And you can leave out how you keep those early roads organized? The old school traffic light......
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And you can leave out how you keep those early roads organized? The old school traffic light......
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What is it about two wheeled hooliganism that soothes the soul?
“Open All Night” might have been a Springsteen ode to white trash roadrunners, but the spirit of the song translates nicely to anyone with an affinity for motorcycles. Not a mere interest, not an occasional fling, but an affinity; a full on lust for the perils that accompany a two wheeled pilgrimage anywhere past the driveway or apartment parking lot.
Today’s society demands the common man spend the majority of his life toiling away at some sort of soul-sucking insignificant task until he eventually is forced to retire and die of something he never knew existed. Alternatively, a person always has the option of slugging it out over a dream; and if he’s lucky, the bourgeois-sons of bitches who run Corporate Amerika won’t choke the hope out of him with high-interest loans.
Make no mistake about it sports fans, these are Hard Times we’re living in. The stock market’s falling faster than a suicide jumper and people’s savings accounts are disappearing like good ol’ fashioned rock n’ roll. Someone once said something about everyone needing some kinda ventilator; and the proletariat is no exception. People need some relief, goddammit!
Some people go fishing and wear shoes with no socks. Some play a round of golf in atrocious clothing, some go for a hike and watch bears fuck, and some of us swing a leg over a two-wheeled, quarter-ton, fire breathing suicide machine. Nothing kicks the work-day blues like executing a precision twenty-foot churning burn out in the workplace parking lot; cackling like a bat-shit speed fiend as you hurdle yourself into 5 O’ clock traffic with all the reckless abandon of a kamikaze pilot.
Fear not; you are not alone. Motorcycle hooligans are everywhere. They lurk in mild-mannered suburban garages, low-rent apartments, and down town tenements; and you can bet your ass you’re going to see a whole lot more of them coming out of the woodwork in these troubled times. Turmoil turns out two-wheeled rebel rousers like a full moon draws out an army of fuckin’ werewolves.
Let’s face it folks, hard times are what started all of this in the first place. The custom motorcycle was born in the hearts of men who had been to hell and back; their departure from conventional cycling was a direct reflection of their new perspective on life. These guys returned from years of unimaginable horror and were expected to trade their blood-stained fatigues for a clean white shirt and their rifles for a briefcase or union card. They were expected to assimilate themselves into a society that could never understand the things they’d seen and done; and by god, that’s what they did.
But with assimilation came the necessary ventilators; be it a highball in a rocks glass or a beer in a bowling alley. Others (read: The Boozefighters) cut loose on finger-fucked Harleys and Triumphs. Now here were some guys who were simply out to have a good time. Historical accounts of the clubs that sprung up after World War Two indicate they were little more than a bunch of vets looking to sew some wild oats and do a little living after kicking the krauts out of France and smacking the shit outta Tojo.
Clubs from all over used to get together for scrambles, hill climbs, and grassroots race events. There were no fights over territory, no bloodshed (save some occasional fisticuffs) over how many fucking patches were on the back of your vest, and no stupid-assed coalitions. Hell, some of the originals even flew different colors on different days. It was all about riding your machine and making some good memories with some good friends- which naturally included freaking out the citizens and AMA jockeys from time to time.
This brief visit upon history begs the question, “What the fuck is going on around here?!”
I came back from Russia five years ago utterly confused; but I knew for sure I was going to buy myself a ‘sickle and I was going to chop the fuck out of it. Not long after I accomplished that, some blue collar buddies and I started our own little motorcycle club, the Knuckle Dusters. The"rules" were absurd and nonsensical at best (i.e., "finish your goddamned beer"), and participation simply dictated you ride a motorcycle and show a little class.
No sooner did we dawn our crudely sewn colors then the shake-downs start rolling in. Some asshole from an “outlaw” club would come wandering up at a gas station in bumblefuck to feel us out. I’d tell ‘em we were a small group who just liked to ride and scare the squares; which would inevitably lead to a monologue about how we should join some sort of coalition for twenty bucks a month so “bad things wouldn’t happen to us.”
The way I see it, if I’ve gotta pay money every month to avoid having my ass kicked, maybe I need to have my ass kicked…
But I digress. We were talking about hard times and the soothing mystique of riding a hand-wrenched death trap.
Hard times might encroach on a man’s ability to put four-thousand dollar billet rims on a motorcycle, but they’re certainly not going to keep him from turning a wrench or firing up a sawz-all on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Desperation pushes people to inexplicable behavior, like chopping the shit out of a perfectly good fender or trading a fine set of shocks for some rigid steel struts. Your average God-fearing citizen will always question the mental health of a man who grinds all the turn signals off a motorcycle in favor of running a taillight the size of a dog’s asshole- but who gives a shit.
The stripped- down, bare- knuckle, death trap murder-‘sickle is a personal expression. Hell, ANY motorcycle can be a personal expression if the rider wills it. In the end, a true custom ‘sickle is one that embodies its rider’s fight against whatever ails him. If your bike stands as a monument to your struggle for freedom, you’ve turned a wrench in the right direction.
And that, mi amigos, is what it all boils down to. Work can get shitty, life can throw us curve balls, the whole world can come to an end- but we’ll be standing there to the bitter end, reeling in the dust and the blood; a noble and proud few who refuse to give up until we’ve been planted in the dirt.
We are savage horsemen, for fuck’s sake; and the custom motorcycle is a tribute to our creed. It’s about not giving up when you’re tits deep in parts on a modification gone awry, it’s about busting your knuckles on a week night spent wrenching up your shit when you’ve got to drag yourself in to work at six. It’s about screwing it on after a soul-sucking day at work and feeling alive- feeling ten and twenty and thirty years younger; feeling free, fearless, and completely in control of your own destiny despite whatever plans the world might have for you. Say what you want about brotherhood and beer joints, what it all comes down to is the machine- your machine- and what it stands for. You can strip away the extraneous bullshit, but you can never take away the feeling that comes with hammering through five O’ clock traffic at ninety miles an hour on a two wheeled suicide stallion you’ve made your own. That’s the living, breathing custom motorcycle. That’s the church of choppers. That’s the heart of the motorcycle hooligan.
For more from this hooligan of hot rod words, pay a visit to bcskdmc.blogspot.com. The very same warped bastard is responsible for our very first and vastly more professional shop ad video.
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Price no concern in restoration of classic cars
Rapid City Journal
Deisinger said it isn't unreasonable for hot rod owners to spend $75000 to $150000 on a show car. American cars -- classified as muscle cars, hot rods and...
Locals use Web site to network, build friendships
Maryville Daily Times
About a dozen people met at Hot Rod's 50s Diner on Feb. 23 for the first gathering of area Twitter users. It was the first time many of the people met ...
Bristol Dragway awaits word from NHRA on fan safety improvements
Kingsport Times News
The National Hot Rod Association — the sanctioning body for the largest drag racing group in the United States — is still investigating the death of Sue ...
2010 Daytona Bike Week Day 3 Report
MotorcycleUSA.com
Custom bike and hot rod builder Brian Fuller and Bert Baker served as emcee's for this year's Biker Fusion event. So events like the Biker Fusion Party are ...
Launch Announcement: Press and Media Invited to Attend the 2010 Hotrod ...
PR-USA.net (press release)
The Hotrod & Restoration Trade Show staff cordially invite members of the press to attend and cover its event, March 11-13, at the Indianapolis Convention ...
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 Photo courtesy John Deere. |
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It's been a mainstay of the machine shed on a lot of farms in the U.S. for decades. But by the looks of one on the trade show floor at the 2010 Commodity Classic, the 4020 may have a new future on the hot rod circuit.
On Thursday, automotive designer and hot rod builder Chip Foose of Huntington Beach, California, was joined by representatives from John Deere to unveil the product of months of design and iron work: A 1970 Deere 4020 tractor that's been given the hot rod treatment by Foose and his crew at Foose Design.
See the rest of the article here. And see more pictures below:
And just for fun, a couple of more tractoresque pictures of awesomeness.......
Masuimi Max.... twice!!
I like me some Katy Perry.... she can kiss as many girls and like it as she wants.... I'll LOVE IT!!!
Bernie Dexter!
Every shop needs a COE. This one has a lot of groovy little touches....
I saw this on Hot Rod Magazine's website. A VERY cool little modified..... I want to do something similar for my next build....
Timeless...... this truck has all of the class and character for a bare bones well done fenderless truck. Nothing fancy or outlandish, just plain good ol' fashioned engineering and construction.
Some of these treasures can still be found if you look hard enough. Oftentimes at ridiculous prices, but every so often, you find something worth holding onto that will be thrown out or sold next to nothing. Help keep some of the past alive if you come across things like this. And enjoy some of these rarities......
Some one please remake this sign in a pin up shoot......
If you have any pictures of your own tin signs or anythign related, please feel free to post links in comments.
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Chopped and Diced is no stranger to receiving applications for employment. We generally receive several a week, especially during the summer months. However, they are just that, applications. No pizzazz, no wizbang, no $h!thotedness...... just a bunch of bland applications. If you want a job, you have to separate yourself from the herd. You need to make yourself standout.
A couple of key things to remember, specifically with Chopped and Diced: We will advertise when we are in need of help. Turning in resumes and applications when we are not in need of work, may not work in your favor. If your resume stands out, then we will definitely hold on to it, however if it is just the normal boring application and that is it, well.... who knows where it ends up.
We look for dynamic personnel capable of working as a team and as an individual. People capable of using their creativity to solve problems, and take the initiative to go the extra mile for quality and service. There is absolutely no way to distinguish those characteristics when all you turn in is our application. You need a resume. You need a portfolio of your work. You need to show up ready to make an impression. Dress nicer that you would to come to work, but be prepared to show us what you got. If you come in for a scheduled interview, and you say you can fabricate, do not be surprised when we take you to the fab table and tell you to make something.
If you are a painter or pinstirper, do not be surprised when we tell you to jump in the booth and drop some paint or lines on one of our practice panels of motorcycle tanks.... We want proof that you can deliver, and you need to show up prepared to answer the hard questions, and prepared to show that you can do what you claim. We will call previous employers, we will check your record, and you will pee in a cup. Our customers deserve to have quality work and service performed by qualified personnel, and we will make sure that is what they get.
So if you see us advertising that we need an open position filled. Read up on the following. Take it to heart. Practice what it preaches, and then become part of a dynamic team of builders.
This article is directly from Hot Rod Magazine, and can be found here.
The hard part in establishing a hot rod-ding career is busting through and getting a job in the racket. Go to the SEMA or PRI shows and the business of high performance can seem huge and daunting. But it's really a small, insular world made up of a few big players, hundreds of small companies, and thousands of individual shops. Some of them spend their days churning out awesomely powerful engines. Others are always in the midst of building another AMBR contender. And, yeah, some of them are hellholes built to rip off customers and exploit their employees.
Chris Jensen recently opened Hot Rod Depot in Santa Maria, California. "You wouldn't believe the number of people coming in looking for work," Chris told us just three weeks after his new shop had opened. "A local newspaper article got us a lot of attention." Troy Ladd at Hollywood Hot Rods in Burbank, California, says he typically gets two to five résumés a week.
When even a small start-up like Chris' is inundated with pieces of paper, pieces of paper aren't likely to get a lot of attention. And Troy's too busy with actual work to spend time searching through piles of unsolicited pleas for work.
Know Your Goal
If you can't be honest with yourself, with whom can you be honest? You know your talents, training, aptitudes, and deficits better than anyone. Now you have to ruthlessly assess which of those are best applied to the hot rodding world. If you want to assemble engines, don't waste your time with body shops. If racing is your passion, aim for a race team, not a rod shop. And if you're a drag racer, don't beg NASCAR teams for a job.
"I don't care to hire people who are shopping the industry and don't know what they want to do," says Greg Anderson, whose Summit-sponsored NHRA Pro Stock team runs out of Mooreseville, North Carolina, amid dozens of NASCAR teams. "I want someone who wants to make this a career."
Decide on your career path and then focus on it-relentlessly.
Apply yourself
If you know someone-anyone-who works in a job anywhere close to what you want to do, call that person. No matter how awkward it may be reminding him or her who you are, there's still no better way to get a job than through informal networking. The best jobs, after all, show up on the rumor mill long before they hit Craigslist.
Research, Research, Research
"I hate it, hate it, hate it when I get a Resume that's addressed to 'Whom it may concern' or 'Shop manager,'" Troy complains. "Google it! Do a little homework. You don't respect me or my company."
You're unemployed, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't be working. You have plenty of time to do research. By the time you've read through magazine articles, newspaper articles, and every mention on the Internet, you should have a good lead on what your prospective employers do. Then simply ask yourself what it is that they likely need. Fabricators? Mechanics? Assemblers? Marketing guys? If you can't realistically help them, don't waste your time. If you think you can, be ready to explain that as specifically as possible.
The Internet is a good start for any research project. In fact, there's so much information available on the Web about virtually everything that finding out simply who to address a query letter to can be tough. So don't be afraid (or have too much pride) to ask that simple question through an email or phone call.
In a world overstuffed with digital cameras and home computers, there's simply no excuse for not sending along a portfolio of your work with every Resume you send out. You may not know it yet, but we're all in the media business now.
"Send pictures of your work," says Troy Trepanier, whose Rad Rides by Troy in Manteno, Illinois, has become one of the best known rod shops on the planet. "You can really pick through it quickly. When you see a standard Resume, well, that's a standard Resume. What I look for is talent."
If you've built cars, you should have documented those builds. Put together an album of your best work, lay it out with as much professionalism as you can muster, and explain in each photo how that experience will directly benefit the person who is looking at the photos. Be specific, be focused, and be exhaustive-but never be boring.
This is the 21st century, and if you don't have the computer skills to put together a decent-looking portfolio of your work, find a class that will teach you those skills and take it. It doesn't matter what field you're going into; today, basic computer skills are just the minimum buy-in. And your portfolio ought to be as slick as any hot rod you've ever built.
But a portfolio is just a start of the possibilities. Do everything you can to impress with your skills. Post a well-edited video on YouTube that shows you know how to use an English wheel or a time lapse of you cutting the top on a '49 Merc. Put together a sample of different welding techniques on some scrap metal and send that along. If you're looking to do high-end paintwork, then send out a cheap model-car body you've custom-painted to every shop you'd want to work in. Don't just say you're a creative problem solver-creatively solve the problem of getting a job.
Be courteous, use spell check, bathe before meeting anyone in person, and don't waste time chasing after jobs you don't want. Finding good people for any job is a tough problem, so be a problem solver. And don't bring a lot of new problems with you.
It Worked For Me!
Rob Kinnan asked me to write this story because, well, back in 1989, I sent out the most notoriously successful Resume in the history of automotive journalism. It's ancient news now, but the principles that worked for it then should still work today.
Way back then, I was halfheartedly working my way through grad school. I had picked up some desktop publishing skills while working for Kinko's but knew dang sure that I didn't want to build a career in the quick-copy industry. Since I had been car obsessed since birth, I decided I wanted to write for car magazines. Of course, I had no experience whatsoever, but I was sure I could write.
My total investment in the parody project was a little above $1,700. My check from Car and Driver just about covered that.
I began working as a feature editor for Car Craft in 1990. But taking that chance paid off in more ways than that. The parody did an astonishing job of establishing me in the industry. From knowing no one, I suddenly knew virtually everyone who made car magazines. And when I left CC after three and a half years to become a freelance writer, the transition was surprisingly easy.
For 20 years now, I've been working for the friends that creative Resume earned me.
Looking back at Car and Pearley now, I see dozens of things in it I would do differently. But as a tool for getting the attention of magazine editors in 1989, it was perfect. It showed I could write competently. It showed I could put together an entire magazine if need be. It showed I knew cars. And it showed I wasn't afraid of hard work to get what I want.
If whatever you do to creatively get noticed covers those basics-competence, ambition, knowledge, and hard work-you won't stay unemployed for long. You've got nothing to lose.
This week's theme is a regular favorite of mine..... Tattoos..... because I love me a girl with tattoos..... and they love me. Or at least thats what they say....... you know... in my imagination as I drool from afar....
;)
To the models here, any of you can call me anytime.... just saying......
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