About 1985 I came into contact with the world of transport. My father has given me a magazine about trucks in which a photo was printed of a LEGO truck that was built by somebody. I decided to build one myself immediately. The result is shown on the first picture. It was a quite simple built Volvo F12 three-axle tractor with a lowloader. The model was equipped with a steered front axle and lightning on the front. There is no cab interior. The truck is loaded with an excavator (set 8851). More trucks followed after that period and they had become more and more big. In 1987 I built a Volvo N12 towing truck. This model was gathered from a truck in a LEGO Technic book, no. 8888. Actually just the front axle was the same, the rest I was my own inspiration. This model was just built from several pictures from magazines. Many things were just fantasy, like the recovery installation and the trailer. Though, the crane can work and the truck is equipped with lightning (4,5 volt). Under the hood there is a 2-cilinder inline engine with moving pistons. There was not that much room left for more pistons, because in that time there were only those big square pistons. In this way of construction I have built innumerable truck models. Mostly small ones, based on set 5580 of Model Team.

Mobile crane

When I have built a few trucks I tried to build a mobile crane in 1990. At an LEGO exhibition I have seen several cranes built of LEGO bricks and I have decided to construct one myself. At the beginning it was very difficult to build, sometimes my father had to help to build a few things, like the chassis and the drives of the crane itself. The telescopic boom can reach to a maximum height of 183 cm. He should not be bigger, because the standing height at our attic is about 185 cm. The crane was quite heavy, about 10 kg. I had to use most bricks from my collection for this model. And so, it has cost me at lot of time to build this crane. A few years later I also built another one which was even larger than the first one. This crane was also built from my own inspiration.

Larger trucks

Shortly after this project I picked up the thread of building trucks. I have started to build a DAF 95 and a Volvo F16, but I also built Scania's some times later. One of the first was a truck for the carriage of concrete bricks with a loading crane. This truck had the same proportions as the models I make nowadays, though, this one is largely built from my own inspiration. I had not that much documentation about trucks. Nevertheless I think this model is turned out well. I have not built American trucks very often, but sometimes I thought it was interesting to build a certain vehicle. In a truck magazine of 1990 I saw a heavy haulage truck pulled by a Peterbilt 359. This truck was carrying a scraper, but because I did not knew much about that machine I have built a Volvo BM articulated dump truck. Since this model I never built another American truck. For years my specialty are European trucks and machinery.
In 1992 I started to build more realistic trucks. I had the idea when I saw some pictures of very realistic LEGO models of classic cars. They really inspired me. And that was the reason I collected innumerous pictures and brochures to build an exact copy of a real truck. The first one was a DAF 95.380 with a reefer trailer. This model was also in Truckstar Magazine, a Dutch trucker magazine. They thought it was then the most beautiful and best detailed LEGO model they had ever seen. I was very proud on this model, because I had never built a truck which was as good as this one.
After this model my hobby came in a more quiet period. The year after I only built two vehicles, both tipper trucks. In 1994 my nephew, who was a truck driver, to build his truck. I did that and then I picked up the thread of truck model making again. After that one a lowloader truck and a Terberg tipper followed. Eventually I started to build more and more tractors with trailer. I stopped with that in 1996. I thought that was enough because most vehicles looked the same every time. I the same periode I met some other LEGO model makers and they inpired me to build special vehicles. And that's what I'm still doing today.

Since the beginning I built about a hundred trucks. In all these years several developments arosed. The first truck model was quite simple, nowadays I try to copy everything as good as possible and that will continue during the next few years. I have put a lot of time in my hobby and I am not intend to stop!!

My workplace

Already in the early days I started to sort my LEGO-elements. As a little boy I got some buckets in which I could sort my bricks to colors. Those buckets I put in a large wooden chest. When I was about seven years old I got a chest with small drawers. I these drawers I can also sort the elements on shape. I started with two large chests and four smaller ones which went to my brother some times later. I a meanwhile my collection of pieces was getting bigger and bigger and so I got more of those chests. During that period I also got my own space at home for my LEGOs on the attic. Former my chests where just freestanding and sometimes I went with them to the living room. My father made a table on which the chests where put and screwed against the wall. The capacity was big enough so there was enough room for more chests with drawers. But you guess, you get more and more pieces and sets, so you also have to extend your storage system. Eventually I got the placing as on the pictures you see. But, once again I bought more and more sets, second hand parties and bulk parts, so I had too less storage space in my storage system. Later, I put the wheels in another space, as well as the parts which I don't use frequently. The classic parts, the well known 2x2 and 2x4 bricks where it al started with, eventually moved to stack bucket on a shell below the table. Exotic parts and wheels I put somewhere else. The pictures show the situation 2001 ad. But nowadays I could not store every brick: when I demolish all my current models, I can't store the tens of thousands of pieces which I've put into these models. So I always have to keep some models. And it's not about one small chassis, but a whole lowloader vehicle which I can't store. But that's not a big problem anyway, because I always must have some models to show on events. And I always need a lot of time to build a new one. I'm very satisfied with this storage system, because when I put everything into a large box or several boxes, I really don't know where to start with.
Under the shell I've put all my refence materials. Here you can find LEGO building instructions of the sets which I own, chassis drawings of trucks, trailers etc., brochures, magazines and pictures. The total length is about four to five metres so it's weight is very heavy. Every single document is put in a map. When I'm searching for something, I only need a couple of minutes to find it. I hate piles of paper.

Modelshows

I also participate in some modelshows. About four times a year I show LEGO models which I have built the past time to the visitors. Two anual events are the Mack & Special Transport Day and the Modelshow Europe. I attend both show since 1996 and both are in the field of cranes, heavy haulage and construction equipment. The shows are absolutely worthwile to visit for those who are into this.

Respond

Do you have specifical questions (please, no questions about how many bricks per model, how many bricks I have etc. etc. because you may find the answers on these questions here), remarks or suggestions? Did you discover some typographical errors? Send me an e-mail. I don't have building instructions of my models or further instructions.
Do you also build trucks and/or construction machines of LEGO in the same size as I do? Send me some pictures with a description. I am curious if there are more people who have the same hobby as I have.