bulldogboy

I remember in New Hampshire they would issue new plates every year in reverse colors. One year would be a white background with green letters and numbers, the following year the plates would be a green background with white letters and numbers. I don't think that you had to turn the old plates in. The motto on the plates at the time was "Scenic" at the top with "New Hampshire" on the bottom. One year the motto was changed to "Photoscenic" but people complained that it was promoting the photography business so it went back to "Scenic". bulldogboy

MADDOG93: I had heard about a guy that sold used Mack fire apparatus to small towns in New Hampshire back in the '70s and '80s but I can't remember his name. Supposedly, most of them came from Long Island. There were lots of "L", "B", and "C" model engines and ladders parked in small NH volunteer stations. It was a great time to be a Mack fire apparatus buff. I know that Claremont, NH at one time ran an "L", "C", and "CF" engine. I think that all of Claremont's engines were bought new. Interesting story about Alexandria's red and ,almost, white Macks. bulldogboy

mike69mackman: Glad that you made it to Lynn okay. Arriving at 5:30 A.M. helped to avoid the rush hour traffic. Lynn is just a hard place to get to no matter which way you go. I once worked for a company that is headquartered in Lynn; I only went there several times but I would always get lost and drive around in circles until I found the street that I was looking for. The last time I drove a pickup with a GPS and it still sent me down a dead end street. Hope that you made it back out okay. bulldogboy

Very true, then throw in an accident, fender bender, just someone parked in the breakdown lane, snowstorm, construction (never ending) and then all bets are off! bulldogboy

Take I-95 (SR 128 for us oldtimers) north from I-90 to Exit 44 towards Lynn. After the exit there is a famous (infamous?) Massachusetts rotary. Follow the signs to Rte 129 towards Lynn. Follow 129 straight into downtown Lynn. This is a two lane city street with lots of traffic, traffic signals, etc. I don't know where Garelick's plant is; do you have an address? Good luck; Boston area traffic is wonderful any time of the day or night. bulldogboy

Last Sunday, August 11, 2013, the fire station in Albany, VT burned with the loss of five trucks. An Albany volunteer firefighter has been arrested and charged with arson. Albany is a small town in the Northeast Kingdom. One engine was destroyed, a 1970s IH, I think. Heavily damaged and probably totaled are a 1977 Hahn engine, a Peterbilt tanker, a step van, and a brush truck. Albany had a Mack tanker, I thought that they still had it, but I guess it had been replaced by the Peterbilt. For now, the Corinth, VT Fire Department has lent them a Ford "C" model pumper and Newport Center, VT has given them a GMC mini-pumper. bulldogboy

Up there with Lynnfield! Right, Paul? Any FD with an "N" model Mack has to be okay in my book. On the other hand, the hard scrabble mill cities of Lowell and Lynn, MA ran their "C" and "CF" fire trucks hard. They ran from factory conflagrations to tenement fires back to factory conflagrations back to tenement ..., well, you get the picture. Those Macks were working trucks, did a great job, and retired as battle weary veterans. bulldogboy

That classic looks pretty solid, hope that someone buys and restores it. I know of two similar trucks in New England still owned by fire departments, one in North Adams, MA and one in Nashua, NH. bulldogboy

RWE253: That's a great picture and story of this truck. On page 24 of Harvey Eckart's book, "Mack Fire Apparatus, A Pictorial History" there is a photo of what I believe is this truck. The photo was taken in 1974 in Cross Anchor, SC. Do you know how this truck came to be in SC after its service in Lakewood? Glad to see that this truck has been saved. bulldogboy

I would think that if Ford wanted out of the medium duty truck market, the breakup of the "Blue Diamond" partnership would have been a good excuse to leave the business. That Ford is willing to invest in new tooling at Avon Lake to produce F-650 and F-750 chassis says that they must want to stay in this segment. Of course, stranger things have happened over the years, e.g. the HN80. A public works department near me is buying F-250, F-550, and F-650s with CNG conversions; they even have a Transit Connect running on CNG. bulldogboy

Is Noonan going back to Mack? Most of the Noonan trucks that I've seen around the last few years have been KW. There is even a commercial on TV ( for a bank I think) that features a new Noonan KW tractor. bulldogboy

1974 Mack "CF" 1250/1000. Former Sterling, MA Engine 1, then Clinton, MA Engine 4. Clinton replaced it in 2013 with a 1992 E-One 1250/1000, former Windham, NH. bulldogboy

fxfymn: Air horns and a Roto-Ray on a Mack 45A, that's unusual. I also like the Weber grill on the front bumper; good for rehab at a long incident. That's a nice truck; I can't believe that AFD hasn't restored it for parade duty. As to 1960s firefighting, that's the way things were done in those days. My career started with riding the back step, semi-cab Macks, unlined rubber coats, etc. and finished with RIT teams, enclosed cabs with seatbelts, the National Fire Academy, etc. Like everything else in life, firefighting changed a lot over the years but we still have to remember, honor, and learn from the past. bulldogboy

The 45A, 405A, and 505A had 500 GPM pumps. The 75A had a 750 GPM pump. The difference among the 45A, 405A, and 505A was the use of different engines. bulldogboy

Looks like it has four wheel drive; one near me has four wheel drive and the cab looks the same. bulldogboy

fxfymn: The "new" Framingham station located on Rte. 9 in Framingham Center is actually located on the scene of the fire. That's the station on Route 9 opposite Framingham State University? My son went to FSU and his dorm was across Rte. 9 from this station. That was quite a story about your father. Just goes to show you how timing is everything; a few minutes one way or the other can change a lifetime. Thanks for the info. bulldogboy

Back in the mid - '60s there was an explosion at an oil company in Framingham, MA resulting in three LODDs. I believe that two, if not all three, were from the Ashland Fire Department. The "Boston Globe" ran a photo of the funeral, one of the three trucks carrying the caskets was an "L" model Mack. I'm guessing that this was the Ashland Mack. I kept that photo along with other Mack photos from the '60s but, of course, I lost them years ago. bulldogboy

Thanks for all the info, guys. Still, it's a strange looking truck. bulldogboy

Quite a few of these Macks, and Dodges, became fire tankers after their military service was over. While they may not be the optimum fire tanker, they probably work for a small department that cannot afford anything fancier (those departments do exist). bulldogboy

Wow, it sure looked closer than that. I guess its hard to eyeball distances over water. bulldogboy

I was in Falmouth several weeks ago; had dinner at the British Beer Works near Surf Drive Beach. It was nice looking out over Vineyard Sound at Martha's Vineyard. Not being from the Cape, I forget how close Martha's Vineyard is to the mainland. Still need to get over to Edgartown someday and check out the F.D.'s Mack "AB" and "A" fire engines. bulldogboy

B-21s had Hall-Scott motors rather than the standard Mack engines. They also had bigger pumps, 1500 GPM and up (rather unusual for that era). They are pretty distinctive in that they have a longer hood to accommodate the larger H-S motor. There has been one for sale on E-bay every so often. It is out in Barre, MA; not sure if it has been sold. bulldogboy

Wow, about a month too late. I know of two Mack "85L"s that were sold last month. Not sure if they are "LS" or "LF" but both are 750 GPM. One is a semi-cab, solid truck but needs cosmetic work and some mechanical work to get back on the road. The other is an open cab listed on E-bay; it is in excellent condition, ready for the next parade. Will let you know if we see anything. bulldogboy

Spags!! There's a name from the past for us old New Englanders. I remember the TV ads also. bulldogboy

The department that I worked for had all straight aerial ladders. One time we had to borrow a tiller from a neighboring department. My department had to find the few drivers who had driven a tiller back in the '50s and '60s. I had a chance to drive the tiller and, let me tell you, it takes a LOT of practice. The hardest part for me was to realize that you were at the mercy of the tractor driver, he set the speed and you had better keep up with him. Every time that I looked for the brake pedal, it wasn't there. It is imperative that the two drivers practice with each other; it is not a job in which you put two guys together and say, "have at it, boys". We did not have the tiller long enough to get a lot of practice on it. bulldogboy