The Walt May and Jim Winsor Story

[1958 F.W.D.]

Many of you know who Jim Winsor is, but for the benefit of those that do not, Jim is a former big wheel at Chilton Publishing. Chilton of course is most known for the Chilton and Haynes automotive repair manuals, as well as the magazine side of the shop- Heavy Duty Trucking and Owner/Operator Magazine. I believe Jim was the Editor-In-Chief for the magazine division for quite a long time before he was suddenly stricken with Guillain-Barre syndrome, a pretty rare and devastating neurological disease that robbed Jim of much of his ability to walk without assistance. A short time after this happened, he resigned as Editor-In-Chief and took on lesser responsibilities, but still maintained a presence at Chilton and even had articles published in the rags occasionally.

Later on he also became a contributing editor to truckinginfo.com. And, as Ken said in a post- Jim was a huge presence in the Trucking Maintenance Council.

Jim grew up around trucks, and he served honorably in the United States Air Force as a motor transportation specialist, having attended the US Army’s Motor Transport School (which at the time, and still is located at Fort Eustice, Va.) He learned to operate anything with wheels, including diesel and steam locomotives (at that time, just after the Korean conflict many European countries still used steam power…..) After the service, Jim went into college where he got his degree in Journalism (I forget which college but one of the better schools for Journalism….). While in college he supported himself by driving trucks and delivering milk in the mornings in a Divco…. When he got his degree, Jim decided that there weren’t enough writers that dedicated themselves to the trucking industry, so that’s where he wanted to point himself- and he did. His career followed a stellar path, and Jim became a friend of the industry, championing for driver’s rights and safer, more efficient equipment. As Chilton was located in the Philadelphia area, and in close proximity to Allentown, Jim became a frequent visitor to Mack, and he developed both a professional and personal friendship with Walter May and Win Pellizoni.

My father became friends with Jim back in the 1970’s. Does anyone remember those cards that were inside of the magazines at the time- “For more information, circle the number, send in the card?” Or, “Submit your comments….?” Dad was pretty vocal during the fuel crisis in the 70’s and also was up the elected officials asses to promote and endorse the deregulation of the ICC back in the late 70’s/early 80’s. Dad filled out a comment card one time, and sent it in….Something about an editorial that Jim wrote. Jim wound up calling Dad, and invited him to lunch since he lived locally. This began a long-time friendship, and after Jim was confined to a wheelchair, he and his wife moved to an assisted living center, where Dad and myself would (and still do, although not as often) have lunch with him at least 3 or 4 times a year. When I became friends with Bob Gabrick, Bob would join us too. Jim is one of the finest human beings on the face of God’s Green Earth.

One of his most favorite stories to tell is of Walt May, Win Pellizoni and the prototype Maxidyne engine. One time in the early 1960’s (Jim places it about late summer of 63 or 64…..) he was at Mack, and Walt and Win showed him some new-fangled thing painted gold. The explained about variable-geometry turbocharging and playing with the timing of the fuel injection blah blah blah blah…….Jim was pretty intelligent and knew his way around engines, transmissions, drives, etc and was also just as comfortable with a wrench in his hand as a pen and notebook……But Jim often liked to say "when Win and Walt began to talk with their sliderules, my eyes glazed over."

So, about a year later, Jim gets a phone call from Walt- it was very close (as in 2 or 3 days away) to Christmas of 1965. Walt says “Hey what are you doing, can you take a ride up here?” Jim was sort of taken aback........it was 2 or 3 days from Christmas….Why would Walt May be asking him to take a 60+ mile ride……unless…….Walt had something he REALLY wanted Jim to see….So Jim cleared his schedule for that afternoon, and made the ride up 309 to the Mack R & D center (what we all now know as the Customer Support Center/Museum.) There, out in the lot and under a van trailer was a spanking new and shiny R-Model. Walter met him out in the parking lot and told Jim to get in the driver seat. Now the usual routine when Jim was trying out something for Mack was to run it around the test track of course. Not this time. Walt told him to head out the gate for Lehigh Street and head for the 309/78 Eastbound on-ramp. This caught Jim’s attention as he had never been allowed to take anything off Mack’s property, much less onto an Interstate. But he didn’t ask questions and did as he was told. Walt explained that the trailer was fully loaded with XX,XXX lbs of parts from the warehouse (the weight escapes me right now, but I remember it was not a light load….) Working his way through the 5-speed just getting to I-78, Jim knew this was not an ordinary Mack engine.

Again, for those of you who do not know the area, the climb on I-78 at MM 55 (+/-) at Lehigh Street…Where 78 goes over South Mountain. It’s a pretty good pull in excess of 2 miles- even for someone headed eastbound at full speed with momentum…..But for someone coming off the Lehigh Street on-ramp, it’s a REALLY good pull…So Jim heads up onto 78……And Walt tells him “when we hit the wall, just leave it in 5^th” As they go along, Jim wants to shift gears just like every other 5-speed. Jim merges into traffic (fairly light as he remembered…..) and works his way to 5^th. They hit the wall, and Jim just cannot believe the speed this thing is doing up the hill…not slowing down…..ACCELLERATING!!! Jim remembered he even had to pass a flatbed……But as they get halfway up the hill, the tach started to drop, and drop, and drop……Jim took his right hand and placed it on the stick with the intent of dropping to 4^th, when Walt slapped his hand and said “I said to leave it in 5^th, dammit!” So he did……And it never dropped below 1350………

So they get back to the R/D center. Jim takes out his notebook, and goes into Journalist mode, starts to ask questions. Walt says “before I answer questions, we need to have a gentlemans agreement……One. You were never here today. You didn’t see, hear, smell or otherwise think that this exists. And you CERTAINLY didn’t drive it….Thats why I asked you up here today. The big bosses are all drinking eggnog at home today......Two. You have to sit on this story until the second week of February or so. In exchange, you just got your exclusive.” They shook on it, and sure enough, Walt called Jim in early 1966 and told him “run with that story. The big wigs are issuing a press release tomorrow announcing the “Maxidyne and Maxitorque” series of engines and transmissions.”

[jakebrake86]

That's so awesome. Thanks for sharing!

[j hancock]

Excellent story!

[39 Baby Mack]

Great story Randy, thanks for posting.

Ron

[mackdaddy]

Thanks! What a great time in trucking history that had to have been,.

[Brocky]

Randy

Good story. I am NOT calling BS!!! I am assuming that 309 was a 4 lane that went over the mountain where 78 does today as 78 was not built until into the late 80's?? I was not in the area til the mid 70's.. And we had to go thru town on old US 22.

[mackdaddy]

I feel fortunate to have driven a 6cyl maxidyne with a 5spd. It is a driving experience like no other engine/ tranny combo can give you. Especially when it hits that sweet spot and the torque kicks in.

[Brocky]

Mackdaddy

I agree with you.. I drove one for Matlack in 1970. Could come out of Albany NY grossing in the high 70's on the NY Thruway, get in 5th, and never shift all the way to Syracuse.

It was a combo that a newbie could not kill, and the old hand could sit back and relax..

[TeamsterGrrrl]

I got into driving trucks shortly after the Maxidyne came out, and driving one was a real treat. All of the competition, even the 335 Cummins and 8V-71s, were torqueless wonders with a narrow powerband that you always had to stay on top of. In town you could do all your driving with just 2 or 3 gears instead of the at least half dozen the competition required. On the highway you could get over 90+ percent of the hills without even downshifting, while a conventional engine would have you making at least one if not two or three downshifts.

[Vladislav]

Neat story Randy, real pleasure to read

Many thanks to you for the time spent posting.

[Green Dash]

Excellent story, thanks for sharing it! Driving a truck with a high torque rise engine back then must have been mind boggling for those who were experiencing it for the first time. I had the pleasure of driving Maxidyne/Maxitorque equipped trucks for 4 1/2 years at my previous job, 3 years in R models and 1 1/2 years in a CH. That drivetrain was and always will be in a class by itself.

[Lmackattack]

Thanks for sharing. Those were good times at Mack back then.

I know Mack still advertises a maxidyne as an option but they all have more gears than just 5

Will these new electronic Maxidynes pull thru a 5 speed or they don't lug down like the old ones could.

I recall a 605hp maxidyne for the Titan. Did that ever come about?

[bbob61]

Great story! Those times and people just cannot be forgotten. If you have pictures too, that story belongs in the MACK MUSEUM

[Timmyb]

That's a good read. Interesting little bit of mack history.

[TeamsterGrrrl]

Thanks for sharing. Those were good times at Mack back then.

I know Mack still advertises a maxidyne as an option but they all have more gears than just 5

Will these new electronic Maxidynes pull thru a 5 speed or they don't lug down like the old ones could.

I recall a 605hp maxidyne for the Titan. Did that ever come about?

The Maxidynes are still available, but Volvo doesn't promote them. The engine with the broadest power curve, the mislabeled MP7 "Maxicruise" at 395 HP, is the most like the old Maxidynes with a power range from around 1100 to 2000 RPM. Mack still makes a 6 speed Maxitorque with gathered ratios, I've plotted out the gradability and such and it'd work well with this engine. Unfortunately the fleet customers are obsessed with fuel economy and want the governors set to 1800 RPM or so, too low to allow a Maxidyne to work with just 6 speeds. But the reality is that most trucks spend their driving time in the top 2 gears, and the wide ratio Maxitorques have only a 40% split between the top two gears, same as the close ration 9 and 10 speeds. Thus a good driver could keep the revs down for good economy in the top 2 gears while making only half as many shifts in the lower gears, where even Volvo has programmed their AMTs to skip gears for better economy.

A Maxidyne + 6 speed Maxitorque combination that saves weight, is easier on the driver, and lasts darn near forever... What's not to like? But it wasn't invented in Goteberg and Volvo has a competing AMT, so Volvo's gonna keep it a secret and hope it goes away...

[j hancock]

FWD, This would be a great story to send into for the Double Clutch magazine. It is certainly an interesting look at some important trucking history.

[theakerstwo]

I remember the first maxidnes and some of them did not have a muffler but did have cast into the exhaust side of the turbo words saying muffling device.I guess this was legal until they started the sound test on the road.

[mowerman]

cool story thanks for sharing,,,,i owned a maxidine ,,,didnt really care for it,,,but i admit it was a good idea,,,and alotta people did like them,,,drive a kenwoth now,,with a automatic,,,love it...no more shifting...woohoo.would prefer a mack,,,but least its not a volva.lol..bob

[Green Dash]

I remember the first maxidnes and some of them did not have a muffler but did have cast into the exhaust side of the turbo words saying muffling device.I guess this was legal until they started the sound test on the road.

In the early days of the Maxidyne, Overdrive did a comparison test with two F models pulling identical loads. one truck was equipped with a 250 Cummins and a 10 speed RR, the other with a 237 and a 5 speed. Natutrally the 237 walked away from the Cummins on the hills. Maybe Cummins should have brought a 335 to the party.

Anyway, they mention the lack of a muffler and said there was a sticker (or plate or something) that read "turbo muffler" that could be applied near the exhaust manifold that would satisfy the authorities. This is the first mention I've heard of this in a long time.

[Lmackattack]

I have seen turbos with a id tag stammped to it that would have "muffling device" noted in the specs of the turbo.

I thought some of the orders state laws may have even been written that turbochargers were infact considered a muffling device?

[mrsmackpaul]

WOW what a great read some one over that way should get an old Maxidyne load it up go out on the roads and do some time trials add it the story I think a lot of us might be surprised and would add a modern touch to a great read

I think a lot of people would be surprised how well these pull even now

even better do some trails against some modern trucks of the same class I think there would be some shocked faces even more so if you add the fuel figures

and that Maxidyne bark OH baby sounds so much better than some young boys cruising around with there DOOF DOOF music going

great read thanks for sharing

Paul

[mackdaddy]

There was a great story in Bulldog about a test Mack did with 3 F models. they were numbered 318, 335, and 325..........you know what they are. They did a run from Allentown to San Francisco and compared fuel, speed, and number of times shifted. the maxidyne did an amazing job winning in all 3 categories. they also have a video from a helicopter of a lot of the run. I will find the article and post it when I get a chance. I also have the promotional barrels that they compared with fuel usage. The blue was Mack white Cummins and red Detroit. I cannot remember the # of shifts but the Detroit was many X more than the Mack.

[Lmackattack]

There was a great story in Bulldog about a test Mack did with 3 F models. they were numbered 318, 335, and 325..........you know what they are. They did a run from Allentown to San Francisco and compared fuel, speed, and number of times shifted. the maxidyne did an amazing job winning in all 3 categories. they also have a video from a helicopter of a lot of the run. I will find the article and post it when I get a chance. I also have the promotional barrels that they compared with fuel usage. The blue was Mack white Cummins and red Detroit. I cannot remember the # of shifts but the Detroit was many X more than the Mack.

I recall seeing a write up on this. I thought it was in a old overdrive mag? Maybe they just were telling the same story that Mack published?

I think it had a brake down of the overall stats at the end and your right. the Mack powered tractor had something like 1/2 as many shifts as the other two trucks combined.

Would like to see that if you find it.

[Doug Maney]

Great story, I'm sure we can get something together for Double Clutch with some gathered up photos.

Mack was such an innovator in the industry. The talented staff was the reason for their success for decades.no other brand can claim industry changing innovations as Mack can.

I have a movie highlighting the Maxidyne comparison, that corresponds to the fuel barrel promotional item, it is a fantastic film.

[mrsmackpaul]

I have never seen or heard of this movie sounds like an interesting thing for me to watch and learn from Is there some were I can view this movie ???? or buy a DVD of it ??

Paul