Neat truck Paul. That is really small for Oshkosh. The small ones like that had cabs built by International. The tank looks believable enough like it is. I like that you added the lever for the tailgate latch. My only question is the chains at the top of tailgate. There are two way and three way tailgates. But on a truck like that the tailgate would have to be pushed up to be closed if the chains are at the top. That would take some muscle. Hinged top and chains at the bottom would be more likely. But other than that it is a great looking old truck. Cannot wait to see it painted up.
Sherrel, It's a Sheepscot model with a cast aftermarket dump bed that was also by Sheepscot, just not part of the original model. The instructions give you nothing regarding frame length, rear axle location, mounting of a bed, etc.. You have to guess and use your imagination on all of that. Thanks for the input. Maybe I will keep the tank. These tended to have longer frames due to the fact that they were often used in snowplow work. The leverage you mentioned due to the frame length is one consideration, as is the mechanism for the plow that mounts behind the cab. Being in Texas, a snowplow does me no good, so I put the tank there. Thanks!! Paul Moore
Steve, Not knowing much about trucks, I just went by the photographs I found. One photograph is attached. The hinge and chains are both at the top. It looked odd to me too, but that is what I found. Thanks!
I worked my way through high school and college on a road construction crew shoveling asphalt and concrete and running a jackhammer 10 to 12 hours a day for seven summers. Dump trucks were on the job continually, but not something to which I paid that much attention. Thinking back on it, there was a time or two where we would treat the tailgate as a two way by knocking out the hinge pin and leaving the latches secured. This way you could have it partially open from the top instead of the bottom and stand in the bed and shovel asphalt out the back to the desired location. Standing in 350 degree hot mix on a summer day in Dallas was not much fun! We used the chains to set the level of the tailgate and keep it there. The chains on the blue truck are probably to keep the tailgate at a certain level or height when doing something like that. They may not be actual safety chains. The chains on the truck I am building could work like that, as well. They are in the secured position and not in use, so I think it is okay. But thanks for the input, Steve, catching a potential mistake, and making me think about this a little more! If you disagree with my assessment, please tell me. I would rather fix something before it has paint on it.
I think you are on the right track Paul. I like the one in your picture. I actually drove a small dump truck for a while years ago with top chains that would hold the tailgate flat or angled. But it was a small bed on it and one person could shut it if they had to. The bottom mounted chains hold the gate open at a set distance tailgating stone in a parking lot, driveway, etc.. For stockpiling stone or bulk excavation unloading they removed the chains. I would keep it like it is and never give it a thought Paul.
Still needs taillights, headlight lenses, weathering, etc., but it is getting there. Since it is an Oshkosh truck, it will be on the Colorado portion of the layout. If any of you truck aficionados see anything that is missing, please let me know. Thanks!
Yeah, there is a box of pieces and parts in the railroad room. Just all kinds of stuff that I look through when I am building things. You never know what might be useful.
Decided to do another truck. This one is an Autocar U90. A cabover in other manufacturer's language, but Autocar called them engine under the cab. From what I have read, Autocar might have been the first to do a cabover. The "prototype" is a rendering, not an actual photograph. The cab and frame are from an old Sheepscot kit. Just about everything else is either scratch built or came out of the parts box. The winch had to be scratch built. It is not a perfect representation of a Tulsa Winch but it is as close as I could get it. It even has the shaft and gear that is run off of the power take off (PTO) via a large roller chain. A bicycle chain, in my language. A small headache rack will be fabricated to protect the back of the cab. Paul Slavens helped me with quite a bit of Tulsa Winch information. He is a wealth of info on oilfield trucks and winch trucks. Another friend who grew up around trucks and construction helped me with some other ideas. Unfortunately, he convinced me to brace the deck behind the cab with 6" x 6" lumber instead of 4" x 4". That part does not look too good to me. Oh well, it is glued together and I do not feel like making another one. I am still debating on the what color to paint it. Some shade of green is what I am leaning towards.
Thanks. Later I will post some more photographs. The little deck, headache rack and winch are done. I am still fiddling with the attachments for the suspension and axles. My wife just helped me with colors, color blindness strikes again. We are going with a medium green. There were lots of green trucks back in that era.
A few more shots of the haul truck. Will probably be used in something construction or oilfield related. Lots of work and touch up still to do, in addition to painting the cab.
Almost done. The truck is basically done, but the trailer load needs to be completed. Actually, I need to remove the pipe load and put it on some strips of wood so a forklift can get the load off of the truck. It also needs to have chain tie-downs added. In the future, I might take some closeups before painting the vehicle. There are some mold imperfections I might have been able to correct if I had noticed them before painting. The scratch built Tulsa Winch came out okay. There are a dozen and a half pieces in the winch alone.
The trailer load and truck are about done. Thanks to Tom Holley for noticing that I forgot to put the wood under the load to accommodate a forklift while unloading.
