WELCOME!

I decided to start this blog to as an avenue for me to be able to post about some of the fun things that I do from time to time. It could be a Car Show revue, what I did on Vacation, what I like about this or that automobile, my experience with a photo shoot, what I have in my Automobilia collection, or whatever I think of at the moment. I hope you like it! All feedback will be appreciated.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

VIDEO: Porsche Rennsport Reunion IV #7

Here is the latest video I have put together from the event. Video #5 in the series with more to come. This will be Video #58 on the YouTube Channel. Porsche 918 RSR. ENJOY!

Friday, December 16, 2011

My 1988 GMC Extended Cab S15

This past weekend I was able to get some stuff cleaned up in the back yard. I had to clean out the shed and take it down, it's a plastic shed, go to the local Home Depot and pick up some sand to level up the ground and then put the shed back together. I ended up using 12 60 pound bags and 4 2x4x96 pieces of mud sill lumber to  get it done. It came out nearly perfect. It better have with the almost 20 years of construction experience I have. But, with the way things happen around here, it took a few days to get it done. 6 people in the house, and the only help I got was to remove the roof which ended up getting pulled completely apart anyways to get it back on without help. So why am I telling you all about a shed when I write about automotive stuff? Well, I had to get that done in order to organize the shed, clean out the storage shelving in the garage, and get it all into the shed so that I could have access to the back of the garage. And the sink hole under the shed from where the pool company dug their line needed to be fixed.

After I brought it home!
So as far as my house goes, it has a decent 3 car garage. The 3rd car area has a garage door on the front, and the back so we can have easier access to the back yard. It only took seven years, and a reason to use the area behind it to get the stuff cleaned up. I needed the area cleaned so I could get my 1988 GMC Sierra S15 Extended Cab truck back there so I could get to pulling out the engine and transmission and replace them. I have to get this done in order to have transportation to the local (20 minutes away) community college. I will be finishing up my Autobody Collision Repair and Refinishing classes this Spring semester, and since right now my trucks transmission is junk, I decided to just replace the engine while I'm at it. I will have until the 9th of January to do it, but I hope it will only be a few days to complete it. As far as the engine, I don't have the money to put in a brand new one, so decided to get one from a place I checked into several  months back. I am getting the set up for a very very good price, and since I getting it at a reasonable price, I am just going to remove the engine and tranny that's in it and just throw the other in the truck so I have a way to get to school. Then take the old one and rebuild it as time and money permits me to be able to do so.
Definitely a project!
Now, as I sit here wondering how it all is going to turn out, I feel a little more confident doing the work since I just finished a Basic Automotive Systems class where I took an engine and did a complete tear down and rebuild with a couple of my classmates. It was a fun experience. I'll be adding a video of the final outcome in the next few days. THANKS FOR READING! (5EVMKGK25XVZ)
From when I took the top end of the motor down and rebuilt it.
I had no idea it was worse. My first time actually working on a vehicle.
The first tare down
The Top End rebuild

Friday, December 2, 2011

PICS: My Callaway SC 540 Silverado Experience

OKAY! Not sure how many of you reading this actually read the Prelude write up, so if you haven't it's not necessary. But feel free to read it so you can get a better understanding of this one.
Rim Detail

Sometime between the November 2009 SKUSA event and the point of when this new experience happened, Mike C. and I would occasionally keep in contact with one another. Usually it was about what Hot Wheels Ferrari we had recently found for our collections, or just to see how things were going. One day Mike and I were talking and he proceeds to tell me got a job out of Southern California. He didn't tell me what the was at that time, but he did tell me he would be through my area on occasion and that we should meet up and have lunch when he did. Of course I was all for that. Catching up with friends is always a great time. Then that time came. So we're texting back and forth and finally decided on a time. So I figured since he was here out of the area, that I figured I would just pick him up and we'd go to lunch.

I drove into the hotel  parking lot up to the overhang and out he came. So he gets in and off we go. The conversation gets going. I asked him where he was working at that would bring him through the area. He then proceeds to tell me he works for Callaway Cars. My eyes went wide open and my mouth dropped. I couldn't believe it! So I asked how he managed to get that cool of a job. He filled me on the details while driving up to where we had planned to grab lunch. I was happy as a guy could be. A friend of mine works for an awesome car company. My only run-in ever in my life with a Callaway was way back in the early '90's when I stumbled into the Route 66 Rendezvous with some friends when going to a Punk Shop in San Bernardino that I used to frequent. There were 2 Callaway Corvettes there in the street at the event. I was in my late teens at the time and yes I was into cars, but not as much as I was into music. So I really didn't take the time to walk around them. But now I have this guy I spent a day with in Las Vegas chasing the greatest driver in modern day racing history to have a chance to get his autograph and picture sitting in my car. If I had known, I would have had him drive to lunch.
Tailgate Badging

We get to where we were going for lunch, pull into the parking lot, and there is this truck with a hauler behind it. On the hauler is 2 cars that appear to be BATMAN's rides. So we stopped to check 'em out. Another time I wish I had kept my camera equipment in the car. Oh well! The iPhone will have to suffice for time being. We took some pics of the 2 cars, chatted with the builder for a bit. We then decide we were staving at this point, so we tell the gentleman we will be back to check them out afterwards. We grabbed lunch and chatted for a good while about life. We then left and went back out to check out the NOT BATMAN's rides. They were kind of cool to check out, but it just wasn't my thing. I would have been happier if they were the real deal though. Then back to the hotel we drove.

We got back to the hotel and switched over to the Callaway SC 540 Silverado. We pull onto the freeway and Mike floors it. WOW! What an awesome truck. It was up to 90 MPH in a matter of a few seconds. We get to the the exit where I planned on going to set the truck up for a few photos. Yeah I only had my iPhone, but I just had to get some pics. This was a rare opportunity for me I figured if I didn't get some photos, I would be pretty unhappy afterwards. Mike maneuvered the truck around and I got the pics I wanted. Then back to the hotel we went. I got a brief ride in a Callaway. I was pretty excited. Then off home I went. So, I hoped that the next time he was in town we could do it again. Well, the day he came into town, I was out doing some things and didn't get that chance. DANG IT! This time he was in the Corvette too.Oh well! There is the next time right?
NICE RIM!

Dash Plaque
Carbon Fiber Steering Wheel Badge
Embroidered Headrest
Embroidered Floor Mats
Door Badging
Grill Badging
Hood Badging
Decal under hood
VIN/Build Plate
DROOL!
Still Droooling!
Nice Power Plant!