61sleepercab

Home made truck is the original rat rod built in 2003, the S.A.R. brand (Some Assembly Required) started with a 1948 KB 5 International chassis tht was saved from the crusher as the owner only wanted the body. The C cab was built from reject sheet metal from the South Charleston West Virginia stamping plant, oil field pipe, dog kennel tubing, bed frame steel angle iron, garage door track, unknown front fenders and a Hercules Diesel radiator. We finished construction at 3:00am the morning of the local Black Walnut parade. We made it through the parade and the trip home home in the dark October cold night. The SAR has been misidentified by so called experts as all kinds of truck brands even though the IHC three diamond hub caps were there.New owner Travis Cadle is going to polish her build and make her a real parade queen.

I have pictures on the test forum site but for the life of me cannot post here. Anyone smarter has permission to post  pictures here on this thread.

Hauling Iron to new owner Travis Cadle of Mason County West Virginia , a long time friend and old iron nut.

Having trouble uploading pictures here or in album form. I live out in country and have slow internet. I will try again later with pictures. The Ugly Mack now key starts and the next project is to get my father in law in the cab at 86, he is a former trucker and ran L models and B models in his day hauling produce and gasoline in the West Virginia mountains.

I saved the "ugly Mack" a 1961 B-61t integral sleeper from the car crusher several years ago. This truck was a Surface Banana tractor first, then a wholesale fruit and grocery truck for two Foodland stores in Spencer and Summersville, West Virginia. The truck was then discovered covered up with old wooden apple crates behind the Summersville store and purchased by a local excavation firm with one goose neck trailer and one B model single axle dump. The owner was murdered out West and I heard about the four trucks from the local tow company operator who said the trucks were offered for scrap. I got two Macks running the tractor and the dump and had a B-61LST cab and frame and another B-61 single axle dump for parts. My friend Travis Cadle fell in love with the "ugly Mack" as the former owners mother called the tractor. I saw the tractor and lowboy in service locally hauling a dozer. We made Travis a deal on 3 of the Macks and then She sat because of no lights and old recap tires not fit for the 50 mile drive to the new home. Over several years, Travis's dad Stephen Cadle , a former B model operator and owner kept asking about whether the tractor was for sale and we said it was already sold not telling him his son was the owner. After several years of trying to figure out transport, Travis got his CDL and began work for a local trucking firm, and gained borrowing rights to a lowboy and semi tractor.We tried pulling the Mack to start it with my M-925 army 6x6 but all we got done was scooting the rear tires while being bobtail. I called Stephen and kidded him asking if he had string trimmer string so I could mow around the Mack . He said "Why should I give you string to mow around your stuff?" I replied because the truck belongs to Travis your son. He was flabbergasted with the news. Last weekend we hauled the Mack to her new home and with some tinkering she starts on the battery and has brakes. There is hope for the old girl now at her forever home and awaits much needed body work and paint. This truck has had five owners during its service and has never been based anywhere but West Virginia. I wish Travis well and will assist with restoration as I reserved seat time in the old girl. I will attempt to post some pictures of the move and her new home. Mark Sergent

I have to cure the damage from some jackass climbing up on the hood of my B61 dump and fisting both windshields. I am out two panes of glass and my rubber gasket needs replaced.

I have a choice: find budget glass cut and make up a gasket from bulk gasket material glued togather or give up eating for good.

Has anyone found a source for bulk windshield gasket material and cut to size tinted windshield safety glass?? $300.00 for a gasket seems steep to me

I have searched the Web with no luck so far.

There are still "Barn" finds out there. I once bought 4 B models out of the woods and a hay field and both complete trucks ran and drove after sitting for at least 10 years. I shared one ,kept one and the parts trucks saved a neighbors B Model with a bad piston and cylinder head.

I went to a country store auction at Hurr West Virginia where the store closed in the 1970's and the family ate all the canned goods and left everything in place, complete with manufacturer sales racks with 30 year old NOS jeans and flannel shirts. Old forgotten stuff is still out there to be found. Mark

Thanks for the funnies you all posted. There WAS A SALE OF NOS B MODEL SLEEPER CABS SOLD FROM A WAREHOUSE THAT STORED THE CABS FOR THE ORIGIONAL BODY BUILDERS. My friend has a friend who attended the auction but was not a B Model fan and did not bid on them. The warehouse auction occured in Pennsilvania about three years ago.

The B Model Sleeper cabs were sold. Where did the go ??? No little green men were seen holding bidder paddles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mark

I own a 1961 B model intregal sleeper cab single axle that a younger collector is going to tackle restoration. Presently a long haired tom cat could be run through the cab's holes and not mess up his fur.

He has heard about (urban legend??) a warehouse sale where NOS B Model Intregal sleeper cabs were sold at auction.

Does anyone have such a cab for sale or a good used intregal sleeper cab??? Any info would be helpful. Mark

I have pictures on the site of the "ugly Mack" sleeper cab. I can measure things if you need it. I saw on the internet a resin body of a sleeper cab truck ready to put on another kit, but I do not remember where. Hope this helps Mark "61sleepercab"

Need some tips on valve adjustment on a non turbo 673. My crank pulley is so close the radiator that I cannot get to the crank nut to index the motor to check valve clearance. What do you do pull fuel knob out and bump the starter to get on TDC? I need some tips. Thanks

I am slowly working on two Mack B models both with straight pipes about 4 inches. I want to know whether a muffler would help the tune of the old dog's bark . I have seen some 4 and 5 inch straight through mufflers in the hot rod parts books with about 18 inches length. Has anybody tried this or am I wasting my parts dough?

I had a spring start up of the Ugly Mack which was named by the former deceased owner's mother. She was last on the road pulling a lowdrag in about 1992. You can see that a lot of body work is ahead for restoration. You can run a big farm tom cat through her in places but there is hope . Pictures are in 61sleepercab B61T "before" pictures . Hope you all enjoy the shots. 61sleepercab

I have a B-61 1961 model with the integral sleeper with an advanced case of rot. I believe that the regular fenders and doors from a regular B will fit. The cab was made by pie cutting the floor of a regular cab and welding inserts to widen the cab. Look under the cab and you will see what they did. I am going to take a sheet of body metal and make the back of the cab with the help of the local vo-tec body shop class who can roll the beads and bend the bottom edge for me. You will probally have to make your own panels. Fuzzy Buzzard on the site has pretty good information on the sleeper cabs. There is a riveted tag in the floor next to the seat edge on the passenger side. Fuzzy Buzzard is collecting the numbers. I have pictures of my 61 under "61sleepercab photo album #1" Good luck. Mark or "61sleepercab"

I have a B-61 1961 model with the intergal sleeper with an advanced case of rot. I believe that the regular fenders and doors from a regular B will fit. The cab was made by pie cutting the floor of a regular cab and welding inserts to widen the cab. Look under the cab and you will see what they did. I am going to take a sheet of body metal and make the back of the cab with the help of the local vo-tec body shop class who can roll the beads and bend the bottom edge for me. You will probally have to make your own panels. Fuzzy Buzzard on the site has pretty good information on the sleeper cabs. There is a riveted tag in the floor next to the seat edge on the passenger side. Fuzzy Buzzard is collecting the numbers. I have pictures of my 61 under "61sleepercab photo album #1" Good luck. Mark or "61sleepercab"

I have a 1961 intregal sleeper cab truck with no headliner to go by for a replacement. Once I do the body work , I want to put a headliner in. Has anyone done this before? Any tips would be helpful.

We may need to add a gift registry site so the better halves had some idea for our Christmas presents. I have been hinting for the two stick driving video but nothing is under the tree. When you get married or have a baby they have lists at the stores so here goes.

In no particular order:

1. A garage big enough to put my Macks in.

2. Diesel fuel in any quantity

3. Tires that have tread deeper than the weather cracks.

4. Floor boards that I cannot watch the road go by through.

5. A trailer to put behind my tractor.

6. To remember where I saw that stainless steel round nose trailer that looked like it needed a home.

7. 4X8 sheets of body metal to fix an intragal sleeper Mack that is held together by the rust molecules

holding hands.

8. Enough time to get a Mack road worthy before my father in law the retired truck driver cannot get behind

the wheel just one more time.

9. Chrome accessories

10 Cash for above!

I hope you got a chuckle from my list. Merry Christmas and Have a good New Year 61sleepercab

It is hard to answer your families question as to why anyone sane would have drugg in four fourty year old trucks but here goes!

I have collected many different mechanical things from mechanic's tool to gas engines to tractors and small crawlers and the family has humored my need for old iron. They did not know that deep down I had always admired B model Macks and wanted to own one.

I am the county prosecuting attorney and happened to be at the right place at the right time. I was in the Sheriff's jail lobby and a local tow truck service owner stuck his head in the door and said "Hey they are trying to get me to buy Larry Reed's Mack trucks for junk and they are too big for me . Larry was deceased and his family was tired of mowing around the three Macks in a hay meadow. I contacted them and started to try to outbid the junk men and save the Macks!

I got directions to the hay field and there sat three Macks were all in a row. Two single axle dumps I call "Red" and "Blue " Both B61T's and a cab and frame B613LST with no wheels or rear axles. The inspection stickers and fuel stickers were 1992 so the girls had then set for about fourteen years . They were a sight to see with all tires either busted , low or sunk in the ground. My neighbor thought I was crazzy to even make a offer but after some back and forth negoitiation, I got a phone call that all four Macks were mine . The fourth Mack was up a country road off in the briars but I will save that for later in the story.

"Blue" looked like the best chance to run as she was complete. My convoy of friends complete with tools ,fuel a 1 ton winch truck and an air compresser descended on Blue. We airred up what tires that would hold air and got all four corners up with some dead duels with no hope. When the tube comes out the side of the tire is a bad sign! Ten gallon of new fuel in the tank and pumped up to the pump and the lines , we were ready to try to pull her to start.

Great plan if all three of the vehicles could pull out a Mack still sunk rim deep in the pasture. No such luck as the winch just pull the rescue vehicles to the Mack. There were no trees in the pasture field but there stood an nonconnected utility pole at the very limit of our chains and winch cable. We finally got Blue free of mother earth.

I did not know a lot but I did ask the question ," Would it not be a good idea to make sure the clutch works before we pull this monster and she comes to life and runs over our winch truck? Everyone agreed so we got her to a slight grade on the pasture top and got the clutch unstuck. In went the fuel kill knob and we were ready to see if she would start. In hind sight it would have been a good idea to pressurize the brake system and test that but I was not that smart on air brakes.

My friend Doug was the driver and I was the spotter as he put her in a middle gear and let her roll about ten feet and let out the clutch. Blue coughed a few times and let out some blue smoke with no death rattles coming from her. We were smart enough to pull her real slow in gear to check for any thing stuck like a valve stuck or a bad rod knock before this live test. A twenty five foot roll and she spit out a mouse nest the size of your head out of what was left of the grass burner exhaust and she roared to life in a cloud of blue from the old fuel in the tank.

Well I now had a running Mack going down the pasture with my friend at the wheel heading for the steep pasture bank , the county road and the Pocatalico River on the other side. I thought that this may have not been such a good idea after all . There was room to turn on a flat but before that the truck stopped on its own "Hey this thing has brakes and oil pressure, I am going to your farm" ,Doug exclaimed! I improved the brake sutiation when I closed the fully open water drain at the air tank that was blowing wide open.

Blues trip home was uneventfull untill curosity got the cat and Doug just had to tromp down on the go pedal and she come to life going sideways heading over the road bank. He kept her in the road steering for all he was worth and did not try her out again. Blue has a different dump bed on her and I will treat her to some tires that have tread deeper than the weather cracks in the tires and hold air.

"Red " came home on a tandem wrecker with no problem other that the one hundred yard path that I got to reseed in the meadow ( road trucks do not like pastureland.) Red's engine is a basket cas so she is for parts right now

"Old Bits and Pieces" the LST got to ride a roll back truck to the farm and she is about gone but a friend needs a frame with a title to build him a Mack in the future so she may get a second chance.

That leaves the " Ugly Mack" an single axle intregal sleeper road tractor that was parked in the briars and brush almost out of sight. We winched her out to the road with me steering with one hand and beating to death wasps by the dozens with my ballcap. Tip to learn was that wasps do not like noise or movement and it would be a real good idea to carry hornet spray with you in the summertime! I survived and did'nt get stung but I was ready to get out ! The sleeper cab is a 1961 model so my Mack handle became 61sleepercab. The other three trucks are 1959 models and all trucks with transmissions are duplex.

Blue and Ugly Mack both yard drives but have a long way to be road worthy. I think they can be saved from the car crusher!

I hope you get a chuckle out of this story. I want to thank everyone who have answered my dumb questions of the site . I will update any progress as it comes . I posted some picturs on the site . 61sleepercab (mark)

I am getting ready to tackle two of my B models. I am going to have to replace the windshield rubber. I know the origional rubber is available but is pricey. Has anyone used aftermarket bulk seal with success?

I have been combing the net and every site I know for some info on the B model integral sleeper. All pictures that I have found have quarter circle windows on the sleeper walls. My truck has vents on the side but no windows on the sleeper sides. I posted pictures as "61 sleepercab's Album # 1" . You can see from the pictures I am fighting some rust but there is still some thing to weld to. Any info or pictures will be a help. Thanks Mark

Under "61sleepercab's Album # 1" I finally got some pictures uploaded of three of my four Macks. Some of the captions do not match the pictures as I had about three lists of images and could not figure out how to view before posting. Old Blue and the Ugly Mack sleepercab both yard drives. Thanks for all the advice from everyone. I will write a truck story soon.

I changed oil in the 1961 B61T with 673 nonturbo . I am showing steady 20-25 lb oil pressure hot idle. The truck is yard driven only so I can't tell if I am near normal. I am using Valvoline 15W 40 All Fleet Plus. There was no grit or slime in the pan or the oil screen. Is 20 to 25 psi normal hot idle and what should I have on the road? Thanks Mark

Mark,

Thanks for the info. I posted pics in my album to hopelully show the rust areas.

As compared to other B Models, why is the sleeper so prone to rust?

For replacement sheet metal, could another B Model be used as donor sheet metal especially at windshield tops? I know where 3 empty cabs are junked and abandoned.

Donny

Do not know why sleeper cabs rot out whether they didn't drain they sweated or they are made of thinner metal than the regular cab. Everyone I have talked to the sleepers are prone to rot.

I would weigh the places were you are fixxing and the condition of donor metal from a regular cab from forming the part from new metal and welding to good metal around the hole. I would watch welding 50 year old rusty metal when you could cut out the rust and weld new metal to the area. Look on the underside of the area to see if their is a weld because some where on the window frame the sleeper roof was welded to. If you look in the floor you will see where the origional cab floor was added to widen the cab Mark

I looked at a 56 sleeper yesterday. Was in decent shape and last driven in 1994. The worst noticible rust was above the windshield on the inside and outside was top left and right cornes of the windshield/cab.

The owner has 4 B models all parked and none running. Only one was a sleeper. His old farm tractors were amazing. I saw equipment I never knew existed.

Where and how bad is the rust you are repairing? Does the rust I describe indicate much larger problems else where?

Donny

My truck has several rust sites. Worst is around the top of the cab door top and the front door post.Rust through on both sides of the cab above the drip rails above the doors and the drip rail in the sleeper. You can figure out where rain goes in and then where it runs down. Rust at the tops of the windshield posts lets water in which rots the door posts and then runs down the panel between the door and the front fender edge.Water runs down the sleeper wall and rots out the edge of the door frame towards the rear.

I would check for rot at the top and bottom of the window corners and the cowl below the window posts. I would check where the cab roof curves and meets the sides of the sleeper and the top of the door frames. The only bright spot is that the drip rails are installed by screws and can be removed so we can put new metal where the roof meets the door frame. Also the body metal is thick enough to mig weld without much trouble. Hope this info helps . Mark

I am working on a B-61T single axle tractor and I am not going to trust the pancakes in tha air chambers or the axle to frame rubber air lines that may be pushing 40 years old. Where are sources for these parts and how do you identify the parts as I believe that the rear axle has been swapped out some time before. Any help would be helpful. Thanks