Old timers, was it really better before technology?

I drove a Mack R model with air assist steering, and I actually liked it. You had the positive feel of manual, and help backing in. I remember running out of air backing into a tough dock.

 

Guy that brings tractors to my show bought a 1975 A model up in Maryland and hauled it home. We went together and bought another A model for parts. The 75 had factory air assist steering on it.

The parts truck had powering steering which made for an easy swap. Plus the parts truck had a big 5 core radiator built specifically for this truck I drug in with my 5th wheel wrecker.


Took him 2 1/2 years but he built a nice A model….

 

@Oxbow you’ve heard me speak of the big pump I have, this is the actual truck that pump was built for. That’s the reason for the 5 row radiator.

Tom bought this truck when it was about a year old. It was built to Canadian specs with the fresh air intake setup, and the rear drive spacing.

I kept the sleeper, 3 spoke steering wheel, and the shifter with the orange shift knob…

 

Used to be pretty easy to pick out Canadian trucks with some of the extras they had. Not so much any more unless they are vocational trucks.

Maybe already mentioned, but we can add series/parallel switches, split rims, bingo cards, state required numbers painted top to bottom on the sleeper of a cabover, alcohol evaporators for the air system, the three brake release valves as shown in the pictures of the A model, load boards on the tv screens at the truckstops, trip leases, the lope of two strokes before they were warm, 1693s, KTs, spicer air-shift married brownies,cable driven tachs and speedos, winter fronts, stanley thermoses with corks for stoppers, stick-on calenders of topless ladies (some months lasted a LOT more than 30 days), adjustable spring ride seats, vents by your feet that you could kick open, air lift hood kits for long hoods, tire irons carried in the truck, spot mirrors aimed at the top of the stacks (some of us may still have those), 30 weight oil (Delo 100 prefered for two-strokes), shuttered radiators with shutter-stats to operate them (I kinda wish we still had those), permit books containing fuel permits etc. for every state/province, the purple anti-glare lights mounted inside along the windshield (@wore out and I mentioned those the other day), sub-dollar fuel prices, free showers...................the list goes on.

Then there was the behavior of both law enforcement and drivers that was different. A truck along side of the road with his hood up meant every-one passing by would at least holler on the 2 way to see if they needed help, if not actually stop and help. Rebuilding engines or rear ends in the parking lot. A lot of company guys running Cummins would pull over as soon as they left the home terminal and put there stingers or buttons in the pumps (I'm not sure exactly what they did, just heard tell of it - Jim knows)! Everyone carried extra fuel filters. Law enforcement typically had at least a degree of respect for drivers, and enjoyed the cat and mouse game as much as we did. There were always lunch counter stories, but a lot more camaraderie amongst drivers. Short pants, flip flops, sandals, even tennis shoes were unheard of for driver attire. I don't ever remember guys packing piss-jugs with them. And then of course the cb - a life-line of information and required equipment to survive......before my time but pre-cb there were hand signals used to make others drivers aware of cops etc.

There is a lot about the good old days that wasn't so good, but I bet a lot of us would trade the modern conveniences and comfort for the life we had then.

 

We had a national speed limit 55mph.
I remember air operating wipers, ether button on the dash, Them old Detroit engines would run backwards I think it was from hard braking. Had a bird dog on the dash (escort?) Or was it whistler?. Remember having my own radio box (home made) to switch from truck to truck

 

Still carry two tool boxes, a parts bin, filters, misc hoses, belts and fittings, jumper cables,hose clamps, oil, antifreeze and a gallon jug of fuel. Beltronics and Escort still riding with me. Still no GPS and call for directions. Rand McNally in ALL vehicles except backhoe and tractor. And a new addition replacing duct tape is Gorilla Tape.

 

Same same except for the bird dogs.