Las Vegas – SEMA 2016 Day 1 (Part 1 of 3)

Posted on November 25, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

Tuesday 1st November 2016. SEMA starts, the whole point of the trip out to Las Vegas was now being played out. Due to the number of photo’s we took we will have to split the SEMA days over a few posts, if we don’t there would be a huge post taking ages to load. So here is part one of three. Luckily there won’t be too many words on these posts as it’s mainly cars, trucks and the odd pretty promotional ladies.

We had already had the parking sussed out and drove there after a light breakfast of a Steak and eggs! The South hall was going to be entrance and first port of call. For the guy’s first visit, Yogi, Gary and Mart they were amazed at the size of the halls, not on a single floor, but in some places over two floors. We spent the day in this hall and the “Ford OutFront” show. At this point we would like to thank Gary for keeping an eye out for Mart while he randomly disappeared to take a pic of something throughout the four days of SEMA. He managed to keep us all together unless we separated for a while to look at our own things, so he deserves an award for that and having the patience of a saint.

The cars and trucks need no introductions.

Yogi said that he had found his next ride as it was big enough for the bear.

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We called outside to see the “Ford Outfront” where some cars and trucks were being thrashed around a track. There was even a band to welcome you in.

Some very talented driving skills were on display we must say. There was a raptor doing leaps over mounds of mud and Mustangs making lots of noise as well as destroying a few sets of tyres!

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Some of the best noises were coming from the Roush tuned Mustang.

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Around the arena were various tuning companies, aftermarket upgrades and of course a Ford merchandising truck. There was celebrity cars of their own rights, along with some celebrities themselves.

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After the Ford merchandising truck had persuaded us to part with a few dollars we had a look around the outside of the halls. Fascinating mixture of cars McLaren hyper car, the best of Japan Skyline all mixed up with SS lifted classic.

Around lunch time Adam had some business appointments from stand holders to demo their products and attended the odd meeting(s) throughout the day. We made our way towards some hospitality suites for a sit down and some food.

After the very welcomed rest we headed back inside.. all of which is to come in Part 2 of 3.

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Las Vegas – Halloween

Posted on November 22, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

Monday 31st October 2016. After our trip to the Hoover Dam we sat in the Hoover Dam Lodge quenching our thirsts until it was dark. The idea here was we wanted to drive into Las Vegas down the straight roads to see the lights in the distance. We will of course have a post of the new strip lights in full to come.

We passed quickly through the new strip and took some photos on the way through from the car.

We arrived “Downtown” after our drive and found a place to park. The thirst issue was not fully resolved and needed to be addressed as soon as possible. We found a bar at the edge of the Fremont Street strip so we could watch the world go by for a while. We have gone from vast open expanse of scenery to a point where we couldn’t even see the sidewalk later as it was so busy. Halloween was underway and a prize was being given for the best outfit by the judges where ever they may have been hiding.  Live bands were playing and a group on a stag outing by the looks of it were enjoying the music and the beer!  The street was in full swing and the atmosphere was amazing, with every turn of the traffic lights more people flocked to the area.

We tried to walk up and down the strip, but it was just best to go with the flow of people who had a natural slow meandering speed and direction.

Mart had on his bucket list to have a gamble in the Casino. Probably the famous casino in the area being the Golden Nugget was the place we headed for. The wallet that was previously lost was opened and some dollars were changed into little plastic discs. Black Jack was the chosen game and he found a table to take up residence.

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Cards were dealt and we must say that Marts poker face was rubbish as he smiled at a good hand. After a few hands Mart had worked up a sweat, but he was up $75, not being able to believe his luck. So he decided to walk away and quit while he was up and his luck held out. Bucket list for Mart had another item ticked off.

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The walk back took us past some more attractions not just bright lights this time.

We decided to call it a night not wanting to be too late as we had an early start for SEMA in the Morning. As we walked back to the car, we passed a monument that during the day was impressive, but at night it came to life. A fire-breathing bug, the noise and heat was pretty spectacular.

We found somewhere to eat off the beaten track a little, in the shape of a burger bar, it wasn’t the best, but it serviced a need but it did have a casino although it wasn’t that busy.

We had to stop off on the way back, just in case as we couldn’t remember the state of the beer supplies, in case that dreaded thirst reared its ugly head again. It was now T-minus six hours to go before we got to SEMA. 🙂

Did you know?

  1. The names Las Vegas and Vegas are interchangeably used to indicate the Valley, the Strip, and the city, and are used as a brand by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority to denominate the entire region. The Valley is affectionately known as the “ninth island” by Hawaii natives and Las Vegans alike, in part due to the large number of people originally from Hawaii who live in and travel to Las Vegas on a regular basis.
  2.  Since the 1990’s the Las Vegas Valley has seen exponential growth, more than doubling its population of 741,459 in 1990 to more than 2 million estimated in 2015. The Las Vegas Valley remains one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the United States, and in its relatively short history has established a diverse presence in international business, commerce, urban development and entertainment, as well as one of the most iconic and most visited tourist destinations in the world.
  3. In 2014, a record-breaking 41 million visited the Las Vegas area, producing a gross metropolitan product of more than $100 billion.
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Las Vegas – Hoover Dam

Posted on November 20, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

Monday 31st October 2016. After our trip to Shelby Factory we set of for the next destination on the bucket list, the mighty Hoover Dam. We had to travel for a while, looking out of the air conditioned car windows at the heat haze and you realise that you are in a desert, with spectacular scenery. Most of the pictures to start with here were taken from inside the car.

The main road across the top of dam itself has a security check point, after which you travel around a few corners and then you see it.

It’s hard to comprehend the size and huge scale of the construction and how long it took to build.

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The main car parks were full, so we had to park in an over spill area about a ten minute walk away up the hill-side. In fact it was a perfect vantage point to look down on the dam as it were.

Mart and Gary couldn’t resist a selfie by the sign for Arizona.

After our walk down to the top of the dam you notice two large clocks on the towers. The state line for Arizona and Nevada states crosses Hoover Dam. The clocks are also the boundary between the Mountain time zone and the Pacific time zone. During the part of the year that the country observes Standard Time, you can gain or lose one hour stepping across the line.

The first thing you will see is the spill ways that were in place to allow the lake to divert while the dam was being built.

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The first thing you will notice is the white line above the lake. This was the original water line when the dam was first built. Current rate of use means that the dam turbines that produce the energy had to be upgraded to take into account the less water flow and pressure. Looking over the wall past the spill way you can see the original lake bed.

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The turreted wall invites you to look over the edge, on doing so it can give you instant vertigo looking at the power generation side. Trucks and cars parked down below look like tiny specs in the distance! It’s a sight that will stay with you forever once you see it for the first time.

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We have found some facts about the Hoover Dam, it was once known as Boulder Dam, and is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the U.S. states of Nevada and Arizona. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression and was dedicated on September 30, 1935, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Its construction was the result of a massive effort involving thousands of workers, and cost over one hundred lives. The dam was controversially named after President Herbert Hoover.
Since about 1900, the Black Canyon and nearby Boulder Canyon had been investigated for their potential to support a dam that would control floods, provide irrigation water and produce hydroelectric power. In 1928, Congress authorised the project. The winning bid to build the dam was submitted by a consortium called Six Companies, Inc., which began construction on the dam in early 1931. Such a large concrete structure had never been built before, and some of the techniques were unproven. The torrid summer weather and lack of facilities near the site also presented difficulties. Nevertheless, Six Companies turned over the dam to the federal government on March 1, 1936, more than two years ahead of schedule.
Hoover Dam impounds Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the United States by volume (when it is full). The dam is located near Boulder City, Nevada, a municipality originally constructed for workers on the construction project, about 30 mi (48 km) southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. The dam’s generators provide power for public and private utilities in Nevada, Arizona, and California. Hoover Dam is a major tourist attraction; nearly a million people tour the dam each year. The heavily travelled U.S. 93 ran along the dam’s crest until October 2010, when the Hoover Dam Bypass (bridge) opened. The water flow rate has a maximum of 50,000 cubic feet per second!

River diversion

Before the dam could be built, the Colorado River needed to be diverted away from the construction site. To accomplish this, four diversion tunnels were driven through the canyon walls, two on the Nevada side and two on the Arizona side. These tunnels were 56 ft (17 m) in diameter. Their combined length was nearly 16,000 ft, or more than 3 miles (5 km). The contract required these tunnels to be completed by October 1, 1933, with a $3,000-per-day fine to be assessed for any delay. To meet the deadline, Six Companies had to complete work by early 1933, since only in late fall and winter was the water level in the river low enough to safely divert.
Tunnelling began at the lower portals of the Nevada tunnels in May 1931. Shortly afterwards, work began on two similar tunnels in the Arizona canyon wall. In March 1932, work began on lining the tunnels with concrete. First the base, or invert, was poured. Gantry cranes, running on rails through the entire length of each tunnel were used to place the concrete. The sidewalls were poured next. Movable sections of steel forms were used for the sidewalls. Finally, using pneumatic guns, the overheads were filled in. The concrete lining is 3 feet (1 m) thick, reducing the finished tunnel diameter to 50 ft (15 m). The river was diverted into the two Arizona tunnels on November 13, 1932; the Nevada tunnels were kept in reserve for high water. This was done by exploding a temporary cofferdam protecting the Arizona tunnels while at the same time dumping rubble into the river until its natural course was blocked.
Following the completion of the dam, the entrances to the two outer diversion tunnels were sealed at the opening and halfway through the tunnels with large concrete plugs. The downstream halves of the tunnels following the inner plugs are now the main bodies of the spillway tunnels. The inner diversion tunnels were plugged at approximately one-third of their length, beyond which they now carry steel pipes connecting the intake towers to the power plant and outlet works. The inner tunnels’ outlets are equipped with gates that can be closed to drain the tunnels for maintenance.

Concrete

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Columns of Hoover Dam being filled with concrete, February 1934 (looking upstream from the Nevada rim)
The first concrete was poured into the dam on June 6, 1933, 18 months ahead of schedule. Since concrete heats and contracts as it cures, the potential for uneven cooling and contraction of the concrete posed a serious problem. Bureau of Reclamation engineers calculated that if the dam was built in a single continuous pour, the concrete would take 125 years to cool, and the resulting stresses would cause the dam to crack and crumble. Instead, the ground where the dam was to rise was marked with rectangles, and concrete blocks in columns were poured, some as large as 50 ft square (15 m) and 5 feet (1.5 m) high. Each five-foot form contained a series of 1-inch (25 mm) steel pipes; cool river water would be poured through the pipes, followed by ice-cold water from a refrigeration plant. When an individual block had cured and had stopped contracting, the pipes were filled with grout. Grout was also used to fill the hairline spaces between columns, which were grooved to increase the strength of the joins.
The concrete was delivered in huge steel buckets 7 feet high (2.1 m) and almost 7 feet in diameter; Crowe was awarded two patents for their design. These buckets, which weighed 20 short tons (18t) when full, were filled at two massive concrete plants on the Nevada side, and were delivered to the site in special railcars. The buckets were then suspended from aerial cableways, which were used to deliver the bucket to a specific column. As the required grade of aggregate in the concrete differed depending on placement in the dam (from pea-sized gravel to 9-inch or 23 cm stones), it was vital that the bucket be manoeuvre to the proper column. When the bottom of the bucket opened up, disgorging 8 cu yd (6.1 m3) of concrete, a team of men worked it throughout the form. Although there are myths that men were caught in the pour and are entombed in the dam to this day, each bucket only deepened the concrete in a form by an inch, and Six Companies engineers would not have permitted a flaw caused by the presence of a human body.
A total of 3,250,000 cubic yards (2,480,000 m3) of concrete was used in the dam before concrete pouring ceased on May 29, 1935. In addition, 1,110,000 cu yd (850,000 m3) were used in the power plant and other works. More than 582 miles (937 km) of cooling pipes were placed within the concrete. Overall, there is enough concrete in the dam to pave a two-lane highway from San Francisco to New York. Concrete cores were removed from the dam for testing in 1995; they showed that “Hoover Dam’s concrete has continued to slowly gain strength” and the dam is composed of a “durable concrete having a compressive strength exceeding the range typically found in normal mass concrete”. Hoover Dam concrete is not subject to alkali–silica reaction (ASR) as the Hoover Dam builders happened to use nonreactive aggregate, unlike that at downstream Parker Dam, where ASR has caused measurable deterioration.

Walking across two time zones is thirsty work for Gary and Adam, meanwhile Yogi strikes a pose in the top pic on the right in front of the pillar, taking in view from the top of the dam.

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Adam, Gary and Yogi by the spill way.

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We walked back to the car feeling humbled with the sights we have just seen. Not the Mustang in this instance though.

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After our visit was over it was just starting to get dusk and the sun was leaving a beautiful warm glow over everything. We called in to a local hotel by the dam called the “Hoover Dam Lodge”. We refreshed our thirst with an iced water or two (not).

After the refreshments were over it was now dark, the reason we delayed our departure a little was that we could then travel back to Fremont Street ready for the Halloween festivities in the old town Las Vegas at night. They say a picture speaks a thousand words, this one just said two that we were interested in, “Happy Halloween”.

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Fremont Street here we come…..

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Las Vegas – Shelby Heritage Center (Pt. 1)

Posted on November 18, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

Monday 31st October 2016. After the visit to Scott Drake’s we set of for the next part of the trip to the Shelby Heritage Center. Obviously five petrol heads going to see the home to some of the most iconic cars ever made, we were on a real buzz. There would normally be six of us, but one person who shall remain nameless (Jason) had a heavy night before meeting up with his mates in Vegas, alas he couldn’t join us on our early rise because of self-inflicted health issues, similar symptoms to a bad hang over apparently! This was going to be the first of two trips to the Shelby Center, this first was a trip was as normal customers. Once Adam had a word with the guys at Shelby, we were invited back for a second visit (covered in Part 2), for a very special personal guided tour of the whole factory that took two hours, with unprecedented access to the R&D areas, paint shop, finishing, fabrication and storage all behind the scenes.

The Center itself is home to a stunning collection of cars, a retail shop and the work shop. As you arrive into the huge car park just outside there is a chance to win a couple of Shelby Cobra’s in the name of a good cause. There was of course the obligatory selfie group photo, left to right: Chris, Mart, Yogi, Gary and Adam.

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There was also a late Mustang GTE outside just for show to wet your appetite, and something to look at as you wait for the doors to open into the Center.

The retail shop is crammed full of merchandise, you soon come to the decision that you need to by something. That’s everything from key rings to Super Chargers, Wheels and suspension upgrades, or a baseball hat to table and chairs.

There are two guided tours around the museum cars where they will tell you the history of the cars, along with other Shelby related information and does get very busy.

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Some of the cars were Carroll’s own every day drivers which still show the signs of wear and tear.

Within the main gallery there are photo’s all around the walls and information of each car, there is even an original artwork of the first designs of the cars.

Moving into the workshop from the main gallery you are greeted by a retaining waist-high wall which is covered in signatures which is encouraged by the factory to sign in, when that got full the wall was used, when that got full the floor was used. Adam found last years visit:

Then Yogi added his paw print for this years visit; We will add to the wall again, but in big style only the way Mustang Maniac know how! More on that in Part 2!

The view from the wall looks across the factory floor, onto the cars in various stages of build.

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There was a right hand drive conversion waiting to go to Australia.

At one end of the wall near the museum there is another collection of important cars where the tour continues to explain all about them including the first GT350.

After our walk round we made the odd purchase or two and got back into the van for the next visit of the day. Something pretty special in the world of engineering and it’s not car related!

We have attached the details of the Shelby Center here for you, in case you want their details. For any petrol head out there this is a must see on the bucket list!

http://www.shelby.com/

Shelby American, Inc.
6405 Ensworth St.
Las Vegas, NV 89119
Toll Free: (844) 9 SHELBY (844-974-3529)
or call (702) 942-7325

The Shelby Heritage Center and Carroll Shelby’s Store are open:
Monday through Saturday :- 9:30am – 6:00pm
Sunday :- 10:00am – 4:00pm

Free Guided Tours:
Mon-Fri 10:30am and 1:30pm
Saturday 10:30am

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Las Vegas – Scott Drake

Posted on November 15, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

Monday 31st October 2016. This was the first full day in Las Vegas before the SEMA Show 2016 started on Tuesday. Adam always takes the advantage to pop in and see the Scott Drake guys.  Adam is one of the few genuinely authorised suppliers, not just selling the odd few bits now and again claiming to be a authorised supplier. The trip out to Drake’s takes in a highway, it’s difficult to comprehend that Las Vegas is basically in the middle of a desert surround by mountains wherever you look.

As Adam is a very well-respected client we were all taken for a VIP guided tour around their offices, warehouses, storage area and manufacturing area. Obviously some things were confidential and we were asked not to post the photos, so we obviously respect that request, but we can show you the huge scale of their operation. On arrival you are greeted with a massive building which is only half of the plot.

The entrance has the reception area, a display of a few parts and a seating area. Most of the staff were preparing for SEMA so they were on a skeleton staff there, but Adam’s personal account handler had arranged to meet us.

Passed the reception area is the main workstations and few offices. The workstations were showing account details etc so we can’t show that part, but we can show you the gold mine of memorabilia in one of the offices.

Past the desk area is rest area for the staff, which has some amazing stuff on their walls. There is the fifteen stage process of how the wheels are made.

On the other walls there are the rough Die Casting raw mouldings of the various parts for various cars.

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Past this break out area there is the main warehouse at the back. The first thing you notice walking in is a bench with half a car on it. The warehouse itself has rack after rack of parts that are stacked full floor to the ceiling.

The wheels are shipped in from the manufacturers and inspected before they are released to the chrome plating area. The newly chromed parts are then inspected again before they area assembled in-house. For confidentiality reasons we won’t show how it’s all done, but it’s a very cleaver process.

The rims are fitted to the centres and put on pallets ready for another inspection.

The other parts are batch tested also and any parts that are not up to their high standards are scrapped.

We left through a side door and taken to another huge storage area which is not usually seen by anybody. This is where some of the rare cars are stored, we were all buzzing with excitement. First up was a drag car which has been quite successful in its time.

Most of the cars are covered in a layer of dust waiting some dedicated attention.

And the cream of the of crop is the genuine Shelby GT500. The dilemma here is to restore it to her full glory or leave her as she is. The current thinking is to leave her as she is, totally authentic and rapidly rising in value.

Under the covers is a rare Sunbeam Tiger which has the original v8 engine shoehorned in it still.

With the tour completed we taken to another are where the meeting rooms are. The was a table laid out with a batch of some new products that were being discussed. Again for obvious reason we can’t show you those particular items, but we can show you some others. In the corner there was a hood which has a genuine Carroll Shelby signature on it.

A personalised autograph to Scott Drake.

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After the tour we were taken out to lunch at a wonderful place called “Mustang Sally’s Diner” of course just down the road which was attached to a Ford dealership.

The Ford Dealership next door had one or two cars and trucks for sale!

After we had finished lunch and Adam had concluded business we set of back to Vegas where we would spend Halloween on the old strip Fremont Street.

Mustang Maniac would like to thank everybody at Scott Drake Automotive Group once again for their very generous hospitality. 

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Las Vegas – Arrival

Posted on November 13, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

Sunday 30th October 2016. Two weeks ago, 6 of us left for Las Vegas in order to see the SEMA 2016 show. Usually Adam will go on his own, but this time it was a boys trip and everybody was looking forward to it. We had Adam, Jason, Yogi, Gary, Chris & Mart. They all play a part within Mustang Maniac either front line or behind the scenes. The first week like we say was for the guys, for the second week Jason, Gary and Mart flew home to be replaced by Adam and Yogi’s respective wives along with Adam’s Dad for a relaxing vacation. During the first trip we managed to take around three thousand five hundred photo’s. It would be madness to post all of those photos on the forth coming posts. There was scenery, attractions, guided tours, night life and anything else in between. There is an old saying “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”. We intend to keep some of that saying close to our chests. We won’t mention the story of a state trooper knocking on the door! Don’t worry we still have clean rap sheets, but it was a very funny story which we shouldn’t tell on a blog.

Due to the huge number of pictures that were taken, we plan to split the posts over a number of days based on various subjects and days. Otherwise it will be sensory overload and take forever to load a post. So starting with this post as it’s the start of the trip getting on the plane, landing at Las Vegas airport, and then of course we saw Elvis. From that moment on we knew that we had arrived in Vegas.

As we had lots of cases along with the six of us we couldn’t all get in one taxi so we got two. Our driver knew where to go so we could look at the scenery as we got closer to our temporary home, However Adam’s driver was a little unsure should we say and was lucky to get there by following our taxi!

We found a local Wing Stop restaurant who looked after us very well for our little visits, but we will get to that at a later post to say thanks to the guys. We had a large meal shared between us and Yogi said he was thirsty, nobody was going to argue with that one. After we had satisfied our dietary requirements we stopped at the local store to get the next few days worth of supplies. The first thing we saw entering the store was the slot machines and then what we needed – Beer for the fridge.

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That night we were sitting around talking bloke stuff and Mart turned a lighter shade of white, more so than usual. He announced he had lost his wallet! We called the Uber driver we got the lift with back from the store, there was no answer. Mart had his spending money in the wallet and was set to ruin his holiday. He called the credit card company to stop the card which they did eventually, asking what the number was on the card. How do you know that if you lost it? We tried the Uber driver a few more times no answer. About half an hour later there was a knock at the door, as Mart was now pacing up and down he opened the door. There standing in front of him was the Uber driver holding his wallet with everything still in its place. All the money, credit card and other bits in there. Marts face was a picture and he promptly handed over a generous drink to the honest driver who initially didn’t want to take the money. Mart insisted and he left leaving Mart’s faith in humanity fully restored. Mart sat down and we all couldn’t believe how lucky he was. A round of beers was opened and the torrent of bloke orientated abuse followed as you would expect. All light-hearted banter of course. The standing joke from then on was “Got your wallet Mart?”

The next morning bright and early with the odd sore head, Adam went to hire the SUV for us to travel about Las Vegas in. The first stop was to Fremont Street in the old part of the Las Vegas Strip during the day time. There is not to many pics of Vegas during the day so we thought put that right.

Walking along the street we spotted Elvis again, this time on stage.

After we had a wander around the Fremont Street we got back into the car and found somewhere to park near the new strip. to take in the views during the day.

As it was starting to get dusk the city started to take on a different feel.

We found somewhere to eat and decided to take a look inside one of the larger hotels “The Venetian”. This hotel is quite a unique place as it puts the water ways and courtyards of Venice in the heart of Las Vegas, not just outside, but also inside the hotel itself. The inside of the hotel has an artificial ceiling to make it look like daylight outside if that makes sense.

The inside water ways and court-yard with the artificial ceilings.

Travelling down the escalators to the casino below you can take in the superb ceiling. Adam decided to try a large slot machine so he could see what was going on.

A lot of the hotels are all linked together under ground and you can go in one hotel and come out of a completely different hotel. This casino had fresh flowers to decorate their entrance and some unusual things to buy with your winnings should you be so lucky. The sheer scale is incredible.

As we came out it was dark and for some of us it was our first glimpse of the night life and bright lights.

The next post will take us to Scott Drake manufacturers and an exclusive behind the scenes look at their warehouse.

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Birthday(s) BBQ & Cakes

Posted on October 23, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

A busy week came to an end with a pretty good evening with a BBQ last night. What was the reason for the BBQ? Well it was both Adam and Yogi’s birthdays. Not this week but next week. Adam on the 27th Oct and Yogi’s on the 1st November. Well tell you these things because if you turn up to the yard this week make sure you have cakes!! 🙂 This will be our last post before we go to Las Vegas next Saturday morning – did we mention that? So, we have a treat for you an extra large post to keep you busy until we get back. Before we start with the pics from last nights BBQ we will start with the cars, and of course that means our big project at the moment the John Wick car.

The John Wick Car

The car is pretty much completed outside with only a few more bits to add, while we are waiting for the gauge overlays for the dash to be shipped over. Half the dash is in and the centre console, enough to take it for a road test.

Adam used his GPS speed app to take her out for her first spin, where to? Petrol station of course! There are some conspiracy theory’s here that they are one and the same, pics for comparison. Adam says “Why do they want Keanu Reeves when I am available?” You tell us!!!

Side markers had to be cut into place and final gap alignments after the road trip with everything bedded in a little. We are awaiting some special order scoop fittings that will allow the scoop to be added and not bend the or distort the hood.

 

We have been asked what does she sound like? Well listen for yourselves with this little video we have for you on idle.

The owner of the car came down to see the progress so far. We thing a picture speaks more than our words can say.

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Customer Cars:

Chris has found some time to get to work on his fastback and has started cleaning up the engine bay. A long process that is tedious but crucial to see what you are dealing with under the paint or filler that be hiding. Chris has made good progress so far and found no nasty surprises we weren’t expecting which is always a good start. Ahh, the smell of industrial strength paint stripper!

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Our next Project from Paul the Paint has just been painted and arrived back to our yard. Yogi obviously in the mood to unwrap things shows a quick glimpse of the next project.

Lob Monster’s Ride

Paul has taken a photo of his car outside one of our workshops and says this is his favourite pic so far. Was it taken in the sixties or a few weeks ago, what do you think? Thanks for sending it in Paul, we agree a great picture. If you have any pics of your car you want us to post for you, send them in and we will sort it out for you.

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WebShop

There was some excitement overt the latest delivery into the stock. This is the 17″ x 7″ and 17″ x 8″ Magnum 500 wheels in Alloys. Yogi couldn’t wait to unbox them for a close up inspection. These wheels are just awesome and we don’t expect to have them around for long to be honest. They are not the cheapest wheels out there, but what a wheel!

The BBQ

This was a surprise BBQ for Adam and Yogi, but Adam seems to think that he may just have known about it all. Why? Well because he bought the meat, bought the gas for the BBQ, bought the rest of the food and some drinks! Yogi had no idea, but of course there was the inner sanctum of the Mustang Maniac and few close family too.  Adam fetched up his home-made BBQ stool as he had three wheels left from a project that was welded together. Adam did say it was thirsty work though.

There was surprise birthday cakes supplied by “Notjustcakes.org” which seemed to go down very well and suitable subject matter for each. Thanks to Lance and Sam.

The BBQ lasted into the evening where the wood burning oven done it’s job.

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A fantastic evening and a big thanks to everybody who helped arrange it all and those that turned up just to drink Adam’s beer. 🙂

DeAgostini Shelby GT500 1:8th Model

 Issues 45 – 48.

For this months issues the car chassis stays in storage while we concentrate on the dash gauges, some electrics and the interior for a little while.

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Part 45:

Things are getting exciting with a our first view of the electrics that will be a part of this build. There are two micro switches that will be behind the pedals, one for the gas and the other for the brake pedal. The switches are labelled as “01” and “02” for connections later. It’s a bit pf a fiddle to hold the switches in place while screwing the bracket to the floor without the switches falling out.

Side kick panels are also added in the same black velour material. When fitting the pedal assembly make sure that the bar on the back of the two pedals seats correctly in the holes. A slight press of each and you should feel the switches activate.

Part 46:

This was a single screw to hold the ash tray to your new dash pad area.

Part 47:

Some pretty internal parts now being fitted in the shape of the gauges. There are multiple stickers for the gauges faces themselves. The instructions suggest using the sharp point of a craft knife to locate them. We found that a tiny flat blade screw driver would not mark the decals and would also allow you to rest the decals in place and move them around before final pressing down. Take a good look at the printing of these decals, we found that they were printed slightly off centre so we had to move them down a fraction to make sure they would show in the centre of the pod gauges.

The next part was to fit the gauges lenses and the brushed aluminium cover using a number of small screws to hold it all in place. The Shelby badge also needed to be screwed into place.

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Part 48:

More decals now for the gauges under the dash using the same principles as before. The radio is a pretty cool part and shows attention to detail. The glove box on fits into a hole each side of the dash pad and should allow it to open and close. This fitting is not the best part of the build so far, but then again i doubt very much it will be used a great deal to be honest.

The finished dash area looks pretty amazing as we have come to expect.

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As we said earlier we are off to SEMA 2016 click here for the link, we will try to bring you some pics as it happens, but we won’t promise anything. Perhaps a few tweets or some pics on Facebook maybe before we blog all about it.

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Posted in 1:8th Scale Model, Blog, Customers' Cars, Our Cars, Photos, SEMA, Webshop | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

A Mix Of Old And New

Posted on October 16, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

This week we have little of the old and new and both mixed together. We shall start with the ever popular and current topic “John Wick” car. The trailer for John Wick 2 has surfaced and has only increased the awareness of this great car as the views for the car our blog has been quite impressive. There is still plenty to do on her yet and so far so good.

Yogi has improved the handling of the car rear end for launching of the line with a pair of traction bars to the axle.

Then with the wheels being rolled from the build shop to the geo workshop Yogi set up the geometry ready for a road test when we get round to it that is once the inside a little more complete. After the road test we will check the settings to make sure everything has settled down correctly then we will put smome more miles on her to check the engine setup and brakes etc.

With that all completed and Yogi heard mutterings of words that would need a translator for us mere mortals to understand, things like “Camber, Caster, Toe, shock travel adjustments, spring rates” etc. We rolled the car out and took a few photo’s of the new preliminary stance set up.

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The interior now has the seats in place and Dynamat for the doors. Dash area still needs work as does the trim levels of course.

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We are even trying to source a window tag that was seen in the film just to add a little more realism.

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We are looking forward to the first road test of this little lady to see how many admiring glances she gets!

Article: Mustang conquers the world

We were sent this information which we hadn’t picked up on all about the new Mustang sales progress so far. We’re not to sure how old it is, but it’s still relevant and only gets better with strong sales everywhere.

A globetrotting hit, from Europe to mideast to Australia

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A U.S.-built Mustang is loaded on a freighter headed overseas.

Customers in England and Australia face backlogs of at least six months for a new Ford Mustang. In Germany, the Mustang has attracted more retail buyers this year than the home-country favourites Audi TT and Porsche 911.

And in the U.S., the Mustang is not just beating, but downright pummeling, the redesigned Chevrolet Camaro en route to a second consecutive title as the nation’s top-selling sports car.

Ford Motor Co.’s 2014 overhaul of the Mustang, which included opening sales in 81 more countries to turn it into a global halo for the automaker, is paying off. Demand has been especially heavy for the first-ever right-hand-drive Mustang, which went on sale late last year in 25 markets where the car had been virtually off-limits previously.

Ford said it has sold about 27,000 right-hand- drive Mustangs since production started a year ago.

“Mustang has been a huge success for us,” Colin Massey, general sales manager at Jennings Ford Middlesbrough in northeastern England, said in an email. “We are still seeing a steady demand for the Mustang and are currently averaging between three and four orders per week.”

Ford has a backlog of seven months for the Mustang with a four-cylinder EcoBoost engine and nine months for the V-8 version, Massey said. The wait has been up to 10 months in Australia, where the Mustang is now Ford’s second-biggest seller, behind the Ranger pickup.

“We are always trying to eke out one more right-hand-drive unit if we can,” said Carl Widmann, the Mustang’s chief engineer. “We’ve exceeded expectations overall. We’re getting happy customers across a lot of different regions.”

Ford has sold more than 20,000 Mustangs in Europe, including about 4,400 in the United Kingdom and nearly 6,000 in Germany, since shipments there began nearly a year ago. Ford said it’s the most popular car in the U.K. that’s rated at more than 250 hp. The Mustang is the top-selling sports car this year in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and South Africa as well, Ford said.
Ford says it has sold about 27,000 right-hand-drive Mustangs since output began a year ago.
Taking on the Germans

The Mustang is Germany’s top-selling sports car this year among retail buyers, according to government data, and it was the overall sales leader in February and March. About one in three German sales are the convertible, and most buyers there choose the 5.0-liter V-8 engine, Ford said, in contrast to the rising popularity of the car’s V-6 in the U.S. and despite much higher gasoline prices there.

“That unmistakable V-8 warble is a hot commodity outside the U.S.,” Ford sales analyst Erich Merkle said in a statement.

Sales have topped 3,300 in Australia and 3,800 in China, a Ford spokesman said.

Before last year, the Mustang was sold in North America and a few dozen other countries, where sales were minuscule. Getting it anywhere else meant working through private importers and, if necessary, making a costly conversion to right-hand drive.

The latest generation was designed to have more global appeal, with more European styling and an independent rear suspension instead of a live axle, a change that upset some traditionalists.

Today, overseas markets still account for a small fraction of the Mustang’s total sales, with about 80 percent of the cars — all built in Flat Rock, Mich. — staying stateside. But Ford sees the Mustang’s growing presence in more than 100 countries outside North America as a way to evangelize its brand to consumers worldwide.

“The visceral look, sound and performance of Mustang resonates with people, even if they’ve never driven one,” Ford’s global product development chief, Raj Nair, said in 2014, when the car marked its 50th anniversary. “Mustang is definitely more than just a car — it is the heart and soul of Ford.”

Huge lead in U.S.

While the Mustang finds its footing in new markets overseas, it’s blowing away the competition in the U.S. It overtook the Camaro last year for the first time since 2009 and hasn’t looked back, even as Chevy rolled out the sixth generation last fall.

The Mustang’s share of the midsize sports-car segment, which also includes the Dodge Challenger, has surged from 37 percent in 2014 to 46 percent so far this year.

Through August, the Mustang leads the Camaro in the U.S. by nearly 33,000 units, a margin so large it might stand up even if Ford took the rest of the year off. Mustang sales here are down 6.8 percent, to 80,829, mirroring a downturn in car sales overall, but the Camaro’s decline is more than twice as steep.

Incentives are part of that difference; Ford increased Mustang incentives by about $500 this year, to $1,535 through July, while Chevy reduced Camaro discounts by about the same amount, to $2,246, according to Autodata.

In addition, Chevy deliberately moved the Camaro more upmarket with the latest generation, discontinuing the base LS trim. The sticker price for the Camaro now starts at $1,755 more than the base Mustang. Chevy also is selling fewer than 10 percent of the cars to fleet buyers.

“For us, it’s about the right volume,” said Todd Christensen, GM’s marketing manager for the Camaro. “Would we like to be the sales leader? Yes, but not at the detriment of other things.”

DeAgostini Shelby GT500 1:8th Model

A mixture of the old and new now with a new model build of a classic old car. Everything we have built so far for this model can be found on the main heading menu or click here for the hyper link. These issues we see a little more complex build of the front suspension. We will need to retrieve the previously held together front wheels and fit them to the front of the car. Now we have a rolling chassis as it were, but all be it a model 1:8th the size of the real thing.

This post covers issues are forty to forty-four and we are a few issues in front of the official build diary itself.

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Part 41:

This centres around the front suspension lower control arms and sway bar. The main part is a large piece and is screwed into place on a number of places. Not a lot of parts, but a little time to fit them all together.

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Lower control arms have the press in pins which will need a pair of pliers, we also prefer to press the pin is from each side protecting the frame with a small piece of card torn from the packaging.

The previously built front wheels and steering are used now to screw to the control arms. The chassis will need to be flipped over and back a few times. The only tricky part here is steering ram on the chassis to be connected with the steering on the wheels.

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Part 42

This issue centres around the top control arms holding the wheels in place. The parts again need to have the pivoting pin pressed into place with pliers.

The single screw will hold the control arm to the wheel and should now move up and down with the car. Two screws for each side of the frame rails and need to be fitted uniquely for each side.

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Part 43

This is the exhausts running from the rear up to the front section now. There are the main pipe and the other half of each muffler to be to be screwed together, they can only fit together one way. We found that the rear pipes that go over the rear axle have a cut out where the exhausts fit into. We noticed that our was a little out of shape and needed a very gentle bend to get the ends to seat correctly. If you do bend be careful not to break or snap them.

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The exhausts are held in place by four screws on the inner side of the floor pans.

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Part 44

This sees the first part of the interior to be fitted, apart from the door cards that is. The front carpets if you like and the gear shift. This is a single screw from the underside of the carpet. The black section is a superb black made of a velour style material.

This part is not attached to the floor pan itself yet but you can see where it will fit though.

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Custom Engine Build

We have had a special request to build a custom “Stroked” engine for a good customer of ours. The valve covers are just there to keep it clean as the proper ones will be going on at a later date.

Only two more week to go now to the SEMA show, we are trying to get things wrapped up as much as we can while we temporarily take a break to see whats new in the world at Las Vegas. We’re not saying we are excited or anything, but we have put a countdown marker on the page too, can you spot it?

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Turning Up The Wick

Posted on October 9, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

This week we get straight back to the popular John Wick build and as the old saying goes, we “turned up the wick” and moved her on leaps and bounds. We have pretty much finished the outside now with the front lights being fitted, badges and the rear spoiler added.

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The engine is now being built up with the air filter now decided and fitted which really suits the car, the sparkling new radiator and grill plate complete the look retro look. The steering has been upgraded to the brilliant Borgeson power system which makes a huge difference to the directional control.

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The interior has had the custom made rear shelf and rear seat fitted. To complete the movie car look we have the wooden steering wheel for that quality feel.

The front interior takes more work obviously to fit in the upper dash to complete the wiring installation. The front seat will be one of the last things to go in so we have room to work. All of a sudden the John Wick car is coming together very quickly.

Customer Cars

We had a poorly sounding car arrive for our attention on a ’68. The old engine had no compression which could be for a number of reasons. We have said many times before, the cost of a rebuild is more than a straight forward crate replacement. This was the case on this little lady where a new 302 was prepped on the stand before being installed into the car.

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Our Cars:

Yogi has decided that it’s time his super fast Mach1 got some of that attention our customer cars get. He has decided to de-trim the car and take some of the insides out. We are not sure what he is up to yet, but we are looking forward to seeing what he does with her. Yogi has turned down a very kind, but cheap offer from Lob Monster to buy his engine as “its second hand now!” As this is a family blog we couldn’t possibly repeat the response, it did resemble something that Chewbaccha would have growled.

Other News:

There is the annual trip to the USA for the SEMA show 2016 which we are all seriously looking forward too. There will be quite a few of us going this year and it could be that Mustang Maniac will shut for a week or so. The blog may well have to wait for any updates until we get back, depending on how it goes while we are all there. More updates nearer the time; Flights – check, Accommodation – check, passports & ESTA – check, minimal clothes and lots of empty space in the suit case to bring back stuff – check!

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The Flying Bathtub

Posted on October 2, 2016 by Mustang Maniac

We have said before that here at Mustang Maniac we get many requests to look at unusual cars if they are good customers. This time a customer has asked us to look at his car which is called the “Flying Bathtub”. The car itself is based on the Reliant Kitten, chassis, engine and transmission. The Wheels are from an Austin 7.

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The engine had some serious problems due a to piston ring disintegrating itself damaging the chamber. The cost to rebuild the engine outweighs the cost of a replacement, so we have swapped the engines over.

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Yogi was constantly heard to be growling “Where is the rest of the engine?” 🙂 Seriously though, we had to set up the valves and timing in order to make it run properly, then it’s off for a proper road test when the weather is dry.

The car is a fun little thing and draws a few glances. Not quite our usual five litre or more cars, more like 850cc or 51ci (for our friends across the pond), producing a 40bhp which is enough to push this all aluminium shell down the road.

Adam said he would even take a friend with him on the road test!

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Adam’s Question:

“What’s the difference between men and boys”?

Answer:

“Men have bigger toys”!

Adam has bought his biggest truck yet over from the States. The rumour has been rife with the potential name for this beast of a truck. Somebody who shall remain nameless (yep, it was Yogi), started the rumour off that the truck was going to be called “Yogi”. Apparently the reason is that it’s yellow, like Yellow Stone Park where Yogi lives and and it’s big! Nothing to do with it being bad ass truck and sound likes an angry bear being branded on its back side then! Adam did say that “people tend to get out the way when they see this coming”. We thought that was an under statement. 🙂

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Customer Cars:

A little more work on the John Wick car adding some nice touches to the engine. She started up spot on and sounds awesome as you would expect. The new carb is now in place and set up in the garage. We will need to put a few miles on her and tweak with final adjustments when the engine is under load. We have also added a heater matrix isolation valve, rocker covers and engine pip[e work. We are very pleased with the car so far.

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