Chariots of Fire

Does anyone have any info on 6 cylinder Hercules truck engines of the 1940's? I'm getting started on a Class 155 Army Air Force crash rig that had that type of engine. It also has a Continental engine on the rear to power a Hale fire pump. The pump I can do but the engine part I don't have any information for.

Aaron is right but there is a section of town that used to be known as Tremont and that is where I used the idea. The license plate is an up to date style for fire apparatus in Mass. I made it using my graphics program and then printed it out on decal paper using an ALPS printer.

I like the not so shiney paint job too. Sometimes a little toning down does something for a model. Keeps it more in perspective for the size!

Bare Metal Foil Decal Paper, Tim? Please enlighten me!

Thank you Dave and to all of you for your kind comments. It was an enjoyable project. It gave me more of an appreciation for the way that some of these old pieces of equipment were made and how well they were made. Charlie

It was a nice diversion, Chuck. I'm back in the fire apparatus mode again, though. Here is the next one on my list. It'a a WW2 vintage Mack with American LaFrance body work. They were only used state side and didn't come about until the latter part of the war.

According to what little information I have Pierce Arrow built about 50 of them. Yes the truck is scratch built. The one I modeled is at the Middlebury, CT Golden Age of Trucking Museum. It was originally owned by the City of New York but is now privately owned. I took many measurements and photos of the truck on my visits to the museum.

Yeah, well, they work and they don't! They are attached to the body and pivot upward so that the body can be lowered down into position on the frame. The two pinion gears engage he rack so as to hold the body up in just about any position. The racks are made from sections of nylon material obtained from a local scratch builder's supply house. He had some brass sections as well but they were expensive and would have been very difficult to bend. As it was I had to thin the nylon ones down so that they could be wrapped around the edge of a piece of 0.80" sheet stock. Once glued in place I could trim away the excess sheet. I glued a narrow piece of strip stock to the sheet that was left opposite the rack portion. Thinning out the nylon rack material and gluing it to the edge of a piece of thick sheet took all of the stress out of the rack so that it would keep its shape. Here are a couple of other pics for you. Here are just about all of the parts before they were finally assembled. and a couple more.

I did a Chevy of almost the same vintage. Did some scratch building, used Ford front and rear wheels, 2/3 of the tank from a Monogram Mack Bulldog tanker.

The Pierce Arrow 7 Ton dump is finally done. The body hoist is in place and the detailing is finished. Already for a test drive and showtime!

Can you post a pic?

I echo the sentiments of earlier posts! I used the dremel saw blade just once and almost took my pinkie off! I took it out of the dremel and tucked it away, never to use it again. Use a hand saw or the cutting discs. Much safer!

Yep! No Pics!

Got a bit more done on the Pierce Arrow. Crank and Pierce Arrow Society placard are at the front. Did the bolts around the front wheels, added valve stems and just about completed the running gear. Also did the Pierce Arrow badge on the hood sides. Here's a side view. And the underside. Here's the badge on the hood side. And the front end.

model! Tires are way to shiney. No name or other markings on the sidewalls either.

Ok, Ed. I can't say much about the reincarnation part since this is the first old non-fire apparatus model I have built. But here are some in-progress shots anyway. Top pic is some of the parts that went into the build. There were more done later on. The last two pics show how I did the tires. The original was an Italeri plastic tire selected for its outside diameter that matched what I needed. I chucked the tire blank in my lathe to turn down the surface tread so that I could do the front tires and back tires that have different tread patterns.

That's a new one, Kostas. I've never been accused of using a time machine but I have been accused of using a shrink machine. Ask the guys as Scale Firehouse! As far as a new project is concerned I have two. A 1962 Seagrave Eagle (aerial platform) and a Ward LaFrance built up as Engine 51 from the show Emergency!

Thanks for all of the kind comments, guys. There are still a few details left to do to call it complete but all of the basic stuff has been done except for that darned mechanical hoist for the dump body!

Final construction is almost complete. Still the hoisting mechanism to build but other than that it is just in need of some final adjustments. Hub caps were added front and rear and bolted on with tiny bolts so that they turn with the wheels but can be removed in case a "tire needs changing". Somehow I don't think I'll have to worry about blowouts like they did at the museum. A museum employee had just added some air to the left front tire, left it to work on another display and the inside tire sidewall blew. The hole was about a foot long and went from tread to rim. The front tires have since been replaced with some newer rubber.

I couldn't hold Gerald Wingrove's Xacto knife! Compared to him I am just messin' around. Thanks for the kind words just the same. Charlie

Here's a pic of all of the pieces so far. Still got the hoisting mechanism to build.

Been working on the running gear and finally got the transmission and parking brake assembly done. The final sequence will be for the hoisting mechanism and then I can paint the frame for final assembly.

Got a bit more done on the P-A. Painted the body and have begun work on the pedals, gear shift and hand brake. The real truck is in the background photo in the third shot.

What a neat thing! I'll have to try the Michael's store at Wareham Crossing!

I first drew out the frame shape on paper and then transferred the shape to a piece of strip brass. Since the frame is not the same depth throughout its length I had to solder the flanges on separately. I did make the flanges continuous by bending them where the frame depth changed. The only non-hand tools I have used so far is a drill press. All of the other parts and pieces such as the piece you mention were made by cutting out shapes with a dremel fitted with a cutting wheel. Thank goodness for a variety of tubing and strip stock that is available. Pieces such as the tow hooks on the front were made with brass rod and brass strip stock which were soldered together. The front axle is made of strip stock also with the top and bottom flanges soldered in place. The ends are made with brass tubing of different sizes that fit one inside the other. A number of #90 brass nuts and bolts have also been used to hold springs in place as well as the turning points on the front axle. Cleanup of the brass stock has been done with the dremel and cutting wheel, an assortment of files and a K&S tubing cutter.