maxwell48098

Outstanding build. I remember being a teenager and riding in my uncle Henry's white '64 Galaxie 50XL. The interior in his was red and it also had a 427!

Having been building model cars and trucks since 1958, then using resin conversion parts/kits, one thing I learned was that when you saw a resin item you liked, you bought it then because it may not be available months or years later. I've seen the same thing with some 3D suppliers. My first AIM resin conversions and parts were purchase in 1982. I still have some of those old, brittle, heavy fiberglass resin castings A.J.

The only problem with producing in China is that the tools, once sent there, can't be taken out. If my memory serves me correctly, based on a conversation with a former colleague who worked for Walmart back then,Walmart was the one who drove model companies to have their kits produced in China instead of US, using "Walmart approved" companies so that the wholesale prices would be low enough to maintain Walmart margins. Walmart also got the first containers of the new products. (This didn't make hobby shop owners happy.) As it turned out, several years later, Walmart dumped models altogether. Walmart did the same with other folks like Black and Decker where the B&D products sold at Walmart had their own, lower "Walmart" specs. Those lower spec B&D tools didn't last, and hurt the B&D brand as well. A.J.

I've had very good luck on some of my Franklin Mint die casts that used real rubber of soaking the tires in Armour-All. Then I let then air dry for a couple of days. I now will check annually if any of the tires are getting hard again and apply Armour-All using a Q-tip. A.J.

Another fun fact is that the wrecker body from the old Revell Midnite Cowboy tow truck literally drops right on the short F350 4X4 chassis. A.J.

Interesting that only F350's had dual rear wheels ans only the long bed or cab and chassis. But with a little work, you can turn them into something like this mini-pumper. A.J.

Great work. The March/April issue of Vintage Truck has an article on a beautiful, restored 1964 El Camino. A.J.

I think that the ambo body is a great idea. Where I live in SE MI, there were several local fire departments that had Ford F350 (both 4 and 2WD) Pierce mini-pumpers. They all used the same Ford chassis that the current Ford wrecker kits use. I used one of the wrecker bodies and put it on a '74 Dodge D series chassis. I'm considering using the Ford chassis for a mini-pumper or lite rescue. A.J.

I did my own version, minus the optional side tool cabinets. A.J.

I used to work for Chrysler and had a '74 Trail Duster as a company "car". The unique thing about the '74's was that there was not upper door frame on the door. For those Trail Dusters and Ramchargers equipped with the optional hard top, the door frames were actually attached to the roof. The problem with that turned out to be lots of water leaks at the "A" post-to-door frame joint, and at the upper door frame-to-door joint. This was corrected for '75 and later model years where to doors were from the D-series pickups with better weatherstripping around the entire door. FWI The product planners thought that customers that got the convertible topS would not like the upper metal door frame when the top was down or removed. Actual use proved them wrong. HaHa! A.J.

Thanks for your comment. It is actually is and easy conversion. I used a 1974 Dodge W100 chassis with the front 2WD suspension for the 1978 D100 Little Red Express slightly modified to a heavy duty D300 configuration. The rear axle/suspension had to be moved back about 1/8th inch to increase the wheelbase to 135 inches. This required a similar addition to the driveshaft. A PTO was added to the transmission, and new, longer PTO drive shaft made from Evergreen rod of connect to the chain drive for the winch. The MOPAR and side stripes are from the '74 Dodge Pickup. A.J.

I worked at a full-line Ford dealership from 1966-1972 while in high school and junior college. I started just washing and cleaning up new vehicles for delivery, then graduated to prepping vehicles for delivery. Our dealership general manager had a relative who worked for Ernest Holmes company on Chattanooga, TN and our dealership ordered all of their Ford chassis and had them dropped shipped at Holmes for completion. Our dealership had three Holmes wreckers from light duty F-series to N-series heavy duty, and we delivered probably 2 dozen Holmes wreckers per year. When Moebius announced Ford tow truck kit I was pretty excited, and now realize that my excitement was justified. The Moebius kit is extremely close to the Holmes 440 4 ton wrecker introduced in 1966. I remember these like it was yesterday having prepped many over the years. The 440 bed has two styles, the high side "deluxe" as represented by the current kits, and the low side "West Coast" body which I've heard Moebius will also be releasing. The storage compartments on the kit body were one of dozens of options. As soon as the kit came out, I bought 6 planning to build several variations used not only the Ford F350 4X4, but also two wheel drive, and using other truck brands as well, Below, are some images of the versions that I built so far. I'll have more detailed images on each one later. Thanks for looking, 1972 Ford F350 4X4 Holmes Tow Truck 1966 Ford F350 4X4 Holmes Tow Truck 1966 Ford F350 Holmes 440 Tow Truck 1968 Chevrolet K30 Holmes 440 Tow Truck 1968 Ford F350 Holmes 440 Tow Truck 1974 Dodge D300 Holmes 440

In Europe Chrysler sold a Chrysler 300 wagon just as you've pictured. One of the engine choices was a 3.0L diesel combined with a manual transaxle. Turn off the tractor control, and the diesel would break the front tires loose. A very fun vehicle to drive. A.J.

I make sure to remove and clean the spray paint can nozzle using 1:1 auto parts cleaner with those tiny wands in their nozzle after EVERY time I use them. The wand fits right into the paint nozzle and cleans out any buildup that could occur and plug them up. I also store my spray paint cans upside down so the tick paint doesn't buildup in the bottom of the spray can. Warming the paint cans up and shaking them for a couple of minutes has yet to fail me. A.J.

The difference between the F350 chassis and the other Ford 100-250 chassis is the wheelbase. The F350 has a longer wheelbase by about 6 inches when you set the two side by side. I used modelers license to relocate the rear suspension from the 1968 F250 2wd back about .25 inches. Hope this helps. A.J.