truckabilly

Tim, thank you for the spec´s. I didn´t think of the possibility that the BBC could be even longer. But it´s probably true because when I squeeze my 12v71 in, there is not room enough under the hood for a deep-core radiator. For the shutters I have the same piece as used for my logger. I only modified it a little to be a bit longer. I never knew the wheelbase figure. Got some tips but each was different. So, I stopped caring and just made a scale drawing with WB estimated from the photos. 235" is 238 milimeters in 1/25 scale. My estimated WB is 240 milimeters. Not bad, I think. I think there is one more build idea... the 1100 series cab combined with either full walk-on fenders or the shortened ones with bigger fuel tanks. I chose the recabbed version because it looks even more weird. I started my build as usual with the engine. I didn´t have the buzzin´ dozen but I had two 6v71s which I combined to get a 12v71. More to follow.

In September 2014 the R-13 tractor took a trip to Houston on top of a low boy to be partialy taken apart and prepared for auction. These shots were taken by a transport company employee while the truck was resting for the night in Orlando. taken from reddit web site taken from reddit web site taken from reddit web site taken from reddit web site taken from reddit web site taken from reddit web site The R-13 truck is back in KSC, out of service. The R-12 is out of service as well. The R-15 has been out of service for several years and the original R-14 truck does not exist anymore. That makes the R-11 the last one on duty. The last truck standing. photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck My model is based on the Revell AG parts and some resin cast parts. The rest will be scratch built. Even though it is the same Peterbilt model line as my logger, there is not too many shared parts between the two builds. NASA specified 351s differ a lot from the original factory design. Even though I have plenty of photos there is still a lot hidden details on the trucks and especially trailers and there is a whole lot left for imagination and guess work. I do not know any true dimension except for the 127 BBC. Another rock solid dimensions are those of Revell kit parts and resin parts. The rest is just estimated from pictures. I do not claim to be proportion accurate by any means.

Five units were delivered to KSC and they were in constatnt service ever since. Collecting miles within the milk runs around the Center they delivered and converted refrigerated liquid gases like nitrogen, oxygen and breathable air for various operations held in the Space Center. With maintenance financed by government the units R-11 through R-15 enjoyed decades of active duty. In late 1980´s or early 1990´s the original steel unilite cabs were replaced by 1100 series aluminium cabs due to corrosion issues. The Kennedy Space Center is located on the Atlantic Ocean coast line, and the air is very salty. It is not unusual for vehicles that are left outside all the time to be completely rusted out in 20 years. photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck Though delivered as all wheel drive, the front driveshafts were removed when it was realized the front drive was no longer necessary. Various parts were replaced over the time and the trucks differ in grills, fuel tanks, stepboards, fenders and some other details too. Out of the five the R-15 Peterbilt is closest to the original appearance from 1967. That is why I chose this one to be a pattern for my replica. Being out of service for several years now it is still coupled to the trailer with several parts removed. photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck But the first retired truck was the R-14 that was parted out about 2005 to support other trucks. With the engine and hood removed it was left standing aside for a while and then it was probably scrapped. The original R-14 trailer was coupled to a newer Peterbilt model

I would like to introduce this project which I have been working on for the last couple of months. When I first saw pictures of NASA Peterbilts I thought, what a nice model that would be. So, I tried to find some info on these magnificent trucks. I addressed Jeff Lakaszcyck who works at Kennedy Space Center and who took most of the pictures of NASA Peterbilts available on internet. He shared all he knows about the trucks with me and sent me his elsewhere published photos in hi-res and even took some more specially for me. With his kind permission I will use his photos here on the forum. photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck taken from Dutch forum My decision to build a NASA Pete model came at end of their time. The trucks are on their way to retirement. I would like to pay tribute to these trucks that were part of something really big. Though not in close attention of NASA personnel, they played important role in achieving the cosmic goals. Besides the progress of my build I would like to present also a bit of history here and summarize the facts that I have collected about these trucks. The NASA Peterbilts 351 are unique and only 5 were manufactured. Coupled to Paul Recharger trailers produced by Paul Cryogenic Division of Air Reduction Company, their initial role was as nitrogen reclaimers. Held in restricted area they were off pubilc sight. Other than the visit from the American Trucker TV show, and perhaps a few tourists, no one else outside the space center has seen these trucks in person. From the very bottom of my heart I thank Jeff Lakaszcyck who is willing to share the pics with me and keeps me updated with fresh information about NASA Peterbilts. photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck photo by Jeff Lakaszcyck Another source of information for me is a memo web page of E. Ray Smyth, the General Foreman of NASA´s Mobile Gas Department who worked at KSC by the time when the Peterbilts were delivered. In fact, it was him who drove the very first Paul Recharger into the premises of Kennedy Space Center. Peterbilt 351 STL 6x6 coupled to Paul Recharger trailer with 3000 gallon tank working with pressures up to 15000 PSI (103,4 MPa) was something unheard of before. Ray Smyth remembers: „Our 5 new Paul Rechargers started arriving in 1967 and what fine state of the art equipment they were. The Paul Recharger was a very unique machine and had a 500 Horsepower V-12 Detroit diesel engine which at the time had never been put in a truck before. The excessive engine power was not necessary to pull the tractor trailer load, the engine was that powerful to run the 500 KW generator which sit behind the cab and provided the power to run the electric motors turning the 3 pumps and was power for the electric heaters which converted the liquid back to gas. I had the pure pleasure of going to TWA and picking up the very first Paul Recharger that came in. However, I was not allowed to do it alone, Addison Bain had me stop by NASA headquarters to pick him up so he too could join in on the fun. But, I had the most fun because I got to drive the monster first and deliver it to our work area at CCF-34/37. I reckon Addison couldn't stand me having all the fun and he wanted to drive a Paul too. So, he arranged for no one to be notified of the next Paul arrival except himself and then one day here he comes driving into the parking lot at CCF-34/37 with a big grin on his face and I think that was the first time in his life he had ever driven an 18 wheeler type tractor/trailer. I might add the Paul Recharger was not your normal run of the mill 18 wheeler, the Peterbuilt tractor was special built with an extra long chassis to accommodate the generator sitting behind the cab and this excessive length made it bend in the middle when connected to the Paul Recharger Trailer and it was a bear to back up. The Peterbuilt also had front wheel drive which made the turn radius more then excessive. Back in my Texas Oil Well Drilling days, I had pulled a drilling rig down the highways of Texas that was 12 feet wide, 145 feet long, 16 feet high and weighed in excess of 140,000 pounds so driving huge unique tractor trailer rigs was not new to me. I was therefore kind of proud of Addison and also quite surprised when he came swinging through the gate at CCF-34/37 because he drove like a professional. I should know, I had embarrassed myself when I misjudged the turn radius and completely missed the gate when I brought the first Recharger over and had to back up to get through the gate.“ taken from NASA web site taken from NASA web site taken from NASA web site

Beautiful trucks and wonderful event. A visit to a place like that it´s just a dream for me. A dream that can never come true, it´s too far away. One thing has really cought my eye..... a chrome deck? I guess the hay packs won´t scratch it.but still it´s rather unusual for me. Cool.

The CAN-DO wrecker has a pusher axle but the suspension is identical to driven axles. That plays in your favour. The real truck has a lift pusher and I believe that it is round, not square like the one in the kit. I very much like the Canadian Hauler. With the mighty bumper and tripple axle it looks rough and powerfull. But this set up probably never existed with this Peterbilt generation. I never found a picture of Peterbilt 359 or 353 looking like that. The tri-drives are usually work trucks with day cabs like dumpers and tankers and such. I look forward to seeing the progress of your build.

Nicely done.

I can imagine how much work is behind such a detail like this. It must have taken hours. You have my respect.

I am a family man going to work every day but I still manage to steal some hours to spend at the workbench or at PC. I check this forum every day and two others as well, including the one in my own language. But I do not read everything like I used to before. FB is not for me for the reasons that others said, mailnly for the fear that it might steal even more time from me. But I spend a lot of time watching youtube since listening to american music has always been a great part of my life. I had records and tapes but in most cases I didn´t even know what the artists looked like. Now with vids at hand I am an old youtube junkie. My computer time is devided between checking the model forums, hunting for truck reference pictures (that takes the most of my time), a serious work (anything connected to run of the family or household) and youtube. I try to spend at least an hour a day at workbench. Sometimes it´s more, sometimes it´s none. I never counted my on-line hours, maybe I should and get surprised .

Nice repiar job.

Nice to see trucks from other parts of the world, not just EU or US. Thanks for sharing Gator.

Wow, I like this idea. It is always pleasure to build a model with reference material like this. Cannot wait to see it done.

Very nice rig to look at. Wonderful job on truck & trailer.

I have to agree with Aaron here. Intentional implementation of inaccuracies would probbaly be of no help with licensing issues. Shape is not the problem. The name is. If Lego comes out with Mack Superliner kit, it will not be a 100% accurate replica by any means. Just because of their brick shape. But they would face the same problem if they called it Mack Superliner. Make a kit as accurate as you possibly can, just don´t use the brand name. Erase the word Mack from the art box and decal sheet and parts if it is embedded there and you should be license clean. That is a common practise these days with 1/35 models. The contemporary models of military trucks cannot be more accurate. No need for aftermarket parts, no need for your super detail skills. There is only a generic name on the box art. The 1-25 and 1-24 scale truck models represent very small market segment. There is almost no competition in there and that is why you have inaccurate kits. Why should any kit producer bother? God bless those who do.

Very nice work.

Probably a little off topic because it is not quite a workbench but since an old photo appeared... I got one too Cannot imagine the situation unless the drinks are in the trailer. But I´d better leave the comments to you...

Nice progress and cool ideas. I like it a lot.

It looks very nice.

I have not posted here for a while because I was fighting the painting job. The skin of the cab / sleeper full of rivets, grooves and diamond pattern is not ideal for the paint scheme I chose. Masking over rivets and such is anything but wise. This is my second attempt in spraying the white and dark-dark blue combination. The surface is anything but smooth but I believe I can polish it with a fine paste. But first I have to repair all the imperfections. It is going to take a bit more time to finish the paint job. Be patient with me please.

How much common in the USA is this auto carrier set up? I usually see the tractors having a rack for 3 cars on them and the 5-th wheel repositioned aft and low.

I wish I had anything like this. My workbench is non-existent for most of the day. When I want to work on my model I have to collect my stuff and tool boxes around the writing desk in the living room and that´s where my models come to life. I do the paint job in the corner of the bathroom with the window open. Anytime I want to work I have to bring the stuff in and get it out when I finish. Cannot leave anythin on the desk overnight and block the others from using it. Crazy? Insane? Yes. But it´s reality. Jarda

I feel very sad because Muleskinner has been one of my model building heros. I borrowed some of his ideas when building my Pete logger. He sure left an empty space in my heart. May you rest in piece, sir.

Very nice work on the engine. There is a true model building going on there. My hat off to you and your skills.

That´s som´else! It brings back the old times. Ive probabaly never seen it but it´s nice. Great work so far.

Nicely done. Very clean build with subtle weathering. The paint job is awesome.