November 11, 2009
- Customize Your Own Car
Street cars are automobiles that are purchased from a dealer, then modified and customized to their owners' specific desires. Some street cars are used for racing, while others are driven strictly for show. Whatever an owner does with a street car, they truly are works of automotive beauty.
When you decide to customize your own street car, you'll need to determine where to start. Are you looking to soup up the engine for racing or change the appearance so radically that it no longer resembles the original model?
If you're looking to alter the overall look of your car, you'll need to ask yourself some questions. Do you want an entirely different paint job on your car, one that reflects your personality? Flames are one of the longtime favorites since they represent danger. A great, flaming paint job makes a car shine and really gets attention. Maybe you're somewhat less conventional. How about trying out something less cliche? Think of something that you've never seen painted on the body of an automobile. Paint a war mural on the doors, complete with airplanes and bombs. Try anything to make the design your own.
Besides a new paint job, other body work can completely transform your ride into something masterful. Change out those old fenders and replace them with a set that sizzles. Polished chrome fenders reflect light from any source and make your car stand out from the crowd in the lowest of lights. When you're cruising through town, those fenders will stand out like neon.
There are other things you can do. Add decals to your windows. Put some LED lights under the doors of your car and watch as people turn to get a second look. Neon lights underneath the car really make it something to notice, though you'll want to make sure that you stick to the laws of your area. Police look for attention-getting cars, so you'll want to stay out of trouble.
If you're looking to soup up the engine of your car, be sure that you have some mechanical knowledge. Auto stores can supply you with engine manuals, but these can seem like hieroglyphics to the uninitiated. Ask some of your friends for advice and help. Maybe you have a good buddy with a wealth of knowledge about auto engines. Take any help you can get from friends if you don't know a thing about the inner workings of automobiles.
Many street cars used for racing rely on nitro boosts for maximum speed, though this can be dangerous. Nitro boosts are frowned upon in some racing circles since many racers believe in the skill of driving more than chemical enhancement. Fuel intake enhancements also are renowned for increasing engine performance. Ask around and read some hot-rod magazines to find out the best performance enhancing devices currently available.
Whatever route you take with your street car, always remember to enjoy the thrill of driving a beautiful vehicle. Take pride in your work and drive safely, but when you feel the need for speed, punch it. Just watch out for the cops.
- How To Custom Paint Your Car - The Basics
Since I don't remember doing an article on how to custom paint your car, I thought that I'd just introduce you the very most basic ideas behind custom auto paint work on your car, for this article we'll look at painting flames on your hot rod.
Keep in mind that a lot of this is just a re-hash of the things that I have talked about in my how to pain your car articles, with that in mind you will have heard some of the things that I'm going to talk about in this article, but please don't just blow them off, they are all essential to the process of custom paint.
Now that we understand that I will cover a lot of things that I have already talked about, let's get down to the brass tacks of the article, here are the things that I have discussed in past articles, we'll talk about prep cleaning, masking, and using a tack cloth to get the surface clean for paint work.
Depending of the painter that is working on the car they can attach this process in a few different ways, here we'll talk about the most common way to paint flames on your hot rod, first I'll talk about cleaning the surface of the paint work before your start to mask for your flames.
This is one of those things that I know I have talked about in the past, this is truly the starting place for any paint work that you'll ever do, assuming that the body work, and priming of the car is done, and for this article we're going to assume that it is ready to paint.
By ready to paint i mean that the entire car has been wet sanded to 600 grit wet paper, and you have achieved a dull shine over the entire car, the very next step is the prep cleaning, for this we use surface paint prep cleaning solvent.
What this will do is it will remove all of the reside left from wet sanding that car, and it will remove any wax, grease, or body oils that may have made it through the wet sanding stage of the process, once you have done this we can tack cloth the car, using clear coat safe tack clothes.
Now we are ready to get down to business, let's talk a little about what I mean by get down to business, the first step is to get your flames laid out with 1/8 vinyl fine line graphic tape, you need to be 100% sure that you know what your flames are supposed to look like, I can't tell you that.
Now that we have that out of the way, you can begin to lay out the flames on t your car, following the idea that you have in your mind, lay that flames out with the fine line 1/8" vinyl tape, after you have got the out line for your flames the next step can begin.
This is another one of those thing that I have talked about in the past, this step will make, or break the outcome of your custom paint work, this step is the masking of the flames, this required you to reverse mask the flames leaving one the area the you want painted showing.
Once you have done this, and only the flames are showing, with the rest of the car masked, you need to tack cloth the flames to remove any dirt, or other contaminants that may have gotten on them, after this is done your ready to start the painting process, do not rush this process, take your time.
First we'll lay the main color of your flames, this is usually a yellow, or an orange color, followed by all the colors of the flame, i usually use an air brush to do the rest of the colors, this will reduce the build up of an edge for your clear coat to cover.
Noe your going to lay out your idea for the flames on the car, after you have finished the work. and it's laid out to your satisfaction, you can wait about 20 minutes and then unmask the car, make sure that the windows, and the chrome, and everything you don't want painted is masked.
After you have checked the masking to make sure that your car is masked properly, you can mix your clear coat, clean the car again with your tack cloth, and your ready to spray the clear coat, I'd suggest using a high build clear, and spraying 4 coats on the car, it will build 1.5 coats for every coat you spay.
Make sure that you always give your paint work flash time, or you will put runs in your paint work, yes you are re-clear coating the entire car, so get ready to do some work, if you follow these simple rules, you car will look great when it's all done.
November 8, 2009
- These Is What You Should Look For In Custom Fiberglass Car Audio Stores
There are very many stores that offer custom fiberglass car audio and you need to know their details in order for you to make a purchase. Fiberglass is the element that makes the car audio products have a lovely finish and it is very popular with people in this industry. Many car audio can be enhanced by fiberglass and they include car stereo, amplifiers, subwoofers and others. Many online stores stock the products and one should not have the excuse of not finding the right products. Firstly, you need to establish which product you want to buy then get searching on the internet or physically. Looking at varieties will inspire you to get different models and you need to keep in mind that you do not want to buy on speculation.
Firstly, search for the quality of products and establish the legality of the store. They should stock worthy products that the customers will find helpful. If the store has experience for many years, it may not have the most superior products but you will feel more confident dealing with them. Make sure they have in stock the right brands you want to get. Brand names are very powerful and they might mean poor quality or high quality and they might also mean high prices or low prices. Quality does not come cheap and you have to find a compromise and go for the deals that will best suit your pocket. Custom fiberglass car audio stores must have staff that knows the kinds of products they have in detail. Details are not enough if they have poor customer service skills.
You must be treated with utmost courtesy and if you find a store that is not willing to prioritize that, you better go elsewhere. While buying these products it is wise to engage in asking questions about how they were manufactured. There are several techniques and you need to be sure about the kind of product you want to buy. Knowing some background history about the product can only empower you to make a good choice. If the location of the store is a bit far, shop online or find a convenient store near you. In other stores which have online shops, customers can ask about a particular product by posting the question to the site. This is a very good way to ensure that you know about the details of a product and the store that is providing the item.
Custom fiberglass car audio stores and companies come with various rules and you need to know the kind of policies that will affect you. Other terms and conditions must be fair to you and you can compare with other stores and see how well you like them and choose. You can also go for stores that give discounts and other offer this will help you acquire the products in the most pocket friendly way possible. You must take caution and know that very cheap prices come at a cost. These cost is often reflected on the poor quality. Very high prices will discourage any person from purchasing. When looking for custom fiberglass car audio stores, know that the car audio come in many categories and be prepared to know the well crafted pieces from the mediocre ones. More on These Is What You Should Look For In Custom Fiberglass Car Audio Stores.
November 7, 2009
- Custom Fit Car Covers: Except The Unexpected Protection For Your Car
Do you want the shining car exteriors that look brand new all the time? Well, getting such an attractive look for your car is possible affordably. There are varieties of custom car covers that provide the desired protection for the exteriors of your vehicle.
You may ask why the custom made car covers are better option. There are several features that make custom car covers effective in protecting your car. Cars have to negotiate with varieties of hazards. Mud, dust, storm, heat and sun rays, rain, snow, acids and chemicals etc are some of the principal hazards that cause severe damage to the paint and finish of your car.
In order to prevent these elements from damaging your car exteriors, getting the custom car covers is very effective. Custom made seat covers are especially made seat covers for particular car version and make. Since these are made according to the specifications of your car, these provide compete fitting. Complete covering is necessary to get prevent external hazards from harming the exteriors of your car. The custom fit seat covers provide the same.
There are varieties of car covers available to choose from. The most popular car covers include Stormproof car covers, Mosom Plus car covers, Stretch Satin car covers, Coverbond car covers, Triguard car covers, and Autobody Armor car covers among others.
There are certain factors you need to take care of before you get particular car covers for your vehicle. The car covers must have greater strength and stretch. These qualities make car covers long lasting and effective in preventing the external hazards from damaging your car. The car covers must have excellent breathability as well. It provides excellent escape for trapped moisture. It’s necessary to prevent any possible rust damage.
The custom made car covers are available in varieties of designs and patterns. Getting the quality products can be affordable way to protect car exteriors. So, get the most suitable car covers for effective protection of your vehicle. More on Custom Fit Car Covers: Except The Unexpected Protection For Your Car.
- Moparz Custom Bodied Concept Car With First 1000 Cube Hemi V-8 Makes Its Debut
Moparz a custom bodied muscle car with the worlds only 1000 cubic inch Hemi V8. Jeff Lilly Restorations is pressing down the pedal to the Moparz metal on this one off creation. Jeff states "I've always loved Mopar Muscle cars with their distinct curb appeal, so I took the best of each area I liked and combined them to flow in harmony from the different body styles like the Challenger, Charger and Cuda and others along with some tasteful custom touches. It looks the way I would have wanted it to be in 1970 or in 2008 "
Jeff Lilly Restorations specializes in building original muscle cars as well as custom builds. Their work has appeared hundreds of times in all the major magazines and I highly recommend "The Ultimate Shop Tour" at their website and click on the "Crazy Plumb" Purple Beast in the muscle car section to see MOPARZ first hand at http://www.jefflilly.com
To start with, the car will have a custom chassis to house the world's only 1000 cubic inch Hemi V-8 engine, " see engine specs below " 6 speed tranny, one off independent suspension system front and rear with electric power brakes and 14 inch rotors set behind the one off "Cuda Bullet" wheels featuring no visual lug nuts. The interior will be built with custom one off seats, a pistol grip shifter with custom inlaid wood and a Black Chrome shifter arm. A/C, killer stereo, modern dash and door panel treatments etc,
The exterior will feature a custom fabbed Charger style concealed head light system, repositioned Cuda hood bulges, Cuda lower valance air grilles and recessed Challenger style tail lights.
The roof will be chopped and raked at the front 2 inches from stock, the front and rear windshields will be refitted from the interior side to allow a smooth opening with no chrome moldings only a wire formed edge, The rear qter panels will be slightly longer to accommodate a custom transition spoiler that wraps around the rear light assembly. The bumpers will be fitted close to the body with the door handles, locks and gas cap removed and smoothed.
With an insane Mopar like this, what else would you expect! It will pretty much smoke the tires at any speed you like and the sound will be like no other ever heard. See the engine specs below!
The 1000 Cubic inch Super Charged Hemi Engine will feature a CN Custom 5.300 Bore Space Hemi Block-5.100 Bore Size and a Bryant Custom 6.125 Stroke 5.300 Bore Space Crankshaft (5.100 x 5.100 x 6.125 x .7854 x 8 = 1,000.98cu) with 5.300 Bore Space Hemi Cylinder Heads featuring 2.700 Intake Valves and 2.0 Exhaust Valves. In addition a Jessel Hemi Rocker Gear system with Custom 70mm Roller Camshaft.
A Custom Dan Olson Dry Sump Oil Pan with Moroso Dry Sump Pump will lubricate the Custom Aluminum Billet connecting rods with Custom Hemi Blower Pistons & Pins along with HD Push Rods. For the top end Custom Sheet Metal Hemi Rocker Valve Covers will be fabricated along with a Custom Sheet Metal Blower Intake Manifold featuring a Pro Charger F3 Blower and Pro Charger Drive Kit fitted with an Electronic Fuel Injection system Estimated to be 1500 to 2000 horsepower!
For additional information about this fabulous machine or if you are meant to be the Owner of this masterpiece contact Jeff Lilly or visit www.jefflilly.com
More on Moparz Custom Bodied Concept Car With First 1000 Cube Hemi V-8 Makes Its Debut.