Finding period pictures of the Studebaker fuel tanker’s passenger side is difficult, and the only one that seems to be around promptly found its way onto ICM’s box top. The model is a rather faithful copy of what that photo shows:
As can be seen, the exhaust pipe comes out in front of the mudguard. Interestingly, all pictures of standard US6 cargo trucks show that pipe exiting BEHIND the mudguard and with a slight downward bend (a mirror image of the CCKW’s pipe).
So I wonder if the photo in question (e.g. in Allied/Axis #21, p.12) might show a prototype and the production vehicles (including the chassis w/o load bodies) had exhausts installed that would protrude behind the respective mudguards.
While I have not built this kit (yet) -appears that in most available real world examples the exhaust is indeed aft of the mud flap, as you noted. It would appear that the ICM cover art set different wheels in motion for future kits otherwise??
The U6 bodies w/o exhausts installed and no muffler (needs a special flame resistant) where delivered to Heil to finish the install with the fuel tanks etc.
The upper right photo is probably the same and shows it ahead of the flap.
Thank you Ryan, and yes, that’s the photo I was referring to. It’s part of a set of three, one of which shows the vehicle from the rear - and it has no (electrical) tail lights, just large reflectors on the rear mudguards. Which, together with the strange position of the exhaust, made me believe that the whole series was of a pre-production truck.
So maybe Heil installed the exhaust on the US6 U5 different than the other manufacturers did on their products. The real problem with ICM, however, is that they give the same exhaust part on sprue A for all US6 variants - and at least on the non-tankers, that would let the (too short) pipe end ahead of the mudguard, and w/o its characteristic downward bend.
I feel I remember that being discussed on here or the old site that early or all fuel trucks just had reflectors only. Maybe @Jakko or @barkingdigger remember better?
For other Studebakers I have seen the exhaust behind the flap and resting inside the brace and not at a downward angle but straight. I have seen between the tires. There is many more that I don’t see one at all, maybe they run straight along the frame and down.
The CCKW tankers had electrical tail lights - at least all those pictured in the Doyle book. And their exhausts were just as those on standard cargo CCKWs, again as shown in that book.
It also depends on whether you’re talking factory-issue or field-repaired. These trucks were “rode hard and put away wet” as the cowboys say, and I’m sure any field replacement pipes used whatever was at hand - if they were repaired at all. This will affect the available photos of in-service trucks.
Certainly - if you could find photos of the Studer tanker’s passenger side! And that’s the main problem: There AREN’T. I’d be happy to stand corrected, just find ‘em …
Trucks are not really my thing, I’m afraid.