mackinac359

Illini DID make a Big Horn. I have one. Cab, hood, bumper, grille, interior, dash, handles, nameplates, lights, ornament. Very nice. Unfortunately the mold went bad when he was casting mine (3 years ago) and I don't think he ever remade the mold. Tim

Ken Nice Carnie trucks! Tim

Cool! Funny you post your KW crane, I'm working have a Peterbilt version on my bench. Tim

Anthony Cool. I'm glad Dave is keeping these trucks alive for us. Tim

It does look good. Is this a newer Dave Natale/AITM casting or an older MTFA? Tim

Dave The 384 (short hood 386, pictured as a daycab with Ultracab roof) does look nice. It will replace the 385 (377's replacement from '98). The cab is the same basic cab from the 379. I haven't heard of any plans that anyone has made to offer any modern hoods for modeling. I can only hope. The 386 and 384 hoods have far too many compound curves and shapes for me to try out of plastic. Tim

I just finished the July/August update for www.truckmodeler.com Dozens and dozens of truck models! great work guys! Tim

Dave Here's a quick guide to Peterbilt model numbers and configurations: 379 aluminum hood traditional cab highway. Available in 119" BBC and 127" BBC (to be replaced in Jan 07 by 388 (123") and 389 (131"). 378 fiberglass hood, sloped. Traditional cab. Highway and construction. Also available in setback front axle (SBFA) 357 looks just like a 378 but heavier chassis and specific component options. Available SBFA, SFFA, 115" BBC and 111" as well as standard 119". Until late 90's was available in 123" BBC with steel butterfly hood and flat fenders (as my model shows) 377 sloped fiberglass hood with contoured fenders. Available in 120" BBC and shorter (can't remember BBC). Also available in axle forward. 377 was freshened in '98 and looked exactly like a 385. 385 replaced 377 in '00 with the last 377 built around that time. (385-120 and 377-120 A/E are identicle). 387 is the wide cab slope hood that shares some pieces with the KW T2000. There is also the 330, 335, 376 and a few others with the 379 family cab since 1987. Pre 1987 had the 359, 349, 353, 387(steel butterfly hood construction), and many others. go to http://tahlborn.web.aplus.net/PB.htm I have the various models explained briefly. Tim

Thanks John! Tim

Over the weekend I was organizing many kits for future builds. I was kitbashing dozens of kits, placing resin, parts, decals and reference photos in kits and labling the boxes so I know what the proposed project is. One of the trucks that I was prepping really struck my fancy, so I moved it to the #1 spot on the workbench. Here is the real truck: Here is my version: This is an early 90's Peterbilt 357-123 (123" BBC), butterfly hood and flat fenders. My 357 uses a resin Peterbilt 379 cab and hood modified, an AMT PB 359 chassis and running gear, resin front tires/wheels from Rick Mark, as is the mudflap material on the rear fenders. The fenders are resin PB 353 fenders from Spauldings (modified). The bumper is scratchbuilt. Fuel tanks are AMT, the steps, aircleaner and rear fenders are from Revell kits. The rear wheels are from an Ertl Volvo (metal frame) kit. The white mudflaps are Evergreen plastic with vinyl Peterbilt logos from WhiteFang resin/model parts from Australia. I started this 357 on monday and finished it this evening, with just enough sunlight to snap some photos. The resin grille/crown has a warp to it that I didn't notice until after it was installed, it is concave at the bottom creating an odd look. Thanks for looking! Tim

Early Road Commander II's would have Detroit Diesel Green, also known as GM Alpine Green. The silver engines were the Silver92 series, also available in the RCII. Tim

Casey Nice indeed! Tim

Casey Looks good! The hinges on the kit are finicky. The bumper barely clears the hinge creating a sticking point when tilting. A clunky set up. AMT should have put real hinges on it (attached to the chassis) rather than the hinge on the bumper. Tim

Kurt I don't have any photos of the dump body raised (you mean the real truck?) Tim

Casey That is a super-sharp 359 ! Tim

Anthony, the Brockway looks good. Tim

I think there is a lot of "play" in the pricing of trucks, especially large fleets that order hundreds of trucks a year. I see a lot of small municipalities buying more expensive Peterbilt and Kenworths for snowplows, dump trucks and service trucks due to the higher resale value. There is an interesting mix of county road maintenance trucks around my area. One county is all Peterbilt 357 and 335.(330) One county is all Western Star One county is Peterbilt 357 and Navistar One county is all Sterlings One county north of me uses Macks, Ford, Sterlings. Our state highway department uses Navistars Our state DNR uses most everything now adays but in the late 90's bought Peterbilt 379's for tractors and stake trucks for the Fire Service. I believe the Pricing Pecking Order is: Peterbilt-Kenworth tied Mack Western Star Freightliner-Navistar tied Sterling-Volvo tied There are too many variables.. if a local dealer wants the sale bad enough a KW or Pete might price in at what the other brand is offering. Tim

Thanks Doug! Tim

Robert Marmon used the engine-builders color. So Cummins Beige for a Cummins, Caterpillar yellow for a Cat and Detroit Diesel (alpine) green for a Detroit. Tim

RNK Should be back later this year under a new name. Have you checked www.kitformservices.com ? They are in the U.K., and the exchange rate is a bit pricey but have excellant quality resin. Tim

Lee The 378 and 377 chassis are identicle except for the front springs and the mounting for the sleeper are slightly different. Email me off group for a pic that I can't post on the web. Tim

BLECH! The cab is available as Fleetstar 2070 from American Industrial model Trucks at www.aitruckmodels.com Tim

I've done several 378-SBFA conversions to the Italeri kit. You have three choices, resin pre-04 hood, resin '04-07 hood and scratchbuilding a pre-04 hood. For scratchbuilding, take the kit hood, slice off the lower portion of the hood on both sides (equal and even cuts). Reinstall the lower hood section and fenders rearward to account for a 47" set-back. You will need to scratchbuild the bumper, or use one from a 377 kit modified. Either scribe of cut the fenders where the hood-to-cab line is. This portion of the fenders is mounted to the chassis and cab on the real truck. On mine I fix the hood closed to avoid all the fitment issues. The battery and toolboxes will need to be moved rearward slighting (the kit has mounting holes for a rear and forward mounting box) or mount the fuel tanks forward and the battery box aft of them, or use a COE style battery box or.. about any combination is/was available from Peterbilt. Headlight mounting location can be the higher-up on the grille location that the kit has or down low, which affords more protection for the lamp housing in obsticle filled construction sites. IF you do this, you'll need to fill in the existing mounting holes OR use a grille from a 377 kit. If you need more info, just post or email. Tim

The kit is NOT a 379, it is a 359 with some 'dress-up' parts to mimmick a 379 short hood. Tim

Thanks! Tim