modeling in 1/87: I love big Macks

With a large order of fries to go please. These resin castings of Ralph Ratcliffe make for such a decent model. They are so precise and crisp in detail and proportion. And Ralph seems to be expanding his line quite frequently. This truck was a challenge. There aren't a lot of them out on the road. And when you do see them, they are DOT snow plows. Well I just wasn't into a snow plow and I saw a photo of a septic tank delivery truck that was an RM Mack. Mine hasn't been relegated to any particular duty yet but I just had to do something with these very cool equipment tires for some of the photographs.The build was simple in terms of the cab and chassis. The Kibri Unimog lent itself for four wheel drive in a large truck capability. I added the step tank on the driver side and hydraulic controls just behind for working the gantry travel which is a three stage telescoping ram. The road side has two steps and a bar step added and the tool/chain box under the bed.

The exhaust is a piece of aluminum tubing bent with a piece of heat shrink tubing for the muffler. The small electric winch is a Dennis Aust casting. A smaller rail has been added next to the boom for the electric wire to travel on as the boom is extended and withdrawn. Steel wire was used for the hydraulic lines. It bends easy but retains its shape well and holds fast when glued unlike the lead line I had been using. The wheels on the winch come from Vector Cut which I will go into detail at the end of the post here if time allows tonight.
Various steps, hooks and grabs were put on the model to try to bring it to a realistic look. The tires and planetary rims are from Roco. On the cab are stainless mirrors from Plano and the light bar from Busch. I particularly like the back of the Unimog chassis under the bed here. Oh, the license plate? New Mexico.

I broke the striping decal on the front bumper and made the cracks in it to be rusted through. Also added the guide poles to the bumper. I ran the thread for the wire through my fingers coated with moustache wax and glued them to small discs on the wire guide bar made from styrene rod sliced thin. The entire model was painted with RR tie brown in an acrylic. Then all the black you see was painted with a dirty brush thinner with a few drops of Floquil engine black and the airbrush with no paint blew the wet thinner wash. The cab was done in Floquil caboose red. All bright chrome work was done and all allowed to dry for a day. Then a black acrylic wash went on the entire model followed by a flat clear lacquer. Then a wash of burnt umber with highlights of raw umber on particular spots while the burnt umber wash was still wet. I mix food coloring with white wood glue for my amber and red lighting and just wood glue for clear lenses on the headlights. You might notice I took photos before the wood glue dried clear.

I've been asked several times to walk folks through one of my builds and I guess that was pretty painless so maybe I'll do it again sometime. Now with regard to the above mentioned Vector Cut. These folks are laser cutting on mat board some of the finest and most highly detailed pieces in 1/87. I have purchased the tool selection with spanner wrenches, pliers and open end wrenches that have to be seen in person to appreciate. I also bought their wheel card, and a card with engine parts like gaskets, fans and fan belts. But the most impressive is the card with a junk yard assortment that I have finished a few pieces of below. The door was covered in Bare Metal Foil and torn. I suppose I should have located the tear in a better place but the effect will be worth using somewhere.