10-4 Magazine - For Today's Trucker

Tim Cole’s Red Hot Fire Truck
The Latest Project from Truck Builder Clint Moore

Clint Moore’s latest creation was built for Owner Operator Tim Cole of 3 Nieces Trucking in Everson, Washington. Tim ordered the 2007 Pete 379 with a 63-inch flattop sleeper and 280-inch wheelbase over the phone last January. In February, he dropped by Clint’s shop to pick out the colors and paint scheme. Going through some books that Clint had, the two kept running across pictures of neat old fire trucks, which gave them the idea of building a cool “fire truck” rig. The ideas started flying and the guys went nuts! Clint did some research and found that you really can’t brass plate aluminum, so they thought they were done. That is, until they talked to the folks at KC Coatings, who came up with a two-stage powdercoating process that delivered realistic brass-colored aluminum. Almost everything on this truck was either powdercoated brass or painted red. Jeff at 12 Gauge helped the guys “lower their standards” by airbagging and slamming the front end (at one point, they had to raise the truck up because their extension cord got stuck under the bumper). They also installed a flip-up bumper for those tight spots, because Tim has to work it to pay for it. The truck features custom fenders and visor, smooth handmade deck plates and trunks, painted 7-inch body drop panels and frame skirting, 8-inch pipes and a whole lot more. Signs by Robbie in Butler, Missouri finished off the job by adding awesome gold-leaf style pinstriping. When it was finished, the guys took the truck down to the Fire Department Headquarters to take some pictures. When the firefighters saw the rig, they all went nuts - they wanted Clint to build them one, too.