Warren D

Getting close to calling this one done. Cab is done except for the crane, grapple is all that's left there.

Looks great!

I think this one might be a better match: https://aitruckmodels.com/product/mack-b-7375/

I'd say you guessed right, I figure the round ones are aluminum and the rect ones are steel, especially with the diamond plate.

If you take a look at the windshield, the real one looks very much like a Brockway with the arc on the bottom. The AITM kit would be a start and might be in the "close enough" category but would need some work to make it exactly like the photos.

Progress update: Cab is coming along, glass and interior are installed, also checked fit to chassis. Photos are mock ups, still some details to add before it gets mounted. I packed the front fender wells with mud, seemed to add a lot of extra weight to an already heavy resin casting. As I go, I keep finding more things to add. I really need to wrap this up soon, otherwise it might never get done! Chassis is also coming along, mud and rust added along with grease and oil. Fuel tanks and battery boxes are on and I had some room to add a step from the log trailer kit on the passenger side which still needs to get dirty. I've tried several methods for the mud. First was the well known use of baking soda as a filler/texture but by the time I got the texture I liked, there was too much baking soda and it turned the mix white requiring many coats of mud colored washes. I tried a blend of fine saw dust, acrylic paint ($.99 at the craft store) and some clear gloss as a binder. I like the results, the sawdust adds body and the fiber seems to go along with the logger theme. Next are the cab accessories, a few chassis details then the cab can get mounted. Biggest thing left after that will be the grapple for the crane. I think I see the end......until I find something else to add/change....sigh......

Thanks. Well, you can add it up, B815 from AITM, Mack Chassis from AITM, AMT Logging trailer, Italeri Crane, chain material was about $50 so about $300 so far give or take.

AITM has several choices in resin and Moluminum has resin wheels and rubber tires, also in several varieties.

Like the tires also, Jamie's?

X2

I think it's the same frame as the A-Car tractor which attach that way.

It's your build you can do anything you want......but.....from a realism point of view, wide tires suck in the snow so I doubt you'll see many plow trucks with front floats (might see a few in the ditch!)

I'd e-mail Dave at AITM when he gets back next week. His parts catalogue lists several headlights, but no pics. Tell him what you are looking for and he might have it. He does make a White cab kit that may have the correct headlights you need.

Thanks, I think I have about 2 hours invested in each wheel just for the chains. Not something I plan on doing again anytime soon.

Not sure anyone really cares how a logger rides except maybe the driver. The large sidewalls on the tires should help! With all the mud, probably smoother than a paved road in pothole season!!! LOL!

I think it was worth the effort, I'm sure I'll like more as time goes by and I forget what apain it was to do. I think it's the scale difference but could also be that KFS is geared to Euro trucks (like AITM is geared to American trucks) and there may be some differences due to that. I had to narrow both sides, if I just did the long side, the diff would have landed in the center and it really needs to be offset to one side. Only one I've seen with a centered front drive axle is a center cab cement mixer. Not saying there aren't others, but that's the only one I've seen. I did notice the scale difference between 1/24 and 1/25 years ago when I tried taking 2 1/24 scale Chevy p/u beds and making a long bed. The cab I was using was 1/25 and that bed was ugly wide. Ended up taking a good chunk of width out of it to match the cab width. Some things don't matter as much, ie, the crane for this build is 1/24 but looks fine on a 1/25 scale truck and I don't recall having to make any changes to the crane's mounting channels for frame width.

Change of direction......well, a small one. A few weeks ago, I saw a post of an Autocar mixer with a front drive axle. I had really wanted to do a front drive axle when I built my mixer a few years ago, but I was just getting back into the hobby and didn't know of the parts resources available. Knowledge can be a bad thing. After seeing that post, it re-kindled a desire to put a front drive axle in something.....so I decided to take some steps back and convert the B815 to all wheel drive. Ordered up parts from KFS and waited for them to fly across the pond. Then the fun started, the track was way too wide (maybe 1/24 scale difference?) so I had to narrow the track by removing a little from both sides. The real fun was to come, trying to remove the "kit" front axle. I was able to get it off the chassis without damaging the springs but the axle itself was toast. I now have all wheel drive, and there is a slight height difference, the front end sits a bit higher than the rears but that will look better once the load is added, the back will look like it's sagging under the load. I need to get this finished before I change it up again......either that or I need a dose of willpower to resist those ideas! Photos are a mock-up of progress to date, still a long way to go.

Thanks, I'm obviously better with the chaulks.......

While waiting for chassis parts for the truck, I spent some time on the trailer. I may have gone a bit over on the mud, but it'll have to do. Cable was made from the bare copper lead in a mouse cable, dipped in Blacken-It then over painted with rust. I have to add some bare metal paint to areas where the logs will rub when I figure out where that will be.

Interior almost ready for installation. Took out the old weathering chalks which did a great job on the seats.

Looks pretty good to me. It's all a learning process. I look at the ones I built 40 years ago and usually end up rebuilding them.

No issues today!

Came out great, the spacing between the tank and the rear wheels looks spot on!

You have the patience of a saint! Just a simple swivel for a log grapple has been throwing me fits, I can't imaging how I'd deal with the level of detail you're doing.....