doubleclutchinweasel

Drill jig with 1/2-13 tap bushing.

Drill jig with 27/64" bushing.

3/16" pilot hole.

Drill jig in place with 3/16 bushing

Range selector valve is leaking. Old "bat handle" knob is worn through, and too tall. Looks like something off one of Ed Roth's cartoon cars from the '60s! The 5/8-11 to 1/2-13 adapter they used adds another inch or so to it.

Picked up a new-style Eaton-Fuller knob, with built-in range valve.

Now, I'm making a drill jig to mount on top of the stick (after I cut it off) to allow precise drilling & tapping of the stick. I'm gonna cut the stick off, and drill & tap it to the 1/2-13 thread size on the new knob. Then, I'll put a long grade 8 set screw in the hole, and thread the knob on. Rather than screw the knob on and use jam nuts to lock it in place, I will use a washer of correct thickness to "index" the knob on the stick. That will be a little more work, but it will be VERY clean.

I looked at the actual 15-speed knob. But, according to Fuller, you have to change the cover on the deep reduction slave valve on the transmission to make it work. Must be a little different logic to the air circuit. No matter. The hi-lo range is the important one to me. And, it is supposed to require no modifications.

As soon as I get the various bits and pieces made, I'll try to document the whole process in pictures. I know, I suck at that! Always run short of time and forget to take the pictures! I'll try to do better on this one, Vinny!

More pics to follow (we hope!)...

Very funny.

Kent

i thought it was funny . isnt that what Burt Reynolds said in the Bandit? '' i thought it was funny''

Next time, make the cake offset to balance it out!

"I kid because I care."

(unknown)

Kent

Here's an older one, and one the guys put on my 30-year job anniversary cake! I think I'm getting old!

Now it's starting to look right!

Sweet!!! We need pictures of the whole truck Kent!!!!

Superdog is selling me a "K". So, maybe I will have a "MACK", instead of a "MAC", in a few days!

Had to make new gaskets for the thermostat and thermostat housing Friday. The silly thing had sprung a leak! Got them cut out and put in, though. And, I got the numbers off the thermostat, so I can find the right one whenever I need to. I hate having to do "repair" work along with the "restoration" work. Such is life...

Kent

Ta-da!

I think this is what you are talking about.

Tahnks, Vinny,

Kent

Yea, round flat piece of metal. Tomarrow, if I remember I'll try to look for it and get a picture of it for you.

I found some round "washers" off of something (shipping brackets off a washing machine, I think) in the garage. They were about 1/8" or 5/32" thick. Seemed to work prety well.

Dog is sitting happily on the hood now. Superdog is going to send me a "K" for the front of the hood.

Starting to look like a Mack...and the hood is a HECK of a lot easier to open!

Kent

Got the dog and base today. Looks practically new. Will definitely be the shiniest thing on the old truck!

On the underside of the hood, where the dog attachment bolts pass through, there is a metal re-inforcement "strap" to protect the fiberglass. There obviously used to be another "backing plate" of some kind on top of that, as there is a distinctive imprint in the paint. The imprint appears to be about the same 4-1/4" diameter as the base under the dog.

Does anybody have one (R, U, DM) sitting in their yard and can tell me what this missing plate looked like? Is it just a flat plate? If so, what thickness. Or, is it some sort of stamped shape?

Thanks, everybody!

Kent

Well, the dog and base may have evaporated. Had one of my friends who's an eBay regular bid on one for me. Got it for a reasonable price. Estimated delivery was yesterday. No dog today. EBay has no tracking data for it yet. No response from seller yet, either.

Not sure if he's off doing the Thanksgiving thing, didn't like the price he got (HE set the reserve, not me), or what.

Will give it another day or two, then get pissed-off.

This is just one of the reasons I hate dealing with eBay. While most sellers are very responsive, some just plain suck.

I can't believe nobody on here has any parts I could buy!

Kent

I had a R611T, I have the new dog and base, script for both sides, I believe the set of letter for the front,1/2 dogs and a set of air horns for that year, they are hooked together, one maybe shorter then the other, can't remember,chrome, all the stuff is Mack and new if you ever get around to buying the finish product. I also have a nice hood, same era. 65 to 71 or so, good shape. I would like to see the hood go before snow.Let me know when the day comes, I'll go dig in the shed.

So, you wanna part with any of it? Prices?

Mine is a '70, & it has the small. Maybe changed when the cab changed (72-ish)?

My letters are almost dead on 2" tall. Maybe somebody else knows the size of the larger ones.

Anybody got any small letters???!!!!!!

Kent

Dog on the way. Anybody ever find a spare "K" in their stuff?

Kent

Nope, always fly solo when working for the most part. Unless I need a specific set of hands to carry/hold something. Heck I did my whole stretch/bunk project all by myself. No extra hands at all(beside the bobcat to lift the bunk on). I do work at a fast pace. Just my nature. I like to just get it done. Having the right tools helps too.

Using my "new" 3/4" impact, it only takes a few moments to get a wheel on straight. By hand/breaker bar it took alot longer.

I used no impact tools. That's some difference. Also, I had a lot of cleaning to do. Still, you be smoking'!

Kent

Mine must of had original wear rings, as they were shrunk on, but still o-ringed. There was no index hole to keep it from spinning. The replacement Stemco version needed a small hole drilled in the spindle to index it.

Mine had the seal ring slipped-on, with an o-ring seal, and an index pin. The two sides were different. One had a captive o-ring in a groove in the seal ring. One had a recess in the seal ring which located the o-ring. Must have been replaced at different times.

Took the knuckles to work today and used the arbor press to make the in-and-out a little easier. Also cleaned on them some.

I got everything back together this evening. Worked on it about 4 hours yesterday, and about 10 today. So busy I forgot to take pictures! Since you did yours so much faster, you must be a lot better mechanic than I am! Either that, or you had all the right tools and parts. My wife said you may have also had a pit crew! Took me the better part of an hour to indicate the wheels in and get them torqued-down nice and straight.

Drove it down the road. Much less wallowing and wobbling in the front end. Steering noticeably tighter. Got back home and topped-off the oil levels in the hubs by flashlight.

Have a hood ornament coming. Should be here next week. That may be all for this winter. Well, maybe replace the LQ-2 valve for the front brakes (leaks a little). But, that's not too bad.

More to come...

Kent

Thanks everybody. I took the tires & wheels off. Drained the oil-filled hubs. Took off the nuts & washers. Pulled the outer bearings out. Backed off the brakes. Pulled the hubs off. The wear rings came out with them. They are o-ringed to the spindles, not pressed on. Took the backing plates off.

I need to get the seal rings out of the seals. They are indexed by a pin, so I will need to install them first before the hubs go back on.

Tomorrow I'll start taking the knuckles apart.

Wish me luck!

Kent

Did my FA-517 last year...looks like the same style and parts as my kit...I "borrowed" some large bushing drivers from work and pounded the new seals in...the hardest part of the job by far was seperating the steering arm joint to get the knuckle off!! Other than that, the job went pretty good...I took the tire/rim off seperately as I neede to blast and paint all of the parts.

Did yours use the needle bearing on the top side?

Yours have brakes on this axle?

Kent

Did mine way back when

Easiest king pin job ever. I was used to Ford pickup twin I beams and beat'n my brains out. I had less then 3 hrs on getting truck totally dismantled(starting at ground zero). If I recall the passenger side was the bad one. It was just the roller bearing, no damage to the spindle itself.

So, I ordered the kingpin/bushing set this morning. Should have it this week some time...maybe in time to work on it this weekend.

I was debating whether to pull the wheel/tire/hub off as a single unit, or to take the wheel/tire off first. Any advice?

I'm assuming you put new seals in the hubs, while you had them out?

Also, did you "drive" your bushings/seals in & out? Or did you have access to an arbor press?

And, in general, anything you might remember about this, and would be willing to share, would be much appreciated.

I hope to have some pictures to post, once I get it all torn down.

I'm just hoping and praying the knuckles are good, once i get them stripped down. I'm due for SOMETHING to go easy on this thing!

Kent

at any given time there are 20 + Bulldogs with R model bases on Ebay,just search "Mack bulldog ornament" , usually a Mack script or 2 on there as well.I'll see if I can find you a small K,I've got several sets, and I'm sure I have some extra individual letters.

Ever find out if you had any letters or other bits and pieces?

Kent

at any given time there are 20 + Bulldogs with R model bases on Ebay,just search "Mack bulldog ornament" , usually a Mack script or 2 on there as well.I'll see if I can find you a small K,I've got several sets, and I'm sure I have some extra individual letters.

Cool. Let me know what you find.

I was just looking on eBay and CraigsList for some of the other stuff. Also thought I might want to check the "For Sale" stuff here (Duh!).

Thanks,

Kent