Rockford

Makes you wonder where it ceases being modelling and becomes an art form. Really breathtaking stuff. Well done.

As you can see my resolve to not touch the Freightliner didn't last. However, I mainly limited myself to assembly, the work was done to the parts I'd taken off, like the stacks- polishing and applying the decals to the heat shields, fitted the logo to the mudflaps and then reworking the front bumper. I realised that I do not have a painted front bumper on any truck. I have now! I carefully removed the lower half and tidied the cut up, then painted it. I think it's really in keeping with the rest of the truck. I also narrowed the little grille above the bumper and blacked the panel behind.

This is a fantastic saga of a build. Shame about the problem with the filament but you beat it! The La France job will be something to watch. Well done.

It's a difficult decision, and then you find photos like this.... What a beautiful brute of a machine. It's even the same colours!!!! No frills except Aircon, so obviously working in a sunny state. I was born at the wrong time in the wrong country. It's too late for this project but the single stripe choice is in the same era and approach. I think I'm settled on a scheme.

Thanks for the kind comments. I didn't have time to mock this one up this morning but these old style paint schemes always do something for me. I'm not sure which to go for. The first two are complex factory ones, but this is the kind of thing that a paint shop would do on a repaint for a truck's second life. I'm really torn.

I made a little engine block out of popsicle sticks that I have in abundance. I suppose you could say it's got a wooden block, wooden heads, wooden pistons, wooden valves, a wooden crank, a wooden cam. When I tried to fire it up it "wooden" run. Old ones are the best.

? I'll think about it. Just trying some of my schemes. Hard to decide.

Well, who said that the UK isn't a tropical paradise!? Yesterday was just about good enough for paint in the garage (humidity 78%, temp 16C) so I got some colour on the job. I'm not expecting a day this good until next year now. This year I think it was April/May before a useable day came along. The blue was supposed to be much darker according to the cap, it's a RAL colour but it came out like British Leyland Pageant Blue. It's a great shade of blue either way. Because I don't know when I'll be able to paint I tend to do primer and topcoat on the same day, so I don't get the best finish but it's acceptable, especially for a working truck. On cars I used to let the primer harden then give it a wet sand before topcoat, gave a much better finish. Don't ask me why I ended up with these colours, I realised they're almost exactly the same as my 352 but never mind. Put a coat of gloss black under the chrome paint, looks better. Now I need to LEAVE IT ALONE! For a week to let the paint harden up, so I can work on it without marking the paint. I've already tried putting the stacks on, I just can't help myself.

You've got your next project! 1m x 2m should be enough. ?

i do love videos like this!!!!

Great colour combination!

Really good to hear from someone who's actually driven one. I'm glad they weren't just a pretty face. Other than the Transit van, Ford commercial vehicles in UK were always regarded as 'cheap'. They had the D-Series from 3.5 - 32tons and then they brought out the Transcontinental which used the Berliet (later Renault) cab. It looked the part but I remember a Cummins man saying that their engines would never run right in a Ford because they don't build the intake and exhaust systems properly. Ford pulled out of the 3.5ton+ CV market in the 90s because they said they'd never made a penny on any of them. I think they sold it all to Iveco. Glad the US product wasn't the same.

Don't feel you have to explain yourself mate! We all like different things (thankfully). I do prefer the original Louisville, that's obviously what Ford designed originally. I'd love to build the one on the front of that brochure. I love the paint scheme and the blacked out hood top, like a Boss Mustang! The version I'm working on is MK2 sort of thing, then the MK3 was the Aeromax I suppose. Made a fan shroud and a steering box this morning.

I thought it carried over to the CL because they were huge too. They were a beautiful piece of machinery either way.

I think Ford excelled with the LTL9000 and the CL9000 (two storey Falcon). They might not have been KWs or Pete's but they were well designed trucks. I especially like the original LTL9000 because the hood carries on the shape of the cab itself.

I was thinking of painting the Freightliner today, at least getting primer on it, but I didn't get free to play until mid afternoon and I was worried about the temperature dropping and the humidity. I'd rather start earlier in the day. So I trawled through my WIPs and found that next in line was the Ford LTL9000, so I gave that some attention. First, I stripped the engine and tidied the joints up so that it looks more whole. Added radiator hoses and used an old air cleaner assembly and chubby sprue to build an inlet system to the turbo. Had to make the rubber gasket on the top of the filter that mates to an air box on the hood. Looks ok.

Another bonzer job!

This build is in a class of its own. Just unbelievable. I don't know how you do it. Marvellous stuff.

I've never encountered that but I do feel some of the new tins seem like jelly even brand new. Obviously these environmentally friendly formulations.

SQUIRREL!!!!!! Look what popped up on Extortionbay for £20! Not the usual £80-99 idiots are asking for. The stacks fell off in transit and there's only one mirror, but it looks ok with the original 1980's decals. You realise what great little kits these were in their day. I don't intend to lose the colour scheme, just give the truck some dignity by correcting a few things. Anyway, back to the cabover.....

Just snatched a few minutes and finished the interior. It's nothing like any Freightliner I've seen before but I just made it look presentable, you can hardly see it once it's in place.

Very nice, everything looks so square!

I think I'm just incapable of doing the same thing in the same way twice!

One more, adapted from one of the ones I did for the Bison.