Early Mack truck with crane

[JohnS25]

This truck is 15 miles from my house. I talked with the owner a few years ago and he said that his grandfather bought it new. 
John

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[edinmass]

Very cool.........

[Fargoguy]

I agree!  That thing is an amazing piece!

 

[TAKerry]

Thats a neat truck. I doubt it was originally outfitted with that crane settup though. The crane rig looks newer than the truck to me. Maybe Terry H or DDave may know a bit more. They seem to be heavy equipment guys.

[JohnS25]

4 hours ago, TAKerry said:

Thats a neat truck. I doubt it was originally outfitted with that crane settup though. The crane rig looks newer than the truck to me. Maybe Terry H or DDave may know a bit more. They seem to be heavy equipment guys.

I think crane was installed when the truck was new. Looking at the rivets holding the crane to the frame and the out riggers to the frame. It has some cool screw jacks between the frame and the spring to take any flex out of it when working the crane. Definitely an interesting truck. 
I hope it see the owner again and ask a few more questions. I will also ask if he has any family photos of it and if he is willing to share them with me/ us 

John

[Terry Harper]

Years ago (late 1990’s) I ran across a Mack that was pretty much identical to this in an old granite quarry near Bar Harbor. The truck itself was a bit rougher but both the engine on the truck and the crane would still turn on the crank. I remember being quite impressed with those wide, hard rubber rear tires.

[JohnS25]

A few more pictures 

[JohnS25]

4 minutes ago, Terry Harper said:

Years ago (late 1990’s) I ran across a Mack that was pretty much identical to this in an old granite quarry near Bar Harbor. The truck itself was a bit rougher but both the engine on the truck and the crane would still turn on the crank. I remember being quite impressed with those wide, hard rubber rear tires.

the engine on this one is free. 
I didn’t check the crane.

 

I talk to him about preservation of it because it’s cool and has local history. He told me he had given it to a local museum but they hadn’t showed any interest in it.

 

John

 

[Akstraw]

I love this truck!  My wife would so shoot me if I so much as looked at it twice, though.

[R Walling]

 I once painted a C Mack for a customer and much to my embarrassment, someone asked why I didn't paint the doors.

 He then lifted the door Stright up out of it's pocket showing all the rust!

 I didn't even know that it had doors.

[8E45E]

If Ron Carey was still alive, he'd snap that up in an instant!!

 

Craig

[zepher]

Very neat truck but I doubt it will ever be restored.

You couldn't really drive this thing down the street so it would be a static display only.

 

But it has plenty of cool factor.

[JohnS25]

Very true 

The owner told me that it went about 3-4 mph at best back in the day. 
He said it was so slow that you didn’t stop to pee, it took a day or two to move it sometimes.

[alsfarms]

I wonder how the "crane" was outfitted?  Would it have had a drag line bucket for digging or simply used as a crane for lifting? I wonder what the engine type is for the crane. The radiator looks like a later replacement, so maybe also the engine.

Al

Edited February 16 by alsfarms
clarity (see edit history)

[1912Staver]

Over the years in the ATHS club magazine I have seen a few of this era Mack's fitted with cranes similar to this one. They seem to have been a popular chassis for such set ups.

 If I ever came across one in this part of the world I would drag it home instantly. The wife would have a fit, but sooner or later I think she would get over it. Life really isn't complete without a big old crane. Actually as cranes go these one's aren't really all that big, just a very handy size around the yard. 10 ton capacity ?

Edited February 16 by 1912Staver (see edit history)

[arcticbuicks]

i was also wondering if it was maybe a drag line or scoop type alsfarms.......so cool........patina maxima !

[alsfarms]

Is the crane a Euclid?

Al

[Hemi Joel]

They made this model AC chain drive Mack from 1916 all the way up to 1938 with no significant changes in appearance. So it may not be as old as it looks. I used to have a '34, and it looked the same as one from WW1. 

That crane matches the era of the truck, IMHO.

[Dandy Dave]

Agree that the crane most likely was fitted to the truck when it was new. In the Historical Equipment circles these are called, "Truck Cranes." There was a similar old Mack in a gravel bank off of Rt 25 in the New Town- Monroe, CT area. As a youngster I watched it be dug around for years until it was on a pedestal of sorts. Then one day it was gone. The Sand Hill Plaza is in that location now. 

[Dandy Dave]

19 hours ago, 1912Staver said:

Over the years in the ATHS club magazine I have seen a few of this era Mack's fitted with cranes similar to this one. They seem to have been a popular chassis for such set ups.

 If I ever came across one in this part of the world I would drag it home instantly. The wife would have a fit, but sooner or later I think she would get over it. Life really isn't complete without a big old crane. Actually as cranes go these one's aren't really all that big, just a very handy size around the yard. 10 ton capacity ?

Lucky if you could pick up 4 or 5 tons with it with proper out riggers . Safe Lifting capacities diminish expansionally  the further out the boom is extended. I had a 1952 model 41 Hanson on tracks. It had a safe lifting capacity of 13,000 LBS at a 15 Foot radius. That would translate to 6 -1/2 tons. At a 25 foot radius it was only good for maybe 2 tons. With a drag hoe or shovel front it was rated as a 1/2 yard machine.

 

 

Edited February 17 by Dandy Dave (see edit history)

[30DodgePanel]

I'd bet it's a Universal Crane.

I doubt any tags are legible, but you might get lucky and find something.

@JohnS25 if you do make another visit ask if he has ever ID'ed the crane. If not maybe ask him for permission to climb up there to see if you can find any markings to help him know what he has? 

 

Edited February 17 by 30DodgePanel (see edit history)

[30DodgePanel]

This one always made my knees buckle when looking at it...

It's as if the truck is saying "Good lord, get off me you fat bast**!"

 

 

Edited February 17 by 30DodgePanel (see edit history)

[Larry Schramm]

I wonder if the rear axle on the truck would be overloaded.  Sure looks like it with the solid tires "squished" some.  Chain drive truck to boot.

[AHa]

The crane has outriggers, one in front and one in the rear. They are I beams in tubes and they would have been pulled out and blocked. A case such as this would require two trucks, one with the crane and the second to carry all the rigging for the crane. It appears this crane was designed for dredging from the controls. My dad let me set up in the cab of one of these while the operator did some dredging when I was still a wee little fellow. I think I still remember how to push and pull the four long levers and work the foot pedals to get the bucket to dredge and then dump. What a day that was!

 

The truck chassis was made to mount a crane. Look at the heavy riveted braces for the outrigger housings.

Edited February 17 by AHa (see edit history)

[30DodgePanel]

6 hours ago, AHa said:

The crane has outriggers, one in front and one in the rear. They are I beams in tubes and they would have been pulled out and blocked.

The truck chassis was made to mount a crane. Look at the heavy riveted braces for the outrigger housings.

In case anyone was wondering what you were describing.  
The front ones.

 

 

[JohnS25]

Thanks for all the great responses. The picture and advertisement are very cool . I will try to contact the owner again and ask a few more questions and see if I can look at it closer. If I remember correctly it was primarily used as a crane. He had told me about some of the early bridges and buildings that his grandfather helped build.

John

[AHa]

Yes, the rigging that is on it now is set up for single point lift, but the controls, if I'm not mistaken, are for a drag link. Perhaps all early cranes are built for dual purpose. It takes a real master to operate a drag link properly. The bucket must be 'thrown out' by use of the boom, then drawn back in to scoop up the material being moved. It is a complex maneuver of levers and pedals and a good operator does it all in one fluid motion.

[Dandy Dave]

10 hours ago, AHa said:

Yes, the rigging that is on it now is set up for single point lift, but the controls, if I'm not mistaken, are for a drag link. Perhaps all early cranes are built for dual purpose. It takes a real master to operate a drag link properly. The bucket must be 'thrown out' by use of the boom, then drawn back in to scoop up the material being moved. It is a complex maneuver of levers and pedals and a good operator does it all in one fluid motion.

The correct term is a Dragline. I've ran a few in the past. Ran one on a T-35 Bantam. The other was on a Bay City Crane. Been around some B-22 Bucyrus Erie's also. The booms are basically the same as a crane with some extra bits for the tag line to keep the bucket straight.

[mikewest]

Any new information on the owner ??

[JohnS25]

11 hours ago, mikewest said:

Any new information on the owner ??

I have left him 2 notes and talked to the guy that is renting the yard, but I have not heard back from the owner yet.

[DFeeney]

If Rust could only talk, What a adventure would "Unfold"

[JohnS25]

It definitely has some cool local history and hopefully the owner will let someone save it and preserve its history , but unfortunately I don’t see that happening anytime soon.

[Roscoe]

Man, I'd love to drag that home, paint it up to look good as yard art, and utilize the crane portion to hang a wire antenna from for my other hobby of ham radio. I could have double the fun- make the neighbors mad from both hobbies at the same time.🤣.