Reissued California Hauler 359

[truckabilly]

Peterbilt 359 changed its appearance a little within the 20 years of production. With the Round2 reissue of originally AMT´s California Hauler we get a kit long gone from the shelves in the stores. The two-bar grille, 8v71 Detroit under the hood, unilite cab, roof mounted AC, stabilaire suspension... that´s how it all started, right? For the truck as well as for the plastic kits. I like the story of the California Hauler kit being the first on the market, then thought to be lost for good and finally found being the part of Peterbilt 352 tooling. Ain´t it amazing?

With a great respect that I feel towards the kit I wanted to build the model as a pure stock box (or out of box if you prefer). But I´m probably much too deep in redoing kit parts if it enhances the looks. So I´m kinda split in two kinds of approach now. Trying to use as many original kit parts as possible on one hand and modifying some real bad ones on the other. Like I knew I wouldn´t use the original shock absorbers and double doughnuts for their bad shape. And changing this leads to changing that and the original idea of stock box is gone. But I still want to use some original parts even though I could get or make a better replacement.

Watching the pics of those early 359s I tried to find an inspiration for my build and I guess I found one. It should look something like this...



I like the color combo including the red wheels in the back and red mud flaps. I got me the Mercury sleeper and began to work. I will show the in progress pics next time.

Jarda

[41chevy]

Looking forward to this build! Paul

[truckabilly]

Alright, here we go. I started out with engine like I always do. Pretty straight forward thing with no issues but cleaning the parts. The valve covers are not in place yet. I left them chromed and will glue them after the engine is painted. I want to paint it white as well as the frame. Nice challenge not to make it look too boring. I wonder how it turns out.



The kit brings a lot of chrome parts including those I would never imagine being chromed in the real world. I stripped the chrome layer off the 5-th wheel, drive shafts, the steering mechanism and such. Also the fuel tanks ´cause they´ll be white and the wheels that will be red. Some junk ready for painting...





I said I wouldn´t use the shocks and double donut air bags. Here is a set of original parts and those I made for replacement. The shock absorbers are made of Evergreen stuff and the double donuts are rubber rings glued together.



I was puzzled by this part untill someone told me that it represents the height valve linkage.



I think it´s supposed to look something like this.



So, here is my version of the height valves. But I had to change the position od the cross member for the space reasons and levers are linked straight to the axle.







Up next - the hood modification.
Jarda

[Deleted]

Looking really nice, Jarda.

[gatormarcstaug]

Jarda,
Looks like you have gotten off to a good start on this one. I know you will do this old kit justice !!




Be Well
Gator

[denc]

Jarda, I like the direction your taking this build. I can see your not sparing any details. That's a great idea with the airbags!

[thebrush56]

Nice work, Look forward to seeing this finished.

[truckabilly]

Thank you guys. Last time I promised the hood modification. Here it is. The hood in the kit has no hinges and there are no pins on the frame. I copied the hinges from Revell of Germany Peterbilt 359. Not very nice but I am ready to make another pair or as many pairs as necessary untill it sets right. I also made a pair of pins.





One of the things that I miss whenever I build a conventional truck is the inside hood details. The smooth walls inside the hood do not work for me when I see a picture like this.



So, I went on with this attempt. Far from 100% accuracy but it is okay for me.



The fenders are not quite right. There is a too big gap between the fenders front edge and bumper. The bottom edge of the grill and the front edges of the fenders should be even. I was afraid to extend the fenders front part. In case of failure, let it be hidden in the back. I cut off the tooth and step on each fender. I glued the fenders to the hood sides turned a bit forwards so that the edges in front would line up with the grill. Then I glued back the tooth, slightly reshaped so that it would fit okay. I extended the fenders in the rear section using the mud flap parts. It took some filling and cleaning to hide the joint.







There is a lip added to the wing made of Evergreen stock. The hole for turnsignal is filled now and repositioned to the very top of the fender.
That´s it till the next update.
Jarda

[denc]

Very nice Jarda. The hood hinges and underside mods look terrific!

[truckabilly]

Another thing I changed is the interior. I just do not like the tube because of the askew walls. It leaves too wide gap at the bottom of the cab.



I cut off the sides with the door pattern for later use and threw away the rest.



This is the new floor and new mounting points on the frame. I did not want to use the rails that the original floor has.







Another change to the cab is the windshield. I think the openings are too tall. I added plastic stripes to the top and bottom edge and reshaped the corners. Then I added the gaskets made of the Evergreen stock.









The front ends of frame rails need a little improvement too. The holes in bumper do not look right without the towing elements.







The fuel tanks are shorter compared to original AMT issue of the kit. The tool is changed since Matchbox used it for their issue of the 352 COE. I think I can combine fuel tanks of different lengths in one model truck. I did not have a longer Peterbilt style fuel tank. But I found one of a Kenworth. The problem is that the KW tank has its brackets at the bottom while Peterbilt has them on top. So, I glued one half upside down and got the brackets to desired position.





The tanks are finished by now. I will post the pics later.

Jarda

[Deleted]

Excellent attantion to detail.

[mikemc]

Lovely job.

[denc]

I like the modifications you made.