My N-ormal Vehicle Builds

VinceP Oct 15, 2019

  1. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Starting back off in N with a pair of cars I just got from member Rasputen.

    A Dorf N series Conventional which will become a straight box truck maybe to many ideas at the moment.

    And a Dorf H series cabover that'll become either a steel hauler it's moving truck aka bed bug hauler.

    Very nice castings crisp and we'll detailed.

    TTFN
     

    Attached Files:

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  2. wazzou

    wazzou TrainBoard Member

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    Ford.
     
  3. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Yup Dorf lol hehehehehehehe.
     
  4. MK

    MK TrainBoard Member

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    Shouldn't that be Drof? :)
     
  5. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Think Tim Conway

    Dorf goes Racing lol hehehehehehehe.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 18, 2019
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  6. MK

    MK TrainBoard Member

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    Ohhhhh! Got it! :)
     
  7. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Okay y'all.

    Here's where y'all can help me out.

    On the cabover in the pic above would like some ideas as what to do with it.

    #1 Thinking Bed bug hauler (moving truck/trailer) single or tandem rear axle(s).

    #2 Steel hauler flatbed.

    #3 tanker.

    #4 reefer or dry van.

    Anymore ideas to be built as a 1979 era truck can be a mom & pop or a fleet rig.

    Let the ideas run Wild like a Wildebeast stampede lol.

    Groot Luck
     
  8. Rich_S

    Rich_S TrainBoard Member

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    Hi Vince, In the 1980's and early 1990's I did both. Started with Bekins Van Lines Moving and Storage working for a local agent. We never had any two story Falcon's (aka Ford H Series Trucks) We had a GMC Astro 95 tandem axle tractor, A GMC Crackerbox single axle tractor and a Ford F700 Straight box truck. You could use your Ford N series for that Bed Bugger straight truck. Let me tell you from personal experience, that is a young mans job. After getting out of the bed bugger profession, I went to work for an over the road flatbed company hauling steel. Back then as today, everyone shifted from single axle truck tractors to tandem axle truck tractors, the reason being with only 4 axle total on the tractor and trailer, you were only allowed 73,280 lbs. gross vehicle weight. With 5 axle total on the tractor and trailer you were allowed 80,000 lbs. gross vehicle weight. If you want to use your Ford H series with a flatbed trailer, I'd suggest a tandem axle tractor. Also the 80,000 lbs. gross became law in 1974, if you could only haul 73,280 you were left behind and by 1979, it was rare to see a single axle tractor pulling a flatbed trailer. Michigan got even crazier with their 150,000 lbs. 13 axle law, but that's another story.
     
  9. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Yes those Michigan Millipedes are something else.

    Bed bugging is just one of very few I haven't done in my driving career Rich.

    Did the A train, B train, covered wagon, straight & 28 skateboarding hauling Canadian Cedar from B.C. to Oregon.

    Ran Dry van, heavy haul 8 axle 4 axle truck 4 axle trailer dry van, Reefer, doubles, triples, Rocky Mtn Doubles,

    Done Rock buckets, Rock wagons,

    105,500 Dry bulk tankers, portable gas station,

    Recovery for one company i was leased too.

    Heavy haul O.D. loads never did find Garfield lol.

    Yes it's amazing what one extra axle can do to increase weight.

    Thanks for taking the time to read this.
     
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  10. Rich_S

    Rich_S TrainBoard Member

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    Hi Vince,
    I never pulled doubles or triples but for awhile I hauled 65' beams on extendable trailers out of US Steel South Chicago works, 79th & 83rd street loading areas. I also pulled a 35' dump trailer with a Mack F700 cab over. I did some local work pulling a dry bulk tanker hauling cement with a Mack R600. Never did any heavy haul work. I finished out my career driving tri-axle dump trucks and mixers.

    After leaving Bekins, I went to work for Cedar Rapid Steel Transport pulling a freight box.

    Here's my first truck driving for them.
    CRST IH 4070A.jpg

    I was spending too much time away from home and that is when I went to work for Aero Trucking out of Murrsyville PA, pulling a flatbed trailer. I never took any photos of those trucks, wish I would have now.

    My first local job was driving a Mack F700 pulling a 35' dump trailer hauling shredded cars to a local steel mill.
    (this is not the truck I drove, but this one looks very much like that Mack F700 I drove.)
    Mack F Model.jpeg

    When that mill closed that is when I found the job driving a Mack R600 pulling a dry bulk tanker.
    The only problem with that job, it was very seasonable.
    Here's one of their White Road Boss truck tractors. At the time the older guys got these and me being a new hire, I drove one of the Mack R600's.
    Schwerman Trucking White.jpg


    Since they were directly connected to the concrete business and layoffs were common in the winter months, I went to work pulling 20' and 40' containers. That wasn't a bad job, picking up loads and delivering the contains to Conrail and Chessie System. Unfortunately, they were a family owned operation and the owner wanted to retire. He sold the company to another company, but they closed the doors.

    That is when I ended up in the Tri-axle dump and mixer business.
    Here's one of the last trucks I drove before I got out of the trucking industry.

    Riverside Mixer.jpg


    I spent 22 years behind the wheel of a truck, but now I work for the competition and with any luck I can retire in 3 years. I have a lot of great memories, but I would not want to be in the business today with all the electronic logs, GPS tracking and big brother in the cab with you. They've taken all of the fun of being out there on your own. Hopefully you enjoyed my little trip down memory lane.
     
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  11. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Agreed Rich.

    Weird as out here my dry bulk was cement also but we were year round as the Canadian companies would make hot cement to be able to pour indoors during winter.

    Below is my first KW a 1980 W900A model short wheelbase spring ride suspension with a blower on it that sounded like a Makita warrior with no exhaust, had a driptroit 8V71 with a 15 speed deep reduction for hauling the 105,500 loads.

    Like you I miss it but with all the garbage today the drivers have to deal with you couldn't pay me enough to drive a truck.

    As you stated it used to be fun driving.

    Nice old transtar you drove at Crash and Roll Stress Test.

    Nice mixer never did drive one of those mixing tubs lol.

    Oh yes Memories are great just afraid when these autonomous trucks get on the hiway have a real bad feeling about this especially in the fog or snow.
     

    Attached Files:

  12. Rich_S

    Rich_S TrainBoard Member

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    Hi Vince, I was never a fan of Detroit Diesels, the 71 series or the 92 series. I called them converters, because it seemed all they did was convert diesel fuel into noise and I have the ringing in my ears to prove it :ROFLMAO: I loved how you could lug the heck out of a Cummins or Mack and they kept making horsepower.

    That CRST Barnyard Cadillac had a Cummins with a Spicer 7 speed. That was an odd transmission. The freightshaker Cabover, aka poor mans Peterbilt, I drove at Aero had a 350 Cummins with a Road Ranger 9 speed, that was the most common company truck transmission at the time. I did drive a KW K100 with a 400 big cam and a Road Ranger 13 speed, but never drove a KW W900. A buddy of mine had a nice double bunk KW W925 with air ride, it was a nice truck and rode like a Large car. He was leased onto a company that specialized in Heavy haul construction equipment. One of the IH 4070 Transtar II I drove for Aero had a 350 Cummins with a Road Ranger 15 speed. We use to call them Turned around 10 speeds as we never had a need for the 5 deep reduction gears. The Mack DM690 mixer had a Mack 350 engine, Mack 12 speed transmission and the Mack Camel back leaf spring suspension. We use to say, they were all puppy dog from nose to tail :)

    Have you made any truck models of the trucks you've driven during your driving career?

    I have three, although the mixer is a B model and not a DM.

    DSCN0228.JPG
    DSCN0468.JPG

    DSCN2092.JPG

    I still have to add the mirrors to the Ford. Someday I'll try my hand at N scale truck kit bashing as I need a lot of cabovers. Just about every over the road company I drove for back then had cabovers. Until then, these three bring back memories of my old driving days (y)

    You'll have to post photos of your two story Falcon when you're done with the project.
     
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  13. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Rich yes I have the trucks modeled that I drove only thing is they're all to new for my modeling era except one bosses pride and joy a rendition of his 1960 250 cummapart twin stick w9 series with Armstrong steering.

    Excellent old girl not much on power but got the job done.

    As for the screamin demon agreed all noise little power puuling stevens pass to take dry bulk cement over to help build the bnsf intermodal yard in Quincy Washington dropped all the way to deep red' 3, foot on the floor.

    Canadian wildlife probably heard me coming from 100 miles away with that single shotgun stack as i swear the muffler was just a pipe with no muffle to it.

    Need to see if I still have that model in my stash somewhere.

    Fun truck I loved was a little single screw IH 9740? I think COE with triples had a baby 250+ ci cat that thought it was a big motor pulling triples.

    Used to sail thru Oregon's hills with no problems yes i also loved tailgaters when I had 3 trailers hehehehehehehe.

    As for the 2 story falcon it's waiting on me to get some fundage to buy the parts i need.

    Then the fun can begin found a couple of neat photos as grain trucks so see what happens with it.
     
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  14. Rich_S

    Rich_S TrainBoard Member

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    I hear you on the Armstrong Steering, none of the cabover road tractors I drove had power steering. You learned how to back up fast or you found another line of work.

    The first truck I drove with power steering was a 1990 IH 9200 tandem axle day cab with a 300 Cummins and Roadranger 9 speed, pulling a 42' trailmobile flatbed for a local steel distribution company. Never took any pictures of that truck, but here's me doing a little rail fanning from that truck (hehehe)
    Pictures from my truck.jpg
    I was trying to get a couple of pictures of the P&LE hoppers and yes I was parked on the berm of the road while taking the pictures from the drivers seat. This photo was taken in 1992, long before cell phones and digital cameras using a good ole Canon 35mm SLR camera.

    Oh the memories (y)
     
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  15. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    A Yup memories from the cab.

    Many a time to stop on-the-go shoulder and take pics of what's that coming oh cool moments.

    I always got kidded about chaining and strapping my woman to the bed.
     
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  16. Rich_S

    Rich_S TrainBoard Member

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    :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::D(y)
     
  17. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    When I was in N scale before modeling modern Era.

    I built several trucks using Concor cabs on Hinenuitepo frames.

    Now I'm getting back into n I was digging thru a tote and came across this old build I did years ago for a former friend.

    Sent it to him he rejected it so i got it back.

    A little worse for wear but still salvageable so will be taking my time rebuilding this beast before it finds a new home.

    With new paint and a rebuild it'll live for another day.

    Enjoy
     

    Attached Files:

  18. MK

    MK TrainBoard Member

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    I dont' know, it looks pretty good to me!
     
  19. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Yes but need a few updated touches.

    Better wheels..

    Better paint couple of flaws one big one in the blue on the sleeper.

    Plus bad blood between the former friend leave it at that.

    So it'll get stripped repainted better detail parts ect ect.

    Then to find it a good home as it doesn't fit in my 1979 era.
     
  20. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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    From what I can see that is a very nice model. You could send it my way if you change your mind about the rebuild:D JK... kinda:)
     
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