Back to the Fifties
 

I've wanted to do one of the 56 Tonka trucks for a while, I found some reproduction cabs on "Gasoline Alley" so I decided to get it built. I started this earlier in the year but house and yard and stuff got in the way.... it took me longer than I planned.
Any way as usual it starts with some frame rails, I use aluminum "C" channel from Lowes or Home Depot 1/2x3/8 sometimes called plywood edging.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...9166d285_z.jpg
I trim it down to about 11/32 or about there....it just makes it easier to work with when your bolting stuff to it.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...731a23b6_z.jpg
Then I lay out the location of my WPL axles so I can get the wheel base that looks right to me
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b1f5d582_z.jpg
I wish I could get the body lower on the wheels but they are a little bigger than the Tonka wheels and if I go any lower then the bed will hit the duals when I set it on so... this is the ride height I'll go with
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...6e7e7657_z.jpg

Just doing some test fitting...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...cdf43e9b_z.jpg

The cabs are close to the originals but one obvious difference is the nose angles back a lot farther on these...not a big deal just wanted to mention it...
The biggest problem is the metal wrinkles up just forward of the doors on both sides and a little on the front edge of the hood and a little in the fenders... so to get a smooth finish it took almost 5 hours of metal work with a pick hammer and a file to get it all smooth, it's still not perfect but it's close...
This week I'll get my axles and drive train mounted.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

That's gonna be a sharp truck! I'm really digging where this one is going.

With that stance, it looks like the cab protector might be pretty close to the cab?

For what it's worth, I can't say the originals of that style cab were ever perfect & wrinkle free stampings. At least by going new you didn't need to fix sandbox dents, and grind or blast rust with that one. In addition to the grille rake angle, I think they also thinned out the cab roofs B-pillars.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

The cab and bed are just balanced on the frame and aren't quite square so I think it will be fine... I hope...LOL
I looked at some originals and yes they also had the ripple on both sides... still didn't like them....mine are gone now...The roof pillars may be thinner I never even thought to check that, but for my purposes I think they will be ok...
I should get these together pretty quick cause I had most of it cut and or printed just kind of let them set ....but it's time to finish this up.!!!

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Gotta say that your dumptruck mockup is looking pretty close to the one in the 1955 ad

https://imgur.com/yo3AMOxl.jpg

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Wish I had seen this sooner I would have done my rear view mirrors differently.. but I'll go with what I have
I'll get an update out this weekend.

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So... I made a "floor" for the truck so I have a place to mount stuff... and create my rats nest of wiring....
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...eb6d175f_z.jpg
And I created this tail piece just to tidy up the back end and give me a place to hang my mud flaps
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...d8273bc9_z.jpg
Still wishing I could get it lower.... but I'll live with it
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...6e7e7657_z.jpg
Getting the drive train in place using WPL after market stuff...
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As you ca see I'm going with a different bed lift, these are the cheap actuators from Aliexpress it lifted 8lbs with on problem and I'm pretty sure that little bed won't see 8lbs ....
I'll get some pictures this week of some of the parts and bits and pieces and get the frame painted....and report back

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

The chassis is looking really clean so far! Love the way you made the tilt-cab hinges.

Rear springs will probably need to stack a few more of the metal leafs so it's not constantly on the bumpstops with a load in bed.

A set of running boards mounted below the frame might help visually lower it more, and make it easier to carry when it's completed

Any links to the 3d printed parts files? Digging the wpl upgrades, that gearmotor & t-case fit great in there!
https://www.blueovaltrucks.com/vinta...ord-truck-ads/

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Funny you should mention running boards :D
I doubled up on the springs and they are pretty stiff, if they do bottom out a lot I'll just load it lighter LOL
Yeah the cab hinges are kind of odd, they have to be off-set so they let the cab sit lower and extend in to line up with the holes in the cab and bumper.
I thought about putting them on Thingiverse but didn't figure anybody would be interested it doing the old metal toy conversions ....well... except maybe you LOL
Another reason it takes me so long to build these is because I keep getting ideas for little details to add to it....fuel tanks, mirrors, running boards, bed protectors.
This one is going to look pretty good I think....

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Haha, well some Running Boards seemed like it might fit a dump truck better than suggesting some Sidepipes to lower it.

Yeah, i just might have a 55/56 semi tractor thats started a downward spiral to be an overhauled. Besides if you posted the files somewhere, all the toy collectors would go even more mental.

Those do sound like some really cool additions to the truck. About the only way around wanting to make more details is turning up the Lazy, or invoking ADD so that you get more side tracked hey lets go ride bikes.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Semi tractor you say..... :rolleyes:
Well these are reproduction cabs, and the dump beds ( I bought 4 from a guy) were rusty and a little bent up and some were missing tail gates so the collectors didn't want them, so no collectable was harmed in the making of these trucks.
Ironically I wish these had just a little more detail in the cabs just a little. I'd like to figure out some 1/16 sized air horns and cab lights, the 1/14 stuff is just to big and it looks like the 1/24 stuff would be way to small.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Um, i mean Nothing.

I don't know about good working light housings.
But i know some of the old toy repair sites like 'Gasoline Alley Toys' have replicas of little parts that break off toys and get lost. Buddy L trucks were often sent out with Horns, Mirrors, Bumper guards... Smith Millers with Hood orniments, Door handles, fake clearance lights... Structo with wipers, mirrors, horns...

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Yeah, I have a set of Structo air horns, wipers, and mirrors, for a Structo dump truck I have .... they a little more toy like than I want....but I'll scan thru there again in case I missed something

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Some of the farm stores around here have some 1/18-ish sorta Bruder trucks that are about the right size. I've got a tilt-back roll-off wrecker that the WPL axles and wheels are a fairly good fit with. Something like that might supply some bits and pieces.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Typically Bruders are closer to 1/14..... but I'll take a look

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

They're smaller than a Bruder, cheaper, and don't have quite the quality of Bruder. That's why I called them a sorta Bruder. But then again I think I only paid about $20 for the wrecker. Can't hardly go wrong at that price.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

For cab roof Clearance Lights I had started wondering about trying out some different sizes of clear or amber Teardrop shaped Rhinestones. Something in Acrylic with a foil back should be easy to make take a 3mm Led, even easier if you like using surface mount Leds.
Maybe smooth looks better? Maybe faceted throws light around better?

I'm not sure which trucks he's talking about, but i saw some "Driven" trucks "by Battat" at Target a while back that sound similar? There was a coe with Crane, conventional euro-style Flatbed with car and crane, a conventional Streetsweeper.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

ddmckee54... do you remember a brand name or anything....
Frizzen...Gasoline ally did have a smith miller air horn but the picture was kind of blurry... I haven't ordered anything yet
They also had clearance lights but they were cast solid and looked to tiny for me to work with...

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Time to wire this thing up....
just the basics, headlights, tail lights, back-up lights, bed lift....
One of the first things I do is slip a piece of cut off insulation, red and black on the LED leads...then after I start cutting and soldering I know which lead is which...
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With the chassis put together and all one color ( semi-gloss black in this case) I start the process..
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I typically wire up a master on/off switch with a charging jack,This time I put it in the end of the running board/step...
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...a12bda67_z.jpg

I use these junction blocks for main power and for my lights. Then if I want to add something that needs power like a trailer, or additional lights all I have to do is plug them in. This way I don't have a bunch of jst connectors all over and I don't have to solder anything else in.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...981529ca_z.jpg

I used this actuator ( a cheap one from aliexpress) it's much cleaner and has built in end stops and still lifts 8 lbs....
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...e42bdb98_z.jpg

This is the one I used
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...7bf5b510_z.jpg

And as you can see wiring is not my strong suit... I'll neaten this up but....
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I'll get some paint on the bed and cab this week and get some of the little detail things done....

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Looking great, and lots of good build tips and parts suggestions in there!

If a guy drills a couple holes into the printed plates to run some small zipties or wire lacing, it could really help clean up routing that wiring.

It's probably WAY too late to ask, but is the 'rear tab' on your cab sitting above the frame, or tucked through like in toy mode? Only asking since you were talking about lower. A little fender trimming for the wheels might have let you lower the cab more to drop that tab through frame. Either way, I really liked the mockup stance

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

I got the truck around Christmas time at Theisen's, which is a farm supply store here in Eastern Iowa.

I'll check when I get home tonight to see if I can find a name & model number on the thing. One of the things I liked about it was that it has actual wheels and tires on it. The tires are hard enough that you can almost drive nails with them, but they look good from both sides - not just one.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Frizzen... That's a good idea about drilling some hole for tie-wraps.. I just don't lay things out wisely...I lay it out and it looks like it makes sense but when I start sticking it down.... not so much...
Yes there is a tab on the back of the cab and I thought about cutting it off but if I drop the cab much more I'll have tire clearance issues, the wheel wells are already opened up a little. Plus if I drop the cab then the bed would need to come down then the bed rails or even the bed itself would rub on the tires....I'd love to get it lower but it opens up a whole can of worms....I try to get the lower edge of the body down to line up with the top edge of the wheel itself ( not the tire)that seems to look ok without a bunch of cutting and hacking
ddmckee54.. don't make a lot of work for yourself, I'm just curious ... by any chance is it an Ertl big farm...???

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

This is what I got. https://www.3000toys.com/New-Ray-Toy...CABEgJNJfD_BwE

I fer-sure didn't pay that much for it, the link is just to show the truck. I know I got it around Christmas, so maybe the price was a get it off my shelf special.

Don

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Sorry jerry, didn't mean to bring up the diminishing returns of creating more work for you. i mostly just like throwing out bad ideas...

That rear tab on the cab also has a horizontal slot that seemed like it could be a good place to do a latch to lock-out the Tilt Cab feature for driving.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Frizzen... Brain storming is always good....I have the floor pressed tight against that tab on the cab so it's kind of a friction latch...
ddmckee54...Ahhh... new ray I gotcha now... I'll keep my eye out ... says 1/18.... does that look accurate... or is it a little bigger or smaller.... we know they play fast ad loose with scale...

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Ok....I'm kind of new at scratch building small detail pieces with brass stuff so some of this may look a little amateurish to some of the builders ....
A builder on another site was kind enough to send me some rear view mirror files these are the ones I chose for this truck cause I liked the art deco looking detail on them
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...e2678257_z.jpg

These are just remixed spring hangers for the WPL springs and axles they drop the axle about 1/8 of an inch... I screw one end down and let the other slide in this mount.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...2b7d0d72_z.jpg

This is just a frame spacer for the rear if you just want a flush rear frame...I either use WPL self tapping screws made for plastic or run a 3mm bolt thru the top or bottom of the frame rail, threading the aluminum to hold the screw this stops the frame from spreading or the block from slipping out.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...16df54a4_z.jpg
This crazy looking thing is my mount for the bed lift actuator, the first one I made and installed didn't have any way for routing wire past it for lights or anything else... so I made some space... this piece doesn't actually take all the thrust from the lift actuator, there is a 3mm rod all the way thru it that goes thru the frame this just supports the rod and takes the flex out of it...
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...51e73b5b_z.jpg

These 56 cabs didn't have anything inside ...heck they didn't have a windshield...so I remixed a steering wheel and mount. For the windshield I cut clear plastic from a Diecast Masters box and bent it to the shape of the cab and hot glued it in...( sorry no picture of that)
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...17c1c25b_z.jpg
This is what it looked like with the mount before I cleaned it up and added some paint.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...a72d2259_z.jpg

This is a test mounting of the cab after paint.... you can see the running boards/battery box steps...
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...9d34de36_z.jpg
The cab sides should be straight but they taper back to the rear of the cab, this made putting running boards on it a little tough. Getting the taper angle was giving me a hard time so I just squared up the steps with the side of the frame, not the exact look I wanted but ....
I wanted those boards on the bed sides... so I made some up... I believe these are scale 2x12s...
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...1d7c27da_z.jpg
The supports should be about a scale 6 inches across
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...cfb2fc03_z.jpg
I did the bed in a semi-gloss black I didn't want it super shiny.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...6d492c33_z.jpg

So here are a few shots of it in the sun for the first time.
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https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b9296fa4_z.jpg

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I did 3d printed mud flaps just to try them plus I wanted some kind of logo...I printed these in white, then shot a heavy coat of primer on the back to fill the lines a little. Then I sprayed them flat black, let that dry over night and dabbed blue in the low spots in the oval. After that dried over night I carefully sanded the raised parts of the logo to expose the white underneath, I tried painting them white by hand but it looked like crap.... This came out way better.
One final shot...I'm really happy with how this one came out.... I learn a little more each time I do one
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...f2d2c425_z.jpg

I think this truck needs a friend.....
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b216ccb8_z.jpg

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

That's a clean looking truck!
I'm *really* digging the sideboards on the dump box, those add a lot to the look.

That rear shot looks like it's ready to work. Stealthy latch to keep the tailboard closed when going uphill. Any plans for adding some chains so you can try "tailgate spreading"?

Well, the painter Bob Ross always taught that everybody needs a friend. Should be fun to see what you've got in mind with that one too
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Post 21, i went to dig around in garage not sure about any others, but the Ertl 'big farm' Peterbilt has very angular cab marker lights 0.717" long at base, 0.685" long at lens, 0.333" wide at base, 0.240 wide at lens. The amber part is solid & painted. I really wouldn't be feeling that style on a Ford BigJob

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Thanks....
The latch is something "smallHaul" thought up years ago, as the bed goes up a spring pulls the latch down then a bend under the bed pushes it back up as it comes back down all mechanical.
I haven't found hooks the right size or style to use... they have to be pretty small to look right but big enough to get at least a 2mm bolt thru... Otherwise you would have to bolt the chains directly to the bed...
Yeah I have 2 of the Ertl big farm Peterbuilts, one will become my heavy haul rig one day and the other is a rollback.. I look at their cab lights and horn too...lol

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

What a awesome model! Nice work :cool:

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Thanks..... it's really fun bringing these Tonkas to life...

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I thought that l,oked like the Smallhaul L gate latch. Ok, i'd wondered about the purpose of the spring above chassis rail

How much infill % are you using on these truck parts?

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Anything that takes any stress at all I do 100% infill....to me it's not worth trying to save a few feet of filament....

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Here is my trio of Tonkas....and I've already started something "period" to load them with...
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Re: Back to the Fifties
 

Great looking trucks. Good choice of wheels they all compliment the paint colors nicely. :popcorn:

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

I love how your restored Tonka fleet looks together out on the dirt!!!
Have you gotten much chance to get some runtime on them this summer?

If someone were thinking about making WPL based really long-wheelbase vehicle, do you know if there are any kind of driveshaft carrier-bearing setups available.

Re: Back to the Fifties
 

I haven't had them out much....It got hot fast here.... I don't do heat and humidity LOL...
I don't know of any WPL really long driveshafts, but they are pretty easy to make.
I don't think there are any WPL specific carrier bearings... but I think they would be pretty easy to make....
3d print a housing/mount then use a 3mm shaft and some WPL axle bearings (I don't remember the size off the top of my head) That's just one simple way to do it...I'm sure there are others...