Custom Produced Ag Double Hoppers

It is always interesting to get photos from people who have built, customized, and improved their scale models.  These photos below were submitted to Tonkin Replicas (submit to pc1@tonkinreplicas.com) by Zach Zayas.  Recognize the name?  You might, especially if you had previously collected the Precision Series Peterbilt with stepdeck trailer produced for Zayas and Sons out of California.  

Zach, a collector and customizer, purchased a 1/53 scale 2 axle Peterbilt day cab with ag double trailers that had been produced for Panella Trucking.  A little background history, Panella actually started out as Ralph Panella Trucking in 1934 using only on 1934 Chevy flatbed.  Since that time, under the leadership of Ralph's son Bob Panella, Panella trucking has grown to become one of the largest and most successful agricultural trucking companies in California.  Although Panella Trucking features a large variety of trucks and trailers, the bulk of the fleet is made up of day cabs hauling ag doubles which can be outfitted to carry a variety of different trailer loads on them:  ranging from tomato tubs to walnut hoppers to onion loads, and so forth...

Being based near Panella's stockton yard, Zach sought to take the basic Peterbilt with ag doubles unit produced by Tonkin Replicas and improve on it.  Zach described his process here:

I am a friend of Bruno Cerri of Trucks N' Stuff and a collector of 1/53 scale trucks.  After seeing a lot of the customizing and scratch built stuff others havedone, I decided to build a set of 21' light-weight grain hoppers like the ones that are commonly used out here in California.  I started with a Panella Trucking 388 w/ ag flats & tomato load.  I used the trailer suspension, tires & wheels, mud flaps, air tanks, and dolly frame from the ag flats, but everything else was built from scratch using mostly styrene.  Bruno gave me some extra Tonkin chrome tandem fenders that he had, which I cut and shaved down to resemble real single-axle full fenders.  I built a new drawbar for the dolly as well.  I made the tarps from fabric and made crank-handles for them with copper wire.  I have built 2 sets so far (the last pic show both of them).  I have another set in progress but haven't had much time these last few months to work on them.

End result?  Some pretty good looking Walnut hoppers with nice details added- an upgrade over the original unit purchased completed with a little sweat equity, a strong knowledge of the equipment, some items largely available from most craft stores, and some creativity.  

Nicely done Zach!  We'd love to see your next set once it becomes available for viewing...