Dieselhead

So I thought I'd go ahead and make this thread to not get DQ'd. I'm still in the planning phase since I ordered an airbrush and the hose fittings weren't drilled out, so I'm gonna go and try to get a new hose from the LHS when they open on Tuesday. It's gonna be an MPC DM600 + AMT gravel trailer converted to a tandem axle. I plan to engine swap it and throw on a SX nose from GW trucks. Here's a (really rough) paintjob concept I made for the tractor. Still unsure of how I'm gonna paint the trailer body.

I emailed him about some parts and he sent me his catalog and it shows that he does still make it.

Makes me want to get some tires from them for an upcoming DM600, just wish they weren't in the UK - or that Sourkraut had them in stock. But I digress. Great work on the truck. I love the little details - like the napa logos on the filters not being lined up the same so they look like they were screwed on by hand. Great work.

Weight savings, makes it go faster. Seriously though, looks awesome. Love the NHC-250 (I'm assuming, could be a NTC-350) in there.

I have a wardrobe in my room with my TV in it and some modeling stuff in the drawers, and the models go up on the top of the wardrobe. I also have a shelf that runs the whole room with all of my diecasts. My plan is to add a second tier of shelves that are a bit larger to accommodate the 1/25th scale models.

You'd probably have to make one custom for that out of acrylic sheet (thankfully, you can get that at Home Depot) to your spec. It's quite expensive (~$100 for a 48x96x1/8th" sheet of it) to make the case. Thankfully acrylic works similar to wood, meaning you can bevel, sand, cut, etc. like normal. I'm building a few tractor + trailer combos so if you make this I would love some pics and maybe some instructions as I'd love to make a few.

Man, I really love that DM800 rock truck. Where's the tires and bed from? This was my first semi truck ever and only one of 2016, I'm just killing time and getting over a cold before I work on my DM600. Normal Revell 359 with an AMT Big Cam(?) Cummins from Spaulding.

Scenes Unlimited might have the tires you're looking for, I think the T47s would work best.

Now that I have modeling money again and I'm gonna be building this one over the year, I think I'm gonna order one of these kits. I just can't see how they go together by looking at the parts. Is there a set of instructions or anything to help with assembly that comes with it?

That thing looks absolutely killer. I have no problems with it at all. Could you post a pic looking at it from the front to show off the grille and visor and such? I'm curious as to how that looks.

I'm not sure if you've built one before, but if not; the front engine crossmember MUST be square with the frame, otherwise the engine/trans won't fit in correctly. The front 4x4 suspension is kind of pain to assemble, and the transfercase likes to fall off of the frame tab, so be prepared for that. Other than that, the problems are pretty much standard AMT.

Just got an MPC DM600 and triaxle gravel bucket. Still unsure on paint scheme, don't really want a chrome trailer. I plan to chop an axle off and make it a tandem.

So this started life as the AMT '78 Firestone Ford 4x4. I didn't really like that idea, so I went with this. I got a Revell '77 GMC plow, and an 1160 Cat from an AMT Louisville car hauler. It all went together pretty well. Body's in Rustoleum gloss Hunter Green with flat clear and multiple layers of weathering, plus custom decals. The ballast in the bed is just some craft sticks broke in half and glued together, then washed in a 2:1 mix of Vallejo brown wash and Vallejo black wash. That mix is the wash used on most all of the model. (Yes, I know my lighting is horrible. I'll try to get better pics in the future but its far too cold and windy to take outdoor pics)

Cummins engines were generally Cummins Tan or a navy-gray type color. Truck makers also painted the engines whatever they wanted, if my memory serves, KW and Pete motors were white or their OEM color, Ford engines were blue, and I believe GM ran the motors with their OEM color.

If I can start building a little later (I'll be out of town for the holidays), count me in! If all goes well I'll be building a Mack DM600 + possible rock bucket

kinda funny, I'm currently working on a Super Stone Ford. Custom decals, plow from the '77 GMC, and I'm currently working on putting in the Cat 3208 from the Louisville car hauler. Gotta chop the interior tub so the trans will fit.

Wow Joe, that looks killer. I think the OOB one would look great with that blue color.

Good to know. It can always be a field-built custom though, and that moluminum 12v71 is certainly catching my eye.

I have a similar question, what would be a good donor for the AITM Hayes HD400 kit? I can source my own engine and trans, I just need a donor for the frame and axles.

12v71s were used all the time on 1:1s, so I'd imagine that one would fit fine on a kit truck - or you could make it fit, it's just plastic. Yes, dual stacks are correct for a V-type motor, helps with exhaust flow (in a 1:1 sense) and looks cool. Stacks from the Revell Pete 359 or KW W900 would work fine look-wise, although they might need some custom fab to fit right, although I suspect that'll be the name of the game for this build. Unfortunately I can't help you with the other stuff, but I'm sure KJ or Terry certainly could.

My bad, typo. I meant the M37 rims from Power Wagons. I could probably get you specs on them, and since duallies are just the same rim flipped to face each other, I figure it wouldn't be too hard to make a dually set. At least if 1/1 logic holds true.

Yeah, the stock exhaust pipe coming out of the turbo sits too low, and since the cummins has a fan on it, I had to chop up the stock 3406 radiator to make it fit (since the cummins didn't come with one, it was a junkyard lot), I also had to make a plate with some styrene sheet and tube to hold the motor up into the lugs inside the frame rails. There were some minor things like making custom intake tubes and a custom radiator hose but those weren't too bad. Overall it went better than I expected.

Since y'all asked so nicely, here's a pic of the dash. Yes, I am missing the drivers seat. It kept popping out when I was trying to get the interior tub in so I just took it out. It's not a show model anyway, so it's not a big deal to me. The dash is Model Masters Acrylic wood washed with Vallejo brown wash, and the steering wheel is Model Masters Acrylic aluminum, again washed in Vallejo brown wash to bring out some of the detail.

yeah, sorry about the really bad pics - i'm using my phones flash since it's way too cold to take it outside plus the mirrors and fender markers are really prone to falling off. I'll be sure to get a pic of the interior.

So this is my first semi truck build, and I kinda went all out. Colors are Tamiya TS40 Metallic Black and Testors One Coat Purplelicious, covered in 3 coats of Testors gloss clear, with detail areas washed in Vallejo black wash. The dash is Model Masters Acryl wood and Tamiya flat earth. The engine/axles are Testors One Coat Lime Ice green. This one's almost box stock, except I got a Big Cam Cummins from an AMT kit and swapped that in place of the stock Cat 3406A. Overall I'm pretty happy with it.