Monogram 1/16th Kenworth W 900 Finished at last

[reserve]

Always wanted to tangle with one of these

009 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

An eighties molding, it's very basic with molded on detail that would be inexcusable by today's standards so significant grinding in some areas and scratching in all areas will be necessary to keep it from looking like a toy on completion. It's really big

010 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Block/transmission half next to a 1/35th M-47. This'll keep me out of the bars for awhile

Regards,
Mark

[TRM]

LOL...Go big, or go home!! Since you are home though...might as well just do it!! Count me in!

[Leon]

I'll be following Mark! Been thinking about getting one of those.

[reserve]

Welcome gentlemen

How about some sprue shots

001 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr
002 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr
003 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr
004 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr
005 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr
006 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr
007 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Assembled frame and left side engine half with the evil molded on detail ground out and holes filled. The scratched starter and fuel filters also
008 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Gonna have to get a wide angle lens if I keep working in this scale

Regards,
Mark

[Leon]

Nice start Mark!

[reserve]

Some nasty fit, not unexpected in a molding of this vintage. Not incurable but I'd hoped for better

007 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

006 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

005 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

003 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

002 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Still superior to the letter kits, just gonna take longer

Regards,
Mark

[joelsmith]

Keep on flailin', you'll beat it into submission.

[Leon]

Your doing a nice job despite the fit issues Mark!

[reserve]

Thanks gents

Air plumbing and block on the very back; the rest will be hidden by 5th wheel plate etc. so I'll not be wasting time

002 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Dry fit suggests that everything will play nice

001 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

I hope

Regards,
Mark

[Leon]

WOW....Nice work on the plumbing Mark!

[joelsmith]

Mark, this might be a dumb question, but, since it is a Caterpillar motor, shouldn't it be yellow?

[reserve]

Thanks Leon

Joelsmith no it's not and yes it should. Now you're seeing it in primer but it will be Cat yellow at the end. There were some 3406's and 3408's that were painted white also but I'm not gonna go there

Regards,
Mark

[joelsmith]

Thanks for the answer! I know enough about big rigs to get myself in trouble, but, not enough to get myself out.

[reserve]

No one knows it all brother least of all me you are quite welcome

Mill in second coat of primer with the scratched starter and fuel filters that replaced the molded on detail. Injector lines are .030 brass. There's no possibility I got the sequence of pump to cylinder correct but in the absence of reference material I decided to wing it

001 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

002 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Come to think of it I also scratched the back end of the power steering pump. White primer this time will aid in achievement of that bright yellow Cat paint, grey would have made it too dark after application of washes and simulated glop diesel engines seem to wear pretty much universally

Regards,
Mark

[Leon]

Scratch work and plumbing look good Mark!

[deafpanzer]

Nice work on the engine!

[reserve]

Thanks guys

The sleeper took considerable fitting and straightening of warped parts. In the end, all the joints still needed filling

004 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Got Cat yellow now

001 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Lots of drudge work involved in the form of scraping, flat sanding, filling and sanding. Not unexpected and I still think the end result will be worth the effort


Regards,
Mark

[Leon]

Nice progress Mark! Sleeper is looking good and the engine looks awesome with the yellow.

[joelsmith]

You are right Mark, That engine is certainly YELLOW!

[mustang1989]

Is that official CAT yellow? It looks to be the right shade. You can also buy a can of this stuff from your local Caterpillar dealership and dispense it into an airbrush paint jar.

Man that's gotta be a big rig in 1:16 scale!!!

[reserve]

No Joe, it's not. It's Model Master's acrylic Insignia Yellow which is a bit on the bright side but not to worry; once the assorted filters, washes, gunk and aging are done it'll be awful close.

It would have been darker had I not reprimed in white. If there's one thing I've learned, you want your basecoat to be on the lighter side as weathering and aging will surely darken it. I'm also not the kind of guy who goes to the websites that spectroscopically analyze black and white WWII photos in an attempt to find out what the "right" shade of 4BO green is, that's too much like work rather than a relaxing hobby

Regards,
Mark

[mustang1989]

I hear you on the fighting tooth and nail to get the colors absolutely "perfect". lol. Believe me I'm not "that guy". I was just merely letting you know that this color is very readily available should you ever want to go that route. Lookin' good Mark.

[reserve]

I did not figure you were brother, and good information that is. Here lately in Montana I've been seeing quite a few monstrous Cat generators going down the road on drop frames and if I can get close to one with a tape and a camera I may just try to scratch one for laughs

Regards,
Mark

[reserve]

Got the mill dirtied up a bit with a black oil wash as well as the turbo and manifold base coated with rust

002 by Mark Hartig,
on Flickr


003 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr


By tomorrow the wash should be cured and I will go back and do a black pinwash as well. I'll get out my Bragdon's rusty powders and stipple some different rust tones on the rusty parts as well. The next problem to be addressed will be the fuel tanks, poorly molded with a molded on bracket/strap system that bears little resemblance to the genuine article. This will require tossing of said parts and scratching replacements. To that end a trip to the local Home Despot provided a stick of 1 1/4" schedule forty that will make fine tank body replacements. Here's one beside the kit supplied molding

004 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

They are about .150" too fat but I find myself unable to get overly upset about it

Regards,
Mark

[mustang1989]

Shuweeeeet! Very nice lookin' CAT motor Mark. We work on a lot of those generators that you saw going down the road. I manage a fleet maintenance shop on a local refinery and we see these things all the time. I'll be keepin' an eye out for that generator that you're talking about building from scratch.

[Leon]

WOW....Nice work on the dirty mill Mark!
No worries on the fat fuel tanks.Once assembled and painted,nobody will ever know.

[reserve]

Cheers gents

De-toying process continues with the solid plastic grille modified

005 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Mill with final wash and just a couple things left to do; this will be done just before installation into the frame

004 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

002 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

And the fuel tanks at present status. Center one is ready for primer and I had to throw the kit one in to reiterate why I'm doing all this

001 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Primer time very soon gonna need a lot of it

Regards,
Mark

[reserve]

Frame completed to 1st stage weathering with mill dry fit

001 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Rims stripped of vile chrome plating and redone with Alcad polished aluminum

003 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

004 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

First I've used Alcad and I am very impressed with the results

Regards,
Mark

[deafpanzer]

Looking real good especially the engine. The grill is just perfect!

[reserve]

Thanks Andy

Eighties engineering showing up now, been a struggle with some of this. Progress in spite of it

003 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

004 by Mark Hartig, on Flickr

Right about now I'm ready for a nice tank

Regards,
Mark