Wagoneer81

You're on the right track with the modified Roo-bar. I'd keep going the way you are, it's looking pretty good. You're keeping the basic shape of the Ford bumper which is a plus. I'd keep what you've got, cut some Evergreen tube to replace the bars on the sides you widened, make the bars body colored with the chrome uprights and run with it! It would look similar to this with a little color added. Well, color match your bars and it would look like a photo negative of this... I did this to cover up where I had to remove some very heavy flash from mine. yes, that's the T-900 Aussie I'm working on... Now, on to the mural. You've made a sleeper side that almost has the dimensions of a Hi-Def TV screen so I'd go "widescreen" on the mural... I'd take your original mural (Which is beautiful, BTW) and crop and widen it to take up most of the sleeper side. A bit off the bottom and about a 1/2" off the sky Keep maybe a 1/4" of body color around it as a frame... It'll be an interesting truck, whatever you decide to do.

Cowboysevens may be on to something there... it'd be a shame for us to pull the C** motors out of our models, replace them with Cummins or Detroits and mail the C** parts to C** headquarters with a note that says something like, "Since you don't want anyone using your name, we won't. I'm going to build with Cummins instead. They aren't Microcephalitic Greed-Bags suffering from an acute case Rectal/Cranial Impaction." I understand what copyrights are about and for but this sometimes goes too far. This is one of those times. Bitner, I remember the UP fiasco. They were definitely out for blood for a while and accomplished nothing more than shooting themselves in the collective foot. I can see needing to get permission to use a name for something like an engine or a brand name of tire but to say you have to pay thousands for the rights for something that a caster might only make hundreds on with or without the name?... Way to lose on some good advertising chances and to alienate the buying public. I guess if one doesn't have the means to replace the C** engines, there's always curbside... I have Four models of C** equipped trucks I'm considering re-powering... It's like not even being able to use the term "Super Bowl" in a advertisement, you have to say, "The Big Game" because "Super Bowl" is a copyrighted name... Kind of an Orwellian age we live in, don't you think? I'd better be careful what I say, Big Corporations and Big Brother may be watching...

It's a wonderful idea, a kitbashers dream, really. If somebody needed just one component for a build, they don't have to buy the entire kit. I wish more resin companies did it this way.

Irwin Rommel was a German General serving a murderous, totalitarian regime. Alcohol is what it is. To the noisy PC minority that saved us from the evils of Alcohol and Tobacco decals, the decals were worst of the two . I'm not trying to start a tirade, just showing where "their" minds are... That having been said, I will agree that it is a wild looking subject and I've been eyeing one of them at the LHS. One day, it will attach itself to me on my way out and I'll have to build it. To add to the list, the '61 Ford PU. Has it ever been reissued?

Looking good! Keep up the good work!

I'll tell you what... Between you, AITM and a few other resin manufacturers, I could easily owe more than my annual income... I can say this openly now that my wallet walked out on me earlier today ; I will build a tandem drive F-8. I'll have to get the parts a little at a time, as funds allow, but I will build it!!! I am very impressed with the work you do. This forum has exposed me to so many new ideas and options, I'm still actually trying to wrap my mind around all of it... I saw a build article about a 1/25 F-8 several years ago but at the time I didn't want to get that involved in a project that required scratchbuilding the engine and modifying every other component... (I can only do so much of that at a time and it ceases to be fun...) Seems to me that those problems have been conveniently solved for me. I look forward to what's on the horizon! Chris

THAT is a beautiful build!!! Absolutely amazing!

What's funny about this is that my wallet just walked into the room, threw it's tiny hands up in the air and said, "That's it, I quit!!!! I can't do this anymore, you keep using me and leaving me with this big empty feeling inside and I'm not doing it any more!!!" ... ... And all I had said was, "I see a vintage '38 Ford 4x4 in my future."... You keep coming up with great ideas and parts! I love it!

I did a trade for the Budweiser '23 T Delivery Van and the guy threw in the old parts packs for free! 2 Revell Dragster frames, a '23 T Roadster frame and a '23 T Roadster Body! Needless to say, I am a Happy Camper!

Yes, but you know the part was moving at terminal velocity and cratered deep into the carpet! Small parts seem to defy the laws of physics when it comes to losing themselves...

I'm not familiar with the Testors Decal Maker so I can't pass judgement on it. I use a 10 year old copy of Printshop 11 for my graphics program and print them out on a $30.00 Canon Inkjet printer. I use clear and white decal sheets, depending on what I'm needing. I get those from Micro-Mark. Anything you can save to your computer, you can import to Printshop and print out on a decal sheet.

Windex works as well. Just an FYI.

Well, snap all AND diecast... 'nuff said!

It looks very good! Well done! I've had my butt kicked by inanimate objects before but I'd say you triumphed over this beast!

Yeah, I like where this is going, as well. I've got a few ideas bouncing around upstairs already, a classic late 30's concept, a modern asphalt carver... The possibilities are endless. Radical custom builds like this are out of my normal realm but it'll be a welcome change of pace. If you don't reach out once in a while, how do you know what's possible???

Funny thing there, Highway ol' buddy; the 1/16 General Lee was my very first build as well. It's the one that started it all! I think I was 6, maybe 7 at the time. Sheesh, that was 30 years ago! I got it and a 1/25 Daisy's Jeep for my birthday. I spent many an hour at the dining room table with a tube of Testors glue and my Boy Scout pocket knife... I still have that knife... The General and the Jeep went bye-bye many years ago...I forget how they met their end... I completely agree with you in that I am tickled-pink that they're re-issuing all these old kits, with them and the new stuff coming out, it is such a wonderful time to be a model builder!!! Call me a sentimental old fool but I know I'll end up buying and building another General Lee just for old time's sake.

Very realistic looking rust job! Last car I saw that came out of a barn looked similar to that... After we washed the six inches of accumulated dust, dirt, straw and bird poo off of it... Yep, you're on the right track!

One technique you can use to keep the paint from bleeding under the tape mask is this: Once you get your base color laid down and your first set of stripes masked, shoot the first coat of the stripe using your base color. ( if you have a white base, mask your stripe, apply one coat of white to the stripe area and then start shooting your stripe color) The base color will bleed under the tape and seal the mask and your next color won't or shouldn't bleed under at all. If it does, touch-up will be minimal. Do this with your next color as well. Seal the masked edge with the color you are covering and then apply the stripe color. I've used this before and it works. If you're using an airbrush, your coats will be thin enough that the extra coat won't make any difference in the final appearance. I did kind of a reverse to that with this Titan cab. I shot the white base and then masked the stripes. I shot one coat of white after I masked the stripes and after that tacked up, I shot the blue. When I unmasked, I had two small areas on the door hinges to touch up with a brush and a bit of decanted white paint. I had virtually no bleed under. As far as peeling paint off with tape, a Low-tack blue painters tape can work. If you have just regular masking tape, stick it to a clean, smooth surface such as a piece of glass, peel it away and THEN use it to mask your stripes. This will take some of the adhesive off the tape and make it a little less sticky. When you unmask, pull up a corner of the tape and pull it back along itself, horizontal to the masked surface. This will be gentler on the painted surface than if you simply pulled the tape straight up and off. Hope these ideas help. If you have anymore questions, don't hesitate to PM or email me.

So, if you're anything like me, that's 400 hours of build time and about 400 hours of staring/head scratching time... You should be very happy with this one, I keep coming back to this thread because your build and subject matter are simply amazing. I have a special folder in my picture files just for this build because it is so very inspiring to me! This is why I like to build flatbeds and lowboys for my tractors; You can get uber-creative with the cargo. This is one of the nicest, most interesting builds I have seen and I have seen a lot! I am a former warship modeler and in Navy and Maritime circles, the ship-to-ship signal (be it semaphore, signal flags or Morse Code) for 'Job Well Done' is 'BZ'. So, I can say, without hesitation; "Bravo Zulu, Job Well Done!"

That is VERY NICE!! I like it!!! It's an interesting subject and a very well executed, very clean build. Two thumbs up!!!

Looking good!! Very nice progress on the hood. I am looking forward to seeing these in production!

I picked up a Lindy Dodge L-700 with Skelly Tanker trailer and a boatload of Evergreen styrene goodies...AND the April edition of my favorite magazine... Model Cars!

Those are two sweet looking sisters! I like 'em!

Peter, I really like this idea. Your concept bears a much closer look and attention. It's different and it's a chance to get my hands on a unique, "one-off" body design. I love it, a challenge like this is right up my alley! Sign me up, I'll want two of those bodys, one to build straight-away and one to hang onto for a future project. It's kinda funny, really, a couple of months back I took two partsbox flathead V-8s and intake runners and exhaust from a '32 Caddy and started to fabricate a V-16 flathead. I didn't know why at the time, and then this comes along! It'll fit perfectly under that looong, narrow hood! Let me know when you need the money, and I'll be sure to get it to you! Chris

How about a laundry service truck... Just a suggestion...