mrsmackpaul

Well Jo Jo That looks very maneuverable little forklift typ of deal All nice and sunny over there these days by the looks of it Nothing much shop talk wise to add from me Irrigation water is off for the year, but at over 300 bucks a acre foot there's no money to be made in putting out water so just tidied up the paddock with the mulching mower and hopefully get some rain over winter to grow some feed Still selling hay, one person bought all the hay a few months ago and of course the price has more than doubled since then, but as a older bloke once said to me "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush" Different looking sky out here heading into winter than possibly other parts of the world a couple of piccies 12 months apart Had a hunk cut out of my arm the other day with a chunk of skin cancer, apparently that's my white privilege coming through ha ha I guess it's one way to loose some weight, wpund is about 2 - 2 1/2 inches long Anyway, nothing of much to report Paul

Enjoy the show, I have been watching the magnificent 7 movies over the last week or so I still enjoy a good western Paul

A wire wheel on a grinder works well in taking the edge off a hose without damaging the fitting Paul

Yes you could easily pull the lid and remove the mechanical interlock But I would wonder why someone would want to do this as deep reduction is so low geared that these other gears are gunna be limited As I remember it the gear sets get thinner as we get up in the gears Maybe the torque through deep reduction is to great for these other gears Mack would of had a good reason for locking deep reduction with first gear only No matter, good luck with it all Paul

Old rubber can be a bugger to get off I just replace everything as I go, I figure it's been there nearly 45 years, it's best days are probably behind it Paul

I think the very first thing would be to determine were the metal came from in the oil and what causef it to fail If the diffs have 3 million miles I wouldn't class them as weak If they have only done heavy haulage with half a million miles on them, then they probably aren't If they pulled truck loads of sail boat fuel and have 100,000 miles then maybe they are weak If they were run low on oil or driven by a rough bastard they probably aren't weak With out knowing the history it's pretty hard to make a call Also if your rebuilding one center, I guess now is the ideal time to change the ratio to something to really suit what you want 3.87 would be no good for me, I wouldn't have the power to shift loads quick enough E9, even in it's smallest power size is still a lot more power than me Paul

Correct, so the wheel base needs to be similar as the wheel base is what the ackerman is set to Most common axles have interchangeable rods to allow for different wheel bases Paul

Spicer had a 12 speed on the first Kenworths sold in Australia Anyway you all can ask Swishman about these From the HCVC forum https://www.hcvc.com.au/forum/truck_Chat/2745-qustion-for-swishy-re-spicer-8125-12-speed The ones Geoff is talking about I believe were called a "The Nicer Spicer" 4 shifts 4 clicks for 20 speeds I could find a old add possibly Paul

That's a bugger about the stroke I'm thinking a rubbish truck, maybe you blokes call them garbage truck Most of these types of trucks had automatic transmission Would be a excellent source of parts for the conversion You will be surprised at just what bits and bots are gunna be needed Paul

Enjoy the drive and I hope it all goes well Paul

Looking good Frank

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/trucks/other/listing/5312594952 Paul

It can't be worn the 80's was only like yesterday wasn't it ???? Oh hang on, were did the years go, I swear I only blinked and "POOF" it was a whole new century Probably get a Rockwell or some modern front axle is the easiest way Paul

So some more did you know ? “The torch of liberty once burned with real fire—and it nearly didn’t survive the 1980s.” In 1985, a lone construction worker stood high above New York Harbor, preparing to remove one of America’s most enduring icons: the original torch of the Statue of Liberty. Ravaged by time, weather, and a series of misguided repairs, the torch that had crowned the statue since 1886 was being replaced. This wasn’t just a structural upgrade—it marked the quiet end of a chapter in American history. Originally crafted by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the torch once glowed with real fire, a beacon of hope to millions arriving at Ellis Island. But after nearly a century, leaks and corrosion had left it beyond repair. Its removal stirred a mix of reverence and regret. Was this a step forward, or the loss of a living artifact? Before its retirement to the newly built Statue of Liberty Museum, the original torch embarked on a farewell tour across the country. Americans from coast to coast stood face to face with the weathered flame that had once lit the gateway to their dreams. Today, a gleaming, gilded torch shines from Liberty’s hand. Yet it’s the old one—battered, dimmed, and preserved—that continues to speak of resilience, transformation, and the ever-evolving meaning of freedom. Paul

There is a few threads from years ago that exporled this very question Paul

We have rubber conveyor belt and a mud flap hanging on the rear on a lot of drive tyres and road train dollies etc out here So a fella I hauled sugar cane for had this style on his trucks But his were removable and were rolled up and the brackets and supports lifted out once we were hauling cane When running about with no bins on we were meant to put them in I'm thinking you could easily make something like this I reckon the brackets on the removable ones were only 3/4 box or maybe smaller and just dropped into slightly bigger box section on the chassis They wound up in a holder with a ratchet wheel on the end, bit like a window blind Very light rubber belt It was a really neat deal and the whole lot got stowed behind the seat I think with a little though you could make a set of mud flaps that quickly lift out if you wanted as well Paul

My Pa (my grandfather), the very person to blame for condition about trucks and Mack trucks in particular Anyway, he had lot's and lot's of photos Most of them on slides My brother has them now days, we keep on talking about having a slide night Pa travelled all over Australia in the 60's through until his passing in the 90's Anyway, we aren't getting any younger so I best put a rocket up our clackers before we get to old And Brocky, you might be surprised just how much enjoyment people get from the photos and the stories behind them These forums would be pretty dull if there was no photos and no story behind the photos Paul

Yes Harry, I have heard similar about these in Australia Only heard about them, on this forum they have been mentioned as well, while still in the states And Brocky you are 100% correct, I think it maybe different than we think though as the same motor in a tractor has a lot lower rating than it does in a truck I'm thinking farm tractors, especially broad acre farming types are loaded up with the scarifier in the dirt and they stay that way for many hours, full power the whole time Paul

Yeah Bob, they gave it a hard time and turned a neat truck into a mess pretty quick Surprised at how well it handled Even in peoples front and back yards ha ha Paul

I agree Bob But the silly thing is we will end up with less photos as we never develop them past the bloody phone If we pop our clogs tomorrow, will someone else be able to get them off our phones Paul

Oh and just for the sake of it, was out delivering hay in the little Isuzu yesterday with a couple of helpers Mums old Kelpie, gone 16 now and Miss Molly the border collie, both fighting over who gets the window seat and who cuddles me Life is better with dogs Life is also a bit stinky with dogs as well, phew !!! Gunna be -1°C tonight, cold enough for me and winter starts in less than 2 weeks -4° C is the coldest I have ever seen Princess is excited as it means she can pick the pumpkins, need a good frost on them to finish them and seal them up for winter, Australians eat a lot of pumkins Paul

Sorry about that Movie is 2001 "Bandits" See of trailer works on the link,no real action there But if you can find it to watch Bob, I reckon the Big Bang will get the ass for a couple of hours It's quite funny And failing that try finding "Paper Back Hero" Australian movie about a bloke that drives a R model road train a bit,a bit of a romantic comedy type of deal, also good for a laugh Paul

V8 Perkins in some Massey Ferguson tractors, headers (or combines as you lot call them), sugar cane harvesters IH had V8s in 2WD tractors and their bigger rebadged Steigers Mercedes-Benz V8's were also in sugar cane harvestes And I'm sure the list goes on Paul

Have never seen one with grease and a extra seal, learning things every day Paul

Finally found out what happened to the front of the DM Watch the first 10 minutes of this Dunno how it ends as I had to deliver some hay And probably more entertaining than the Big Bang TV show Paul