davehummell

The 343 was used in the 988 loader, 983 track loader, 16 grader, 657 pan, first 35 ton end dump I can't remember the number I worked on all of them at one time or another was a cat mechanic for Cleveland Brothers back in the early 70's work on a lot of 1693's and 3406's and the rest of the on road engines. I liked to work on the 1693 it was my favorite engine the v-8 double overhead cam engine wasn't very good but they did better with the 3408

We had an old Grove deck crane at Cleveland Brothers when I started in 73 it had a ford six cylinder gas engine after a few years they brought in a new Grove 17 ton with a 3208 engine it was a bit bigger and a little nicer to operate.

Larry I would use cardboard or I had a thin sheet of masonite that I would set against the radiator core. I remember changing Cummins and Mack water pumps on the side of the interstate more than I care to remember.

A couple of years ago the three of us went up to the Brockway Museum it was very nice I ask about the show and said maybe I would come up with my B model and the lady looked at me like I killed someone she said we don't want your truck up here don't show up with it. I guess they have a strong opinion about Brockway's I drove a triaxle Brock with a 318 dd and a 13 speed hauled a lot of stone with the truck.

I think he would make a good president better for our country than some we already had to put up with

When I was still working on trucks for a living I was spoiled the guys at Cool brothers were there for me 5 and 6 days a week and Jeff had the exhaust gaskets for my set aside even after Cooks quite selling mack parts.

Larry I have bought parts off Kevin went up to his garage in NY. I see him at Gerhart's and sometimes at Harford truck show he has a cool bus he built and I was looking at a John deere tractor he was mounting a Detroit v-8 or a v-12 in it for a pulling tractor.

Larry I have never fully recovered from the day a guy pulled out in front of me on my motorcycle I can't lay down on a creeper I get dizzy so bad I feel bad for days and I lost some use of my left arm the shoulder never healed right I had a hole in my scull and bleeding on my brain I layed in intensive care for two weeks. Spent two weeks in physical therapy.

I needed a new floor jack and bought the Snap-On look alike from Harbor freight so far I am satisfied with the jack. I think it was about $200.00. I don't have many things from there but last time I was in the store it looked like they had some better quality items for sale.

I ran those teflon plates for years on two tractor trailers they didn't unhook only for servicing the tractors. I felt that it was a good setup and they helped save the trailer and the fifth wheels. the next fleet I took care of the head driver said they don't work I replaced fifth wheels on all of the trucks and built new king pin plates and new kingpins on four or five trailers.

I'm putting my B up for sale it has a 1980 260hp. Mack engine, double over triplex, Freightliner air ride 373 rear, air seat, six aluminum 22,5 rims with very good tires, power steering, aluminum 70 gallon fuel tank and aluminum battery and tool boxes, 10 ft flatbed with headboard, air dryer, a dry type air cleaner from Watts, reupholstered passenger seat and a Mack green interior with the right floormat and headliner with Sunvisor, pyrometer for turbo, working two stage jake it will see 80 plus on an interstate in overdrive, no rust on cab, windows crank up and down, heater works good, I was a Mack mechanic so I built it to fit me I did all the work in my machine shop. As it sets I have antique tags and insurance on it. Northeast Pa. near Wilkes-Barre

I looked at that engine Mack had on display at their museum and my thought was they should have put the engine in production it would have been a vast improvement over the low hp engines they ran in the trucks I ran back in the day the 237's were everywhere slow but you got there eventually.

Henry Ford was wrong on his thinking the Model A was an improvement. I have drove a model T and it is fun but I own a 31 Model A coupe and I will put over a hundred miles on a Sunday drive I wouldn't do that with the T I drove. But for real fun I built a 32 ford pickup with a 302 ford v-8 that is zippy.

How about Perfect Seal ring company out of Nevada had some rings for my old 673

I have done up god knows how many deer helped do up cows and pigs' chickens, rabbits, game birds, at my age I am happy to stop over to an old friend and buy meat out of his store. I haven't hunted in quite a few years, and I don't help out at the friend's farm anymore.

I used to work on a d-9 for the west side landfill and I was in there working on it on the way out they had a lineup of lawnmowers and such for sale and I bought a 66 international pickup for 150.00 out of that line up, I drove it for years everyone always made fun that I bought the truck in the dump.

I worked at a trash transfer station before I retired it was amazing the stuff I drug home that someone would throw out I was good at crawling in the dumpsters to check out the contents about everyone that worked there was looking for goodies every day. I was in the center running the cat loader loading trailers and I had a guy back in to dump his load said he worked here many years ago and he was returning stuff he drug home back then was carping about paying to dump the stuff he drug home for free.

My B would do 50 and 52 down hill not safe on the highways last time I came up from Gerharts it worried me on 81. I installed a 373 air ride rear out of a freightliner and I found a double over triplex I have a very good setup for traveling on highways and it doesn't hurt having the 260 hp Mack engine and jake I installed.

Last year a guy didn't look pulling out onto the highway and I nailed his truck doing about 45, I spent two weeks in intensive care and two weeks in physical rehab learning to move and speak and think again. My left shoulder bones never got back where I can hold onto handle bars. Please wear a helmet I had one on and I still ended up with a cracked skull and bleeding on the brain I would have been dead, but the helmet helped save me. I was lucky the cop was right down the street and it happened right in front of an ambulance business those guys saved my life.

If you go to the antique truck show at Hartford Pa. on September 3 you will get to talk with the family they will have 3 or four trucks there. I just can't remember their names any more.

I had Gulf coast and then they transferred me to Hagerty's I have my 58 B model Mack and my 31 model A and my 32 ford hotrod pickup insured with them it works for me. I have antique tags on all three and I use the Mack to haul round bales for my goats in my area no one pays any attention to my stuff.

My uncle owned a school bus business and Sammy had two of those busses like in the previous pictures. I removed the 318 in the one bus and found it had a bad block so took three engines and made one good one it was quite a project removing and reinstalling the engine tilted over and in under the bus body and you had to adjust the clutch fingers on the pressure plate. The later busses he bought the engines were mounted more normally and still two stroke DD's. It must be almost forty years ago when I did that tilted over detroit.

The White 5000 I owned and drove it had a 220 Cummins tilted, it made the truck cab low. It was either a 59 or 60 with a fiberglass cab if I remember correctly.

I was planning to attend with my B model last year, the year before had a great time but I was recuperating and this year I am getting my left eye operated on the Wednesday before so I shall miss it again. Hoping for Gerhart's show I usually attend that one.

First thing is really look over those old air bags just like tires they have life limit. when I slid in the rear I went up to Cooks and bought two new ones one less crappy thing to worry about mine had slow leaks.