hooknladderno1

JT, Here is a unique orange fire apparatus! Just an idea of what a large piece of orange apparatus can look like. Here is one that I am working on. David

Looking good JT! Food for thought - if you wanted to make it a more "American " rig, you could omit the sloped roof, and do a more Oshkosh /E-one style 8x8 ARFF. Lots of images on Google Images... Don't know if you are up for such a departure, but thinking it would be really cool. I have a "junker"that I bought off of eBay several years ago. It arrived in a much worse condition than advertised. I may do something similar... https://www.firetruckmall.com/AvailableTrucks/TruckDetails.aspx?Truck=04234-2000-E-One-Titan-8x8-50%27-Aerial-ARFF-Unit&Id=823 David

Jake, Any updates on this project? David

Cool idea! I'll be following along as I like the newer Chevys. I tried a crewcab version of the '99, but realized that the rear doors were too wide. May go back and redo it using measurements for both the cab and convert bed to a long bed. I also have the leftover cab that I converted into a regular cab... David

Clayton, Congratulations! A word of advice - let the nurses at the hospital show you how to change his diaper and give him a bath. As both a father and a nurse who has worked in the nursery - new Moms love a Dad who has mastered those skills! It also helps you bond with him! Enjoy this new chapter in your life! David

JT, I thought you would be half way done by now (LOL)! Only kidding! I know that planning, getting supplies, and this little thing called "life " gets in the way of our building sometimes. Looking forward to updates! David

JT, Glad to see you start this project! I look forward to following this build! With all of the Alclad finishes available these days, you may want to use some on your natural metal finishes. Even most of the departments who like a lot of "bling " don't have a lot of chrome on their diamond plate. Google images should have some photos to give you ideas of paint schemes and striping. Carry on Sir! David

Nice subject matter! If you decide to do Logan's Rescue 1, the above mentioned Scale Finishes color would be great! If you want to go the Krylon route, they have a color called Citrus Green that should work. Put it over a white primer. If you aren't adventurous with doing your own decals, give Firebird Designs a try. Several fellow modelers have worked with him recently and gotten great decals, quick turn around time and a reasonable price. Good luck with your project! Look forward to seeing your progress!

For those looking for a 4x4 conversion set, I believe that B-N-L Resins has a Dodge set in his line.

Try "plaskit@yahoo.ca" or "Plaskit @yahoo.com ".

Daniel Gailloux of Plaskit makes a beautiful sloped T-800 hood!

Tom, I believe that they are 1/24 scale.

As a young firefighter back in the early 80's, a neighboring town had the neatest Dodge pickup based brush truck. Unfortunately, the truck was an early 60's unit, of which none were available at the time in plastic, resin, or diecast. As imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I began with the Matchbox Collectibles 1946 Dodge Power Wagon. It was sanded, primed,and painted with Pierce Manufacturing (fire apparatus builder) touch up paint from a rattle can. All graphics were custom designed and made by me with CorelDRAW on an ALPS printer to replicate what was on the real truck. Thanks for looking! David

Proof that diecast can be used as the basis for a unique conversion yet again... Here's another project that has been "on the drawing board" for some time. Back when American La France was owned by Damier-Chrysler, they offered an Urban Wildland Interface fire vehicle. The apparatus in the brochure looked kinda neat. Don't know how many, if any were ever sold. I do know of some Unimog based apparatus, such as Miami-Dade, and Kennet or Longwood PA. Here are some shots from the brochure: Welly and Schuco offer this style Unimog in a diecast in 1/24 scale. Getting my hands on one was a challenge 5 years ago. With the help of a friend in Germany, I was able to purchase 2. One of the units was disassembled and stripped. Duplicolor self etching primer was applied to the cabs metal parts. The chassis was cut and lengthened. A simple mock-up was made with cardboard to see if the proportions were close. I know, the rear body needs to come down a few inches to fall between the bottom and second cab step and the top of the cab and rear body should be level... Anyone with knowledge of the type of plow on the front of the rig, please share with me. I'm not familiar with this, and want to accurately replicate it on my model. Thanks for looking! Let me know what you think. David

Here's another project that has been "on the drawing board" for some time. Back when American La France was owned by Damier-Chrysler, they offered an Urban Wildland Interface fire vehicle. The apparatus in the brochure looked kinda neat. Don't know how many, if any were ever sold. I do know of some Unimog based apparatus, such as Miami-Dade, and Kennet or Longwood PA. Here are some shots from the brochure: Welly and Schuco offer this style Unimog in a diecast in 1/24 scale. Getting my hands on one was a challenge 5 years ago. With the help of a friend in Germany, I was able to purchase 2. One of the units was disassembled and stripped. Duplicolor self etching primer was applied to the cabs metal parts. The chassis was cut and lengthened. A simple mock-up was made with cardboard to see if the proportions were close. I know, the rear body needs to come down a few inches to fall between the bottom and second cab step and the top of the cab and rear body should be level... Anyone with knowledge of the type of plow on the front of the rig, please share with me. I'm not familiar with this, and want to accurately replicate it on my model. Thanks for looking! Let me know what you think. David

Now I remember this truck! Another fine example of Charlie's craftsmanship! It was also great to follow along the "history" of this truck's life in miniature 3-D! What a great way to tell a story! David

Hi Joe, Been working on this project off and on since the last update. After looking over the proportions of the heavily modified kit body, I quickly realized that I was WAYYYYY off. Now, what would any sane, detail oriented modeler do - just wrap it up and call it done? Or cut the frame, scratchbuild new side panels, curve the rear frame and work hard to get it to more closely resemble the original... Yes, you guessed it - I chose option number 2. This is just a quick "Mock up Monday" view with my old friend "Blue Tac". Please keep in mind that the cab doors will be extended to meet the front cowl. Tons more to do, but making progress. Thanks for your interest guys! David

My thoughts exactly Charlie! Will go on the "to build " list. David

Here are a couple I am considering: David

Terry, Wow! What an AWESOME build! Love the super CLEAN building style, details and conversion! The kit definitely lends itself to modification as you and Charlie have clearly shown. Will continue following this one! Makes me want to push all of my projects aside and start an interesting fire service conversion. David

Very cool guys! These 1920's models are addicting! I am currently working on no less that three! Attempting to make a period correct ambulance from the AMT '23 Ford model "T" kit, custom 1921 Model "T" ambulance featuring scratchbuilt side panels, and a lengthened '25 Fruit Wagon fire truck/ambulance (yet undecided) conversion. I'll be following your builds. The recent build by Michael Laliberte was awesome! Keep it up. David

BEE-U-T-FUL! Fantastic work on this build! Love all the details AND execution! Great! David

Fast forward to the past few weeks. I decided that it was time to "button this thing up"! I broke out the components and began to engineer the next steps. I committed to gluing items in place and fabricated a vertical tank for behind the hose reel pedestal. Repeated puttying and shaping resulted in the configuration shown. Here is a view of it placed in the rear of the truck. Lots more work to do. Debating about redoing the Alclad finishes as handling and time have taken their toll. My technique has also improved as well as the introduction of Alclad Aqua Gloss, a clear acrylic product that seals the Alclad while not dulling the shine! The hose reel(dual agent for those sticklers out there) is being constructed out of brass. Plumbing, wiring, and many details remain. Thanks for looking! David

Well, ya know how no project is ever really "finished"? This is one such project. I have always be partial to Humvee based emergency vehicles. After seeing this apparatus assigned to Squad 7 of the Chicago Fire Department at O'Hare International Airport, I just had to build it - or at least attempt it... I began with the Revellogram Jurassic Park Hummer Snagger Snap kit. The kit itself is very basic, but does build into a nice kit if you're willing to add some extra detail. The dark green plastic is the base kit, while all the white is Evergreen sheet and strip. These are two different examples of other body styles built with this kit Gathering reference photos at the time was quite a challenge. I could not locate ANY photos of the Officer's(passenger) side of the rig. After great deliberation, I decided to take some artistic license and "wing it". I had seen a similar(or so I thought) US Coast Guard unit with a hose reel on the Officers's side, so I cut the compartment's out and added it there. Low and behold, shortly after doing so, I found a photo that showed no such hose reel on the Chicago piece... Back to the drawing board... This is what I finally came up with and was pretty pleased. Again, I had no idea what the rear of the truck looked like, again, "artistic license" was taken. The apparatus was proudly displayed for several years. After working with a gentleman from Crash Rescue Services Incorporated (CRSI) on another project, I found a dual agent system that they manufactured for this type of application. Basic construction began, but was stalled by a major move and lack of a detailed hose reel. Just prior to the move, the rig received a new paint job.

Great job on this Wil! You mentioned fit problems - can you tell us a little more about that? I bought a spray booth and LOVE it! The Artograph 1530 is great because of it's 30" width, it can handle most truck models! Prices are coming down on them and it came very well packaged. I too have one of these waiting to be built, probably as a fire service tanker/tender. Congrats on your retirement ans happy building! David