm wednesday night. So its balls to the wall to Detroit for thursday am. starting a weeks worth of pissed off customers! my "new" dispatcher/planner is a "college boy" with no trucking background/experience whatsoever,so its been a real joy! got 2 whole stops off thursday,laid over,started again friday,got 2 more off,then had to layover the whole friggin' weekend to start again on this past monday. Arrive at stop 5 early monday morning,"oh we were expecting you wednesday,the customer cancelled their order.you'll have to take it back" (191 pieces) "wonderful,says i". Then when i check in,its "are you empty yet?" no,dumbass,i'm not close to empty,and have half a trailerload of returns,which will of course screw me out of my backhaul (which by now i'm 4 days late picking up,and have to give it back) and move it around at every stop after to get at the freight behind it,and being as i tailgate EVERYTHING at this point,i'm not happy! got most of the rest off this week,uphill battle all the way,learned the new customer service people are useless,don't have a clue about whats going on in the "real world" so i'm giving a great deal of thought into telling them where to stick their freight and pissy customers! especially when none of this bullshit is my fault! i ended up taking the returns back,decided not to "hang around" to see what comes up (loadwise) and dead-headed home,been a real ballbuster trip,not looking forward to the next one,basically the same route again,and oh,did i mention how much i LOVE going to the Detroit area? but they have to "see what i can do" as i'm new on THEIR accounts,which i've been doing out of VA since 2001! heres what this trip looked like on paper,keep in mind the times are appointments NOT what time the customers open,and tell me what if anything you see wrong!..............Mark Detroit,MI 07:00 Detroit,MI 07:00 Detroit,MI 07:30 Novi,MI 08:00 Novi,MI 08:30 Novi,MI 09:00 Day2 Livonia,MI 06:00 Rochester,MI 06:00 Grand rapids,MI 08:00 Grand rapids,MI 09:00 Grand rapids,MI O8:00 Grandrapids,MI 10:00 Grand rapids,MI 09:00 Day 3 Battle creek,MI 06:00 Battle creek,MI 07:00 Battle creek,MI 07:30 Bay city,MI (look at map) 08:00/09:00 Traverse city,MI ASAP

Nice looking trucks for sure! i especially like the Brockway,something of a rarity in the great white north i would guess?................................Mark

Gotta agree with that! i once pulled a 28 foot container while i was working for Atlas van Lines,looked like a first year rookie,could'nt back that short bastard up to save my ass!..................Mark

Mines must be broken? i pushed the "sammich" button,but all i got was a black eye......................................Mark

Thats a great picture! definately a keeper!.............................Mark

Glad to hear it! i think sometimes some of the best therapy is wheeltime! get that combination of a good truck,good road,easy load,helps take your mind off things in general,have a good safe trip!.............................Mark

Well said my friend!..........................................Mark

Man that is one fine looking B-model! no tougher looking truck ever made then the B-81!.........................................Mark

Just for the record,NO other truck maker has the following Mack trucks has,hence this website and the like-minded people on here,there is a reason Macks are legendary,the biggest majority of this country was built by Mack trucks,thats a fact,pure and simple. EVERBODY knows the expression "Built like a Mack Truck" ever hear anybody say "built like a peterbilt"? i have'nt. Mack is a staple,a brandname,known throughout the world as "THE" truck to have when a job needs to be done,look around at how many vocational trucks you see on a daily basis,and how many are Macks,how many are "brand-x" when's the last time your buddies saw a 25 year old pete in daily use? look around at Kentucky,see how many petes are hauling coal,how many serious wrecker outfits are running petes? exactly where is the pete museum/welcome center? where is their website? how many members have they got? why don't our Austrailian friends use them if there so damn good? tough situations warrant a tough truck,and paccar DOES'NT build them! Mack does,and hopefully always will. We (this group) are all here for the same reason (most of us anyway) its a belief and fellowship in a damn good product,second to none,both now,and historically, how many pete owners can say that?the longest running,best selling truck ever produced was the Mack R-series,has'nt been built for over 20 years now,and not a day goes by where i don't see at least one! in my opinion,there are only two trucks ever built that were even close to Macks in durability/quality,Brockway and Autocar either one i would still recommend even today over anything paccar makes! so no,Mack enthusiasts are here to stay!.................................................Mark

Well said Mike! i for one sure agree!................................................Mark

Personally,i never had any "formal" training (truckdriving-wise) but was fortunate enough to come from a trucking family,i was taught the ropes by both my father and grandfather. When the CDL first became required,i had had my NJ articulated license long enough that i was "grandfathered" into the CDL,only having to take the written test,my father,who had several speeding tickets at the time,had to take both written AND road/skills test after 40 years driving a truck! a fact which i never let him live down! again,my personal opinion,i think truck driving "schools" are about one of the biggest rip-offs there are,i would first study-up,then find someone with a similar truck,get a basis going for some actual wheeltime,in the real world,and take it from there,as all you NEED to know cannot be learned or taught in a classroom...................................Mark

Me too,just does'nt look "right" to me with square headlights,also just my two cents!.................................Mark

I have seen those as well,and a few others,but as far as i know no,they were never factory,ErnieDS aka BULLHUSK has an R-model with dual headlights,he has said looks factory,i could be wrong,but i've never seen any brochures,factory pictures etc,even prototypes with duals? other than the ones overseas....................Mark

Well said!............................................Mark

Damn! my neck feels better already!.................................Mark