My "NEW" M-62!

[ThatXJGuy]

I have just purchased a 1953 M-62 with the Mack engine, within the first half hour of touching it, I had the brakes bled, the fluids topped, and was cruising it around the guy's place where I bought it. Everything seems to be in really great shape especially considering I got it for well under scrap value and it came with a full tank of fuel! The question of the day is: what cable does the crane use? The crane's cable is broken off, according to the seller, someone tried to tow a vehicle with it and it got pinched or something and snapped. I'm sure there will be other questions after I go pick it up on Monday but that's the first one I can think of. I am totally stoked about this truck, it is sooo sooo much more complete than the other one I bought and comes with seemingly all of the accessories (boom jacks, boom extension, shackles, pulleys, hooks etc). It even has a man lift bucket which I am going to torture test with about 900lbs before I ever climb in it lol.

Its funny that just a couple months ago people were saying that I needed a wrecker or that it was just a matter of time that I had one, and all of the sudden, 28 miles away, for a great price, one shows up on craigslist... I also can't believe that I got two running 5 tons for $4500. My M-55 is finally ready to be street legal too, I just got all the lights working and everything else except the horn, mudflaps, and backup lights if I decide to do them.

 

[Jeepsinker]

Nice find! Now you just have to paint it green and do something about that front bumper.

 

[ThatXJGuy]

Yes, about the front bumper anyways, it may end up red, black, and a bit of yellow because it is going to be a company truck for my new business I am starting and those are my company colors. I will probably build a new sweet bumper for it because my buiness is metal working so it will be great advertising. I came up with a couple of other questions too, does anybody have the filter numbers for the Mack? one housing looks like the same as the R6602 but the other one is smaller and not the same filter for sure. I don't know anything about the Mack yet, but I'm learning.

 

[73m819]

The crane uses 1/2in, about 100'

 

[ThatXJGuy]

Sweet, thanks for the reply on the cable. I was looking today and found a sweet deal on a 100' roll of 1/2" 27,000lb break strength cable so that's great to hear.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Whats that green bar assembly in the last pic?! It kinda looks like something for the M756?

 

[Jeepsinker]

I thought it was a tow bar with a foot attached?

 

[ThatXJGuy]

I believe that they are the long boom jacks for heavy stationary lifting. That boom extension with the man bucket also comes with the truck but I am a little skeptical of it so I will definitely test it out with weight before I ever get in the bucket if I ever need to. Also, has anybody seen hoods like this one on these trucks? I have actually recently learned that this truck originally came with the R6602 and was repowered with the Mack, and I wonder if they did a hood swap to make it fit or what?

 

[gimpyrobb]

The hood and "man bucket" are after market. Probably from Memphis Equipment. I like the tilt hood feature, but not the appearance of it. Most of these started with the 6602. Mine was converted to multifuel before I got it. Welcome to the "m62 club".


Hoses are not cheap as they have a goofy "ermeto" thread on the hard lines.

 

[ThatXJGuy]

Where does one find the ermeto threaded fittings should I need to? I don't like the look of this hood either but it sure is nice to work on. Maybe if I could find the hood, fenders, side panels, and grille of a regular 5 ton I could make a tilt forward version with them that looks original. Does Memphis equipment do these boom extensions like this? I knew it wasn't factory but I have no idea whether it was done by Joe bob's backyard welding or a professional place. More looking at it may reveal that answer.

 

[vtdeucedriver]

Nice find. looks like a Memphis truck. If you go back to stock fenders, start looking for your intake parts too for the ENDT. That engine install is a bonus just in itself.

 

[Recovry4x4]

I think AM General's M62 had that swing boom, man bucket malarky on it when he got it. IIRC he chopped it off. Original poster, hang tough for a spell, Mr Mack will be along shortly.

 

[area52]

I've got a parts M54A2 if you want the hood,side panels and anything else off of the cab. Its in Trinidad CO, $1000.

 

[gimpyrobb]

I have found that when I had a hose burst, I had the hydraulic place near me braze a common thread onto the ermeto fitting. Now if I have a hose blow out, I can use a standard hose. There is a member here that is looking into making an adapter for the ermeto fittings, but I'm not sure if he is selling them yet.

 

[73m819]

No not yet last I heard, when I lost a hose, I brazed a 1" black iron pipe coupling to the special fitting then had the hose made with 1" pipe threads on both end (one end was 1" pipe om)

 

[vtdeucedriver]

If you need..............I have photo copies of the AW manual for the bed itself. It lists all of the fittings with AW part numbers. If you go to there web site, some of those numbers are still available.

 

[Recovry4x4]

http://www.steelsoldiers.com/showthread.php?10943-M108-hose-adapter&highlight=

 

[ThatXJGuy]

vtdeucedriver, that would be amazing, I brought the truck home today and inspected the lines and a few are looking iffy. That adapter sounds like a great idea too Recovery4x4, that would make life simple.

The truck drove the short 30 mile trip quite well for how long it has been sitting. It took most of the trip to finally get the flat spots out of the tires so it would quit bouncing and shaking itself to death but it smoothed out near the end. It also finally stopped with the blue and white smoke about 2/3 of the way through, I hope it was all because of the old diesel. I put in some PowerService before we left.

The engine sounds beautiful, smooth, healthy to say the least. It has an oil leak around the injector pump under the turbo but the turbo seems clean on the bottom so I think it is something around the IP. Everything else sounds and looks great. I got to use the crane to lift the boom extension onto the truck which turned out to be much heavier than I had thought, so I am glad everything worked. Its awful noisy to use between the engine roaring through that stack and the hydraulic noises.

 

[RAYZER]

Nicely done, that crane will be very useful!
Check the hydrolic hoses underneath, especially the ones that go up through the bed to the swing pump (front left side), in the process of replacing mine!
Doe's that Austin Western have the manually extended 3rd boom?

 

[gimpyrobb]

If its an M62, it shouldn't have the manual boom section. Just the 246 and 819 to my knowledge.