mackinac359

Here's the link to the interior page that Anthony was taking about. http://public.fotki.com/modeltrucks25thsca...car1973-08.html

Jeff If you must keep the two-piece tires, they will look okay if you sand the tread after gluing them. Otherwise, the best tires to find are the mid 70's AMT GoodYears that are the originals to the too-skinny ones molded in todays AMT kits (correct size). Otherwise, the tires in the AMT/Ertl (MPC) tri-axle gravel trailer are the best that AMT/Ertl ever offered. Tim

Craig Thanks ! Tim

This one will never be done.. frozen in time. The scene: Inside the Peterbilt factory, the assembly line right after the hood and cab have been set on the frame, just before all the hoses and wiring is connected. I started with an Italeri PEterbilt 377A/E kit and converted it to a 378 SBFA I cut the doors open to expose the nicely detailed Italeri interior. The seats, mattress and doors are covered with Saran Wrap to simulate the plastic coverings. The fuel tanks and drivers door protective covers were made from automotive vinyl stripe with the protective paper coating still in place. I cut the material to size, applied the vinyl and contoured it to shape for wrinkles and ripples, then painted it (blue for the fuel tank tarps and black for the door protector). The door sill protectors are unpainted plastic with a strip of blue masking tape. The Unibilt sleeper logo, chassis warning logos and the interior build sheets are all photo reduced items. Paint is Duplicolor Charcoal Grey Metallic, fenders are Bright Silver, the chassis is gloss black and the interior is artists acrylic red (WalMart craft paint) covered with Future. This model would really look good fully wired and plumbed. I enjoyed building this and will probably add detail to it as time goes by. Thanks for looking! Tim

Casey Well.. a headline like that will certainly get attention ! The Dm800 turned out nice ! Tim

Scott I get a "page not viewable" type page when I click on your link. Tim

Yeah! What Dave said ! Tim

Wow! That is going to be a beast ! Great work on the frame and fuel tank editing. Tim

Looks good! Nice interior. Tim

Nice! Tim

Regarding JBOT decals, especially the larger stripes, I suggest buying some Microscale Decal Film and coat the decals with the film prior to applying to the cab. This will 'thicken' the decals just a bit so that you have a little more time to work with them and get them into position without cracking or breaking. JBOT's decals are finely printing and don't take kindly to a lot of repositioning. Tim

The bigger Revell fuel tanks look MUCH better than the tiny kit tanks. Tim

Nice progress. The engine looks good. Tim

I'm not sure of the release date for the Hawk Dodge L700. Hawk is planning on the trailers too, again I'm not sure of the date of release. ('someone' needs to finish a boxart model..) Tim

Oh.. IMC was Industo-Motive Company. Testors bought these toolings and they were issued a couple of times in the 70s. Then a company called THC contracted Testors to a production run. Now the toolings are owned by Hawk Model Company. Tim

I have this very kit on my workbench right now.. The fit of the tank body can be tricky. Careful planning and gluing is needed here. Also, the lower sections don't align just perfectly, so careful attention and some sanding of the bottom might be needed. There are lots of possibilities with this kit! Build it stock, shorten it for a tank body for a C-600 Ford or an LN8000, or.. rework the sides for an even older style tank. (Think Duel) Tim

Nice fleet rig. Spotting a real short wheelbase daycab COE anymore is a treat. Tim

That's really neat! Tim

Jim The green pad is a big green hobby cutting pad that I bought at a now closed local hobby store. I've since replaced it with the much-cheaper (and cheaper quality) sewing/quilting cutting pad (from WalMart). Tim

This is my work area right after the room was finished in December of '05. It has changed a bit here and there since. Tim

Wow! Tim

Nice plumbing. Tim

Looks like a unit that a railroad might use.. Tim

This Allied Van Lines Freightliner Condo with Drom would certainly be a cool build! The trailer looks similar to the AMT Trailmobile Moving Van but with shorter doors. The shorter doors would make for easier placement of the decals. Cool idea! Tim

VERY nice daycab! Tim