 | | Big Liebherr branded box. |  |  | | Big exhausts above the front wheel. |  | | Tyre tread pattern looks good. |  | | Plastic wheels and big tyres. |  | | Opening gate at the top of the ladder. |  | | Payload indicator. |  | | Being loaded by an R 9800. |  | | Good tipping angle. |  | | Dump body removed. |  | | Dump bed on the road. |  | | Wide load on a Drake SwingWing Trailer. |  | | Actually a very wide load. |
|  Comment on this model.
The Liebherr T 284 is a mining truck with a diesel electric AC drive. It has a maximum operating weight of 600 tonnes and the payload capacity is 363 tonnes.
Packaging
The model comes in a very large Liebherr-branded sleeved box and no information is provided about the real truck. The expanded polystyrene trays are securely strapped together.
The review model had no defects or missing parts.
No information is provided about the model and assembly is limited to attaching the front stairs.
Detail
This is a very heavy truck and this is replicated in the model. Most of the components are metal and any plastic elements have an excellent match with the metal parts so it is hard to tell the difference. The underside of the radiator is modelled as is the AC alternator and the cable pipes to the rear axle.
The wheels are detailed in plastic and the rubber tyres are very good with strong tread pattern.
At the front the stairs and handrails are nicely cast in metal and the handrails look realistically thin, with just the access gates being plastic. The radiator grille is etched in metal and looks very good, and the lights are finely detailed too.
On the cab platform there are large metal mirrors although they are unsilvered, and there are payload indicators, and camera stalks stick out on both sides. The walking surface is textured and the metal equipment cabinets have good detailing, but some graphics would have added to the visual appearance. Twin fire extinguisher tanks stand out. The cab interior is fairly simple with two seats inside, and there is an air conditioner at the rear and lights on the roof.
Between the wheels there are large metal tanks for fuel and hydraulics, and the engine and large exhaust pipes are also visible.
The rear axle is massive and has lights highlighted with paint.
The dump body has the massive structure represented very well underneath, and the graphics on the side are very sharp. It is interesting that the dump bed appears to be largely made of a very tough plastic, and as it is painted it is hard to tell other than mild rippling in the flat surfaces.
Large soft rubber flaps hang down either side of the fuel and hydraulics tanks, and rock ejector bars drop down between the rear tyres.
Features
The wheels roll fairly well and the front steering turns to a very convincing angle. There is fully working suspension on both axles.
The front access stair can be lowered and raised.
The access gates at the top of the ladders on the cab deck can be opened and closed.
The dump body raises using twin double stage hoist cylinders and these are stiff enough to hold the body at any angle. The angle is good if not quite mirroring that of the real truck.
The dump body is removable by pushing out some heavy pins and this gives the possibility of some different dump beds being made, but more likely it allows the bed to be shown as a transport load. In this respect the lower weight of the plastic body helps to not crush a scale haulage vehicle.
The removable body is a very good feature although one pair of mud flaps and the rock ejector bars cannot be easily removed. It would also have been interesting if the dump body had useable lifting eyes.
A number of the elements of the rear axle assembly are also pinned allowing it to be stripped down and this is an interesting feature also.
The rock bars between the rear wheels oscillate.
Quality
This is a high quality robust model which is heavy even if the dump bed is not all metal. The tough plastic used on the dump bed looks fine and performs well.
The paintwork is very good, and the graphics are sharp.
Price
It is reasonable value for a very large model.
Overall
This is another very good mining truck model from Conrad, with good detail and functionality. The dump body is not metal but in practice this does not affect the look or feel of the model. The removable dump body feature is good and the model is highly recommended.
Footnotes
It first appeared shortly before the Nuremberg Toy Fair in 2015. |
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|  | | Access stairway lowered. |  | | Profile view. |  | | Etched radiator grille. |  | | Main components are modelled in metal. |  | | Massive rear axle. Rock deflector bars hang down between the wheels. |  | | Heavy chassis. | |
|  | | Impressive. |  | | On the haul road. |  | | Dump body removed with parts. |
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