doubleclutchinweasel

...not all trucks have clutch brakes...

Don't know about your specific application. But, Euclid has a really good catalog you can download with lots of details about different rod ends & such.

Scribing the line around the tires is key to a home-made alignment. The measuring is the interesting part! Don't know about your truck, but on mine, there is an oil pan right where you need to take the rear measurement! Plans involve a tape measure, a 2X4, & a framing square...

So.... Looks like the (bent) cross tube and tie rod ends (sockets) on my R are NOT the originals. Seems the original had a male-threaded tube with the clamp bolts built in to the ends. I remember those...very robust. Mine is bent right through the threaded portion on one end, so I can't change that end or even make a fine adjustment to the toe. The original assembly has been superceded with the more traditional female-threaded tube I have on there now. But, the current assembly uses the odd-ball, unique-to-Mack setup of 2 RH threaded ends (one coarse and one fine). The cross tube is available, but expensive...as is that one odd-ball, fine-threaded end. So, I am (once again) pursuing the "standard parts" solution. I have a guy ordering a Triangle Suspensions (Flagg) cross tube. He has standard ends in stock. The tube is the same diameter (2") as the current one, and is about 1/4 - 1/2" longer than mine. Assuming he can screw the ends in far ehough to get the right center-to-center distance, i should be in business. The total setup will cost me less than the Mack tube alone. And, I'll have "industry standard" sockets (one LH, one RH) on both ends. Yay! Hopefully, he'll have the parts in his hands on Monday. If the measurements look good, maybe I can have them in mine by the end on next week. I have some ideas on a do-it-yourself toe-in gauge. Very acurate, and not too difficult to build. I like do-it-yourself stuff! More to come...

My dad gave me 2 excellent pieces of advice when I was just learning to drive a truck. 1. Stay ahead of the truck, and... 2. Keep it in a gear where it can get out of its own way. It was amazing how few times you had to brake hard if you followed those 2 suggestions. His point was to be aware of what was going to happen, and get the truck into the appropriate gear, before it became an issue. He used very little brake. But, I'm sure you'll get as many points of view as there are drivers.

The volt meter on my '70 R600 had only 1 terminal, & was grounded through the case. Moving the wire would cause a dead short. I just got a universal volt meter with 2 terminals, & wired it to the correct one.

I still like the C version of the Thermodyne!

First thing I had to fix on my R was a LF spring with 2 broken leaves. Replaced 3. Was during that time I was fighting a pinched nerve in my neck. S.O.B.s are heavy! I'll give you that!

Well... That makes just a whole lot of sense. Glad you found it. Still curious that it was intermittent...

Auto..... Auto...... Auto-what-ic???

Here are a couple of shots of the model and serial numbers on the gear case of an older 6-cylinder. See if you can get these numbers, as they will tell you more than anything else. This one says "T673C..." which makes it an ENDT-673-C.

Measured some on the water pump today. Looks like about 6" from housing to fan, & about 1" from fan back to end of shaft. So, that's about 5" effective, which makes it a "short shaft" unit, I believe. A "long shaft" would be about 5-1/2" long. Most literature suggests a 316GC184 pump. Looks like that may be correct.

I think mine may have been opened up also, now that you mention it. The heads almost touch! Takes an open end or a crows foot to tighten them...

Heli-Coils? Maybe?

We will talk! Many thanks!

New ones are $70-90 now. Would like to just have a decent used one for now.

Anybody got a good battery box cover I can put on my R600? I don't use the RH box, but would sure like to cover up the box simply for aesthetics! Doesn't matter if the latch is good or not. I will fab something. Just need a decent top.

That's the route I plotted, too. Needs every bit of 97-98". Must be the taller hood of the R model!

Well, I measured the current tach cable sheath. I know it's not "virgin", since the end has been spliced. It's about 97-98" long. So, either the build sheet doesn't actually say 88, or I misunderstood it! Anyway, I don't see how the cable could possibly reach if it was 88" long. So, maybe I need a 97-100" cable. I think there is a 54MT314DP100 listed. 100" long, I believe. Now, if I can just find a suitable tach, maybe I can tell how fast the old-timer is spinning!

What I like about a rat rod is that all the effort goes into functionality, not into appearance. I once read that, "Anyone can restore one; it takes a real man to cut one up." That being said, I can't see cutting up a classic Mack. There just aren't enough of them left.

Sounds like those may be more "universal" than the 313s. By the way, does anybody have a functional "old" tach? I think it may be a 17MT379. It's the old one with the "counterweight" on the bottom end of the needle. Mine has a broken needle! Found some on eBay. Never know 'bout those guys!

Okay! So the cable comes with different tips, and you pick the one you need? That makes a little more sense. And, yes, the drive tip is in pretty good shape. By the way, is there any significance to the 54MT314 series compared to the 54MT313 series cables? I noticed the 313 is used on the speedometer. Is the 314 series the interchangeable tip type? No biggie, just curious!

I know this has come up before, but I'm still unclear about it. So, 'xplain it to me! And, as always, pictures help. Need a tach cable. May need a tach too, but that's another discussion. The build sheet calls for, I believe, a 54MT314AP88 cable. The one on it now is longer than the 88" implied by that number, and the engine end has been spliced for some reason. Maybe to adapt the end? Maybe something to do with the drive pin? Numbers available now are 54MT314DP88/94/108, etc..., suggesting revisions have been made. This number series shows up as a "speedometer" cable in several places. Are the tachometer cables standard speedometer cables? And, if they are, how does one deal with the odd-ball drive gizmo on the engine end (see pics)? I don't believe a standard square speedometer cable can stick into this thing and still thread on...too long, I would think. Or, is it? That gizmo sticks up quite a ways from the drive gear. Do you stick the cable into it and stake it? Or, would the end, shown below, interfere with the sheath? Please help!

Zip ties? Zip ties are good, m'kay?

Niiiccceee!!!