Drawings of 34pickup - Vic Vasselin

I knew him first as 34pickup and I look forward to his posting on Hank's Truck Picture Forum in the truck drawing forum - he posts under 34pickup.

I have since come to know him as Vic Vasselin. He is a full time truck driver and does truck illustrations and cartoons on the side. Vic's cartoons about the trucking life can be seen at
Tenfourmagazine.com - look for "truckertoons" or use the convenient link on this page -- Look for Truckertoons. There is also a full biography there on Vic.

I have wondered why someone would give themselves a screen name like 34pickup? I guess I would too if I had one. Vic also has 35 Dodge street rod pickup.

Vic tells me, " I draw trucks because I like them, specially old trucks." He's been honing his skill for 40 years. Some of his drawing require 20-40 hours to create. Besides Tenfourmagazine, he also contributes to a trucking paper in Pennsylvania called "Movin Out".

I have to admit that I am a bit jealous of Vics' talent. While I'm cranking out stuff on Photoshop, he is matching whatever I can create the good old fashioned way - by hand, pen, ink, and pencil.

Here are a few of my favorites drawn by Vic ---

1953 Kenworth
















Peterbilt -
















1960 Diamond Reo-















1930's Mack Gulf Gas Truck -















These are just a few of Vics offerings. From time to time I will change some of the "side pictures"
and offer some more of his creations. Perhaps I might even add some of his toons -

Thanks Vic, keep up the great drawings!!!

Christmas Still Here - Dodge L-700 info too!

It has been a long time since we have had a white Christmas here in the southern tier of New York. It would have been the opportune time for that Highway 61 - 1946 GMC Snowplow to have arrived, it will have to wait.












I did order another dump truck - a 1949 International KB8 -SA by First Gear. It should arrive next week, giving me time to think about where it's going to go - my wife thinks I need a room just for my models, I agree.

One "truck gift" did arrive, a gift from my wife which I will really enjoy. I think it might even help with my truck identification.



This is a great book about the trucks I remember from the 60's. It covers Autocar, Brockway,
Chevrolet, Diamond T - Reo, Dodge, Ford, Freightliner, GMC, IH, Kenworth, Mack, Peterbilt, White, and others such as Marmon and Hendrickson.

One truck that I didn't find though was the Dodge L-700 introduced in 1966. Perhaps because it was considered for light duty purpose, that may have been reson for its omission. However, as a modeler I have found like others, there is not too much info on this model - so I thought I would put up some here in picture form.








































Hope you all had a Great Christmas. I know I did! Looking forward to the new year - and some more old truck finds!

Farm trucks of younger days

My cousin recently sent me a box of letters containing some that had been written between my grandmother and my mother around the time of my birth, some letters referred to some trucks we had while I grew up on the farm.

I was born in 1952, the third and youngest of my parents sons. My parents were farmers back then, running a dairy farm on 200 + acres.

Of course we had trucks - and that is what these posts are supposed to be about. So here, are some of the trucks I remember, and a truck my brother remembers from before my birth.

My parents bought our farm in the late 40's. Their first farm truck was a Ford F-1.


I hope my brother checks this out to verify his remembrance. The first truck I remember, bought either just before I was born, or that year, was a grey Willy's Jeep pickup - for some time we kept the Willy's brush gaurd, probably still on the old farm.















I can remember - barely - riding in this as a very young child. Our next truck was an orange International pickup, bought around 1956. I don't think my dad liked it because it lacked 4WD.

















The next vehicle we had didn't stay very long - I saw it as an interim and don't know to this day if we bought it or borrowed it. It was a GMC Panel Van .


I remember it was a "hot" ride in the summer time - maybe that's why we got rid of it in late 1957. The truck we had just befor my sister was born in 1958 was a white over blue Willy's Jeep
FC-170 with a stake body. I have written in a past blog about this truck - my dad had 4WD again, and it was my favorite truck.
















The Jeep lasted till about 1963. We then purchased a Ford Econoline Van - it took us to Oklahoma and back again. The van was a six cyliner window van with removable seats so my dad could haul his tools. My mom drove this a few times, once loosing control on ice and putting it into a ditch - she suffered a bronken arm.




















The last truck we had before I went away was a 68 Dodge Sportsman. It was also a straight six and a window van. I dated my wife in this van when my mother wouldn't give up the dodge Dart.
When my dad died, my brother got this and drove it for some time.





















The Dodge in the above picture is a 64 - the color is right, but this is the "short" version, we had the longer 68.

The Twelve Trucks of Christmas

Time for a little sing along - you know the tune!! Don't forget the repeats!


On the first day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

A GMC -950


On the second day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Two Mack Bulldogs - (repeat first truck)



On the third day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Three White Freightliners - (repeat second and first trucks)

On the Fourth Day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Four Autocars - (repeat third, second, and first trucks)



On the fifth day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Five Diamond T's - (repeat fourth, third, second and first trucks)


On the sixth day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Six Chevy's for haying - (repeat five to one trucks)


On the seventh day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Seven Fageols a brimming - (repeat six to one trucks)


On the eighth day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Eight trucks for milking - (by now you should know the routine)


One the ninth day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Nine Hayes entrancing


On the tenth day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Ten Willy's for Jeeping


On the eleventh day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Eleven Peterbilts' piping


On the twelve day of Christmas the truck man gave to me -

Twelve Kenworths' a humming





Merry Christmas - Happy Holidays -

1946 GMC Snowplow 1/16 Scale

I've said this before, "my wife spoils me". She has ordered this from one of my favorite places,
Jeff's' Collectibles. So, I called Jeff this morning to ask if it would be OK to do a little advertising for him. If you collect die-cast trucks, I would recommend Jeff's. If these two links don't work,
try the link at the bottom of my sidebar.

Gosh, at 56 it's hard to feel like a kid again - this works!!

Jeff also has some real nice die-cast cars for you car fans. Thank you bears (my wife) and Jeff - I can't wait ----

AMT - Re-Issue of White Freightliner Dual Drive Tractor

Good news for truck model builders, Round 2 LLC - AMT has announced the release of the White Freightliner Dual Drive Tractor. It will be available through TOWER HOBBY, they expect an early release late spring of 2009. I cant wait!!

The picture above was made using the AMT advertisement picture and re- coloring it. Hope I can build my future kit up like this.

Two Mack Bulldogs and a Mack H-63

On our way to Auburn yesterday to catch up with the rest of the family for Thanksgiving. We stopped at one of our favorite stores in Seneca Falls, Sauders. It is a Mennonite run country style store offering all kinds of food stuff.

I was on the way out, when I spotted a basket with a sign above, "FREE CALENDARS". I took one
titled, "TREASURED TRUCKS".

It is from that calendar these pictures come. They were taken by a well known "cover photographer" named Ozzie Sweet. He is renown for his quality photographs.


MACK H-63 1954-56

1947 MACK LFT




1972 MACK R-685T

















Great picture of neat trucks!!!!

Peterbilt 359 x 2

What does one do when they don't have any truck models to take up some "hobby" time? Well in my case that's not hard. I go looking for great pictures on the net.

I found these two through Hank's Truck Forum (see my truck links). There are some neat trucks there, and some links to other truck related sites. I liked these two because of the way the picture was taken - allowing me to remove the background and artistically render the trucks.

I wish I could find more pictures of trucks with trailers - taken with a "corner perspective". The tractors alone are cool, but a trailer load makes it so much better.

My picture offering was modified once again in Photoshop. Two Peterbilt 359's - the beer truck can stop at my house any time!!!

As Homer Simpson would say, " HMMMMMM Beer!"

AMT Mack Cruisliner - BROWN NOSE

This is another post about the AMT Cruisliner Kit from Stevens' International. One thing I didn't like about the build of this kit was the way the wheels attached to plastic "stub" axles. Back in the old day AMT used metal axles that ran through the axle housing. Of course there were some modelers that ran them through their fingers or palms - so they were discontinued.

So, last night, with nothing better to do, I removed the wheels in an effort to free them up so they would rotate more easily. I do miss those metal axles. Anyhow after it was once again put back together, with nothing better to do, I created this from a picture of what I now call -------

BROWN NOSE

Yet another Peterbilt 352 COE

I will admit to the "trucker" readers of this blog that I am no expert at truck "aging" or even proper truck identification's. I get a little lazy when it comes to those details.

I believe this is about a 72 Peterbilt 352. I may be wrong, so feel free to correct me. The picture was found on the web and like the blue Pete of the previous post, I just liked the way it looks. I'll
admit a partiality towards the Peterbilts of that era 60's - 70's. They look like trucks - tuff, yet they invoke an art through their lines. So here, retouched in Photoshop again, is what I think is a great representative truck of that era - perhaps a 1972 Petebilt 352.



My thanks to C.J. Hall for his picture.

While looking through my "Pete Photo Files" I came across this Peterbilt 352 - so I'll go for a little Pete overload!!!

Nice trucks!!!

Peterbilt 352 COE - Blue me away

Here is yet another truck I really enjoy. Back in 1972 I built a model of this truck, the kit was by AMT. It came with the trailer, and when built up it was a Budweiser truck.
That's another one of those models now long gone - given away when we moved here 24 years ago. I wish someone would re-issue that kit.

Well, I was on another truck site searching for pictures. I came across this one of a nicely done Pete 352 - simple elegance with just the right amount of pin-striping. I couldn't resist. If ever I find a 352 kit, I want to build it like this one.

Here is the picture as found ----

Here is how I did it up in Photoshop ----

Thanks to Hank's Truck Forum for the picture - special thanks to the submitter!!!!




UPDATE OF 5/30/09

Thanks to Jarrett Hallvin for his comment and sending me this picture of the model he built of his dads' truck --- subject of this post!!

69 Peterbilt Photoshop Transformation

This is a post about how I transform some of my photos using Photoshop CS3. The subject in this post is my AMT Peterbilt 359 "California Hauler". It has been the subject of other post as well.

The first picture was taken with a white sheet as the background:



The image itself was sharpened in Photoshop, then the background was removed by a combination of cut /paste and flood fill of a solid color:



This picture was then softened using the "unsharpen mask", then artistically rendered using the poster edge and ink outline features. The result of all this changes the picture from a photo into a work of art. If only I could do this by hand -----



Of course, I already think this Pete is a work of art ----

Always Looking For Trucks - Leave Comments

I am always searching for new truck models, and photos or illustrations of old trucks. If you have a site to share about trucks, or truck modeling, please include it in your comments. I will do my best to add the link to this page.

Tell me what you think. I'm having fun doing this..................

Paint and decal scheme for Revell / Germany Peterbilt

Susies Fords

Was sitting having my traditional coffee and apple fritter with my friend and fellow bus driver, Susie Shoemaker. She was showing some old family photos and we came across these two. The first is a 1940's Ford COE Coke truck



The next set shows some 1958 Series Fords used in local Delivery.

Chevrolet LRDG 30cwt

OK, I hear some of you asking what does LRDG and 30cwt stand for. This post is due to a book that was recommended on Straightstack ( see my side bar) . The book is called "Killing Rommel" by Steven Pressfield. It is a novel about the British "special unit" known as the Long Range Dessert Group or LRDG. Their objective was to go after Rommel, to kill or capture him during the North African Campaign of WWII. The book is based on the memoir of R. Lawrence Chapman, who fought with this group.

Early in this groups existence, they used Ford trucks. But after 1941, they switched to, and preferred the Chevrolet 1 1/2 ton (or 30cwt). This was a Canadian built Chevrolet supplied without the cab and modified for dessert war fare.

As my friend on Straightstack pointed out, imagine driving one of these in sand and when temperatures during the day were over 110 F. My hats off to those that did.

1941 Chevrolet 30 cwt LRDG