truck, boat, and trailer

[Paul Payne]

This is more of an idea in progress than an actual project at this point. Some years ago I picked up a Galaxie LTD. trailer but with no real plans for what to do with it. Not long ago I got a built PT-109 that scales out to about 28' in 1/25th scale. I have the AMT 3 in 1 boat kit, but wanted something larger based on wood speed boats of the 1920's and 30's. About a week ago I got an Ertl Collectibles 1946 Dodge Power Wagon tow truck which I had had in mind as the perfect tow vehicle. I think these a the toughest looking trucks on the planet! The front of the trailer will be for storage since I have some goodies such as scuba tanks, etc., and perhaps a motorcycle? The boat came apart easily with no damage to the hull or deck. The rest of the superstructure will be removed and cockpit and engine areas will be cut out and rebuilt. The rear of the boat will be lengthened and reshaped as well. Revell's Hemi Hydro has a nice trailer useful as reference. 

Edited February 8, 2021 by Paul Payne
wrong word

[NOBLNG]

Interesting ideas. I agree with your thoughts on the Power Wagon, and those old wooden boats are indeed a thing of beauty!

[Paul Payne]

Nobling, I have always wanted to build a larger speed boat, but didn't want to shell out for a Dumas or similar kit. The old pt boat allows me more flexibility in cockpit and engine compartment arrangement. Once I got that far, I realized I would need a trailer and tow vehicle. Now I have to figure out how to display it and keep the dust off!

[espo]

For display you might have to get a 1/12th scale dust cover. These old wooden boats are such beautiful looking Vessels. Going to follow along on this build.  

[vincen47]

This is a great idea. Those wooden boats are a thing of beauty. This will make a great project, lots of potential with the materials you have so far.

I was fortunate to be camping in the Traverse City (Northern Michigan) area a few years back during their Boats on the Boardwalk, a gathering of classic boats, mostly wooden, tied up and cruising along on the river. A great show, and recommended for even the casual wooden boat admirer, like myself. Anyone who knows Traverse City knows there’s always some festival going on, but this time it happened to be something I was interested in.

I’ve looked at the 1/24 Dumas Chris Crafts and considered a similar project, but yes, they are not cheap. Maybe I’ll pursue it in the future, but I’ll sit back for now and watch this one take shape.

[Kit Karson]

Love Wooden Boats!

'49 Chevy 3100 Suburban Woody & Woodpecker Speed Boat

And, it's not that difficult to scratch build a boat trailer!

Offshore Rescale Cigarette Build on a scratch built trailer.  Made a jig pattern and used Plastruct channel to make a boxed frame.

I'll be following your build, @Paul Payne! -KK

[Paul Payne]

Well, let's look at the boat first. I have removed all the details on the deck, prior to sawing off and sanding down all the details except the actual planking which will be left as much as possible for a guide for the real wood. Many of the deck details were molded in relief, which meant a depression was created on the deck underside. Most of these have been filled with epoxy. I have also marked out the general cockpit locations and the windscreen location. The hull will also have some recesses on the inside filled with epoxy as well, primarily the prop shaft indentations and the inside of the bow, since I plan on some major rework in both areas. The runabout I am creating will have 2 propellers instead of 3, and 2 rudders as well. Once the cockpit and engine areas are cut out, I will probably add some filler plastic for strength. So, out comes the saw, with more progress pix soon.

[Paul Payne]

Sawed off the rest of the superstructure and began grinding down the raised deck details. I suddenly realized some of you might not realize how big this boat will be. Here's a comparison shot between the project and the AMT 3 in 1 boat kit.

[misterNNL]

Great concept. It will be fun to watch how you create the wood effects on the deck and hull.

[gotnitro?]

Following!

[Paul Payne]

Just completed a trade with Michelle in which she included some boat propellers as well as the same PT boat hull! Propellers seem hard to come by, and model boat propellers on the internet are always too large. Now I am very tempted to do a second speed boat in a different style! But- I will continue with this one........................ 

[alan barton]

All us boat guys are watching!  I like your train of thought so far, Paul, it will be an interesting build.  I am seriously considering planking an AMT 3-1 that I reshaped to a cracker box style with the taller tapering sides so I suspect I am going to learn a bit from this one!

Cheers

Alan

[Paul Payne]

This is my stash of cedar cigar wrapper I have been hoarding for years. Hopefully enough todo this project and a couple others! I would welcome any ideas on how to cut uniform width planks! 

[horsepower]

On 3/14/2021 at 9:11 PM, alan barton said:

All us boat guys are watching!  I like your train of thought so far, Paul, it will be an interesting build.  I am seriously considering planking an AMT 3-1 that I reshaped to a cracker box style with the taller tapering sides so I suspect I am going to learn a bit from this one!

Cheers

Alan

Alan, you can get flooring for a 1/12 scale dollhouse that is real wood strips on a thin carrier material and it is in strips about 3/16" to 1/4" and you can remove the ones you want and the individual "boards" are in varying length just like a real house. I bought a 9"x12" sheet for a wooden floor in a pickup bed because they can be aged to look like the ones in old Chevy trucks.

[Paul Payne]

Horsepower, thanks for the doll house floor info.

[slusher]

I like how your project is going. I am going to follow along. Keep up the good work sir...

[Mike F.]

Really cool project.

I just hope JFK does not mind.

[Paul Payne]

This project is beginning to take shape. I decided on a ram or reverse angle bow, so created the profile on styrene sheet, then cut through the centerline of the existing bow, sanded the cut just a bit, then glued the new profile piece in place. I also drew the new stern contour on cardstock as a template, traced this onto styrene, then rough trimmed the pieces before gluing them together with white glue and sanding to size. Soaking in water dissolved the glue and .060" x .060" styrene stock was glued to the edges mating to the stern. Additional pieces will be added for the bottom, new stern, and a set of stairs up the middle for easy passenger access, using the same techniques. I also removed some features from the hull sides to make everything smoother. Since the new bow contour needs to be blended and faired into the existing hull lines, I will experiment with plastic strips cut about 1/4" wide. They will be glued to the bow contour, extending slightly past the new profile, then manipulated to blend with the hull. They will be long enough to have a large enough glue surface on the hull so they can be snded and blended into the hull without a step where they end. More pix later as I figure this out.

The deck has been sanded smoother (still some to do)- the grey areas are the epoxy patches I applied to the reverse relief areas underneath. I also glued in some transverse support pieces in preparation to start cutting out the passenger cockpits and the engine area. The support pieces will also be deck areas, so a second stock addition will bring them up to the deck level.

[TarheelRick]

Looking forward to your progress on this build.  Going to be interesting watching that hull take shape.

[Paul Payne]

In case you were wondering why this isn't in everything else, I WILL be doing some work on the Dodge Power Wagon- weathering, vertical exhaust stacks, possibly even a hemi transplant- and, oh yes, sanding the tire treads!

[Paul Payne]

More progress- the stern has been completed and the hull has been faired and scale 3" planks are being cut from the cedar cigar wrapper. Also, the floor for the skipper's and passenger's compartments has been laid in. The deck has been challenging- the plastic is somewhat brittle and some of the patches have come loose. The cockpit openings are very rough and will need a lot of refining. In addition, fairing the hull has altered its top outline a bit so the deck will need some edge sanding for a flush fit.

By the way, the Power Wagon has been partially disassembled, with certain attachments still somewhat of a mystery.

[Paul Payne]

You are all probably wondering what the heck is going on when there is almost nothing about a truck? Well, the Dodge power wagon finally succumbed to disassembly- a daunting process with any plastic and die cast model. This model is extremely well detailed and I strongly recommend it to any pickup or Mopar fan. The first thing to be disassembled was the towing boom assembly from the bed. persistent gentle prying and suddenly it detached. So far only the front winch on the bumper broke off, looks like an easy fix- may remount it with a couple of scale carriage bolts through the bumper. Another step in the process is to investigate the front windshield and frame to see if they can be detached since I would love to have them open up like the real thing. Today I was able to detach the power train from the frame, then, with a lot of careful prying, the engine, transmission and exhaust popped off. The transmission was mounted to a big boss on the underside of the chassis, hence the resistance. From the beginning I have wanted to replace the 6 cylinder engine with a hemi, but retain the original transmission. I pirated the hemi from the AMT 53 Studebaker and have glued the block and transmission halves together as well as stripping chrome parts in the oven cleaner bath. Like most diecasts, the door hinges are really klunky and look like poop, but they did work well.... The hood hinge is actually very nice- a thin wire threaded through cast hinge sections. The doors themselves have what would be the actual door hinges molded in- nothing on the cab, just the doors. For years I have had a Trimaster hinge package I haven't had the courage to use- maybe I will try to create more realistic hinges with it. I plan on weathering the truck as well- found a picture on the internet I really like. I want to run vertical exhaust stacks through the running boards just behind the cab- not sure if I will have to move the spare tire or not to clear them. Oh, I also sanded the tire treads but need to knock down the shine on the rest of the tires as well. 

[Paul Payne]

Success! I was able to separate the windshield assembly from the cab. Also a picture of a gathering of hemi parts- we shall see which ones make it to the final assembly!

[Paul Payne]

More success! I was able to separate the inner door panels from the door skins! The inner door panels have a complete window surround including the vent windows! 

[NOBLNG]

Fantastic Paul! Great to see some progress on this project.? I would love to do up one of those Power Wagons. The Hemi conversion will be great.