Hi

I have always had an interest in American trucks and have secretly harboured the ambition/goal to do a 1/24th (?) scale big rig. However I am a little uninformed as I usually model cars and military stuff.

Could someone please guide me in relation to kits available, kit suppliers and information available on the Internet in relation to modeling US trucks. I particularly like Kenworths and Macks.
Perhaps a recommendation on a kit to start on and enjoy would be useful

Any guidance/assistance/help would be greatly appreciated.

Regards

Sean

Sean
Ebay would be a good place to start, that would tell you what's been about over the years. The main manufacturers in 1:24/25 scale are AMT, Italeri and Revell. Ertl did some trucks a few years back. The only Mack kits available right now AFAIK are the "American Superliner" by Italeri and the "Sinalco Show Truck & Trailer" by Revell. I believe that for some Licencing reason they are not called Macks.
Ertl did a "Rubber Duck" Mack tractor back when Convoy came out (late 70's or eary 80's), this kit now fetches good money on Ebay, they also did a Mack DM800 tractor.

As for Kenworths Revell list 2, the Aerodyne Cabover and the T900 Australia. Amt did an Aerodyne cabover and a W900 conventional also a Canepa Kenworth kit. Revell have done other Kenworth kits but the first 2 are the only current ones.

Other makes of US trucks that have been done to the best of my knowledge are
Peterbilt various models (AMT Italeri Revell)
White Western Star (Ditto)
White freightliner (AMT)
White Road boss (AMT
Freightliner (Italeri Revell)
International various models(AMT)
Marmon (Revell) [ I want one of these]
Diamond Reo (AMT)

I'm unsure about some of the rarer makes like Brockway and Pacific

HTH
Pete

There's also Numerous AM companies making Resin Cab conversions of other Model trucks.......(a few on ebay here and there)

I recently built the AMT / ERTL Paystar and was very happy with it. It is readily available on ebay and is usually pretty cheap. It is available as a dump or a cement mixer but can be done as a tractor as I did mine, if you get the 5th wheel from another kit. I used one out of a GMC Astro.

I scratchbuilt some of this, but here is the Paystar I built.






Spalding Trading and Shipping specializes in truck models, kits and aftermarket.

http://www.stsmodeltrucks.com/

Ebay is a pretty good source for kits too.

Hi Everyone

Great stuff.

Thanks for all that information its greatly appreciated and very valuable. I intend to get intio a truck and trailer kit in the new year.

Regards

Sean

I'm just adding this in case some of you don't know this, when you change a truck from a cement truck or any big heavy truck like this, over to a road tractor.

Most trucks, like a cement truck, or a heavy duty dump truck, that is used for short runs, usually have big heavy front springs, to handle all the abuse of the work they haft to do, that a local truck is subjected to, then they usually have a lot bigger drive line then road tractors have also, not to mention sometimes bigger front tires that are allowed to scale more weight.

See road tractors are made to ride a lot better, cause well, they are road tractors, where as a city truck, they change drivers, plus the driver doesn't stay in the seat all day, so these little things that you wouldn't notice, unless you was told about them, or you owned one, or driven some.

So when you change them over on a model, most road tractors have 3 leaf front springs, not a 10, or what ever a big concrete truck would have. Then most of the time, the drive shaft would be thinner on a road tractor, unless some companies that have bad drivers, do put in the bigger drive lines, cause I've seen Warner truck lines is one of them that told me they put in bigger drive lines, cause they got tired of their drivers tearing up the little ones.

So they started to order all their trucks with heavy duty drive lines, where most companies don't like to do this, cause they want to save on weight, and the big drive lines weigh a lot more.

Another thing, dump trucks, and cement trucks are usually double framed, this is something you never see on a road tractor either, again to much weight.

Road tractors going across state lines haft to cross different scales, so they haft to watch their weight as much as possible, especially when loads bring them close to gross weight, then if your tractor is to heavy, you couldn't haul most of the loads that are out there.

I know that don't pertain to models, but it does when your trying to get it to look right. I'm not trying to be smart or anything, I'm just trying to help the ones that don't drive, or been around trucks, and wouldn't know these things.

I hope this is of some help to you.

Kerry

Hi Kerry

Thats great practical information some of which I had not simply thought about. But it all makes sense.

Regards from New Zealand

Sean

I forgot to mention that trucks like cement trucks are designed to carry more weight up on the front axle, at least 99% of them are.

That is why a lot of them you see them extra big tires to scale the extra weight up front. See here, them bigger tires are like the super singles, they can scale so much more weight on the steering with them, so they also build up the suspension to handle it also, so then when you go to change it over to a road tractor, you wouldn't want to forget to take out a lot of leafs.

Well that really won't work either, cause them are thinner width, where as the road tractor has fewer and wider leafs, like mine has 3 leafs, but they are just a little thicker, and some what wider.

You should try to look at them one time, and you will see what I mean, now that I have brought your attention to them.

Maybe if I can get the time, I'll go out, and measure mine, to tell you exactly how wide they are, but now I got a set back axle, that Mack's have so that just might make a difference in length, but they all should be the same thickness, and width, but the length will change from truck, to truck, depending on how it is set up.

Well I went out and measured the best I could, and the top leaf where it loops around the bolts that old it on is 58" long X 31/2" wide, and 9/16" thick in the middle, and 7/16 thick at the ends, so they taper out at the ends.

Then the second one is 491/2" long tapered at the ends, and the third is 49" long also tapered at the ends, now this is on a CH 613 Mack, which is a road tractor, now if you happen to come across any multi leaf truck, you will see that the leafs should be some what thinner, cause there is a whole lot more of them.

Mine are made for some flex, for a better ride, where as the multi leafs are made for weight only, and not flex, soon as they flex much, they break. I went through a period of driving company trucks, and they thought they were saving money by buying them multi leafs, Japanese steel, when almost every trip we would bring trucks back with broken springs, then I told the owner, they can't handle our rough roads we run on.

That if he got the flex springs not only would he save money, but us drivers wouldn't quit so often cause of the trucks riding so rough, that he might have time for something else besides putting on new springs, and hiring new drivers, cause them trucks would put tears in your eyes, from the beating they gave you, then we had to run team, and one person had to try to sleep while the other drove, you woke up in mid air a lot.

Sean

I drive a 2004 Freightliner If you need any detailed pics please let me know

Kerry

Do those wider steer tires provide better flotation in off road conditions?