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

As nice as all those old Macks look, nothing beats a "B" model for good looks. Thanks for the pictures. bulldogboy

What was the point of the twin engine cabover? Looks like it would be unwieldy in traffic. bulldogboy

While GM owned Frigidaire, Ford owned Philco appliances and TVs. Kelvinator was owned by either Chrysler or Studebaker (don't remember which one). These companies wanted to be involved in all areas of your life. bulldogboy

I think that the one thing that all of us on this forum agree with is; we would all like to see Mack be what it once was, an independent, successful medium and heavy truck builder. However, reality is that this probably is not going to happen. What would have happened to Mack if Volvo had not stepped in to buy it? More than likely it would have gone out of business. Is that a better scenario that what currently exists? As to another company (Cummins, Oshkosh) buying Mack, do you think that Volvo would sell to another company thus creating a serious competitor to the Volvo brand? As to a government bailout, like Chrysler and GM, I don't think that many people on this forum would like that. My sense in reading these forums is that almost everyone wants government to butt out of our daily lives and let us do our thing free of regulations. I assume that this also includes regulation of the trucking industry that the government did away with years ago. As I have said before, I know nothing about nothing, these are just my opinions and if Mack ever came back as an independent company, there would not be anyone happier than me. BTW, I like those Coca-Cola Macks. bulldogboy

This is a Mack Bulldog I with a tandem axle. The photo is from an early 1980s Mack fire truck brochure. The brochure does't mention the brand of ladder but I believe that it is an LTI. bulldogboy

Beautiful countryside, now hallowed ground. I can't imagine what was going through the minds of those passengers; true American heroes. Thanks for the pictures. bulldogboy

The Fire Museum of Maryland hasn't forgotten you truck mechanics. Here is a Mack "AC" wrecker from Baltimore F.D. My favorite fire truck at FMM is that Mack "AB" from Thurmont, MD. bulldogboy

The Fire Museum of Maryland is a great place to visit, especially if you are a Mack fan. When I was there about five years ago they were having an outdoor show. I took a few pictures. One is a drafting demonstration featuring a Mack "AC" pumper, an Ahrens-Fox pumper, and a Ford Model "T" pumper. The next picture is a Ford Model "A" chief's car with Chicago F.D. graphics. There was a 1958 Edsel station wagon and, my favorite, a Mack "AB" paddy wagon. bulldogboy

iaff5045 is correct, Bulldog I had an LTI ladder. BTW, I was wrong, Bulldog I was available with a tandem axle (checked my old Mack sales brochures). bulldogboy

Here's a Mack tanker that you can take to your next bark mulch fire at McDonald's. www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOcBJURbtJM bulldogboy P.S. Don't know why this link didn't highlight but it works.

Lucky for them (and us) that they were able to get both sections back. Good luck with the restoration. Many departments would like to get a former truck back with no success. bulldogboy

Wasn't there a serious problem with the Hahn aerial ladders? I seem to remember that they had this little problem of the fly sections moving past the stops. One department I know of has a Hahn ladder mounted on an "MC" chassis. Bridgewater, NH has a 1981 "Bulldog I", formerly in service in Ogunquit, ME. There was also a "Bulldog II", did that model have a tandem axle? bulldogboy

Rubrmat: Is that an old fire tanker or a fuel tanker? bulldogboy

kscarbel: Thanks for the Hayes fire truck photo. bulldogboy

I saw a Hayes 100 COE passing through New Hampshire about 35 years ago; probably the only time that ever happened. Do you have any photos of a Hayes fire truck? That's one I liked to see. bulldogboy

Oh well, wait 'til next year. Congrats to the Black Hawks. In my opinion Chicago and Boston have the best looking uniforms in the NHL. bulldogboy

kscarbel: You say that Volvo- North American sales are up 10% in May and up 5% worldwide. You also say, "Clearly, there are problems at Volvo Trucks Sales and Marketing Americas". So, what's the problem for Volvo? Sounds like things are going swell for the Volvo brand. I don't know anything about anything but I have long thought that Volvo would use the Mack brand like they did the Autocar name. Rather than discard an iconic brand name (Mack) they would assign it to a line of heavy duty construction trucks. One of the reasons that Volvo sold off the Autocar name was to buy Mack; the government told them to discontinue one of their LCOs, either the Mack "MR" or the Autocar "Expeditor". I know of one fire department that used Mack chassis for its tankers but has now switched to IHC because Mack is no longer Mack. bulldogboy