Hermann Kersten Posted February 18, 2020 Share Posted February 18, 2020 (edited) Hi guys! First of all, I have to apologize to start a new project, but I really couldn't wait anymore.? The problem is, there is a Freightliner virus break out and it catches me.?? Good, to be serious, i was already working on this cab and needed a lot of info to make the cab as good as possible. So i saved a lot of pictures and study them, the only problem was, there was no size about the height of the cabin. After i posted the question in the Truck Stop section, Matthew helped me out and after i calculated from pictures, his info convinces me that i was on the right track in relation to the height of the high roof. First of all i start with the chassis what is not shortened and modified the crossbeams just like with the FLB. The suspension came from the FLD kit and made them fit for this chassis. Then the cabin, first i made the longer cab with the sleeper and day cab parts of the AMT kit. On the inside i glued a 0,75mm plate to keep strength on these plates and in this way i could sand the whole side because the parts have some differences in wideness. After KJ mentioned the extra 4mm width in his FLA topic, i cut the cab in half and added the extra 2mm per side. For people who like to do something different with the Freighliner.......i have an idea for you......?? Then glue the whole cab together and made a new rear plate until the top and i keep this rear plate a bit longer on purpose, because it is better to cut then to add to a plate. After all was hardened, first i made the flooring plate so that the cabin cannot twist when the roof is off. Before i make the sides of the high roof, i had a picture of a high roof from the side and could made some measurements for the window and transferred this to a piece of paper. Source: Purplewave.com And the styrene version. After a lot of studying the pictures from many angles, i noticed that the back and side of this high roof is slightly angled. This was important to know, because there is a seam at the window, and it follows the window backwards and slightly inwards on the back. In the first place i didn't see that this roof was slightly angled, but in relation to that particular seam it makes sense now. Below you can see clearly that seam. Source: purplewave.com And the 1/25 version.... And the work so far..... Well guys, i hope you find this another interesting conversion. For me it is fun to do this, because there were so many different versions of Freightliners out there that, in my opinion, this AMT kit is a good base for all these many different versions. See you next round! Hermann. Edited February 18, 2020 by Hermann Kersten Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckyr Posted February 18, 2020 Share Posted February 18, 2020 You have become the Freightliner authority! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince66 Posted February 19, 2020 Share Posted February 19, 2020 Jeeez Herman like the song Here we go again. Going to be another masterpiece H. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermann Kersten Posted February 20, 2020 Author Share Posted February 20, 2020 On 2/18/2020 at 10:17 AM, chuckyr said: You have become the Freightliner authority! Thank you Chucky! On 2/19/2020 at 3:31 AM, Vince66 said: Jeeez Herman like the song Here we go again. Going to be another masterpiece H. Yes Vince......again and on my own.? Ok guys, the first part of the roof is done, which means that the roof is closed. With this job i have the strength for the cabin back, and after some checks on a flat surface for tipping or twistings, but i saw that the cab is absolutely straight all around. For the inside I made the headlining in the ceiling and the start of raw shape of the storage compartments in the raised roof area. Then a picture to show that i cut the upper part of the front shield area and keep it around a little less then 4mm left, to glue the roof on it. And a look from the window side...... And slowly an interior grows inside the cabin. With the bigger windows in the raised roof, there will be later a good sight into the cab. Now i have to make the higher middle spoiler on the roof to complete the whole appearance of the raised or high roof. Later i will make also the side fenders behind the cab to make the whole cab more massive. For the nice looks i ordered the 2 Hole rims for the rear and 10 Hole for the front, should be looking good on this one. That's all there is for today, and see you next round. Source: Hank Truck Pictures by Gary Morton. Hermann. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr mopar Posted February 20, 2020 Share Posted February 20, 2020 Nice work so far Hermann ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince66 Posted February 20, 2020 Share Posted February 20, 2020 Yavold you have it H so is this going to be a Werner truck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRUSADER2 Posted February 20, 2020 Share Posted February 20, 2020 It's looking good Hermann, another great project to follow and learn from, really enjoy watching your builds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRIPTROIT 71 Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Another masterpiece in the works! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermann Kersten Posted February 22, 2020 Author Share Posted February 22, 2020 Thank you for the nice comments and liking this project guys! On 2/20/2020 at 8:58 PM, Vince66 said: Yavold you have it H so is this going to be a Werner truck The Werner catches me, but there are so many nice choices, so at this point i really don't know what or which it's gonna be. Well guys, the roof is done. For this conversion, i keep the self made templates for just in case of a future build. On the inner side of the roof i drilled 3 small holes, so the fumes of the glue can leave the hollow space, this is better for the drying process. Then i try to show you that the side walls start from the back with an angle, and when the side wall follows the curve to the front, it will stand straight up. With a template i draw the curved lines on both sides of the roof, so that with the construction it's more easy to keep the upper roof symmetric. At the front i had to add a 0,5mm, or for the Americans a .020 thick plate to get the right shape at the front side. There is not really a good reference picture of that, because all the raised roof documentation i could find, there was or is always the sun visor what hides this area. After a lot of sanding and some filling and sanding again, i get the right finishing at the front. I can not promise or guarantee that these dimensions i made for this roof are accurate, but after some try and error i think it worked on this one. Then some pictures of the progress so far. Ok guys, that's all there is for today, see you next round! Source: Unknown Hermann. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermann Kersten Posted February 23, 2020 Author Share Posted February 23, 2020 Hello everyone, Yep, i sprayed some primer to see if there were spots that needed some attention, but all was good and smooth. With 1 layer of grey primer the roof immediately gets a different look. At the both front corners I removed some material, because on later term the sun visor will be mounted on these spots. The side of the sun visor must be even with the side of the roof. The headlining of the ceiling with the storage compartments is also done now and attached on the inside of the roof. Now I can continue with the interior and later with the rivets. Fortunately the roof does not need rivets, because in this case it is a pretty long roof. That's it for today and see you next round! Source: Hank Truck Pictures by Gary Morton Hermann Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 Charger Posted February 23, 2020 Share Posted February 23, 2020 Fantastic work on the roof. It looks bang on . I look forward to more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince66 Posted February 24, 2020 Share Posted February 24, 2020 Looking Great H. Those Aero roofs could cause the cab to bounce around when you got some bad turbulence from another truck. Loved these old cabovers but my back didn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gotnitro? Posted February 25, 2020 Share Posted February 25, 2020 Outstanding work ! The roof conversion looks fantastic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermann Kersten Posted February 26, 2020 Author Share Posted February 26, 2020 (edited) Thank you for the nice comments guys! Today i show you the start of the work of the rivets. The misleading thing about this work is that you are easily mistaken by the numbers of the rivets, there are more on a cabin than you actually think there would be. Anyway, i punched already 200 rivets and made a start with the front and passenger side. In the front i made also the inspection hatch and the air openings at the right side of the cab. And the headlight units loosely placed. The metal parts of the CTM headlight set are glued with Loc-tite super glue, and I put some extra glue at the metal and styrene area, all around the unit . When the glue has hardened, then you file and sand away the excess glue around the light unit to become a smooth surface without any seam between the metal- and the styrene part. With paint you will see that it looks like, that this part is made out of 1 whole. That's it for today and see you next round! Hermann. Edited February 27, 2020 by Hermann Kersten Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince66 Posted February 26, 2020 Share Posted February 26, 2020 Marching on H speechless and I don't even own a cat.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gatorincebu Posted March 4, 2020 Share Posted March 4, 2020 Herman , That ism one ambitious project. But it looks like you have the skills and building technique to make it come together ! Be Well Gator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermann Kersten Posted March 6, 2020 Author Share Posted March 6, 2020 Thank you Vince and Marc! The cab is done with the rivet work and the last details. I sprayed the primer on it to see if everything was smooth, surprisingly it was, only 2 small spots what is easy to solve. First i show you the rivet work and the last details on the back of the cab. For the hinges of the doors of the storage compartments, i used 0,4mm electric wire for model trains. This wire, among others, i use also for wiring the chassis. And at the end of this rivet work what contains about 800 rivets......... This set can be back into the box. Ok guys, then the cab in the primer...... Yeah, that looks completely different then the leopard-like spots on the cabin.? That's it for today and see you next round. Hermann. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr mopar Posted March 6, 2020 Share Posted March 6, 2020 Looking Good keep up the good work ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRIPTROIT 71 Posted March 7, 2020 Share Posted March 7, 2020 I'm amazed at your ability with those individual rivets. You can fabricate a truck a lot faster than I can build a truck. Great work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermann Kersten Posted March 7, 2020 Author Share Posted March 7, 2020 (edited) On 3/6/2020 at 4:43 PM, Mr mopar said: Looking Good keep up the good work ! 15 hours ago, DRIPTROIT 71 said: I'm amazed at your ability with those individual rivets. You can fabricate a truck a lot faster than I can build a truck. Great work! Thank you for the nice comments guys! Yes fellow modelers, today a tip, which I hope you can benefit from, and make certain work easier . After the cabin was sprayed into the primer, I did an inspection and checked the entire cabin. Now and then there are those annoying little and shallow spots that are too small to work with putty, and too visible to spray the cabin in the final color. What I do in this case, and have the best experience with this, is the Hermanns paint method. The cabin will be sprayed with acrylic car paint, so I also use acrylic paint to solve this problem, in this case I use small brush and the Tamiya light grey paint, almost the same shade as te primer, but you can also choose for adarker shade for more visibility. Then you add the paint in the small and shallow area's and make it a little thick. After the paint is dry and hardend, i use the self made waterproof sandpaper patches and sand very carefully the painted area's. After you sand this till you reach the normal surface, then the spots are filled and you just have to spray the small spots with primer. To get more control over the waterproof sanding, I always use a little diswashing liquid soap when I do the waterproof job. With this dishwashing liquid soap you immediately feel the difference between what is coarse and what is smooth. this also prevents you from sanding the corners bare. Well guys, I hope this was a usefull tip. See you next round! Hermann. Edited March 7, 2020 by Hermann Kersten Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRUSADER2 Posted March 7, 2020 Share Posted March 7, 2020 Back in my car restoration days you used to be able to buy a cellulose filler which is really just thick primer paint, it was just like a really fine paste and light grey same as the spray cans, I imagine it is still available. I am not pouring cold water on your idea, I use the same method, I had just forgot about that product until you posted the idea, I will have to see if I can find some to finish my cabs, yours is looking superb, always enjoy following your builds Hermann, always top notch work!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermann Kersten Posted March 28, 2020 Author Share Posted March 28, 2020 Hello everyone, Today i show you some progress on this project. At this chassis I modified the front spring at the same time as i did with the FLB. The leave springs was already glued on the chassis in an earlier stage, so the front side I will it leave it like it is, so that i don't damage more then i do good on this one. Then the modification of the engine. First i started with the forming of the exhaust pipe, which is made out of pieces of sprue. With a lighter i made it a bit soft so that i can make nice bends. The rubber connecting parts are done in the same way as i showed in the FLB topic. The engine will be a Cummins NT855, which means that I have to change and add some parts. For this engine is the air inlet the biggest change. In the mean time i worked at the flooring plate and made the bed and the start of the engine tunnel. Then i renewed the cover of the inspection hatch, because the previous one did not fit completely and nicely with the framework. And as you all can see, I started already with the construction of the radiator grill. And safe the best for last, the side fenders of the cab are also in shape now. I only still have to make the supports for these fenders, but for the moment I used some tape to see how these fenders looks when they are attached to the cabine. Yep, it looks cool to me, the 2 hole rims are also fitting very well with this FLA, at the moment I´m just still doubting to put these 2-hole rims also on the front axle instead of the 10-hole. Well guys, that's it for today and see you next round. Hermann. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincen47 Posted March 28, 2020 Share Posted March 28, 2020 What a great project. Fine craftsmanship. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermann Kersten Posted March 31, 2020 Author Share Posted March 31, 2020 Thank you for the compliment Vincent! Today i kick off with the power-bank of this Freightliner. This time it would be the Cummins 855 Big Cam and this engine is the predecessor of the N14 which i made for the FLB. With these differences I have differences not only in cabin and spring packages, but also in the engines, which I want to have era-correct as much as possible....at least I give it a good try. First of all I collect info as much as possible and came out at different pictures. With these pictures i made the start with the conversion of the AMT Cummins. We start with some reference pictures. Source: Purple Wave.com Source: Purple Wave.com And the removing, building, cutting and gluing. The brass parts are also self made parts. During the search, I found out that the air filter housing does not always have a supply pipe from the front. The next picture shows that this filter housing has a hole in the upper which is covered with a grid. Source: Purple Wave.com For this Freightliner I would like to have this supply pipe on it, without is easier but hey....... the easiest way does not bring changes. Put everything together on the chassis for the fits and looks. With the construction of the air pipes, i glued the radiator again with wood glue to the chassis. In this way the radiator stay on it's place without any movements while fitting and building, and is easy to remove after, without any damages to the plastic. Yes gentlemen, now it is time to get some paint on it. The front is already painted, because these areas are hard to reach after the radiator is attached on the air pipes. In this case it is better and more more neat to attach the radiator to the engine and in this way hang it entirely between the chassis. That's it for today and see you next round......with the engine painted i think. Hermann. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vettegasser Posted April 1, 2020 Share Posted April 1, 2020 You do awesome work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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