Hot Rods and Kustom Cars
A few years ago I heard of a new show in the Kansas City area and I decided to head up to check it out. The Kansas City Geargrinder. It was a kool show at a great venue called Knuckleheads, which is a fantastic live music joint in KCMO.
I haven’t been back to the show since due to weather and a conflicting schedule. I hope the show comes back and is bigger and better than ever. Here’s a slideshow from that show, click on any of the photos to go to the full gallery.
See you at a show,
Travis
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
In this post I’m going to share some of the more artful edits from my Lonestar Roundup trip, tomorrow we’re on to a new topic. 🙂
All of these are available as prints or high resolution downloads if you click on them and then use the “buy” button.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
Hopefully you like them, if you do, pick up a print for yourself by clicking on any of them then using the “buy” button on that site to get prints from 4×6 on up to poster sized!
See you at a show,
Travis
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
I’m nearing the end of the coverage, after this or maybe the next post will just be some more artsy ones that I do.
Saturday we were treated to some good old fashioned vintage cackling. Here’s the restored Scorpian V from 1964
And an earlier version of the Scorpion
Gambino’s F You 54
Look at all those people…
I’m kinda digging that grille opening
Bleed’s ride
Love those gauges
The party at the Poodle Dog Lounge was a lot of fun.
The 635 mile drive home was long but a good day, the big block averaged 18.8 mpg and I was able to run fairly fast even with this wicked vibration. (hopefully that will be fixed before the Stray Kat 500).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
That’s it! Finally made it through the gallery. There are a bunch more photos on the site if you want to click any of these images and go have a look. As always if there’s one you’d like you can buy a print or high resolution digital copy. The money goes to help get me and the cameras to another show to bring you more coverage.
I hope someone out there was encouraged to go build something kool and show it off. You’ll meet a whole awesome group of people and your life will be kooler for it.
See you at a show,
Travis
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
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Anyone want to grab lunch while the lines are short? 
For sale
This dude was driving around all day dragging his rear bumper just begging people for attention. Sad. 
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that’s it for this super sized post
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
See you at show,
Travis
Part 4
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
Only 16 copies of the Limited Edition Poster left click the photo to the right to get yours today, hand numbered, limited edition and a killer photo to boot. Hell of a deal.
One Kustom that I will give a pass to on the no open hood thing… that intake is off the charts kool.
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Moby Dick?
I love Mike’s ride, he doesn’t think that it’s deserving of a feature shoot, what do you think?
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
That’s it for today, see you at a show,
Travis
Super Sized Post!!!
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
Skratch doing his thang.
Totally did not mean to do that.
Shooting this one soon for a possible feature
Shooting Jeff’s beautiful Plymouth as soon as I can get a trip scheduled to do it, this beauty should be in a magazine.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
See you at a show,
Travis
Part 2, still on Friday!
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
Remember click on any of these images to see them in the full gallery or to buy a print of them. You can get it for your wall starting at 4″x6″ and on up from there. Support Royboy Productions and help bring more car show coverage to the world.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
Remember click on any of these images to see them in the full gallery or to buy a print of them. You can get it for your wall starting at 4″x6″ and on up from there. Support Royboy Productions and help bring more car show coverage to the world.
See you at a show,
Travis
Friday morning was awesome at the show, but you could tell by 10:30 that it was going to be huge.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
I really dig Johnny’s Plymouth
Jerry won the Deadend Magazine pick with his truck, I’ll be shooting a feature for a magazine on it soon.
Love this 48 Merc
Arturo’s shoebox.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Art
That’s it for post 1 of the show coverage. Click any of these photos to see the entire gallery. As the week goes on I will go spend some more time editing a few of these and I’ll re-post the results. Enjoy the coverage and buy a print by clicking on any image then hit the Buy button. The Galaxie made it there and back but will need some repairs that you can help me accomplish so I can take more photos at other shows for you! If I can raise $75 in profits this week I can take the daily to the NSRA in OKC this coming weekend.
See you at a show,
Travis
I really like the turnout at the Lonestar Roundup when it comes to Kustoms & hot rods.
Here’s Alex Gambino’s 54 Chevrolet
My 63 Galaxie 500
Friday evening I headed over to Austin Speed Shop
Jesse James’ hot rod.
Then it was of to Giddy-Ups to catch Pushrod.
Saturday at the show my friend and caravan companion Jerry got the Deadend Magazine award
Later in the evening it was off to the Poodle Dog Lounge for the Strugglers CC. party. My boys Pushrod took the stage at midnight but before that we hung out in the parking lot checking out all of the rides. Big Ken’s truck looks good in any light.
Sunday morning it was time to head home.
I was passed by a few kool rides as I had to stay pretty low on the speedo due to a vibration in the Galaxie’s drivetrain. 
Even with an ailing ride, I enjoyed the 635 mile drive.
Thanks for going along for the ride with me, the coverage starts tomorrow morning!
See you at a show,
Travis
Part 2 of the trip was with a small group and we went from Denison TX to Austin TX. not a lot of photos from the day, but some fun ones.
Texas shaped waffle maker.
We met up at Atlas Speed & Custom
Then we were off!
One of the cars in our group was Arturo in his shoebox 
We stopped at the Meatheads BBQ on the way
That’s basically it, I have more photos but they are not uploading for some reason.
See you at a show!
Travis
The trip started off a bit weird. My Galaxie was at Chaotic Customs to get some TLC, so yesterday I needed a ride from home almost 2 hours south to my buddy Jack’s house where I was crashing for the night. Once we arrived and unloaded all of my boxes of shirts, hats, posters, video camera, clothes…where’s my camera bag? It’s still on the couch at home. Damn.
I laughingly explained to Jack that I would get the car and drive home, get my camera & then begin my trip again, fully prepped. Jack told me “phooey!” (not an exact quote) “Take my truck and go get your bag.” As he handed me the keys, I headed out the door, filled his truck up with gas and headed back north. 2:30am I was back at Jack’s and heading to bed.
The next morning we went over to Chaotic and picked up my car. 
After some hanging out it was time to head south. After leaving Mulvane I headed to Arkansas City, KS to see Jeff Myers and see a new project in his shop. Then it was off to Oklahoma! The day was a bit long due to snow, sleet and rain all through Oklahoma. Add to that a malfunctioning cell phone and I had a few moments of less than happy thoughts.
After a rainy drive I finally got to Atlas Speed & Custom in Denison, TX. After hanging out a bit it was off to the hotel. More on the trip tomorrow!
See you at a show,
Travis
2013 started like they all do here, with the Starbird-Devlin show in Wichita.
Then a trip to shoot a feature which allowed me to hit 2 shops while I was out. I stopped by Ryno Built and Fast A.L.’s Upholstery.
Then it was of to Kansas City for the World of Wheels.
After that was a trip to Tulsa for the Starbird Rod & Custom show.
Then it was back to the Wichita area (Park City) for The Chill
Then it was off to the Texas Thaw in Denton TX which allowed me to stop at 3 of my friends shops along the way, Chaotic Customs, Premier Body & Paint and Atlas Speed & Custom.
Then it was back to Texas for the Goodguys Spring Lone Star Nationals at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, TX.
So as far as I can recollect, that is what I’ve been up to in the last 3 months.
See you at a show,
Travis
Part 6! Final post!
See the other posts here:
Short one this time but lots of great rides still.
Starting off with a couple of Vettes
This one is just for Dad
This one would look so much better all shut up
This one too but I understand they were showing off a lot of really custom work that.
Mmmmm I want!
Love the small scallops
I’m in love.
A couple of the trucks from Hale’s Speed Shop
That’s it!
See you at a show,
Travis
This car was for sale, and for a reasonable price. Click the photo to go to the full gallery where you should also find the list of details on the car if you are interested.
Bare bones. nothing extra added… at all.. I mean…damn boys!
The Whale!
Great color
Nice Fleetside
Too bad about the hood being open
spoke too soon
Great T from Tulsa
Boyd built
That’s it for Part 5, the final part 6 tomorrow.
See you at a show,
Travis
Event Coverage: 2013 Goodguys Spring Lonestar Nationals Part 3
Jeff’s Galaxie
This one had my dad drooling
Rivi’s are too kool, I need one of these too.
It would look so much better with the hood shut
Again…shut the hood and trunk!
Stance.
I really want to add a Thunderbird (Bullet years) to my collection
Love this shoebox with the Olds grill, it’s for sale. My birthday is coming… just sayin…
Got Milk?
That’s it for part 3, as always, click any photo to see the entire gallery, as not all of the photos are in these posts!
See you at a show,
Travis
Event Coverage: 2013 Goodguys Spring Lone Star Nationals Part 2
I’m kinda getting to where I dig these body style trucks more and more.
This gives you some idea of the crowd alllllll day long. It was difficult to take photos because of the crowd, but that’s a good thing. A big crowd means more people that might be inspired to go home and build something of their own.
That’s it for part 2, See you at a show,
Travis
This weekend I went down to Texas Motor Speedway for the Goodguys Spring Lone Star Nationals. See the other posts here:
We had a great location for watching the vehicles coming and going.
Loved this kool 36
Fantastic flames
I need one
and one of these.
Who wants to buy 200,000 shirts so I can get a new mobile home like this?
Last time I was at this show I shot a couple of photos of this car, before I got home it had suffered some intense damage in an accident on the freeway. It’s good to see it back to life and looking good.
Too much patina?
On my wishlist
$8500 is not a horrible price for this almost there hotrod.
Great looking business coupe
Nice work by Hatfield Restorations
More to come tomorrow! Click any of the photos to go to the entire gallery.
See you at a show,
Travis
Guest Blog!
My buddy Dan Podobinski is a photographer based out of Indiana, he attends a lot of the same type of shows that I do. Since I can’t be everywhere at once, Dan was nice enough to share some of his images from the 2013 Detroit Autorama with all of you through the blog here. Okay class now all together say “Thank You Dan!” You may have seen some of his work recently in Car Kulture Deluxe Magazine, or on the HAMB. You need to go follow his page on Facebook here and buy some prints of his great photographs! And now on with the show!
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Detroit Autorama, the very words are enough to excite many a hot rodder, filling them with anticipation of what wondrous creations wait within the walls of Cobo Hall. This is especially true when it comes to the Autorama Extreme, an area dedicated to traditionally styled hot rods and customs as well as the amazing art that is inspired by them. It only seems appropriate that this part of the show is located in the lower level of Cobo Hall, away from the glitz and glamour of the indoor show circuit. This is where the real, honest hot rods are. Not that these cars are not nicely finished or held in high regard by their owners. They are, but these cars are driven, often hard and without mercy. With all of this in mind I present to you my very own “Best of the Basement” from the ’13 Detroit Autorama…
1. Larry Tucker’s 1934 Ford Pickup. In typical Jason Graham style it is an exercise in extremes. It’s delicate wire wheels and subtle brown paint stand in stark contrast to its 6-carbed, blown 454 Chevy.
2. Brian Wisniewski’s 1950 Chevy coupe came from New Jersey to join the fray. It’s fully dressed 6-cylinder , chrome reverse wheels and killer paint gave it the “look.”
3. Gene Winfield’s old 1935 Ford shop truck, now beautifully restored and residing with Gary Hatfield in Canton, Texas is an obvious choice.
4. Jim Richmond’s glorious tribute to the historic Pierson Bros. coupe is another obvious choice for inclusion on my list.
5. Chad Folkema’s fantastic A coupe on ’32 rails has been a favorite of mine since I saw it in its unfinished state at the Relix Riot show a couple years back. The flathead Lincoln V-12 and outstanding fit & finish make it a stunner.
6. Dave Gray is the lucky owner of the newly finished “Chemical City Coupe” 1932 Ford five window. With Buick Nailhead power and details galore, the Jokerr Fabrication built menace is pure evil on wheels.
7. Everybody in the hobby knows the name George Poteet and his Bonneville inspired 3-window Ford is a thing of beauty…stance courtesy of the boys at the Rolling Bones shop.
8. Jeff Watkin’s 1956 Buick Special is another looker. The satin black is offset by the wild, 60’s style red flake with all kinds of neat tricks buried in it.
9. Steve Gilmore’s 1963 Ford Unibody pickup is the kind of clean, simple daily driver we all dream of owning.
10. Mark & Ryan Rogerson’s 1955 Chevy is as pure a 60’s style street bruiser as you will find. A very stout, high winding small block backed by a Muncie 4-speed and a Pontiac rearend sporting 4:88 gears ensure that the stoplight to stoplight action will be a thrill!
11. Kerry Sitar’s 331 Hemi powered A on ’32 rails is just mean, and that’s enough.
12. My last pick, though not in the basement, would have fit right in. This wild, 60’s show rod styled 1934 Ford 5-window coupe belongs to Beau Boeckmann of North Hills, California. Take a moment to bask in what was the excess of 1960’s show rods!
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Thanks Dan! Folks remember to go over to Dan’s Hot Rod Photos and like the page to keep up to date with all that Dan is doing.
See you at a show,
Travis
Part 3!
That’s it for the Texas Thaw through my eyes!
Thanks for looking, and remember you can click on any of these photos to see the entire gallery, there are more photos in the gallery than what has been posted here.
See you at a show,
Travis
Update 9/17/13: You can also see more coverage and writing in an article I did for Rod Authority here.
Okay time for part 3, it’s all about the bikes!
McGregor Boys (Steve’s) Twin Engine Triumph Drag Bike (more on this bike later this week I hope)
And his new BSA Drag Bike
Joe’s daily rider
Hooters was nice enough to sponsor the bikini contest
A couple of cell phone photos of my friend Denny’s bagger chopper.
And that’s it! Yeah I could have taken more shots of the bikini girls but I didn’t. I was having too much time hanging out with friends and BS’ing. Sorry!
See you at a show,
Travis
The biggest reason to have an indoor show is to stay away from the weather. But when Ma Nature decides to drop about a foot of white stuff on the ground the day before the show load in, even having a roof for the show can’t really help all that much. That’s what happened to the 2013 The Chill in Park City, KS. Still had a nice turnout of motorcycles and cars, but about 1/3 down from normal due to the weather.
Mike Newkirk had 2 fast rides on display, this is the twin blown Hemi’d FED that he piloted at the 2012 KKOA Leadsled Spectacular.
The other is his own funny car
Muscle cars always gotta have everything all open and stuff, I’d rather see them shut, the designers spent a lot of time making the body look good, all of that is ruined when it’s open. Looks like the car is broken down on the side of the road.
Butch normally brings out his beautiful 56 Chevy Gasser, but this weekend was diplaying his hot rod.
Most of the drag cars showed up because they were already in the trailers, a little easier to unload in the comfy warm building 🙂
Jeb McGregor brought out Nadine, his faithful steed for over 300,000 miles.
Again, beautiful kustom, and it would look so much better closed up.
More tomorrow!
See you at a show,
Travis
