Freightliner FL60 Take Me Home Huey hauler

[JeroenS]

That's some great progress! Well done on the engine and the interior looks really nice! I'll remember this for when I get around to my Unimog / camper conversion (if ever 🙂)

[Nick Belbin]

Fabulous work!

 

Got to ask about your decals . . . does the colour come out flat (like you painted on the paper) or is it made up of dots (like a photograph in a newspaper)? (Does that make sense?)

 

Nick

[busnproplinerfan]

11 hours ago, JeroenS said:

That's some great progress! Well done on the engine and the interior looks really nice! I'll remember this for when I get around to my Unimog / camper conversion (if ever 🙂)

Thanks, i'd like to see the Unimog when you start it, those are neat trucks.

[busnproplinerfan]

On 4/5/2019 at 4:19 AM, Nick Belbin said:

Fabulous work!

 

Got to ask about your decals . . . does the colour come out flat (like you painted on the paper) or is it made up of dots (like a photograph in a newspaper)? (Does that make sense?)

 

Nick

Thanks. My decals came out flat and even. I know what you're saying, it's pixelated or dithered. Well dithered happens with ALPS printers depending on the CMYK and RGB  colours and how they print. I just used my laser printer, should be the same with an inkjet. They aren't as picky as ALPS printers.  JPGs are pixelated when you zoom in. I forget what newsprint is called.

Edited March 2, 2020 by busnproplinerfan

[busnproplinerfan]

The trailer is pretty well done. The few little bits have to wait till the Huey is on, mostly the strapping and the diamond plate boxes on the front. I had the Huey on the trailer to get the effect of the weight(it is heavy) and the trailer was sagging and couldn't get the wheels to sit properly. I scrounged up some brass strip and a brass rectangle tube. The strip had a bow to it so the bow went upwards, now it sits like a flatbed should when empty(ok, platform trailer). When loaded it does level out. The wheels are glued to small lengths of 11 mm tubing that are hidden in the inside of the fenders. I had no way to make a proper low profile suspension, nothing would fit. The difference of reality and engineering. Yes also a prelude to the tractor.

Here's the topside with tie downs made from bent brass rod and just stuck into holes drilled into the trailer. I pinned the skids to the angled sides of the deck. This will ensure it's stuck down and the strapping will be just for show. The tow bar I made from round and square tubing. I have towing wheels coming. They are 1/48 five spoke Hurricane wheels. They are the closest thing to them and I'm crossing my finger they will work. They will mount next to the rear tie downs.

 I'm guessing a bit with the spare tyre but other gooseneck trailers I saw have them up top.

Decals started and went on surprisingly well. I couldn't figure out how to do the black feathered edge so I masked and airbrushed it very carefully using a rolled towel and my finger as a mask on the decal. The cab was fully masked with paper.

 

I tinted the windows using two layers of actual tint film. The lights were pushed in from behind. They are aluminum tube cut. I rounded the tip then cut it to length. I then filled it with epoxy and painted the epoxy with clear red and orange. The door logos are separate decals, that have to be or you'll go crazy lining the big decals up.

Last look at the interior before closing the cab up.

The cab's on the frame as are the storage boxes and tank fairings.

 

The cab lights were masked and painted with a few coats of clear orange. The paint did creep past the tape a little but got lucky cleaning it up. Maybe some ghosts are helping? sure hope so and thankful. Plaskit supplies a clear resin windshield and a sheet of very clear acetate type plastic. I didn't like the resin part, it wasn't the clearest. It's to big a windshield to not have a good one.

Bottom side everyone wants, not the prettiest, mild weathering and left the overspray. It's never going to be lifted up. I found the rear frame was poking up and the rear body looked stupid. The frame was bent right behind the sleeper, didn't see it till now. I cut the frame from the top down with a razor saw just behind the sleeper. I stopped the cut at the top of the bottom part of the frame rail just above the horizontal part. I put in a .020 shim at the top of the rails and made a plate  for the sides.

I changed the tyres to the Italeri rubber on the drives and the Revell snap tite  rubber on the steers. The Revell rubber is excellent for steers and trailer tyres. I cut out the centres but had to carefully super glue the rubber to the rim beads, otherwise they kept coming off. I also left the decals off the hood till everything was fitted permanantly. I think I mentioned I scratchbuilt the grill to replace the resin one.

It was a tight guess fit, but the stripe did go on with a lot of decal sol and set. I had to put small cuts on the tight corners by the headlights. Later it was touched up with bright red.

[busnproplinerfan]

It's all done now. Here's the link to the finished model. I had about three hours sleep before heading to the contest.   https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235054657-light-horse-legacys-take-me-home-huey-and-rig/

 

Edited September 6, 2019 by busnproplinerfan