The Re-fueller Tractor Unit - Part 3.
The tractor unit has now reached the final stages, although the driver's door, mirrors and the trailer connection hoses can't be fitted until the two units are ready to be joined.
Clean-up has been done, the "frosting" corrected, the windscreen wipers painted, grime and dirt applied, and the body attached to the chassis.
A housing for the hoses to the trailer unit has been made, fitted, and painted ( described below), tail lamps made and attached, and the spare wheel and carrier fitted in place.
I needed to find a convincing way to attach the trailer hoses to the cab / chassis, rather than just have them disappearing under the cab or chassis rails. A short length of plastic tube was cemented behind the cab, between the catwalk and cab rear wall, and then painted to match the rest of the vehicle. The "hoses" for the air brakes and electrical connections will be attached inside one end of the tube, and then run out to the sockets already attached to the front of the tank trailer unit.
As the tube is between the tool rack and the spare wheel, partly hidden by the spare tyre, and semi-recessed between the catwalk and cab, once the hoses are painted and attached, and the trailer in place, it should all look like it's meant to be there, perhaps a compressor cylinder or something similar.
I tried various types of wire, and thin flexible tubing for the hoses, but none were really suitable, either being the wrong gauge, or not flexible enough, or both.
Model car accessory parts include suitable wires, hoses and micro-tubing, so I checked a couple of sites and did find what I needed, but the shipping was as much as, or more, than the products, which seemed a bit steep to me, considering the lengths on offer varied between 1 to 2 metres, a very small, light package. So I looked elsewhere, and found the same type of soft wire, in various colours, available from angling and jewellery / craft outlets. I bought a reel of 0.5mm x
80 metre green jewellery wire which, with free, next day delivery, worked out slightly less than a 2 metre length with shipping, and it arrived today !!
I did a couple of tests to check fit into the tube, clearance over the catwalk etc, and ensured that the wire could be easily formed into the desired curves and "drape", so all being well, it should be a straightforward, if perhaps slightly fiddly task to add the hoses when the time comes.
Simple representations of the tail / brake lamps were made and fitted, using plastic tube, reamed out to thin the walls and create a larger opening, and with lead wire for the electrical connections. The inside of the tubes were painted red and, when dry, glazed with PVA.
They're very basic, but as they'll be almost totally hidden under the front of the tank unit trailer, they should look acceptable enough, and better than nothing at all.
Final job for the day was to dirty the tyres and wheels for the tank trailer.
I had hoped to get the tank unit painted today, but the Khaki Drab I used (mixed with Mid Stone) has dried up.
I do have some alternative green shades, and I reckon I can mix a suitable substitute, as the shade doesn't need to be an exact match, as obviously the tankers would have been built and painted in different factories to the tractors, possibly with different paints or batches of paint, so a slight variation will be acceptable.
I'll experiment in better light, during daylight tomorrow and, if I can't achieve what I'm aiming for, then I'll have to get an order together for Hannant's, as there are no longer local suppliers who will have the shades I need, anywhere near where I live.
Sod's Law I'll need to order on-line, meaning a longer delay due to the New Year holiday !
Pics below show what's what, and hopefully I'll have more to show tomorrow.