Truck (vehicle) Question - model

[nkalanaga]

Peteski:  Thank you.  If that's where the exhaust is it's fine with me.  No point making a stack if one isn't needed!  And, yes, I know you were joking.  My comments were aimed mostly at the "don't open the box" collector types.  I know I've "ruined" some real collectibles in my life!

The yellow trailer is a scratch job from years ago.  The puzzler was the blue one...  I'm sure there's SOMEONE here old enough to recognize it.  I probably should have said "previous" rather than "last" picture.

Nope, the yellow tractor was not made from a pickup.  It came as a tractor, and the only major changes are windows made with Kristal-Kleer and a plastic fifth wheel.  And, as I said, it is related to the blue trailer.

[Mark5]

Here's what the two International's look like with the shorter wheelbase.  Still "toy-like", and obviously not modern models, but much more typical of American trucks.

Cool. Gives me some ideas! Mine (which I bought a looooooooooooonnnnnnnnnng time ago) did'nt come with windows, at least I don't think they did! I dismantled them a bit with the idea of improving them but never got around to it before I left for college (still havent!):









Mark

[nkalanaga]

The box van looks like the pair I bought way back when, and they did have windows.  They "disappeared" a few years back, but both had been rebuilt long ago, one into a grain truck, the other a flatbed.  I hope whoever they left with has a use for them!

That tanker looks like the water tanks I've seen at a lot of construction sites, and with some rural fire departments.  The squarish tank seems to be unusual on American fuel trucks, but common for water.

[Catt]

The trucks I have are Con-Cor kits but they have Mercedes cabs.I would much rather have the IH cabs.No matter what you do to the Mercedes cabs they still look like they belong in Germany.I bought 4 sets of these trucks in sealed packages .All four kits are missing parts.Shortening the wheelbase makes a big difference in the appearance .

[Mark5]

The box van looks like the pair I bought way back when, and they did have windows. 

Yeah, it's all coming back to me. I wanted to remove them (the windows) to see if I could improve the placement but I think I ended up destroying them while removing. The one in the cab of the tanker was particularly difficult to remove which accounts for the rough appearance of the cab. That one's a write-off. I will do something with the blue cab though.

Mark

[jimmo]

Yeah, it's all coming back to me. I wanted to remove them (the windows) to see if I could improve the placement but I think I ended up destroying them while removing. The one in the cab of the tanker was particularly difficult to remove which accounts for the rough appearance of the cab. That one's a write-off. I will do something with the blue cab though.

Mark

It's not a total loss Mark, those windows are too large anyway. I reduced the size of mine by attaching strips of .005 styrene inside the window frames. Once the styrene was set, I carefully filed it closer to the prototype and made sure there were fillets in the corners. To top it off I also added a wing window. After all of that it still doesn't totally capture that genuine International look--but it is a damn sight better than what RMM did.

[nkalanaga]

Here is the RMM IH Loadstar with its fenders trimmed, and an Athearn Ford C for comparison. 


http://img546.imageshack.us/img546/3207/loadstarandfordc.jpg

[daniel_leavitt2000]

Looking at some prototype photos, the cab does not seem too bad with some modifications mentioned earlier. The general proportions seem good. The fenders are a bit narrow too, but thats fixable with strip styrene. New wheels would go a long way to making it look more realistic. I think you could make those "lollypop" style turn signals of the prototype using HO scale lift rings and a little drop of Tamiya clear orange.

Here is a photo of the roof:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B7qphL5fDi8/T-m67IS3jNI/AAAAAAAABBM/tSsGmXn3P2I/s1600/CO1600+fr+roof.jpg

It does not appear to have the grooves in it so you may want to fill those in with putty.

I never even thought about these models before, but seeing yours I think I may have to build one up.

[jimmo]

It does not appear to have the grooves in it so you may want to fill those in with putty.

If you look really close at the photo those are raised areas in the roof, not grooves. The angle of the sunlight almost obscures them. On the HO model by Wiking, it's correct.

[Mark5]

Wow, looking at proto photos those wheel arch fenders are really wrong! 

http://www.brian-fischer.com/truck.jpg

[jimmo]

Wow, looking at proto photos those wheel arch fenders are really wrong! 

http://www.brian-fischer.com/truck.jpg

Like I said earlier, there's a whole lot wrong with these models when you really get into it. I kinda gave up on mine, after all of the "fixes" it still looks kinda janky. That's the problem with getting intimate with a particular design, you just can't get away with not having it right. I've gotten rid of a lot of models over the years for that very reason. This hobby may seem to be all about the trains, they are (after all) the star of the show, but if your supporting cast lacks believability it taints the whole production.

By the way Mark, cool shot of that shorty Loadstar.

[nkalanaga]

That's actually one of the things that makes Model Railroading unusual as a hobby.  One doesn't even have to like trains to be a "model railroader"!  There are so many aspects to it that one can take part regardless of ones personal interests and still "fit in". 

[daniel_leavitt2000]

Like I said earlier, there's a whole lot wrong with these models when you really get into it. I kinda gave up on mine, after all of the "fixes" it still looks kinda janky. That's the problem with getting intimate with a particular design, you just can't get away with not having it right. I've gotten rid of a lot of models over the years for that very reason. This hobby may seem to be all about the trains, they are (after all) the star of the show, but if your supporting cast lacks believability it taints the whole production.

By the way Mark, cool shot of that shorty Loadstar.

I dug up a RMM Loadstar from my junk box. Comparing the model to side shots of the real thing, here are some observations:
1. The overall dimensions look OK. Height, cab length and width seem to be close.
2. The headlights, grill and front bumper seem to be undersized, making the cab face look too tall.
3. The side windows are too tall, making the lower portion of the side appear too small.
4. The fenders are too shallow, and they should slope downward in the front rather than end perpendicular to the cab body.
5. The cab step-in is also too mall and should be a tad lower.
6. The roof's flutes are inverted. The depressions should be piping.

With all that being said, it would only require some minor surgery to make an accurate model:
1. Add a new bumper from an Athearn Ford C series
2. Add new headlights and grill.
3. Add .02" x.02" strip styrene to the upper and lower portions of the side windows.
4. Add strip styrene to the fenders.
5. Lower the car step.
6. Add .01" round styrene into the channels on the roof.

Not a big project. With a prototype so popular, I think its worth a shot.

[Catt]

The windshield is to big also.I would say a .030" to the bottom of the windshield would be a big help.Maybe the same size for the bottoms of the side windows .020" for the top of the side windows looks right.The grille and headlights definitely need a change out  but just the window rework ,fenders and running boards being lowered some would definitely go a long way towards fixing this little beast.

Of course finding a stash of these would help too.

I do believe Daniel is on the right track.

[nkalanaga]

"Add a new bumper from an Athearn Ford C series"  If I could find Athearn Ford C's I'd probably just use them!  The main reason I ended up with these two is that the collections had other models I had more use for, and I hate to waste anything.

Currently left over from the collection are one each:

Wiking MB tractor with Shell tank trailer.  Not a bad model, but as far as I know the area I model didn't have a Shell distributor, and as of 1984, I can't find any Shell stations in the phone book.  Besides, I already have two of them!  The tractor may be repainted eventually.

Wiking city transit bus.  Not much use for rural Montana.  Flatcar load, maybe?

Wiking Porsche 911.  Not only do I have one, in the same shade of orange, but, again, how many would be seen in rural Montana farming or mining towns?

Bachmann cement mixer truck.  I'm tempted to use the cab and frame to try to make a potato truck, with the conveyor-bottom bed.  If it doesn't work I won't be out a lot...