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Option #1 it is.

Thanks for the comments guys! Been moving slow on this one, not because of excellence, I'm just moving slow.😀 It is on its wheels and tires now.

Here’s a 359 I built about 18 months ago, but never posted here. Representing a modern day version of a truck that is still serving it’s owner well after all the years. I posted it on the MCM forum, so some of you may have seen it already. It was an enjoyable build, and my second venture into weathering, which I now find to be much easier to build than a showroom clean model - it’s harder to screw it up, mistakes can be disguised. Thanks for checking it out.

Pictorial "how to" posted with permission of Mike Roux.

This is currently my only truck build. It's meant to be a Post Apocalypses RV that was patched together from various bits to roam the wasteland. I started with an Autocar Dump Truck and Italeri 20' Container. Reefer unit converted to HVAC system, Air Filtration, Power Fan, Custom front bumper and a frame mounted generator to name a few of the upgrades. Stretched frame, new wheels and tires, pusher axle and many 3d printed parts leads us to where we are today. Occasionally I add a few more bits to it as I find or design files. Hope you enjoy, I know it's a bit different from what you're used to.

Last build of the year.

I finished this build right before Christmas last year. No frame stretch, just removed sleeper and scratch built the flatbed and fuel tanks.

This was a resin conversion from an unknown caster. The chassis was made from spare parts.

This one began with the Ertl kit. The engine is a 6v-92T Detroit diesel. The dump bed was modified. It is meant to look like a refurbished truck that has found new life from someone wanting to start out in the dump trucking business. IMG_4675 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4646 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4650 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4639 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4641 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4625 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4666 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4676 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4685 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_4693 by Brian Smith, on Flickr

Rebuilding this IH dump I've had on the self for the last 40 years - I know, hard to believe that Ertl kit dates back to the mid 1970's. The first couple of pics is the original build with the dump bed removed, I did weather it some back then and that will remain. The new winch deck and everything thing else will be weathered slightly as this represents a working truck. I mean it is and IH after all ! The dual winches come from the discontinued Revell drop deck trailer #07533. Everything else is scratchbuilt. The cab/hood will be removed, reworked and repainted white with the lower half the same yellow to match the deck. The hydraulic oil tank caps both come off and are accessed by a hatch in the deck. I made all the hyd fittings and lines both soft and hard. Used a schematic found online for proper routing. More to follow when finished. Keep on truckin America !!

It looks like this barn find may need some work. There's a box on the front seat with the starter, the distributor, the carb, the air cleaner, and some tools. There's a brand new valve cover gasket though. All of the spark plugs are out of the engine and there's a can of Marvel Mystery Oil, so the engine is probably stuck. Maybe that's why there's a For Sale sign in the box too. IMG_1384 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_1385 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_1386 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_1387 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_1389 by Brian Smith, on Flickr IMG_1390 by Brian Smith, on Flickr

this is a fairly old build.If my stuff turns out as nice as this one I'm happy,as its my favorite

By filling in the square space left from removing the headlight surround with sheet styrene, one can minimize the amount of filler needed. I'm leery of Squadron putties, and they will shrink over time. I suggest superglue plus baking powder, or a two-part polyester putty like Evercoat.

Cool! I am building a real 4200 with a Mercury and the same scheme on the truck. Pic is photo shopped as she is still a day cab.

Work continues! The fenders were modified to give them an "old-school" kind of look, and to eliminate the huge gap between the fender lip and the tops of the tires. I also built up the kit bumper to a deep-draw bumper. I see 1:1 Pete's with fenders like these, but the bumper just has straight edges, and I just think it looks weird. I prefer the bumpers which continue the arc of the wheel opening, so that's what I did with mine. And now a quick mockup of the modified (but still unfinished) fenders and bumper with the grille in place, just to see where I stand.

I build a variety of model types- everything from HO scale buildings to RMS Titanic. But my favorite thing about the big truck kits is variation. There aren't too many other genres you can build in so many ways. Take the AMT Diamond REO. Right out of the box it makes a decent day cab or sleeper tractor. Or you can modify the hood (or get the hood from GW Trucks) and do it with a set back front axle. You could make up the steel butterfly hood and pit fenders for it. Or rework the existing grille to the earlier style... or even built it as a Diamond T or REO. You can leave it a tractor, or put a wrecker body on it. Or a cement mixer. Or a dump box... That's just one example, but you see what I mean. You can name pretty much any one truck kit out there, and then go on to come up with at least 20 or 30 different ways you could build it.

So I had an incomplete AMT plow truck, a box or two of spare Louisville parts, some AITM rear wheels and tires, and some Models by Dave cab steps. I decided to combine the whole mess into one tattered tractor. The quad headlights came from a White Road Boss, I added them after seeing a junkyard Louisville that had been fitted with a similar setup.

The last is a Great Dane Reefer from the old Ertl kit.

wow very nice

I've seen some pretty heavy units down your way as well, Paul! You tend to do a lot more protection over the top than we do. Here are a couple more examples of Cape Cod rigs. In 1952 this was one of the ways in which they were done. Not much protection here! This one is more up to date and in fact was upgraded about 7 years ago.

I had to backtrack some of the build. I have reworked the drive gear main boom and upper boom support, and added the outer boom, cylinders and a few other odds and ends. Progress has been slow as I am learning as I build and it needs a little putty and sanding but I am pretty happy thus far. Note: not sure if the part names are correct, not an expert...

lowered the front and rear. Scratched built the stack rack and moved the left tank forward. She's coming along slowly but getting there.

Two trucks I built some years back, right after each other. A Revell of Germany Peterbilt 359, pretty much box stock except for the engine, I spooned in the CAT 3406 from a SnapTite kit. The Kenworth W-900A is built box stock. On the Pete I painted the "Seminole" livery myself, pulled a little trick by extending the paint job over the radiator crown, making the hood look longer. With the company decals and the custom license plates, the trucks look related although they're pretty different.

Very nice. I dig the Canadian spread look.