Visitors

I am finding that one of my best resources are the folks who are stopping by to check in on my progress with their cars. These folks have been down this road and have absolutely beautiful rods that rose up from the ashes of corrosion, rust and the scrap heap to become treasured, valuable pieces of art. This page is devoted to old, new and future friends. Thanks for stopping by the shop and giving me your pointers and suggestions on what is the best way to get this project done. Your cars are beautiful and deserve some webspace with pictures and descriptions.

This first picture is not a restoration, but Jason Gracklanhoff knows how to do beautiful work. He restored one 1956 Four Door Sedan Chevy. He is now building a 1956 Bel-Air and this one is going to be something special. He also has this gorgeous Dodge Viper that he an wife Christi enjoy. Jason is a mechanical engineer by trade and works in IT for a sizeable St. Louis Fortune 500 company. He has inspired me with his body work and his overal capabilities in mechanical and electrical realms. His new 56 has the drivetrain moved back by 3" in the frame. It has a modern front suspension, power everything, A/C, and modern electronics going into the dash. Jason will obviously be a major asset to me when I rework my 57 Bel-Air one day.

Now this restoration is a beautiful 1939 Ford coupe. Steve Miller of Edwardsville built this car from the ground up and incorporates a wonderful treatment of new and NOS technology. Now the tires look recent, but the front is the original wishbone suspension and the rear is updated. The motor is a flathead with performance heads and 2 separate single barrel carbs of the period when the motor was built. The tranny is original and the interior of the car looks NOS. The body work on this gem was impeccable and Steve lent some good advice to get the metal as close to the surface as possible with a 3 lb. sledge. He says that the metal is thick and a simple body hammer will not move things much. He said he spent 2 months on his roof alone, straightening out dents. When I showed him what I was looking at in the roof of my 36, he said that his looked about as bad. You would never know it by looking at his car now. He was complaining about the spots in the paint from the car wash. Almost in the next breath he was pointing out how to be careful with lead as the base/clear coat application on his car was not taking properly. We could not find the imperfection so I ribbed him that his eye is much more critical than mine. He said that some of the paint needs more rubbing out, so I told him that will be taken care of by what he wants to do with the car wash spots. He suggested clear coat/base coat application for paint on my truck. He said it was "idiot proof." I said that would describe my painting abilities aptly. We had a good laugh then he and the Gracklanhoff's were off to an impromptu car meet at an ice cream stand on the north side of Edwardsville.

The next car is a 1976 Stutz Blackhawk! This is owned by a good friend of mine who plays music with me. He is an Elvis Tribute Artist from Collinsville, IL. by the name of Bill Cherry. If you don't recognize the car, this is a fiber glass body (built in Italy) that was placed on a full-sized GM chassis with a 455 big block motor. You guessed it, Elvis had one of these and therefore you have Bill's interest in this car. They are extremely rare and Bill's is in pretty decent, NOS shape. Bill and I formed a group called "Bill Cherry & The Busters. We are performing a 4-hour, LIVE, Elvis Presley show with a ton of musical horsepower. Look for more news regarding this band in the St. Louis area. The website for this group is www.thebustersband.com.