paulbrook

Mike best wishes to you from across the pond. Some tasty items there. I was particularly smitten by the LFT - I have a LF SW with the same cab (or rather I would have the same cab if my cab had survived). If you wanted to part the truck out and let me have the cab then I am sure that we can come to a decent arrangement!! Anyway, as I say, the very best wishes to you.

Nice AC!! Over here in the UK we have done quite a bit with the 3d scanning and either printing or CNC pattern making; it is particularly good for the smaller and more complex parts. I am soon to make a hood (and a cab) for my AC - other than the louvres it is pretty straightforward although the double folded seams might require a bit of practice. It will probably not be cost effective to make them for customers in the US but I will be making the timber jig to form it on so the least I can do is to post some pictures here once I start! Paul www.rustytrucks.com

Unless you can really work the truck under load there is little more that is worth doing to the motor before you pull it to get at the frame. Your pressures seem to be quite good and the smoke issue is entirely natural for motors of this age. Take lots of pictures and tape up any uncoupled pipes and unions. Maybe even use colored tape to distinguish which is which. The motor will need a good service - but you can do that when it is back in. Trust your instincts - and good luck!

I already have all the AC ones I need (although I made the mistake of asking for the drawings for the shutters which run to many pages!) so I will be doing the same for the cab drawings for the LF. The Mack museum is indeed a remarkable organisation staffed by some excellent folks. Anyway I will get some pictures up in the next day or so! In the meantime has anyone got any 1940s gauges (speedo etc)?

I wish my cab looked like that... I have just bought a 1949 LFSW with that cab from stephenellis (who has posted lots on here). It is a big ask I know but I would really value anything you can help mw with, dimensions, pictures etc. The cab is in poor shape particularly the firewall and dash. Are they common to other types? As soon as I can I will post up spome more pics to follow on from stephens excellent work. As you can imagine this is a rare truck to begin with; over here in the united Kingdom it is even scarcer so parts are very difficult to get/ I am a professional vehicle restorer though (www.rustytrucks.com) so I am no stranger to fabricating parts from scratch. That said I really need to get the AC done first....

The guy I checked out was Blackpool too - although this time he was called Evans. Watch out for any number that starts "0702". Have a look at this link - its about printing equipment but the scam is the same: http://www.met.police.uk/fraudalert/printing_machine.htm

As I am in England I recently checked out a name and address for a fellow AC restorer who had been offered parts. As the given address was just down the road from me I offered to drive down, pay cash and pick the parts up. Guess what? The seller was really busy all of a sudden and could not meet me in person. It was yet anothere scam, luckily this time it was avoided. But heres the thing. If you are offered Mack parts from anyone in Great Britain be very very wary, as they are very rare here in any event . And if you need anyone checking out - then contact me and I would be glad to do what I can to assist!

Thanks Chevy. I have the remains of my hood and as you say no top hatch and 10 louvres. Pictures, measurements or anything related is most apreciated!

Got the book and it is helpful - but not detailed enough for a full sized replica which I want to be virtually perfect.

Thanks folks - especially you Mike. Careful with the black stuff.....!

Thanks for that - I have already got the build sheet for mine and some other information so I will give them a go to see if they have some works drawings.

Having had no luck finding a good quality hood for my 1929 AC dump (www.rustytrucks.com) I am going to make one. Does anyone have some works drawings? If not is there anyone out there who would be happy to measure and photograph one for me so I get it just right??? I have the old one as a pattern but it is not 100% complete (how did the front fasten down for instance? What held it up when it was open??) I cant look at one over in UK - there simply dont exist here (except for mine....) Many thanks!

Hi Steve Happy New Year! Glad yo like the progress- it's slow but steady. As far as the chassis was concerned I blasted it with a water/grit system which is better than grit alone for getting the sticky tar/oil/grease residu off - plus it is a lot less dusty. Downside is the dreaded water, and even though the metal is clean it very quickly gets a very light film of surface corrosion on it. I killed that off with some stuff called Fertan, which not only neutralises any corrosion but soaks into all the nooks and crannies and kills the rust there too (great for chassis plates and seams etc). I put that on with a garden spray, then pressure washed the whole plot again (no rust this time because the Fertan keeps working)before spraying it with 4 coats of resin-based primer. There is still quite a bit of tidying up to do on the chassis (a couple of cracks to weld up, a spring clp or two and some tidying here and there)but that will be done pretty quick once I get around to it. I would normally put a coat of gloss paint on even before finishing things off because primer holds damp and can be troublesome if left un-top coated for a long time (especially over an English winter!) but the chassis is in a shed right now so I have not bothered (also I am curious to see how well the Fertan copes - I have used it on small parts before but never on a whole truck) The block is being sleeved back to standard - as you will have seen it was in bad shape. I am doing another experiment here too, normally a sleeve gets pressed in hard, but I am going to use a less tight fit and ceramic paste to keep the stresses in the block down. I have also got back the first of the heads from the specialist welders (the one that used to have the big hole in it) and will post pictures soon - they have done an amazing job and I am really pleased. So although it is bad right now, I am very confident that it will be in good shape and barking very soon! All the best, Paul

Hi folks May I just take this opportunity to wish you all the very best of fortunes in 2010. Whoever you are, and whatever you are up to I hope that the coming year is one to remember (in a good way!) In the meantime I am plugging away with the restoration of the old Bulldog - and I have posted some pictures of the engine stripdown on the website www.rustytrucks.com - just follow the "what's New" link on the homepage. In the meantime if anyone out there has a set of standard AC pistons (1929 is the build year) and valves I would be very keen indeed to make contact. If I cannot find some (and I am sure there are some out there somewhere) then I will have to have some made (gulp....) If I do have some made, does anyone else want a set? (as it will be more cost effective to make a whole bunch as it will be to make just one trucks worth) Anyway, enjoy the pics and have a great New Year!

Any chance of an update - I am still very interested!

I am interested! I have sent you a PM. Look forward io hearing from you. Paul

Hi one and all I have just posted the latest progress report and pictures relating to the restoration of my old chain-drive. Take a look by following the "What's New" link from my hobby website at http://rustytrucks.tripod.com/ I am still trying to locate parts such as cylinder heads, a water pump, the levers from on the steering wheel and wheels and tyres (40x8 on Budd type 10 stud rims) so if anyone can help I would love to hear from them. Many thanks.

Hi folks Latest report on the AC is here: http://rustytrucks.tripod.com/id16.html and the latest photos are here: http://s484.photobucket.com/albums/rr206/R...k%20Jan%202009/ I did not bother with any photos of the half dustbin full of rust, rubbish and sundry bits of stone and rubble that used to be part of the landscape of the USA.....! Keep watching!

Hey Steve - thanks for the vote of confidence! I am not sure about being described as elite though. Crazy perhaps.... That said, the Mack is not as crazy as it first seems. OK, I did buy it unseen, but there were enough photographs to suggest that the main parts were present and correct. Shipping it was made a whole lot easier because it was made to fit into a container (although quite what I would have done if this were not possible I am not sure...) Above all, though, I knew that that the restoration was going to be possible because it was a Mack. My family have relied on American Iron from the early 1930's (I still have the Allis Chalmers Model U tractor that my Grandfather bought in 1937 and it is still capable of doing a days work and even the Fire Truck that you will have seen on the website is all Chrysler running gear). But the Mack is something special; historically important, quire rare, spectacularly well engineered and very simple - no complicated bodywork, no electrics let alone electronics, and solidly engineered to last a lifetime and then some. I know for sure that even the most moth-eaten bolt will undo to reveal a near-perfect thread, such is the quality of the engineering. So keep watching that website and thanks once again for the comments! Paul

Thanks for the heads-up - I am not at all surprised that parts are tricky to come by, and fully expect to have to mend, make, cast and machine all manner of things! That said, even pictures and measurements are helpful. I have put the list of what I think I need in the wanted section, but will also send you a pm with the items on. Again, many thanks for your response.

I have posted a couple of times and got some helpful replies so lets hope this is as successful! I have now started work on the old 1929 AC dump that I bought on EBay (!) last year and shipped over to England. It is plenty of work but I thought that folks might be interested in the progress I make getting it back into shape and so I have set up a small hobby website with links to plenty of photographs. The URL is http://rustytrucks.tripod.com/ which you may have to cut and paste becasue it is a slippery little customer - remember the http:// and don't add any www! (I am working on that). I have also posted a few pictures in the gallery section of Bigmacktrucks.com I have had some help already, particularly from the Mack museum, and there is plenty I can be getting on with, but there are a number of parts that I know I will be needing before too long (wheels, tires, magneto, water pump, steering wheel and controls) but I will put a proper ad in the relevant section. In the meantime all help and encouragement will be gratefully received! I am particularly keen on sourcing better wheels (10 stud Budd-type 24 inch rims with 2 hand holes - I have seen lots of 1920s and 30s vehicles with similar, particularly fire trucks and buses) as the ones it is one are very badly rusted. But, as I say, I will post a wanted ad. I would also be very keen to make contact with other AC owners to exchange information and so that they can give me guidance and inspiration! In the meantime have a great 2009 everyone.

Greetings one and all - I finally managed to get the old AC I bought in NY back in April back to UK. It is in a bit of a state but I am really pleased and it will be a great project. If anyone is interested I have set up a small website where I have put details of the Bulldog as well as details of the old Dodge Fire Truck I am working on. The site is at http://rustytrucks.tripod.com/ Good luck to one and all.