STOP me before I MACK AGAIN! 75' of pure MACK LOVE

[Guest]

Well, I know everyone doesn't feel this way, but in my eyes, the 75' single axle Mack/Baker Aerialscope was just the best damn aerial device ever made. You can tell that to people who have never run one, and they look at you and laugh. But to those of us who have worked on these units, there is just nothing better than a 75' Scope. Nobody made a better or more effective fire putting out machine. 40 years later, I don't really think any manufacturer has come out with a more effective machine, and I regret that future generations of firefighters will have no clue about the joy of knocking fire with those babies.



So, I got my checkbook out, again. And this one is worth it, at least to me.



1974 Mack Baker 75' CF-700 Aerialscope. Delivered new to the Greenville Fire District of Westchester County, New York, just north of the City of Yonkers. CF-700 with the big Maxidyne V-8 diesel engine due to the hilly terrain of their first due area and a really neat chrome plated Stang monitor.



In 1987, Greenville sent the unit to Pierce for a total refurb, which included a replacement engine, a 475 HP Detroit Diesel 8V92TA attached to the Allison transmission. They also removed the body, put a new Pierce body with enclosed fender wells, repainted the entire unit, new warning devices and interior. In 1990 Greenville sold the unit to my old company, Northeast Fire Apparatus of Lancaster PA. They replaced it with an E\-One 75' quint. (no comment about the change from a 75' bucket to a straight aerial)



Northeast promptly sold it to the Paxtonia Fire Company of Dauphin County, PA (Harrisburg metro area). At one point Paxtonia had 3 aerials in one station, and this unit served as Tower 34 for about 2 years. Paxtonia had Pennsylvania Fire Apparatus add the half doors on the jumpseat openings. In 1991 Paxtonia ran into severe financial trouble and the unit was repossessed and brought back to my company for resale. At the same time, i became Chief of the Lancaster Township FD and told all my firefighters about the benefits of fighting fire with a 75' Scope. I brought the unit around, my crews fell in love with it, and we bought it from the bank and did some updates to make it fit our needs. We also upgraded the platform controller to the newer style joystick which was horizontal over the older vertical stick. On a long 3 or 4 hour job, that really made a difference in operating the bucket.



We loved that truck and actually sold a 1987 Pierce 75' quint to Bath Maine to make room for the scope. Truck 66 caught tons of fires all over the metro Lancaster area, and on more than one occasion T-66 was backed into an alley or down a driveway where no other aerial device could ever fit. It was a running working machine!



In 1998, it was beginning to show some signs of wear, and after a rebuilt transmission and a bit of hydraulic work, we decided to get quotes from Pierce for another major overhaul. We were going to add a second rear axle for better braking, a new body with a bit more compartment space, new electrical system, and some other upgrades. When we presented the proposal to our township supervisors, they told us to skip the refurb and just buy a brand new unit. Not ones to look a gift horse in the mouth, we ordered a new Spartan/LTI 93' mid-mount tower, which was delivered in the second half of 1998.



Another local fire company heard of our new unit and wanted to get a used scope. The Elizabethtown Fire Department agreed to buy the unit, it went back to Northeast for a new paint job, and to Harrisburg Mack for aerial updates and re-certification. In mid 98, they placed Truck 74 in service until the received a new 95' Seagrave Aerialscope in 2005. The Mack was sold to another local firefighter who used it for parades and other events, and he sold it to me when his time changed and he had no place to store it anymore.



Another one for the collection!



Plans for the unit include some minor rust repair and re-lettering it for Lancaster Township FD.