Trailers and fleet trucks

This is the latest from AMT - the Fruehauf 40 foot flat bed. I built mine box-stock. The current reissue of the kit has a nice decal sheet with company names, mudflap logos and the old MPC Goodyear tires.

Here are several variations of the trailer I have built, stock, 3-nines spread axle, stock, 6 axle Michigan Steel hauler and a drop deck tire carrier.

I built this from a test-shot for Model Rectifier Corp's display. The trailer represents the German built Schmitz brand of trailers. The kit assembles nicely with a minimal amount of flash and clean up.

One of the many things that fascinated me while at the Peterbilt factor was the tire trailer. Trailer after trailer delivered wheels and tires mounted and loaded in racks in the order that the truck would be built. After staring out the window at these trailers for a while, I was challenged to build one. March 2006.

$35 in Evergreen square rod was used to construct the racks. The tire labels are strips of vinyl, as are the tie down straps.

20 tires per rack. 7 racks on the trailer. Not one new tire was use... Mostly the AMT too-skinny Goodyear tires. The rims are all from the spare parts box.

The real tire trailer.. I suspect it's a 53' trailer, mine is a 40 footer and only holds 7 racks.

The Real Thing.

I started the B train back in July of 2005 and just finished it on 4/13/06. I used 2 AMT Fruehauf tankers, cut, chopped and hacked both to create a Canadian B train based on a rig I saw on www.hankstruckpictures.com. The "Transport" logos are from the AMT kit decal sheet just cut and spliced. The Canadian Flag is from the www.kitformservices.com North America decal sheet.

This Fruehauf tanker is another re-worked built-up from the Wisconsin collection. All I did was repair some damage from tire marks in the body, a broken spring, and added front fenders. Fresh white paint and some reflective markings make this plain-jane trailer stand out nicely.

The idea to build this has been rattling around in my head for quite some time. I decided to try to rework the AMT Fruehauf Tanker (latest issue) into a dry bulk tanker. After lots of head scratching, measuring, marking, cutting, filling, sanding and reworking.. I think I've come up with a close dry bulk tanker. Plenty of Evergreen plastic shapes pieces used on this one.

The Upper Michigan Stone logo decals were made on the computer with Bare Metal Foil clear decal paper, as were the "Munising Trailer Sales" mudlfap logos. The photo of the rear showing 2 radio station stickers is a tribute to a station my father and oldest brother and myself all worked at at different times. 7/8/05

This is the model I replaced the KW dumper with for the MTDG contest. A Red River asphalt trailer in Michigan specs with 7 axles. This won 2nd place in the Construction class of the MTDG contest!

1965's Mack C615 "Michigan Special" with 5 axle Fruehauf tanker. Stang Tank Lines hauled oils and fuels in Upper Michigan and Wisconsin using Mack and Hendrickson fleet. This model was featured in Model Cars Magazine in 2002.

Mack R600.

Stang Michigan Tank Lines ran orange Mack B's and R's in the 60's and 70's, hauling fuel, and tar products in Wisconsin and Upper Michigan.

These shots show a set of Utility style double trailers. Using an old IMC Big Rig flatbed trailer kit (the THC version) I added lower side panels for an outside frame set-up, I separated the suspension to make the axles and springs for each trailer, used a spare IMC suspension and wheels from the parts box to make the converter dolly, painted it Duplicolor Red, added a white stripe and some Utility decals from JBOT and voila! Instant California Style doubles. They are a bit short, but are perfect for not taking up shelf space.

Manufactured Home Toter and half a house. The toter is a cut down AMT Ford Short Hauler kit, and the half a house is made from balsa wood. (photos taken in '01)

White 4000. I built this truck based on a real truck I photographed as a child. Red Owl Food Stores ran Whites like this in the early 70s. The hood is an Illini Replica Conversions hood. The White Road Boss was the donor kit.

We often wonder how AMT delivered all it's models, and now we know! Back in 1969 AMT issued the Fruehauf beaded side 40 foot trailer (#T507) as a companion to the California Hauler Peterbilt 359 (T500).

The box art was typical of AMT of the era, a nice painting showing the rig on I-75 outside of Troy, Michigan. I recently obtained several built-ups in fairly good condition, only needed tear-down, paint strip and repainting. Included was a complete set of the T507 AMT decals! I saved the decals with Microscale Decal Film, but the long black stripes still cracked, so I used vinyl tape instead. I added to the AMT theme with custom lettering "Another truckload of AMT trucks" and such.

Rebuilding both the Fruehauf and the Peterbilt 359 was enjoyable, the original builder (from Wisconsin) built them in 1970, and wrapped them up in paper and stored them in 1972 until I obtained them (August 2004). The build quality was quite good, they were borderline "leave as they are" but the decals were peeling, and glue joints breaking. If you look at the trailer, I kept the original green hubs, both the trailer and tractor were dark emerald green (old Testors I'm sure).

Great Dane drygoods trailer converted too look like the Peterbilt engineering trailer designed for aerodynamics.

All around Michigan large multi-axle tankers roam the highways. A common sight in northern Michigan is Autore Oil Company's Michigan Special Tankers. I used 4 AMT Fruehauf Tanker kits to rework the old 1969 Fruehauf into a sort-a-close to current spec tank.

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The AMT kit was stretched to 48 feet. 8 axles, the 1st and last are fixed in the raised position. I combined several modern Fruehauf features, full fenders on the left, and a full-length hose tray on the right with yellow hoses. Ladder with handrails, rear tank connection. Mudflaps are RNK mudflap material with JaymarPeterbilt of Wisconsin logos (not the spelling!).

Special Note: I won "Best of Show" with this tanker at the Pinnacle Hobby Shop show in March 2004!

For an aluminum look I used Duplicolor metallic silver. The Autore Oil letter was made on Bare Metal Foil decal paper. Reflective DOT striping from STS.

1960's White-Freightliner wearing Consolidated Freightways older colors. This truck has been rebuilt twice, starting as a nasty orange and black ebay build-up. I modified the cab for the older version.

These 2 plain white doubles trailers were also obtained from the same collection. Originally silver, I went with white, and they will become 70s-80's Consolidated Freightways trailers.

Italeri 1/24th scale "American 48ft Reefer kit modified for a spread axle (okay, the rear suspension isn't air ride..). Otherwise the trailer is out of the box.

I bought this as a partially built kit off eBay. The flatbed had a nasty twist to it, I thought by cutting the trailer and extending it with another I had, and embedding some brass in the frame I could remove the twist. Nope. The trailer looks okay by sits twisted. The tool cabinets are from RNK Conversions.

Spread axle reefer. I can't remember what model kit this was. I modified the suspension for the spread axle. The rear doors are Model Master chrome foil. The tractor is an AMT Kenworth W925 with Torsion Bar suspension. The chassis was stretched, the sleeper extended for a VIT. The bumper is scratchbuilt. This was my first attempt at a "chicken truck" built in early 2000. I have more photos of the KW displayed on the KW model page.

Ertl Great Dane reefer. What a great kit! The Pirkle Refrigerated Freight Lines logos were made on the computer. Thanks to Gene Olson for the logos.

Box-stock Ertl Great Dane Extendable Flatbed. The tractor is a stretched frame '75 Peterbilt 352 wearing JBOT/Paul Kittle decals. More pics of the tractor are on my Peterbilt COE model page.

Indianhead Tank Lines AMT Fruehauf tanker. This was a built-up that I obtained. I stripped the original color, added 2 RNK Conversions tool cabinets, and shot the yellow and blue for Indianhead Tank Lines.

This is a nearly box-stock AMT Wilson Livestock trailer. I came to me as a built-up, I stripped the paint, reassembled it and painted it with Krylon International Harvester Red with silver. I dulled the paint for a weathered-aged look. This trailer will look good behind any old 60's tractor. (7/6/2005)

Wilson Livestock trailer, built in 1999. It was missing wheels and tires and at the time I used what I had on hand, for 6 years it was missing the hubs and the wheels were dulled and faded. I added hubs, swapped in some nicer chrome wheels, changed the mudflaps from white posterboard to thin plastic.

Fruehauf grain trailer. I obtained this as a started truck back in '99. The original builder was following a Phil Jenson (I think) article to make a grain trailer. The builder had bent all the brass support rods and cut down the trailer sides but must have lost interest. I assembled the trailer and made a tarp from tissue paper and glue paint black.

4 axle Michigan style wood chip trailer built from an Ertl Great Dane dry goods van. I added an RNK toolbox to the side.

This AMT Fruehauf tanker came to me as a built-up, I stripped the paint, reworked the front of the tanker and added 2 additional axles, I also added external side marker lights. The tractor is a rebuild of an AMT Peterbilt 352, reworked for a 1st generation 1958 cab.

This is the Euro "Rent-A-Tank" kit with the suspension modified for 5 axles. I scratchbuilt the fenders. It still needs taillights.

AMT/Ertl/MPC Gravel trailers. One is cut down as a pup trailer, the axles were narrowed 1/4 inch so that the tires are more in line with the tractor, and not sticking out so far.

Allied Van Lines Trailmobile single axle trailer. I cut down the trailer to a single axle. The White-Freightliner tractor was also cut down to a single axle and the cab was modified for a 1960's look.

This started as a built-up but badly painted IMC BigRig flatbed trailer. I fabricated side panels to simulate an outside frame style flatbed. Then added some RNK Conversions wheels and tires. The load is the steel beam load from an AMT Peerless Log Trailer kit. (7/5/2005)

Another built-up that I reworked. This AMT Fruehauf flatbed was brush painted red, the suspension was smashed. Using parts from the parts box I constructed a 9-foot spread axle 3 axle trailer often seen in Canada and Michigan. (7/6/2005)