62A1 progress

[AMGeneral]

M62A1 progress

I finally had some time(and good weather)to work on the M62 some this weekend,the truck itself is in really good shape mechanically and physically.BUT,evidently(after looking the truck over and talking with David Doyle)It seems the Mack conversion was done by a N/G vs a Depot rebuild.The truck has a Multifuel front harness instead of a Mack one(which leads to problems all it own) and sometime in the past it had gotten into the fan blades! This may explain why when I turned on the B/O lights,the right headlamp came on,Hmmm.Managed to get that re-wired and get the starter relay re-wired back into the system.So now I have all lights and guages(including the work lights on the boom)working as they should.Maybe this truck will clean up good enough to make it to Aberdeen after all.

 

[DaveP]

those mirrors look like the ones on my XM819. they are wide. look like bridge truck mirrors?

 

[Recovry4x4]

I have an extra set of those wide mirror arms if anyone is in need.

 

[DaveP]

Kenny,are these bridge truck mirrors?

 

[Recovry4x4]

That and 10 tons I believe Dave. I've seen them on many 10 tons. If you bend one up and need one, let me know.

 

[73m819]

if i had those mirrors on the 819 at the ga. rally trailride, i would have had both sides about ripped off

 

[AMGeneral]

I know this is an old thread,but it seemed appropriate to post the video of my M62A1 here,same truck as in this thread,Enjoy!


[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9Pew4LVrMc[/media]

 

[AMGeneral]

Well, rather than start a new thread,since this one is about the M62A1 I own,i'll just add to this one.

We had some nice weather forecast this weekend,so I finally decided to swap the cabs and front sheetmetal out on the wrecker cause it was starting to look kinda bad sitting outside with no cab top.

It took me about 6 hrs with hand tools to carefully lift the old cab off and prep the replacment cab for installation tomorrow. And yes I am using the M62 itself to do the swap,I'll give ya'll a short run down of the procedure(Condensed of course).

First find a level spot and chock the wheels in place from both directions,then cut the truck off leaving the boom at max elevation over the drivers side of the truck(this will come in handy later),Unhook the batteries.

Unhook and remove all the front wiring harness(lights,starter,gauges,tach cable,speedo cable,etc) Basically unhook/unbolt everything from the cab while leaving everything necessary to drive the boom in gear.It is not necessary to remove the shifter from the trans.

If it is installed,remove the 270 deg swing limiter bolted at the base of the crane,there should be 2 to 3 bolts,depending on which wrecker you own.

If you have a M62,remove the level wind device on the rear drag winch,otherwise the boom winch drum will hit it well before you are centered over the cab.

Make or purchase a remote starter switch and wire it up to the starter,DOUBLE ,TRIPLE and QUADRUPLE check that the transfer case is in neutral,then bump the starter(with the fuel cut OFF) to make sure it's in neutral before you try and start the engine,Make your wires long enough to stand well clear of the truck wneh trying this.

If all is well,start the engine and carefully lift the cab off and set it aside,stay WELL clear of the exposed aera under the cab,there are MANY exposed rotating parts that a person can get tangled in.

Then just reverse the process to install the replacment cab.

Granted I REALLY condensed this down,it took me 6 hrs by myself to just get the old cab OFF.

I will post a few pictures of the truck without ccab and the installation of the replacment tomorrow.

As always practice SAFTEY FIRST!!

 

[Recovry4x4]

I was going to get started on mine a while back but got sidetracked. I just don't know where that 6 years have gone. Good to hear progress Brandon.

 

[area52]

Hey Brandon,

Noticed the trolley brake lever on the right side of the steering column, did you install that or was it already there?

I thought only the tractors and tractor-wreckers had the trolley brake lever?

 

[AMGeneral]

Hey Brandon,

Noticed the trolley brake lever on the right side of the steering column, did you install that or was it already there?

I thought only the tractors and tractor-wreckers had the trolley brake lever?

That was actually standard equipment on the early M62s I believe, Most I have seen were equipped with one.

 

[AMGeneral]

Just a few pictures of yesterdays progress,pics of todays later this evening.

 

[vtdeucedriver]

A mack powered wrecker

 

[area52]

A mack powered wrecker

did you see the thread about the guy in FL who has a M246 with a Mack?

 

[AMGeneral]

Aera 52,

i did see that thread,a M246A1 is the ULTIMATE in rare 5 ton M series wreckers,I wonder if he would wanna sell it?


I got the replacment cab set on today and got most of the mechanical stuff hooked up,then started on the wiring,this cab came off of a M543A1 and it has a really nice wiring harness with it,so the Mack finally gets the correct harness for it.

I have a NOS M543A1 rear harness I am gonna rewire the rear with,and I have come across a M246 boom that has had the unobtainable hyd fitting problem solved!! They welded a swivel type fitting to the metal pipes that allows the use of a standard male pipe fitting on the HYD hoses,so I'll be switching all of this over as well in the coming weeks.

This cab does need a small amount of patching in the floor,but everything above that is solid and straight.

I took just a few pictures of today's progress.

 

[73m819]

the 246 3 piece boom will fit on the 62 in place of the 2 piece boom, it will give you 26' instead of 18", should be a easy swap, 2 pins, 4 hyd. lines, the hoist drum and the crowd cylinder are the same, not sure the fixed section is

 

[big block 88]

Nothing cooler than a truck that can do surgery on itself

 

[AMGeneral]

yeah,it is a help sometimes.

Wow,hard to believe I have owned this wrecker for almost 4 years now and just now got a chance to work on it.

 

[area52]

I know the feeling, I've had the M816 for over 3 years and Nov 12th was the first time I had ever driven it!!

Keep up the good work on your wrecker.

 

[vtdeucedriver]

HA.............had my M62 for 11 and Ive still not had it on the open road!! Though I used it today to FINALLY take the 5 ton winch out of my DAKOTA and I was giggling from the gondola with the thoughts of " I dont know how anyone can deal in this hobby and not have one!!"