Remembering The Good Old Days

When Jack Muller of Dalton, PA was a kid, he often saw a C600 Mack pulling a lowboy around town. Remembering those days he fondly said, “A glimpse of this rig would keep me charged up for days!” Now, Jack has one of his own – a 1964 Mack C609T – the “9” indicated that the rig had a naturally-aspirated Mack 711 diesel engine with 211 horsepower. Short lived in production time, this type of engine seemed to perform well in local service, but had problems with long distance travel. This truck has a Mack 10-speed Unishift transmission, which includes an air shifting mechanism for the 2-speed auxiliary section. Though not an especially popular configuration, Jack says the one he has performs well. A Mack 23,000-lb rear axle, with a 4.62 ratio, completes the drive train. Jack also owns a 1935 Mack camelback trailer that he sometimes hooks up to the C600 for truck shows. The C600 was offered in both single axle and tandem configurations. Most of the single axles sat on a 137-inch wheelbase, but Jack’s has a 146-inch wheelbase. Coachwork on the C600 consists of a slightly-modified L Model cab that sits higher and further forward than most, with torsion arms underneath. The B-67 fenders were modified to include hinges, which provide good access to the power plant. Whenever Jack drives his old Mack it takes him back to those glory days when he was a kid.