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According to Harvey Eckert's book "Mack Fire Trucks 1911-2005" all LS85's were equipped with the Thermodyne 707 gasoline engine. Send the chassis number to the Mack Museum with a request for all the information they have on the truck. You will find the chassis number affixed to the base of the officer's seat or attached to the plate behind the shift on an open cab model. If it is missing it is stamped into the frame adjacent to the left rear wheel. It should be "LS85-10.." They will send you the engine type and serial number along with any applicable manuals they have within a couple of months. They do not charge for the service, but a reasonable donation is appreciated to compensate for the cost of the research. If you still need to confirm the engine model right away, and you can not locate the SN on the block, I would call the museum to see what they could give you. Have you done a compression or leak-down test on the cylinders yet? If you are concerned about blow-by the first test is a compression test, followed by a leak-down test if the compression is marginal or varies greatly from cylinder to cylinder. Just remember: When you are troubleshooting an issue the big stuff jumps right out at you; otherwise its usually something minor that you have overlooked because you have convinced yourself that the worst case scenario is inevitable. In other words don't go looking for a blown cylinder because its probably a plugged hose. Everybody here loves to see pictures of anyones find.

I found 75A-1029. It is currently owned by the North Spartanburg (SC) VFD and is used as a public relations piece by them. I'm also looking for any other surviving Type 75A's. I was surprised to find out that Mack only produced 38 Type 75A's. In addition to the three ex-Richmond rigs the trucks delivered to Stamford, CT and Cooperstown NY are still at their original locations and maintained by the fire departments.

Mack starts with 1000, so 1286 would be the 286th H61T built. Great truck. My Dad's best friend ran an H model in the 60's that I used to hook rides in when he picked up his trailer in Boston. Until I started reading this board I had no idea how few of these were around.

Mine is 75A-1028, one of three delivered to the City of Richmond, VA. 75A-1029 is already on here and 75A-1027 is in a warehouse in Roanoke, VA. I'm looking for any other Type 75A's that are still out there. I know 75A-1014 is still in Stamford, CT where it is maintained by the FD that originally purchased it.

You are more patient than me. It really kills me to see old iron just rot away. If you intend to fix it at least get it out of the weather so it doesn't slowly disappear and if you don't intend to fix it sell it to someone who will give it the love it deserves. I just don't get it.

Here is a link to a headlight supplier. I bought a pair for my Type 75A and they are a perfect match to the originals.OTB Gear

Good news! The parts I ordered from NAPA fit. The springs have a larger diameter, but they are the same length and configuration as the one that was on it when I took it apart. Given that there is no way of knowing if the parts I removed are correct I'm comfortable with the substitutes. The PN from NAPA is 2314. It contains all of the hardware needed to do both front wheels and cost me $18.39. The PN from Wagner is H4200. It is the basic non-adjustable drum hardware kit from Wagner. Thanks for all the help. That's what makes this board great!

Thanks Bollweevil; I'll call them if I don't luck out around here. I went to another half dozen jobbers today as well as a truck repair shop and a John Deere dealer. As I expected, the further I got out into the country the more willing the counter guy was to try to match the part with their stock. No match found in stock, but at least they tried. The Deere store had a really close match in a spring that is used to pull a pulley in place on a lawn tractor. That may end up being my fall back. Unbeknownst to me a local truck dealer has opened a NAPA store and the counter guy was able to show me a picture of what looks like the correct spring so I took a chance and special ordered a set in from NC. I'll find out tomorrow if they are correct.

Yep, I'm certain they are still out there, it's just finding them that's proving problematic. Did you keep the part numbers for your A-40 by any chance? At least it would give me a starting point. My 75A used Dorman W8806 & W8807 wheel cylinders for the front axle if that helps. Thanks for the tips. Before I posted this I had made the rounds of the local parts stores without luck. Unfortunately, I am in an area that is rapidly urbanizing with most of the old time part's jobbers being bought out or going out of business. When they are bought out they seem to have cleaned out their inventory. I'm certain the original vendor was Wagner, or one of it's predecesor companies as all of the other parts are marked with Wagner PN's. I tried to locate a master Wagner catalog without success. And as you know very few on-line parts places even list Mack as a choice to search for parts on. I am going to take a road trip to Richmond to try some of the heavy truck type stores that are located there. If that doesn't work I'll head into the Shenandoah Valley where there are still a lot of old time farmers who have old stuff to keep on the road. If I can locate a PN than I can make some calls and save the fuel and time of trying to match the parts by sight.

God Bless Em! Makes me glad I fled Massachusetts for the slightly warmer clime of Virginia. I spoke to a lineman at a Cracker Barrel in Ashland, VA today who was on his way home from helping put the lines back in service in DC from last weeks storms. He said over 1000 workers were called in to help and he wouldn't be surprised that they don't make it back to NC before they have to go somewhere in the northeast to do the same. My prayers are with all of you folks who have been blasted by mother nature. Springs only 6 weeks away.

While doing the brakes on my 52 Type 75A I found a broken return spring on one of the front shoes. And of course none of the local parts houses are able to either match the un-broken spring or locate a part number. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks John; That's what I expected when I walked in. I bought an assortment at Harbor Freight for $5.00. Pretty sad commentary when you have to go to a place like that in lieu of finding it at a decent jobber.

Went to the local Never Any Parts Avaialble (NAPA) store the other day to get some copper washers for a brake job I'm doing on the 52. The counter guy says "We don't carry those unless they come with another part. Try Home Depot." Is it just my local store or are all of the old time part's stores gone? I know they all want make/model to look it up on the computer in lieu of actually knowing the vehicle and part, but I thought they would at least be able to match a copper washer. I used to use NAPA all the time because they could always seem to find parts for the old stuff, now they are just another Auto Zone or Advanced clone. Please tell me all NAPA stores are not this bad.

Actually mine mount over the hub. They use their inner edge to grip lugs cast into the hubs. That's why I'm trying to get an ID measurement of a B hubcap to see if they are the same. They are about 2" in depth at the edge and form a sphere-like shape into the center.

I assume it will not run on either ignition system. Am I correct? Have you tried starting it on Ignition 1 and/or Ignition 2 instead of Both? Is there any metalic sound coming from the timing gear cover? Can you hear the engine "lope" or backfire when you try to start it? Either indicate timing problems. Is the distributor rotor moving when you crank the engine over? If so align the mark on the dampner that is used to time the engine with the indicator on the housing and see if the rotor is pointing to the number 1 cylinder position of the distributor cap. If not, it may be 180 degrees off. In that case rotate the engine once to bring the timing mark back into position again. Re-check the rotor position. If the rotor does not point to the number one cylinder something has gone amiss with either the distributor drive or the timing gear. Can the distributor rotor be moved by hand? If so the distributor drive is probably broken. Pull the distributor to check it. Did you shut the engine down or did it quit? A "pop" could be caused by lack of fuel that resulted in a lean condition which in turn led to a "backfire" sound. Is there fuel at the carb.? It's really hard to troubleshoot a problem without a complete description of what happened and what it is doing now. However, I have found that most of the time the big expensive stuff jumps right out at you; otherwise it's usually something simple that you overlook because you are so sure that something major has gone wrong.

They are the classic Mack caps; chrome, round, about 8 7/8" ID, w/ the Mack scroll and the black painted circle around the circumfrence. I was refering to the modern B models; not the ones from the 30's. The pictures of the B model hub caps look identical to what are used on my A model.

Is the motor stuck?

Does anyone know if the B hubcaps will fit a 52 Type 75A? Would some kind soul who has a B model take the time to post the inside diameter of a B hubcap? Thanks in advance.

Yep, a place like that is priceless. I use Automotive Manufacturers in Richmond, VA. They are a really neat shop that also does a lot of work for car restorers around the country. And believe me the name is much more grand than the shop. It looks like it was pulled straight out of the 1950's. But, if you want a quality job at a good price on a generator, alternator, starter, brake or clutch lining re-build they are the place to go. 2400 N Lombardy St., Richmond, VA 23220 (804) 321-6861

Did you already do the B-75? Pictures please.

Yep; He was a salty old dog who just knew the world as he knew it was coming to an end. To him if this kept up any kid with a learner's permit would be able to replace him. Obviously, this was pre CDL days and before the boss replaced it with the Maxidyne he drove a B-81 quadra-plex with basically one arm after a nasty fall from a machine he was unloading left him with very limited use of his left arm. Now that's a driver!

Great find. When I ws in school a friend of mine who drove a lowboy happened to be in the parking lot dropping off a machine when I was leaving for the day. He had just gotten a new tractor with the brand new Maxidyne engine. I'll never forget his offer to let a 17 year old take it for a ride around the parking lot with the comment "Hell it's only got five speeds;anybody can drive it."

That's what the jobber said he would have to do from now on, but he also said it increases the cost. More handwork=more cost. That's why I posted this; just trying to save the hard working folks here some Washingtons.

When I went to pick up my shoes for my 52 Type 75A from the re-liner he told me that the front linings are no longer available and that I got the last four he could locate. So, if you have been putting off getting the brakes done on your A it may be time to get off the schnied and get them done while you have a chance the jobber still has a stock of the linings. The guy who owns the shop was quite upset because he said thse were a pretty common shoe and he was surprised they had stopped production. One other tidbit if you are in need of a master cylinder. Much to my surprise Amazon stocked the master cylinder at a really good price; $129.00 delivered.

Thanks for the reply. I sent you a private message to see what we can work out.