LEGO Swedish Giants

by Andrea Lattanzio, Italy 

​Note: This feature is in the May TT&C 2012 issue.

Andrea Lattanzio is a craftsman with LEGO® bricks. He displays his four models.

Scania 164G with a lowboy hauling the Scania 124L.

The technical draft came from a dealership and this was used for scaling the 1/13 Scania 164G. ​

The interiors of the trucks are very detailed, including gauges and a phone.

As almost all children, I started very early playing with LEGO® bricks, stealing them from my elder brother, who moved them to me during the years.
I never imagined that across the five continents there are so many LEGO® adult builders, building the most fantastic things. I caught the LEGO® bug. I wanted to build something great and designed by me, a unique model as detailed as possible that replicates a real subject. 

Interest in Trucks
Since I was a child, I have been intrigued by the world of trucks, probably because when I went to my dad’s firm to help him, he always took me for a drive with the old Iveco trucks of the ’70s and ’80s—an indelible memory in my mind.
So I decided to build a truck with LEGO® bricks—not a normal truck but a great-scale truck.
After research on the Internet, I understood that I could build a 1/13 scale model very detailed, practically similar to the 1/1 model.
I chose to use the classic LEGO® bricks assembly technique, leaving the studs and not covering them with tiles, because I think it is more characteristic. I use always and only original bricks to build my models; there are 2,000 to 2,200 pieces in each model. The stickers are made with a graphic-application program (Adobe Illustrator).

Scania 164G and Scania 124L 
Chosen for the first truck was a Swedish Scania 164G of the 4 Series manufactured from 1995 to 2004. I’ve always liked the 4 Series because of its rounded shapes. Further, the line was designed by Bertone, a very famous Italian designer.
The front grille, the most distinctive part of the truck, was the beginning point. Once the front hood was realized, the outline of the chassis was made of two spars linked by a few reinforced bars. 
To make the truck as real as possible, I went to the Scania dealership of my town where I found the technical drawing with all the truck sizes (chassis, cab, etc.). With the technical draft in my hands, I could respect the 1/13 ratio and build a perfect chassis. Then the entire cab was completed.
Next, I built the two fuel tanks, the exhaust silencer, the side ladder, the fifth-wheel, the four rear mudguards and all the other details. 
Now, only the engine unit was left, and the Scania was equipped with the most powerful engine unit, the V-8 engine with 480 horsepower. The cab can be opened, and beneath it, is positioned the powerful V-8 engine coupled with the gearbox. 
The front grille can be opened too discovering the radiator. Using plate hinges, the doors can be fully opened. The doors have inside a little glove box. Also, the sunroof can be opened.
Two 4.5-volt light bricks were put behind the two lamps, and they work thanks to a remote-controlled battery box.
The Scania was finished after about 100 hours of hard work, and I’m very happy and proud of it.
There were still a lot of pieces, so I decided to give a brother to the white Scania. Inspired by an illustration of a yellow Scania on the box of a 1/24 scale plastic model released by Italeri, I decided to build another 4 Series, a 1/13 scale yellow 124L. It had practically the same cab of the Scania 164G but with a shorter chassis and one rear axle only. A tractor truck for long distance routes.

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