Chariots of Fire

Here's the truck with the brass bumper attached. it is made of 3 pieces of flat stock soldered together with a bracket on each side behind that "bolts" to the sides of the frame.to the sides of the frame.

You are right, Juergen. The chain is a bit hefty but it's all they have. Each link measures about 3.5mm in length and is about 4mm wide to the outside of the pins that hold each link together. It is much larger than what is in the kit for the Monogram Mack AC but I think it is more realistic and would be beefier than the AC anyway. No resin cast parts on the Waukesha. The block and oil pan were from a Peterbilt kit. The exhaust manifold is from the Mack AC (actually 2 of them glued back to back). The rest is plastic tubing, aluminum turnings for the fan belt pulleys and some craft wire. Fan is from one of the American LaFrance fire truck kits. The brass bumper is done. I just have to let the primer dry and I'll take some photos.

Thanks, Tim. We'll keep it moving! Right now I'm working on replacing the resin front bumper with one made of brass. The resin one does not have the curved ends like the ones I see in the Sterling Photos. More postings to follow.

Got the chain and sprockets from Micro-mark. I used the #8 and #20 sprockets that have a 1/8" diameter center hole. Makes attaching to an axle real easy. The chain only is sold in 12" lengths but it comes apart easy and can go back to any length you want.

Progress has been slow on this one. LIttle things just seemed to get in the way. But we move on. The hood was cut clear of the radiator and cowl so that opening hood sides could be made of brass. The engine is basically done and represents a Waukesha 6 cylinder gas engine of the period. Now the cab and radiator have to be set with some locator pins for final fit of the hood sides. Fan belt pulleys are turned aluminum. A piece of electrical tape sliced into a thin strip can be wound around like a belt. The engine is painted and wired. The basic hood sides have been formed with a small piano hinge connecting the top pieces to the side pieces. A small brass tube was soldered to the opposite side of the top pieces and a stainless rod slides through into holes in the radiator and cowl. I painted the fenders with primer and then some Duplicolor general purpose green. But it took forever to set up. So I need to take a trip to the auto parts store and get some Duplicolor automotive paint. Much better to use. Hood sides have the louvers in place and the Sterling name plate above. Once painted a decal will be made up for the name plate using black and silver. We'll see how Molotow chrome works on the top of the radiator shell. The fenders have now been sanded down getting rid of the bad and rough glossy look. New paint should be a lot better.

That's purrrrty!

Looking pretty nice. Was the engine and pump for the de-icing equipment mounted in the very back in that area that has the grill?

I think it is fine the way it is. You have put so much time into it so far it would be a shame to cover it all up with just a box. I go for the ramp truck as well since it would be movable to show off all the detail underneath. Weather the bed with a light touch of rust here and there and just a small amount of dirt where tires might end up on a damaged vehicle. A small amount of grease on the winch cable...……..etc.

Got a bit more done on the frame and axle setup. Slack adjusters were added to the rear axle and the front axle now is steerable and the tie rod is set in place. I used a lot of little screws to put the brass parts together against plastic. Pretty solid. When it is ready for final assembly I will superglue the brass to plastic as well as the screws. But for the number of times I've taken things apart for fitting, the glue is on hold for now.

Finally got some work done on the Sterling. It took some fiddling to get the height right. Working with just photos is a bit more difficult than being able to adjust from actual measurements in the field. But we're getting there. The original cab casting had about 1/4" more material under the hood and doors. I cut that away the way that many of the trucks show in photos. Thinking of removing the hood and making it out of brass sheet with opening louvers. Probably the cab doors will open as well. The frame is from a stash kit but the back end needs to be cut off for a dump version. The springs are from an AMT ALF kit with the back ones modified with some helpers. The front axle is from a similar kit but has working knuckles with the aid of brass tubing. Tie rod and steering linkage still to come. The jackshaft is from the Mack AC kit. Sprockets and chains are from Micro-Mark. Wheels are from the AMT ALF kit and the tires are resin castings to a scale 41" diameter.

Check it out in the finished projects. Lots more to see than here.

I use craft wire and bead wire all the time. Some is mylar coated and looks great for winch cable. The brass and copper wire are good as well as the solder wire. All are soft and bend easily but once bent hold their shape. Paper clip wire is too heavy and not easy to bend as has been suggested.

That's a good tip! I have some of those wiggle eyes and could use them on a Ford hardtop I got from Tom Coolidge years ago! Thanks!!!

That is special, Tom. Been following along so keep us posted on your progress. Great lines and all of the appropriate little things!

IMHO If it doesn't come in a kit and you have to manufacture it, that's scratch building, plain and simple. Doesn't matter how you do it or what materials you use. The extent to which one does scratch building is strictly up to that person. It was said quite well further up this post that if the work is done sloppily it doesn't matter whether it was scratch built or kit built. The result is still the same. Workmanship is what makes the difference.