Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Nice work again Nathan, I see something in the background, looks like a BRIGHT future.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Thank you Frank!

Thanks Craig. Good eye! :D Something is brewing. I did play around with some lighting. Just testing some LEDs. The front bumper has been drilled for a while now. I've got some of Lynn's bezels, just waiting to find a home in it. Hopefully it will be a really bright future!

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...pscf704cf7.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps3d27322c.jpg


http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps875e442d.jpg

Illuminate.

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...pscb311920.jpg

Deluminate. (A little movie trivia mixed in there)

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps6d7b7973.jpg

I really like chicken lights. I don't know how many more I'll be adding, but you can probably count on me adding a few more yet. :D

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Nathan that was a very nice job you did on the axle looks factory. As far as all the lights that is up to the eyes of the beholder my personal opinion is there are to many overkill but if that makes you happy that all that counts like I said it's my opinion and it don't count. Having said all that you are doing a spectacular job and keep it up. Ed

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Off topic a bit, but may I ask what the pic of the locomotive is being used for? Or is it just a random pic laying on your table.

Back to the truck, that axle looks great and you can't even tell its been modified.

--Dan

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Nathan, this is an exceptional build!! I must say, at first i was a bit skeptical,:o it just didnt look like it would fit. but if anyone could pull it off it would be you! The narrowing of the front axle is that final touch that just adds to the whole build. keep up the great work ! any ideas on paint??

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

hope you don't mind Nate , this is giving me some Ideas for some 16th scale trucks I got for christmas :o;) Good job on the milling :eek:

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

All I can say is I like it!!!!!! Some of these toys can make some really nice trucks. It is nice to see the guys who sell these are interested and happy with what your doing with the truck. I took my Smith Miller MACK to Indy this year and the RC Truck guys liked it but the vendors selling the Smith Millers we not so happy about it, I got some really dirty looks from them.


Travis

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Looks great with those lights!!! Cant wait to see more on this one!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Thanks Ed! I do agree that some trucks can be over done, if they have to many lights on them, but I don't plan to go to crazy with this one. I will keep it tasteful. Not many vintage trucks have a ton of lights on them.

Dan, the photo of the locomotive is just under a plate of glass on my workbench because I like it. I'm also a model railroader. I use the glass for cutting styrene, soldering, and writing/drawing plans for parts. No other reason. Thanks for the comment on the axle!

Thank you Brian! I had my initial moment of doubt too, when I first recieved the cab, but once I threw a narrowed axle underneath it and saw how well it fit, I knew I could make something work.

I have about three classic KW paint schemes I like right now. Seminole, Yosemite, and Midnight Sun. Not really sure on the colors. Probably some sort of red, silver, and black, or maybe purple, silver, and black.

Steve, I'd be happy to see you convert some of those models to RC. What have you got? Maybe I'll be able to borrow some of your ideas too!

Travis, thanks for the comments! I guess you can't please everyone! I don't know why anyone would be upset about seeing someone do something different with their models. I think it would be good for business. Do they still make new Smith-Miller trucks? Some of their trailers would be a nice match to my KW.

Thanks Aaron! Lights are good.... :D Speaking of which, I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the headlights. I really want to find a way to make the All American Toys KW headlights functional. They are so Kenworth. I thought maybe I could mill an opening inside the housing, and fit a lense over the top. If that fails, I'll have to try and adapt something else. There are some other options out there. Maybe not many vintage KW looking lights, but still...

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Oh some KB5's :) the cabs are real nicely done but the rest looks like it'll snap with a penny placed on it .

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

I agree Nathan on the flamed out blue one, alittle much. But it looks good with the monster stacks, and texas bumper.
Jimmy

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

If I ever built a road truck this is the cab I would be using. I too inquired a couple years ago about getting one of these to convert. Needle nose weather a KW or Peterbilt wins my attention.

Travis, I hear you about converting Smith Miller trucks. I talked to a big collector (who has several custom trucks Autocar ect.) before and he seemed to tell me to use one of the Smith MIC cabs to do a conversion. I assured him I wouldn't take a rare Mack cab and cut it up. I have a beat up L model cab and was thinking how to build a heavy dump truck version. I don't know the proper model but one of my friends had two 1:1 trucks we used at our construction show. He has since sold them so getting measurements would be tough now.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Steve, if these are the 1/16 scale KB5 models I am thinking of, they are really detailed models. Get to it! I'd love to see one of those converted!

Jimmy, I hope to get some bigger stacks for my truck too. Because it is a vintage truck, I'll probably keep the lights on the front and rear bumpers, the cab clearance lights, and maybe some lights in the back of the cab, but the way it looks, lights under the cab, on a skirt, are probably not going to work so well. Not much room there. I'd like some breather lights too, like the flamed KW you posted, but we'll see if I have the room. Sometimes I just like a clean truck, that's shaved of most all the lights. That look has started to grow on me.

Monigham, my friend Craig (Claus) and I talked about trying to build a truck like this probably 3 years ago too. At the time I thought it would be fun to try, but I had no idea I'd ever attempt it myself. I thought it would be to difficult. Funny how that works. I was getting really bogged down with my Peterbilt project, and wanted something a little easier to put together, and then the needlenose KW idea popped up again. While not exactly 'easy' to put together, I have been making better progress on this build, and hope to have a finished truck before summer! Hope I can keep the ball rolling. I think it's a unique model, and I like that it is different. I too like the needlenose trucks!

So from the sounds of it, Smith Miller trucks are not being produced anymore? Their website just has restored trucks, listed for sale, more less?

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

From the looks of it if you could mill out the buckets you should be able to even take some thin plexi glass and heat it slightly to get the bow and scribe the lens pattern on it.... I dont think it would be all that bad? hmmmm i just figured out how to make some of the lens i need to make :) see you helped me trying to help you :) gotta go test that theory now.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Aaron, I plan to take a ball nose end mill and see if I can't hollow out the headlight housing somehow, without destroying it. I've got a few readily available clear lenses that I think may fit the housing. It's something I'll get to a little later. There are lots of more important parts I'd like to machine first. Headlights will probably be one of the last things to worry about! :D

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

A small update for the weekend. I've now got a tail light panel in the rear of the KW, along with a nice frame taper, and cross member. I tried a few different ideas and settled on this design. I didn't think the truck would look good with a t-bar rear bumper, since I will not be running full fenders. Most likely the KW will get a set of 1/4 fenders, and that's a bit more of a dressed up working truck look.

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...psc1528390.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps50dbfffe.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps4b1d13a5.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...psb2422114.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps7b0145d3.jpg

I'll have to make some mudflap hangers a little bit later, but playing around with Lynn's light bezels has been fun. They look really great. I am sticking with all clear lenses, everywhere on the truck. What do you guys think?

For those with the sharp eyes, the cab doesn't have a rear window in anymore because I messed up the original, which did! I had to order a new cab. Something about drilling to many holes in the first, for an excessive amount of cab clearance lights, and then changing my mind, so I could back to 7. Don't ask! :D

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

What happened to the cab with the back window cut out?????

That's a lot of bolts in the back section. You must be planning to abuse this one!:p

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Reg, man, you post fast! I edited my orignal post, explaining the rear window missing. The first cab, that I milled the window in, was a bit of an experiment. I was going to try and fit 11 cab clearance lights on it, but changed my mind and wanted 7. I had to get a new cab. Suppose I could have plugged the holes, but that would have bothered me forever, so a new cab it was.

It does have a lot bolts, doesn't it? When you can't tig weld aluminum, you have to resort to bolting. :p

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Haha! I just happened to look right as you posted I think! I had to look back through your thread to make sure I wasn't dreaming about the window being cut out:confused:. Then I was like...OH OH something happened!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Nathan, it's looking real good. Keep the updates coming!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Once again you have outdone yourself Nathan. You know how I feel about clear lenses but it's your truck and that's why they're clear! I can't wait to see the mudflap hangers because that will change the look again, truck also deserves to simple classy chrome mudflap weights back there.


No offene Nathan but my God those Wedico diffs are crude looking! Keep up the build, one of the most custom machined, unique builds to date.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Thanks Kent! I appreciate the comment. I need all the motivation I can get!

Thank you Craig! I'll be the first to agree with you. The Wedico axles are pretty crude looking. Hang tight. They may not be under the rear of the truck for much longer. :D I would love to get some mudflaps with a chrome Cummins 'C' on them (where am I going to get that?!), but I'll probably go with your advice, and keep it simple and clean.

Reg, uh oh is right! I've had my goof ups building this truck, I just don't talk about it much. :D Some parts I made, then made again, before I got them right. I hate remaking parts, but I hate doing a mickey mouse job more. I'm such a perfectionist, even the smallest mistakes irritate me to no end, and so I don't quit till I get things right. It's a character flaw!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Okay guys, here's a small update. Fuel tank saddles! These things, I tell you, they test my patience, no matter what kind of truck I'm building. Machining the ones used on my Wedico Peterbilt was way tougher, but these Kenworth style tank saddles are not going quite as easy as I thought they would. Never the less, I've made some headway.

I made a test piece first, to see if my ideas would even work. It didn't turn out to bad. The test piece is the only one in the following photo that has been machined to a finished state (more or less), and it's standing upright.

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps5a973fb2.jpg

The other five pieces are still in a semi-raw state.

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...psf0260f48.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps1630ef5a.jpg

I made five, for those 'oops, just in case' mistakes. I only need to get four right. One can be a practice piece. :D Here is the first test piece, bolted to the truck. The radius is larger then it should be, but hey, that's why it's a test piece! The tanks are going to be 1.5" in diameter, when it's all said and done.

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps4f7de55f.jpg

Don't mind the oil and 'luminum chips! I guess I didn't wipe them all off, for the photo!

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps68116a2a.jpg

Just a little mock-up photo to see how everything might look. The quarter fender is not permanently mounted yet. I'm not sure on the exact placement yet, but it does look decent right where it's at. The fuel tanks are going to be shorties. I like the way they look, and it's fitting, for a day cab.

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps66c653d1.jpg

And a couple of the quarter fender.

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...pseb58a626.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps325e61e8.jpg

Now I need to finish the rest of the tank saddles, and start making some tank straps. That's all for now. Thanks for looking!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Nothing taste better than custom made parts!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Nathen, this is awesome. I love all the aluminum and the machine work you have put into it is second to none.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Looking good! Your machine work is top notch!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

the tank saddles get easier after you make a few hundred of them :D

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

You never cease to amaze me. Awesome as usual.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Absolutely amazing....

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Your metal working is fantastic! It really gives this build a lot of realism. Keep up the great work!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Thanks Craig! Glad you like them.

Hey, thanks Keith! It has taken me some time to get everything machined up, but I feel the end result is worth the effort!

Aaron, thank you! I do my best.

Russ, I imagine they do get easier. I'm glad I only have to make one set for this truck! They've taken a lot of thinking, and some trial and error. It's amazing sometimes how something that seems simple to machine actually takes a lot of time on the mill to make.

Thanks Jimmy!

Thanks Loaded_Heavy. There isn't much Wedico left in this truck. About all that is Wedico would be the rims, tires, front axle, and the blank frame rails. I'd say the rear axles are Wedico too, but I don't know how much longer they are going to be holding up the rear of the chassis!

Thank you Mama Sue!

Thank you Bigrigger!

Chris, yes, I have two of these cabs. It's explained why in the previous posts. :D We'll just say there was a whoops! For mock-up sake, I use which ever is closest to my reach.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Time for a weekend update! Work continues on the tank saddles. I have them to the point where I only need to drill one more hole, and then make the straps. The straps will be attached to the upper mounting ears, at the top, and then hopefully I'll have a tension screw to pull the strap tight, at the bottom of the saddle. Just like the real thing, only smaller! :D

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps10cb8cdc.jpg

The mock-up tank is just a piece of tube. It's the correct diameter, but hopefully I can have someone make me a proper set of tanks, that will look nicer. Hopefully no one is getting tired of looking at the same parts, as they evolve.

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps32f9fe5e.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps1c3e2894.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...psc681624a.jpg

http://i1159.photobucket.com/albums/...ps8902967b.jpg

These little buggers proved to be more time consuming then I first thought. But this is why I get bogged down with the details sometimes! I think the work is worth it though.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Looks great Nathen! If you get them to work ill take a set ;) im tamiya size lol Ive been looking at ways to make the straps look more real.. i think your gonna nail that!!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Thanks Aaron! Yes, I have some ideas for the straps. I just need to order some material tomorrow, so I can try to make them. I am hopeful I can make it happen. I've got a lot of time into the saddles. To not have the straps would be a bummer!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

I can tell you got lots of time in them it shows but thats how things turn into a work of art!

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

:eek:..Looks awsome Nathan..Your machining skills are really coming along..Looks all like you have been getting things done by a machine shop ....The proportions are really turning out well and looks like quite a challenge to work with the smaller cab ..I cant beleive the great work all you truck builders are coming up with ..thumbs up

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

AMAZING!! my God that is an outstanding looking rig. Great work.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Nathan your truck is beautiful! Long way away already from the toy truck that it was meant to be.

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Arghhh , Absolutely amazing , i like your metal working Nathan ......great work .

Re: 1950 Kenworth Needlenose
 

Thanks Aaron! It's surprising how long it takes to make some parts. And then for something like this, after you finish one, you step back, look at it, and say, 'Ahh, perfect!' Now go make three more just like it!


Thank you Lou! I appreciate the nice comment, coming from a pro like you! I agree. The level of trucks being built these days, on the forum, is always going higher and higher. That's to say nothing of the construction machines! Wow!

Thanks Tyler!

Thank you Craig!

ZINCOU, thank you very much!