Not one to conform to trucking trends, Mark Amer pedals his own path when it comes to building a new rig. His new Legend SAR Kenworth certainly affirms this, with many personal touches including design cues from a bygone Aussie era.
Talking to Mark ‘Magpie’ Amer about his latest ride, his opening comment sums up the build perfectly: “I was looking to make it look old, like they did when they were new in the 1970s and 1980s. I have actually taken more shiny shit off it than I have added to it. It’s a Legend-series truck; it needs to look like a legend.”
Magpie’s approach to the build is a bold stand against what has become the norm – screeds of fabricated stainless steel festooned with a plethora of LED lighting and under-glow. Instead, you will find a considered and well-executed list of modifications, additions and alterations. The first and probably most notable feature is retaining the OEM sun visor, and covering it in the same dark green vinyl used for the stripes. The addition of a light green pinstripe on the visor’s leading edge finishes it perfectly.
“It would have been easy to pop on an aftermarket stainless-steel drop visor, but they never had them back then. It just looks out of place when you are trying to achieve a period-correct look.”
On the subject of stripes and lines, these were applied by Andrew Geddes at Timaru Signs Graphix. “I handed it over to Andrew to look after the signwriting. We discussed using the old stripe layout of Australian-based Refrigerated Roadways as a guide. They ran a lot of SARs in their fleet back in the day, and that layout always looked tidy and not overcooked on their fleet.
“I gave it the name The Bloodhound Gang, because I reckon that the SARs with their droopy noses look a bit like a bloodhound, getting around all day with their noses stuck to the ground sniffing out trails. And that’s also the reference in the artwork on the sleeper that Andrew rustled up for us.”
As with the stripes and pinstripes tipping the hat to the SAR’s Australian heritage, so are the extra fuel tanks on each side, filling in the empty chassis gaps to the first drive axle. “Yeah, again it really is about the old Aussie look; it had the standard single tanks and it just looked incomplete and unfinished. I also went with white plastic guards over the drivers, again for the old-skool look, and same reason again for the decision to use alloy chequer plate as the chassis covers and trailer connection block. The trend now is smooth pressed steel plates with mirror finish paint, with a bunch of artwork and scrolls and shit, but again, they never had that, so it was alloy chequer plate all the way, and the bonus is it’s harder-wearing and you can walk on it without having to put ya slippers on.
”Another area where Magpie has worked his magic is the air cleaners. The Donaldson Cyclopac canisters are paint finished; again no shiny chrome here. At the top of the extension tubes, you will find a pair of the 6in black plastic Donaldson Air Rams, again period-correct. Adding to the overall impact of the air cleaners is the lack of polished stainless steel elephant ears, pretty much standard fitment these days to any bonneted Kenworth. Instead, you will find proudly in full view the black outlet pipes heading through the cowling of the hood – so cool. The icing on the cake, however, would have to be the green-tinted Perspex stone guards on the leading faces of the canisters. So, so right. Sometimes it really is the simple things that have the biggest impact.
The show does not stop when the sun goes down either; the marker lighting from bumper to bumper has all been addressed as well. First, you will find a row of five bullet lights on the roof of the Aerodyne sleeper to match the five on the cab roof. None of that modern trend for wall-to-wall cab lights will be found here; once again less is more. Original glass bulb marker lighting has been sourced and fitted as well. “Some might say it’s a sickness, but yeah, it had to be right. So I got on the internet, did some searching and found the old-skool Hella markers for the mirrors, as well as the five bubble lens-style units that we’ve mounted to the bottom of the bumper – three in the centre and one at each outer edge, just how it should be.”
Magpie has also sourced and installed chrome Stemco hub covers to the front axles. Rather than covering them up with a set of cheap chrome hubcaps, again for that classic look. On that note, those with a good memory for trucking in the 1970s and 1980s might remember a trend to modify a set of old Hillman Imp car hubcaps and fit them to your drive-axle hubs. Well, watch this space, Magpie has managed to acquire a set of four out of England and they are to be fitted soon.
The name for the SAR The Bloodhound Gang was given by Magpie because of its stance. With its long droopy hood, it definitely looks like it has its nose to the ground sniffing bitumen. Those who know Magpie’s sense of humour will have a chuckle at the detail hidden in the boot prints of the mural.
For Magpie, purchasing the SAR has given him the opportunity to build and drive a truck from a bygone era, a truck he remembers well growing up as a young fella. “I always liked the SAR, so now that I have this one, I wanted to make it look the part, make it look like the SARs that I used to see in Truckin’ Life when I was a kid. The windscreen is quite a bit bigger and the bonnet a bit droopier than the originals were, so I never set out to do a period-correct 1980s SAR. But, I thought I can build a truck here that can remind people of the good old days and simpler times. Ya know, simpler times when logbooks were paper not the electronic crap we have now, a bun was something you ate at smoko, not a f@#king male hairstyle, and dirty movies featured a lot more body hair than they do nowadays.”
The SAR Kenworth is a true Aussie classic, with a career bristling full of accolades and respect from operators and drivers alike. It is a truck that had a look all of its own, and the release of the Legend SAR certainly celebrates all of this. But when you look over The Bloodhound Gang, the finishing touches Magpie has applied takes the celebration to a whole other level.
1&2) Coming together, the SAR seen here fresh out of Timaru Signs Graphix, adorned with stripes and lines inspired by well known Australian transport operator throughout the SAR’s heydays, Refrigerated Roadways. (photos Mark Amer); 3-5) ‘Old-skool cool’ – Hella marker lights on the mirrors (photo Mark Amer), T-Line Inter roof lamps on the guards, and five bubble lens lamps on the underside of the bumper; it’s all in the detail; 6) The perfect match, five bullet lights on the Aerodyne sleeper cab to match those on the cab’s roof pod. 7) Alloy chequer plate abounds, keeping it in its era; not only that, it’s practical as well. (photo Mark Amer); 8) No leaf unturned, right down to chrome-plated Stemco front axle hubcaps. (photo Mark Amer); 9) Topping off the Roadranger gear lever is a retro No.9 ball gear knob.
