What modern US truckkit exists?

[PierreR89]

I was wondering if there are any more modern US truck kits from middle of the 90,s and forward that exists?
I only know about the international lonestar and prostar that are 2 of the more modern kits.
The kenworth t600 also seems like it is one of the more modern trucks
Are there anymore or are there just those 3?
All Us trucks i have seems to be from the 70,s-80,s and it would be fun to have some other more modern kits to show how they changed designs and some other things on them.

Eurotrucks are there alot of modern versions of that are out.
Take Scania and Volvo as a example, if i wanted to i could build one for each decade from the 60/70,s and forward up untill the newest model they have on the roads today.

[Jim B]

You are correct, most of the US truck kits are from the 1970s & 1980s.  The AMT Kenworth T600 is a 1990s body on a 1970s frame & engine.  I don't know about the Revell (or was it Italeri) Kenworth T600.

[PierreR89]

I thought so.
So the t600 is so old that it is from the 90,s? i thought that it atleast was from somewhere on this side of 2000.
I suspected that they did something like that to save money and just being able to make a new body fit on an old existing frame.
Is that also the reason why almost everyone says that it is a pain to build?
The revell kenworth T600 is probably built on the frame from their T/W900 kits.

[Rob Hall]

38 minutes ago, PierreR89 said:

I thought so.
So the t600 is so old that it is from the 90,s? i thought that it atleast was from somewhere on this side of 2000. 

The AMT and Revell T600 kits date to 1990.   

[Jim B]

Pierre, that's one of the reasons why people say it's a pain to build, the other is the typical AMT fit quality from that era.  Here are some articles on correcting the AMT T600:

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm17_jan_1993_updat/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm18_mar_1993_updat/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm19_may_1993_updat/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm20_july_1993_upda/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm21_sept_1993_conv/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm23_jan_1994_updat/

I have yet to try these as it's a daunting project, and I can barely build box-stock.  So you know, Gary Wallace from GW Trucks offers the correct T600 front suspension, and a variety of engines that are appropriate for the T600 (Detroit Diesel Series60, Cummins N14, and a yellow engine).

[Force]

Yes, the only modern US truck kits are the International Lone Star and Pro Star, everything else is from the 70's, 80's and 90's.

[PierreR89]

Thanks for those links Jim B but if i buy a AMT T600 i am just going to build it out of the box and not change anything.
That is if i buy one..
I know how mad i got over some of the other AMT kits i have built and if i try this i might explode and fly off in the sunset?
Those kits no one said anything about and to have one that several people warns about is probably not the best idea for me to try?
Or everything just falls toghether with only the usual problems (highly doubt that)

Or i will just wait untill i find a T600 from revell at a normal price on ebay as i know revell,s kit dont have any major problems when building them

[vincen47]

To add to the unfortunately short list of out-of-the-box modern US trucks, here are six more to consider:

Italeri’s Volvo VNL780 and VNL670. Out of the box, they build around a 2003 model, curbside, and go together well. Though not a US-owned manufacturer, they are built here and are extremely common on US roads.

Also, Italeri’s Ford Aeromax 106 and 120 kits can be seen as mid-90’s, rolling off the assembly line up until around ‘97 - though the chassis isn’t exactly correct for Ford, nor the engine a mid 90’s vintage.

And from the same kit manufacturer, the Peterbilt 378 and 377, both of which are easily mid 90’s representations out of the box with period-correct chassis and engine. In fact, with the Series 60 Detroit, the 378 could be up to about a 2002 model, I believe. They just lack Peterbilt’s latest style, even though they are from the modern era.

There are many resin conversions available of more modern trucks, like AITM’s Peterbilt 386, too.

Edited September 22, 2019 by vincen47

[Fat Brian]

The Freightliner FLD is also a 90s to early 2000s truck.

Edited September 23, 2019 by Fat Brian

[iamsuperdan]

22 hours ago, Jim B said:

Pierre, that's one of the reasons why people say it's a pain to build, the other is the typical AMT fit quality from that era.  Here are some articles on correcting the AMT T600:

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm17_jan_1993_updat/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm18_mar_1993_updat/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm19_may_1993_updat/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm20_july_1993_upda/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm21_sept_1993_conv/

https://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thscale/model_magazine_articles/car_modeller/cm23_jan_1994_updat/

I have yet to try these as it's a daunting project, and I can barely build box-stock.  So you know, Gary Wallace from GW Trucks offers the correct T600 front suspension, and a variety of engines that are appropriate for the T600 (Detroit Diesel Series60, Cummins N14, and a yellow engine).

I'm in the middle of building the T600A Canepa, and I can tell you that the fit and finish is NOT up to par with a modern tooling. The instructions are vague at best and the kit has a ton of flash and poorly shaped parts. It's turning out okay, but it's a lot of work to get it there.

And the multi-piece body is not as well thought out as those in Italeri kits.

 

 

 

[DRIPTROIT 71]

The Italeri Western Star Constellation

[PierreR89]

I completly forgot about the Western Star.
I decided that i had to try and build a T600 but not the AMT version and found one from revell instead.
Its this one:

From what i found when i looked it up it is from the late 80,s based on the style of the sleeper so it was older then i thought.
But i like the aerodyne sleeper more then the one that is in the T600 big sleeper and AMT,s kits

Have anyone here built this kit?

[Fat Brian]

That is the first release of that kit, there is a second release that has a flat top sleeper with a great big fairing on top. I have the second version, it's very similar to the W900 and K100 kits and shares most of the same chassis parts. I'm pretty certain it has the twin turbo Cummins motor. I'd love to have that Aerodyne roof.

[Force]

I have both the AMT T600 and the Revell AG T600.
When it comes to the sleeper the AMT T600 has the more modern studio aerodyne sleeper with rounded front and the cab is also newer than the cab in the Revell kit with the rounded one piece wind screen.
The Revell kit on the other hand has a more modern chassis and drive train.

[PettyKW43]

The Revell kit is an early first generation T600 that made it’s debut in 1986 . I have yet to acquire one of these but if it is based on the earlier W900 kit that’s not a bad thing as it was very accurate and the real T600 was actually based on the W900 platform.

[chuckyr]

 

Edited October 10, 2019 by chuckyr

[Force]

20 hours ago, PettyKW43 said:

The Revell kit is an early first generation T600 that made it’s debut in 1986 . I have yet to acquire one of these but if it is based on the earlier W900 kit that’s not a bad thing as it was very accurate and the real T600 was actually based on the W900 platform.

The Revell Germany Kenworth W900 glue kit came a year or two after the T600 kits and the W900 and T600 kits share no parts.
Revell Germany issued the Kenworth T600 kits 1990 and 1991 and they are partly based on their K100 kit from 1982, you cut off and use the back half of the chassis from the K100 kit together with other front frame rails and front suspension, the engine and the rest of the drive train is also used from the K100 kit so the T600 kits has a Cummins NTC 475 engine and not the Caterpillar 3408 the W900 kit has.

Edited October 10, 2019 by Force

[PierreR89]

I got the T600 yesterday and only looked at what was in the box today.
Then i looked in the instructions for it and the very first step is to cut the frame in half?
After i looked some more in the box i found a note from Revell that listed alot of partnumbers that are not being used on this kit.
Normally they just black out the parts in the instructions but apparently it was easier to blackmark the parts being used and add that note telling what is not being used.
I counted the parts not being used and it was over 70 different parts.

So for those who need alot of random truckparts as spares (including doors) this kit is great.

[Fat Brian]

4 hours ago, PierreR89 said:

I got the T600 yesterday and only looked at what was in the box today.
Then i looked in the instructions for it and the very first step is to cut the frame in half?
After i looked some more in the box i found a note from Revell that listed alot of partnumbers that are not being used on this kit.
Normally they just black out the parts in the instructions but apparently it was easier to blackmark the parts being used and add that note telling what is not being used.
I counted the parts not being used and it was over 70 different parts.

So for those who need alot of random truckparts as spares (including doors) this kit is great.

Which version of the T600 did you get?

[PierreR89]

17 hours ago, Fat Brian said:

Which version of the T600 did you get?

The Revell version with the aerodyne sleeper.

[Fat Brian]

2 hours ago, PierreR89 said:

The Revell version with the aerodyne sleeper.

If you're not committed to the Aerodyne sleeper I'd make it worth your while to trade me for the more modern one.

[PierreR89]

On 10/17/2019 at 10:17 PM, Fat Brian said:

If you're not committed to the Aerodyne sleeper I'd make it worth your while to trade me for the more modern one.

Sorry, i bought it because i like the aerodyne sleeper more then the other one they had with this kit

[Fat Brian]

Thsts fine, figured I'd ask. I want to build a B model and need the Aerodyne sleeper. I didn't notice there were different versions until I'd bought mine.

[PierreR89]

No problems.
If you dont ask you never get to know, right?
Anyway, i think it would be easy to modify the one you have to be an aerodyne sleeper, since the sleeper is built up from 6 different pieces, walls, floor and roof.
It would probably cost revell to much to make a whole new tool for the entire sleeper so i am guessing they just made a new roof and added that huge spoiler to it.
So if you get the aerodyne roof from the W900 snapkit it would most likley fit with just some small mods done to it.
Maybee even the K100 aerodyne will work?

And since i have all 3 i can compare the aerodyne roofs to eachother if you want?

[Fat Brian]

1 hour ago, PierreR89 said:

No problems.
If you dont ask you never get to know, right?
Anyway, i think it would be easy to modify the one you have to be an aerodyne sleeper, since the sleeper is built up from 6 different pieces, walls, floor and roof.
It would probably cost revell to much to make a whole new tool for the entire sleeper so i am guessing they just made a new roof and added that huge spoiler to it.
So if you get the aerodyne roof from the W900 snapkit it would most likley fit with just some small mods done to it.
Maybee even the K100 aerodyne will work?

And since i have all 3 i can compare the aerodyne roofs to eachother if you want?

I have a snap kit that's going to donate its roof, it's about an 1/8" too narrow for the lower part of the sleeper so I'm going to have to add a little scab to each end and blend it in. It shouldn't change the overall look of the top.