Alyn

The truck is turning out fantastic, Richard. Have you started on the trailer yet?

I get the impression you're having a lot of fun with this one, Cory. The dash looks good. I assume real wood?

Thanks for hanging with me guys. I certainly appreciate the good words. David, I really appreciate the advice on the dye. Just painting on the dye that I'm using seems like it will do the job. I just re-read the label and it actually says fabric paint and seems more like craft store acrylic paint that anything else. Next time I have occasion to color some nylon, I think I'll give you advice a try; sounds much more durable, and the proper way to go. Now I'm trying to decide what to do with the motor to step it up a notch. The whole assembly is only 7 pieces

Those two mock up shots really show what a nice looking truck you're putting together. Be proud to have the keys in my pocket.

Nice work, John. It's fun watching as you work this out.

Great color for this, Rob Both the outside finish and gray for the bare interior panels are really working.

OK Dave, I just happened to have some matte ebony fabric dye, so I slapped a coat on the main drum with a toothpick. Tomorrow I'll give it a scrape to see how durable it is. Your reputation as a master painter is on the line Here's some of the fun I've been having over the last few days. I added brackets on the body to support the top bows, and also a couple of loops on the rear of the tub to tie down the top straps. Both are made from brass. Here's the top bows made from 1/16" and 3/64" round brass rod. I tapered and flattened the ends where the holes are drilled. The main bow has a notch on each side with a small piece of flat brass soldered in place. This allows an attachment point for the smaller bow. bows temporarily attached to the tub with straight pins. Some tiny brass brads will serve as the permanent hinge pins later on. Hopefully, they'll work like rivets. and here with the bows in the up position I permanently glued the windshield frame to the tub to aid in building the top bows. A lot of trial and error to get the brass into the right shape. For something a little different, I decided to cut off the rear and corner/side panels of the top. The one on the right will be used. Here's where it sits at the moment. When done, there will be a strap on each side of the rear, extending from the top of the main bow down to the brass loops on the rear of the tub.

What a cool idea for the bed, That looks great, Cory. You're putting a ton of ideas into this one, and it's really coming together. Nice!

Thanks, Corey. Just trying to keep up with you other truckers. (did I pronouce that right?) Mike, you can find working wrecker booms on $ 1.99 push toys, so I think the bar's already been set. That and that georgous pickup bed you're building. Richard, John; always appreciate your opinions. Thanks for checking in. Bill, the whole thing is fully functional, with the exception that I may not bond the small gear to the crank shaft. Therefore, when the crank is turned, the gear doesn't move. A slight crimp in the shaft to cause a force fit, and a drop of CA would do the trick, but I figure that if I glue it to complete the functionality, idle hands may think they have the need to "see if it really works" more often than I'd like. I'll let you pretend that you're sitting behind the wheel though.

It's so good to see this masterpiece back on the front burner. Your work is endlessly entertaining to view, and a wealth of information and inspiration. thanks for sharing

Thanks, Bill, and Bill, and Bill/Richard. I appreciate your interest and opinions. Bill, the research photos I've gathered are almost evenly split between chain, cable and heavy rope. I agree with you though, that chain is likely the most accurate option. My decision was really based on whether or not I had enough small chain to provide the necessary wraps around the winch drum. Luckily, I had several feet, so chain it is. Here's a shot of the end of the boom. A brass pin goes across the slot to support the pulley assembly. I added some small bosses on each side for added support. I turned a pulley out of 1/4" aluminum rod. This is mounted in a brass yoke that is soldered to a brass ring. The brass pin in the previous picture supports the ring. This piece will require a fair amount of filing and shaping before it's ready for primer. Here's the completed boom. Ive added the pulley & chain, boom supports and winch crank handle since the last update. The handle slides through the shaft and can be extended to provide added leverage for heavy loads. Bolts will be added to the holes in the base rails after paint. The boom support rods bolt to a cross piece that can be adjusted via the 00-90 bolt and nut. By adjusting the nut, the boom can be raised or lowered roughly an inch (24" in scale) in the up or down direction. And, here's the completed boom mocked up again in the truck bed, ready for primer and final clean up. The chain is temporary and will be replaced with the longer piece to allow several layers of wrap on the winch drum. Once I clean it up, a white metal tow hook will attach to the end of the chain.

BINGO !

quotes and plus signes are your friend. search for: searchlight drawings - yields results with either "searchlight", "drawing", or both searchlight+drawings - yields results that must include both words in some way "searchlight drawings" - yields results that include the exact phrase "searchlight drawings" If the search doesn't come up wiith much of what you're looking for, try reversing the terms; drawings searchlight.

Looks Killer in red, especially with the bright chrome wheels

Some cool ideas that fit right in with the theme, and great execution too

Thanks, Mark ! I get quite a few comments on that little bugger.

My Dad's 37 Chevy business coupe. The original: mini-me

A lot of these preceding posters are the guys that inspire me to keep trying harder. Beautiful work. Here's some of my favorite projects. Except for the steering wheel, this interior is all scratch built scratch built pick up bed and rear of cab for Revell's 99 Dodge VTS including hand carved DODGE letters another of my favorite subjects; structural interior panels. The interior panels, top mechanism and frame scratch built, floor heavily modified. the top end of this engine, except for valve covers is scratch built; all fuel injection, linkage and ignition. everything in this picture except the seat, belts and tires is hand made from Evergreen plastic, aluminum an and brass The seat came from the AMT competition parts pack. Everything else in this picture is scratch built including the fence.

Cool concept, Corey; and you're doing a great job of bringing it to life. Out of the box with both feet for sure

Paint turned out really nice and your foil work is looking good too. This is going to one fine looking 55.

I don't know how you keep track of all these cool projects you've got going. As an LSR fan, I'll be looking over your shoulder on this one for sure. Nice start, and extra credit for building a variant.!

Thanks a lot, Mike. I always appreciate you checking in. Like all my models, this one is built to run, although I remove all internal moving parts and fill the engine block with Squadron putty as a theft deterrent.

What a pleasant surprise. I was expecting the usual "front end too high" gasser. This is a great looking car. Very out of the box for a Cobra, and nicely done. Congrats on a cool build!

More juice from the masters brain. Your creativity knows no bounds, Doc. Nice work on a car that would be a ball to drive. Hop in and just have some fun.

thank you all for your interest and great comments. Joe, I cut off a small section of PVC with a hacksaw and then trued up the cut in my micro lathe. While in the lathe, the PVC deeply scored to set the width of the tire. I finished cutting through the PVC with a razor saw and then cleaned up the cut with sandpaper. The edges of the tire were then rounded over with sandpaper as well. To finish it up, black Plasticoat primer was used for color (the PVC is white). I did get lucky with the size. The PVC fit perfectly around the center ridge of kit wheel. Because of the center ridge design, there is a gap on either side of the wheel than I plan on filling with an aluminum band.