DRIPTROIT 71

I don’t think that you have bitten off more than you can chew. Keep in mind you can always fall back to a curbside on this project as when it makes it to the shelf, the cab is rarely tilted. You probably already know this, but I would remove all belt drives from the front. The Ertl style radiator is a bit narrower but has a very large top tank. You may consider narrowing a radiator with a smaller tank or modifying the tank on that one. Sit everything in place and give it a test run. Even on bigger cabs, radiator clearance is almost always an issue. For that matter I had some issue with radiator clearance on the T800 I’m building now. Hang in there! You got this!

After a second look at my pictures, with the way the frame drops on the 1:1 compared to your kit frame, the 8v may need to sit a little lower. You may consider shaving some off the top of the frame rail to simulate the 1:1. Notice the top of the transmission compared to the rear frame rails, this will give you an idea on how deep to set the engine. Anyway, if you need more pictures let me know.

I believe you will have to modify the front of your floor pan to allow for the radiator. Here is a Titan with a12v-71 Here is a Crackerbox with an 8v. It does look like the frame rails drop a little on the Crackerbox but the manifold to frame distance looks about the same. Now notice the front of the engine tunnel It looks to me like the tunnel angels up to allow for the radiator. If I'm not mistaken the kit is straight. Here is a few pictures for inspiration if you need any more let me know

I’ve been watching this one along the way, I’ve got to admit that at first not having seen one of these in white, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the white, but this thing looks Awesome!!! You have really been knocking this one out too! Very detailed for sure!! I can’t wait to see this one finished.

I have a few reference photos if you need any, I will be glad to post them. This was a sleeper cab, but should be the same as yours as far a mounting, because as you can see the sleeper is just over hang.

Great choice for an engine. It will be a tight fit, but don’t get frustrated. Sometimes resin and kit manufacturers alike don’t get the floor pan exactly right. Don’t be afraid to trim or even make a new pan. I have had to completely remake a floor pan before. A good example was my H-63 Mack that I put a 12v-71 in. As you can see on the real deal, it is a tight fit.

Man that looks good!!!

Thanks for the great picture! This will be very helpful! The one on YouTube has a single breather on the drivers side. Now I’ll have to decide on one or two breathers. Let’s just hope that I can fabricate something that looks close to a 6v-71.

Wow! Thanks! Do you happen to have any 6v-53 under hood pictures? I’m mainly wanting to see how the air filter was done. I think that there is a video of a right hand drive on YouTube that I may go by if I don’t find anymore references.

Spokes definitely! Not sure about the cab. Does anybody know why the center of the grill tilts back on these trucks?

I’ve been wanting to build one of these for years. This will be a very cool build. I’m not sure what engine you have in mind but remember that the engine tunnel is pretty cramped so make sure that you have clearance before you make anything permanent. Also the radiator will set much lower than the Titan and the fan will run off of the crank. Looking forward to seeing this one!

Thanks. I knew about the Cummins offerings too. I believe that they were the only diesels offered in the early versions. I think that the Cat and Detroit were only available the last couple years of production. I have been wanting to put a 6v-53 in something for a while. I made a crude version for my curbside 7500 GMC. Now I hope to make a presentable one. If it doesn’t work out the Cat is my backup plan. I’ve got to get back to work on my T800 quad or I’ll never get started again this one.?

I think it was around 2 weeks. I remember it being sooner than I expected.

I’m afraid so. For vintage 60s-80s builds, they were the best tires available.

Great to hear from you Sam!! Thanks for the kind words! I hope that you and the family are well. You should jump in on the BRBO this year.

The 7400 has tires and wheels from Scenes Unlimited The KW has tires from Double Take and drive wheels from the Superboss kit, resin wheels on the steer from eBay, and resin wheels from eBay on the trailer All of the Internationals have Ertl kit wheels. The log truck has tires from Double Take and the rest are the common kit tires.. The Peterbilt has solid cast resin tires. The front are from eBay, the rear are from A.I.T.M.

Looks great! I have the grill to try on one some day myself. Nice work!

Charles, you don’t miss a detail. Amazing craftsmanship!

I like these. I built one of these several years ago from an old Illini conversion. This will be good!

I’m really liking where you are going with this one! It looks awesome!

This is a great project! I like the short hood straight truck idea. Then you top it off with a 6v-92T. I’m looking forward to seeing this one!

Cool project for sure!!

Oh man! I like this build!! From the color scheme to the engine and transmission swap this is right up my alley. I agree with you on the shifter in these kits. I’ve even used them on other builds with this transmission. Great work!

Simply Amazing! Awesome fabrication work!

Awesome scratch building going on here! Looks awesome! I like the KW with the spokes too!