1969 Mack R611T official thread

[Robo987]

Ok boys so here is the thread that will contain all future info and progress for my truck unless I have an actual question then I will ask those in the appropriate place. 

[Robo987]

Today I had a couple of goals to work on. 1) get the chassis/vin number, engine number and transmission info. 2)send the needed info to the Mack museum 3)clean up the interior 4) lube up the doors so they actually open and close. 

So the only thing I didn’t get done was finding the appropriate info to identify the transmission. I just ran out of time so I’ll have to cross that bridge later. But I did get the other info which is in the pics and you can also see in  the pics that the interior needs a few things. Surprisingly the floor is a lot more solid than it looks. When I originally found this truck it had two dead raccoons in it cause the window was cracked enough for them to get in. Today while cleaning the interior I found what was left of a third raccoon and baby raccoon remnants. 

[Robo987]

Before I cleaned up the floor. 

[Robo987]

After I cleaned up the floor

[Hans Remmers]

It looks a lot better.  I dont envy you cleaning out that mess.

[Robo987]

36 minutes ago, Hans Remmers said:

It looks a lot better.  I dont envy you cleaning out that mess.

Thanks! Yea it wasn’t fun but it needed to be done. Now I can move onto better things.

[mowerman]

Yes, it does look a lot better thanks for the post bob

[doubleclutchinweasel]

And, again, I am jealous!  Looking great!  And raccoon free!

I see there that you DO have the "C" version of the engine.  I have always liked that engine.  Pretty sure someone had to spec that as an option, because I think the "C" was not standard equipment.  But, I could be wrong.

Your truck may have the big canister type oil filter on the left side of the engine.  That oil filter cartridge is still available (I got some from CarQuest), as is the diamond cross-section "O-Ring" that seals the 2-piece canister.  That is a WGB Oil Clarifier duplex oil filter, with a "full flow" and a "bypass" section in the same filter.  Mack number is 236GB311A, IIRC, which might cross over to a Wix 51233.  Seal might be Wix 15114.  But, I am not sure.  The correct seal has a diamond shape, not a round shape.

Those are good filters, but the check valves can start to leak down, which can drail the filter into the pan and make the oil level look high.

There should be a number stamped on the driver's side of the transmission (see below).  But, it can be pretty hard to see.  Pretty sure you will have the TRD-722, based on what you have already shown us.  If it is the "L" version, it should have an aluminum main case, which would be pretty easy to check with a magnet.

 

[Robo987]

12 hours ago, doubleclutchinweasel said:

And, again, I am jealous!  Looking great!  And raccoon free!

I see there that you DO have the "C" version of the engine.  I have always liked that engine.  Pretty sure someone had to spec that as an option, because I think the "C" was not standard equipment.  But, I could be wrong.

Your truck may have the big canister type oil filter on the left side of the engine.  That oil filter cartridge is still available (I got some from CarQuest), as is the diamond cross-section "O-Ring" that seals the 2-piece canister.  That is a WGB Oil Clarifier duplex oil filter, with a "full flow" and a "bypass" section in the same filter.  Mack number is 236GB311A, IIRC, which might cross over to a Wix 51233.  Seal might be Wix 15114.  But, I am not sure.  The correct seal has a diamond shape, not a round shape.

Those are good filters, but the check valves can start to leak down, which can drail the filter into the pan and make the oil level look high.

There should be a number stamped on the driver's side of the transmission (see below).  But, it can be pretty hard to see.  Pretty sure you will have the TRD-722, based on what you have already shown us.  If it is the "L" version, it should have an aluminum main case, which would be pretty easy to check with a magnet.

 

Thanks! I’m pretty stoked that this thing is mine. It sat for awhile before I got the title and then got busy with life and then winter. So now that it is all over and I get to actually do stuff to it, I’m just still in shock about it. I’ve always wanted an old truck and to find one like this is just really a dream come true, and on top of that one of my three sons is actually just as excited about it as I am and loves to come help out and tinker with it. He is really hoping we can take it to some car shows this summer.

The transmission has quite a bit of build up on it. I cleaned some of it off and found some numbers but judging by your pic I wasn’t quite in the right spot. So thanks for the reference, I’ll keep looking. 

Below is a pic of the engine. Are you talking about the spot I circled? Is that a filter in there?

[mechohaulic]

NO  that circled item is OIL COOLER.  you do NOT have the canister filter.. the three white spin-ons will be your oil filters. great job on the   round one clean up.with the eviction of raccoons ; strong suggestion would be to spray fuel/ brake pedals  making it easier for future operation. check roller under brake pedal and plunger . raccoon pee can rust out a lot of parts that should move

[Robo987]

34 minutes ago, mechohaulic said:

NO  that circled item is OIL COOLER.  you do NOT have the canister filter.. the three white spin-ons will be your oil filters. great job on the   round one clean up.with the eviction of raccoons ; strong suggestion would be to spray fuel/ brake pedals  making it easier for future operation. check roller under brake pedal and plunger . raccoon pee can rust out a lot of parts that should move

Thanks for the clarification on the filters. I knew the 3 spin ons were oil filters but I wasn’t sure if there was something I didn’t know about. 

Now that we got the interior cleaned up the next step is to start fixing all the little things. There are quite a few things that don’t work quite like they need to. Then move onto the bigger things.

[doubleclutchinweasel]

10 hours ago, Robo987 said:

Thanks! I’m pretty stoked that this thing is mine. It sat for awhile before I got the title and then got busy with life and then winter. So now that it is all over and I get to actually do stuff to it, I’m just still in shock about it. I’ve always wanted an old truck and to find one like this is just really a dream come true, and on top of that one of my three sons is actually just as excited about it as I am and loves to come help out and tinker with it. He is really hoping we can take it to some car shows this summer.

The transmission has quite a bit of build up on it. I cleaned some of it off and found some numbers but judging by your pic I wasn’t quite in the right spot. So thanks for the reference, I’ll keep looking. 

Below is a pic of the engine. Are you talking about the spot I circled? Is that a filter in there?

You are way ahead of the game in that the filters have already been set us as spin-on.  That is much easier to work on.  You've really got a nice starting point there.

[Freightrain]

Wouldn't the three filters be an "ESI" option?  Std is 2 filters?

[terry]

Yeah the three filters is for the ESI engines, I have to guess somebody put the ESI filter stand on the engine🤷‍♀️. Terry

[Mark T]

3 hours ago, Freightrain said:

Wouldn't the three filters be an "ESI" option?  Std is 2 filters?

Larry.....STD is never a good option 

[terry]

That engine would originally had the big canister filter with the big two piece housing with the big o ring in the middle of the two pieces.    Terry

[doubleclutchinweasel]

That's what I was telling him about (like the one below).  Apparently, somebody has already swapped that one over to the later 3-filter spin-on setup.  Again, one more reason for me to be jealous!

Another thing, wasn't that truck originally equipped with a big, long generator?  Looked like a later style alternator in his picture, above.  But, I could be wrong about that.

Looks like a great truck!

[Freightrain]

I'd say it was converted to alternator.  Looks like it was done like I did mine.  Just a spacer pipe on the original bracket.

[Robo987]

On 5/2/2023 at 5:35 AM, doubleclutchinweasel said:

You are way ahead of the game in that the filters have already been set us as spin-on.  That is much easier to work on.  You've really got a nice starting point there.

Yea for sure! I would rather change spin ons than cartridges.

[Robo987]

On 5/2/2023 at 10:48 AM, Freightrain said:

Wouldn't the three filters be an "ESI" option?  Std is 2 filters?

What is an esi option?

[Robo987]

On 5/3/2023 at 5:25 AM, doubleclutchinweasel said:

That's what I was telling him about (like the one below).  Apparently, somebody has already swapped that one over to the later 3-filter spin-on setup.  Again, one more reason for me to be jealous!

Another thing, wasn't that truck originally equipped with a big, long generator?  Looked like a later style alternator in his picture, above.  But, I could be wrong about that.

Looks like a great truck!

I’m not sure if it originally came with that canister but if it did I’m glad that it has spin ons. That canister is hideous looking. Also I’m not sure about the alternator either. I do know it used to have 2 6v batteries and they switched it to one 12v. It also is a positive ground system.

[Robo987]

On 5/3/2023 at 5:57 AM, Freightrain said:

I'd say it was converted to alternator.  Looks like it was done like I did mine.  Just a spacer pipe on the original bracket.

Would that alternator have been a 6v alternator? If that was even a thing. Because it at one point had to 6v batteries and was converted over to one 12v.

[doubleclutchinweasel]

Positive ground was the standard thing back then.  Lots of them were later changed over to negative ground (mine was when I got it).

I also like that yours is the "early", light green interior.  Later ones were changed to a darker green color.  The light green like yours is like the one I rode in with my Dad back when I was a kid, and later drove myself.  Those green dash R's really have a special place in my memory.

Looking forward to seeing your progress.

[doubleclutchinweasel]

1 minute ago, Robo987 said:

Would that alternator have been a 6v alternator? If that was even a thing. Because it at one point had to 6v batteries and was converted over to one 12v.

They were 6V batteries in series, making it a 12V system.  2 6V batteries in series on each side (for 12V effective), and a set of those on each side in parallel for more reserve.

Some even had a relay to bridge the 12V batteries on each side to provide 24V to the starter.

[doubleclutchinweasel]

Just now, doubleclutchinweasel said:

They were 6V batteries in series, making it a 12V system.  2 6V batteries in series on each side (for 12V effective), and a set of those on each side in parallel for more reserve.

Some even had a relay to bridge the 12V batteries on each side to provide 24V to the starter.

So, it would have been a 12V alternator.