Let see Custom HO vehicles

RGW1 May 13, 2020

  1. RGW1

    RGW1 TrainBoard Member

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    My layout era is late 50s so let is a little harder to find old trucks for it , so I modify them to give different looks to some of the same trucks.
    Lets see your custom trucks/car modified from the factory model. Here are some I have made 5-10-20 021.JPG 5-10-20 023.JPG 5-10-20 024.JPG 5-10-20 022.JPG
     
  2. RGW1

    RGW1 TrainBoard Member

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    Imex trucks have been great for modeling older eras
     
  3. acptulsa

    acptulsa TrainBoard Member

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  4. JimJ

    JimJ Staff Member

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    I know what you mean about difficulty finding early vehicles! These are Jordan Highway Miniatures kits that I fiddled with. The tow truck and the truck behind it are both heavily modified as is the truck getting an engine removed. I simply cut and modeled the back doors open on the old 1911 delivery truck and painted wood grain on the inside. Fun times! 7F2FB0BD-C116-49DA-AB00-AB40C6476138.jpeg 0B9927EE-AE28-446A-90B6-A9CE347F3609.jpeg A53F9488-CAF1-4C7E-B69F-B551C66F4C4A.jpeg
     
  5. acptulsa

    acptulsa TrainBoard Member

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  6. RGW1

    RGW1 TrainBoard Member

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    They look great model prewar truck must be really hard. I have a old matchbox truck 20s british prototype in my scrap yard covered in weeds .
     
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  7. RailMix

    RailMix TrainBoard Member

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    Something over ten years ago, I developed an interest in Roadway Express and in particular spent a lot of time on hankstruckpicures.com, where I found that Roadway operated a large variety of different semi tractors and also numerous slightly different trailer paint schemes in the late 40s/early 50s. Around that time, Imex truck models as well as Classic Metal Works trailers were readily available, so with the help of my Alps printer, I based a number of tractor-trailers on them.

    DSCI0115.jpg
    1. Tractor from a shortened Imex Ford and a CMW trailer I painted. Alps decals round out the job. Mirrors and mud flaps are still needed.

    DSCI0118.jpg
    2. Factory painted CMW trailer with an Imex International KB tractor

    DSCI0120.jpg
    3. CMW White WC22, former Yale tractor relettered for Roadway with custom lettered trailer.

    DSCI0138.jpg 4. Rear view of the Ford and International tractors. I intended that they would always be hooked to a trailer, so didn't worry about the absence of a rear window or the fifth wheel built with CA and a stack of washers. These trucks will populate a Roadway terminal on my layout.

    I just ran across these photos. I also did some other custom trucks, which I will post if I find the photos.
     
    Last edited: May 20, 2020
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  8. fordy744

    fordy744 TrainBoard Member

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    Here's a Woodland Scenics common pick up repainted so it doesn't look like all the others.

    2019-10-29 14.40.12 edit.jpg
     
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  9. rch

    rch TrainBoard Member

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    I really love the turn-of-the-century vehicles above. The detail is awesome and the builds are very clean.

    Here are two Kenworth W900As built last year using Athearn's body, grille and exhaust parts. The chassis is scratchbuilt, the mirrors, crossover platforms and mudflaps are from Plano, the heat shields from Masterbilt Models and the interiors are from Malibu diecast models. The wheels/tires, fuel tanks, air cleaners, steps, suspension and fifth wheels are 3D printed. The trailer is also 3D printed, with the exception of the pins at the movable joints, which are made of 0.020" styrene rod, and the axles, which are made of 0.040" styrene rod. The Kenworth tractors are based on a local company's paint scheme, with the main differences being that company uses Peterbilt tractors and a slightly darker pink paint.

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    And here's an older build from ten years ago, a Kenworth K100 with a Jifflox converter gear. The Jifflox tucks into the rear of the tractor chassis like the prototype and the fifth wheels can be moved into place. The tractor uses a Tyco grille and cab shortened to a daycab length. The chassis and Jifflox converter gear are scratchbuilt and details include Dennis Aust air filter and A-line mirrors, wheels and tires. The ribside trailer is a factory painted Athearn RTR model and the bullnose trailer is 3D printed with custom decals and A-line wheels/tires.

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    One more.... an even older build from twelve years ago, a Freightliner SBFA twin steer built from a heavily modified Athearn Freightliner cab and chassis with a Roco Hiab crane and scratchbuilt deck accompanied by a scratchbuilt trailer. Some components were used from Lonestar Models' flatbed trailer and lumber flatbed body, such as the toolbox and bulkhead on the truck and the tie-down railing on the trailer sides, along with wheels and tires from A-line and Dennis Aust, a Trucks-n-Stuff converter gear tongue and a pintle hook from Custom Finishing Models. The loads are 3D printed.

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  10. JimJ

    JimJ Staff Member

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    Wow. Very impressive truck modeling. All the great detailing really brings them to life.
     
  11. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    Very cool looking builds
     
  12. strummer

    strummer TrainBoard Member

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    Dunno if this qualifies as "Custom"...:)

    Received in today's mail one of the older Ulrich tractor-trailer rigs; the trailer is in pretty nice shape:

    6:1:1.jpg

    The tractor however, is another story: don't know if I've ever seen such a thick coat of paint!

    6:1:2.jpg

    6:1:3.jpg

    Although I've long admired the Ulrich KW, this is my first example. I have several of their Mack COEs, and assumed assembly would be similar, but this is not the case. Whereas the Mack is put together with a couple of well-placed screws, this KW has "assembly lugs". In this case the paint was so thick it took some effort to get everything apart:

    6:1:4.jpg

    (I wonder if the original red was marked for the PIE...) Anyway, it's sitting in stripping solution as I type this: not sure what the final paint scheme will be, but I know it'll be less thick!

    Mark in Oregon
     
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  13. RailMix

    RailMix TrainBoard Member

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    The trailer is cool and I was unfamiliar with the Denver Chicago Trucking Company, so I was curious as to whether this company actually existed. I did a quick search for it. Apparently it was one of the largest trucking companies in 1946:

    https://lessthantruckloadhistory.wo...nver-chicago-trucking-company-1946-route-map/
     
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  14. rch

    rch TrainBoard Member

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    Thanks for the positive comments!

    That KW is going to look way better with the paint removed. Those Ulrich kits have some nice detail and crisp lines, so it's good to get all that heavy paint off.

    I believe Denver Chicago Trucking became Time DC eventually. Depending on your modeling era, there might be some overlap of paint schemes and logos used. Athearn has offered some of their Freightliner cabovers in different Time DC schemes over the years, though I'm sure the Freightliner cabover postdates that trailer by quite a bit.

    DC was a user of the odd looking Kenworth CBE in the fifties. There is a version of this cab in HO scale on Shapeways, but the sleeper version is only available in S scale. I don't know if that trailer and the 1953 KW CBE would work together or not, but it would certainly be a unique combination.
     
  15. strummer

    strummer TrainBoard Member

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    Indeed. After a 24 hour soak in 99% isopropyl alcohol (which I find is still the best stuff for stripping) all that heavy paint was gone. I then tried something I had been curious about for some time.

    I gave the frame a one hour bath in white vinegar, dried it, then gave it (2) passes of "Birchwood Casey Gun Blue"; since it's as much a "stain" as anything, I hoped it would color yet be very thin. Here is the result:

    6:2:1.jpg

    ...and here it is, next to a Mack COE (which I acquired just as it appears here):

    6:2:2.jpg

    I'm pleased with the results using the Birchwood Casey and might try it on something bigger (like a steam engine.)

    Mark in Oregon
     
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  16. strummer

    strummer TrainBoard Member

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    I should amend this slightly.

    I use 70% for stripping, and 99% for bathing my motors (something I learned from the slot car guys).

    Dunno how much that matters, but I do want to be accurate...

    Mark in Oregon
     
  17. gmorider

    gmorider TrainBoard Member

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    Your work is outstanding!
     
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  18. RGW1

    RGW1 TrainBoard Member

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    Nice trucks. makes me want to add more to my layout.
     
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  19. gmorider

    gmorider TrainBoard Member

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    FYI, the web site RailMix refers to in no longer active. (n):sick:
     
  20. rch

    rch TrainBoard Member

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    hankstruckpictures.com is defunct, but the forum has lived on as http://hankstruckforum.com/ Unfortunately, I'm getting a notice the account is suspended when I try to visit the forum.
     

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