An Unsung Hero: Corey Conyers’ Shop Visit

For every big name shop there’s almost always a group of hard working folks behind the scenes. For 25 years Corey Conyers has been turning out amazing work at shops without much fanfare for himself. It’s not the fault of the guys he’s worked for, the media needs brevity so it’s easier to talk about Tom Hanna’s shop or Cole Foster’s but for the last 25 years Conyers has been one of the behind the scenes folks helping to turn out fantastic cars from these shops.

Click here to see more!

Week In Review: 1-27-14

Monday

Tech: Ryno Built Saves My Ride

Tuesday

RynoBuilt

Shop Visit: Ryno Built 1-25-14

Wednesday

Fast-AL's-Upholstery-Shop-Visit-cover

Shop Visit: Fast AL’s Upholstery 1-26-14

Thursday

Chill-Cover

1 Month Warning: The Chill

Friday

See you at a show,

Royboy

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Shop Visit: Ryno Built 1-25-14

So yesterday I posted about the new transmission cross-member that my buddy Ryno at Ryno Built did for me. While I was there I snapped some photos of some of the other rides that are at Ryno Built. His truck was the 62 Unibody Ford that I was lucky enough to shoot for the cover of the Feb. 2014 issue of Classic Trucks Magazine. Since selling the truck to it’s new east coast home he’s been busy working on a Mercury project for a client from Texas, and driving a cool Chevy wagon that he bought from that same client.

 Ryno has these two vehicles for future customer projects or for sale. If you
Ryno has these two vehicles for future customer projects or for sale. If you’re interested lookup Ryno Built on Facebook.
 Ryno
Ryno’s current major build is this Mercury. The original plan was just to get the car bagged and stance down, but it’s now taken on a life of it’s own as a frame off build. The wagon in the background has been a recent addition to Ryno’s garage after selling the Unibody that was featured on the Feb. 2014 Classic Trucks Magazine coverage.
 The 3 carb setup is just for looks for now, a new 350 crate now sits atop a bagged suspension with a Mustang II and custom rear suspension setup.
The 3 carb setup is just for looks for now, a new 350 crate now sits atop a bagged suspension with a Mustang II and custom rear suspension setup.
 With the ability to lay frame without being channeled this car sits as low as it can.
With the ability to lay frame without being channeled this car sits as low as it can. Ryno upgraded the bags for this ride from the bags that came with the kit that the owner had purchased to some that would require less air pressure to attain right height with a better ride quality. That’s the knowledge that you get when you go to someone who’s been doing it for years. Most would have used the bags that came with the kit and would have complained about the ride quality not knowing that there were other options.
 The Merc
The Merc’s owner also owns this 59 Ford Fairlane Galaxie. It has recently been upgraded with these new TruSpoke wheels and some thin white wall tires. Some upgrades to the air ride system will have this ride ready to go again.
 The view looking out of Ryno
The view looking out of Ryno’s garage door. A pretty mean looking group.
 While we worked on my Galaxie the daylight slipped away and the temps in the shop dropped. The Merc just looked cool sitting out there, just waiting to get back in and get more love.
While we worked on my Galaxie the daylight slipped away and the temps in the shop dropped. The Merc just looked cool sitting out there, just waiting to get back in and get more love.

Thanks for following along folks, tomorrow’s post will feature a shop visit from my drive home where I stopped at Fast AL’s Upholstery.

See you at a show,

Royboy

 

New Knit Winter Hats now in stock,

100% made in the USA and embroidered with the rb logo.

Photo Jan 16, 6 41 06 PM

Tech: Ryno Built Saves My Ride

I’ve known for awhile that the transmission cross-member that was in my 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 was hanging too low. It was dragging too much and on big bumps on the highway it would slam the pavement, no bueno. So when I was talking to my buddy Ryno at Ryno Built about it he said to come down to his shop in the Joplin area and he’d get a new one fabbed up.

When we got the car up on the lift it was obvious that things were more dire than I thought. The existing cross-member had completely broken into two pieces. One more big bump could have lost it completely, that could lead to any manner of catastrophic consequences. I’ve seen driveshafts come out and nearly slam into the car I was in behind the drive shaft’s prior vehicle. A couple of inches difference and that drive shaft would have come through the windshield. I cannot imagine if my car broke and caused something like that to happen. Best case scenario the failure would leave me stranded on the side of the road, worst case scenario could be deadly. Just another note to encourage you to make sure your ride is mechanically sound not just for your safety but for the safety of those around you.

 Here
Here’s what we found when we got the car up on the lift. one side of the transmission cross-member had completely broken. 10 ga. welded to ½” plate and 0 penetration on the welds. That’s not rust on the floor pan that’s trans fluid. Another issue I have to fix.
 Lucky for me I didn
Lucky for me I didn’t take one more trip with the car the way it was. 1 side of the existing transmission cross-member was completely separated.
 Ryno plasma cutting the existing transmission crossmember off of the frame. The AOD is much longer than the Cruis-o-matic so using the factory frame mounts would have made the mount larger and harder to build.
Ryno plasma cutting the existing transmission cross-member off of the frame. The AOD is much longer than the Cruis-o-matic so using the factory frame mounts would have made the mount larger and harder to build.
 Ryno getting rid of the remnants of the old crossmember.
Ryno getting rid of the remnants of the old cross-member.

 Then it was time to grind off the remainder of the old mount.
Then it was time to grind off the remainder of the old mount.

 Not quite done getting rid of the old one, almost done.
Not quite done getting rid of the old one, almost done.
 Ryno cutting some tubing that we thought we needed before a later re-design when I changed my mind.
Ryno cutting some tubing that we thought we needed before a later re-design when I changed my mind.
 Welding in the new crossmember.
Welding in the new cross-member.
 At each end of the crossmember Ryno added 3/16" plate gussets under the crossmember. Here he
At each end of the cross-member Ryno added 3/16″ plate gussets under the cross-member. Here he’s adding some holes at my request to make it look cooler.
 Before a coat of paint you can see the driver
Before a coat of paint you can see the driver’s side of the mount. The parking brake cable is attached to a tab that we added. We used a rectangle tubing to provide as much clearance under the cross-member as possible. There is room for a 2 ½” Dia. exhaust pipe to fit and still not hang below the frame.
 The passenger side is pretty much the same without the parking brake cable mount. Here you can see the factory mount waaaay up forward on the frame.
The passenger side is pretty much the same without the parking brake cable mount. Here you can see the factory mount waaaay up forward on the frame.
 The fluid everywhere is killing me, sorry about that. Here
The fluid everywhere is killing me, I have to figure out the leak and clean up the mess. Here’s the new cross-member and the new mount that we installed. The existing exhaust needs replaced soon so buy some photos so I can afford it!

If you need custom fabrication done for your ride, get ahold of Ryno Built and he can get your car on the road again!

See you at a show,

Royboy

 

New Knit Winter Hats now in stock,

100% made in the USA and embroidered with the rb logo.

Photo Jan 16, 6 41 06 PM

Chaotic Customs Shop Visit 11-21-13

On my way to the Hot Rod Revolution (which was being cancelled as I shot these photos) I stopped by my friends’ Chaotic Customs in Mulvane, KS to see what they were up to. The shop was full of projects and folks working on them. Drew Carlson was nice enough to take a few minutes off of working on a project to show me around the shop and explain what they’d been up to recently since finishing the SEMA build on Mike’s 40 Ford Pickup. The photos below should all be captioned and explain what you’re seeing. I will try to stop in a couple of more times over the next few months for more updates on these projects.

 Jack
Jack’s 39 Ford Body, Drew Carlson hand fabbed the rear section and replaced all the rusty sections towards the bottom of the body all around.
 The factory antenna holes were patched up as well as some other holes in the body and of course some rusty spots.
The factory antenna holes were patched up as well as some other holes in the body and of course some rusty spots.
 Rear shot of the 39, new floors installed. Drew was working on the car as I got there, later in the day I stopped by Jack
Rear shot of the 39, new floors installed. Drew was working on the car as I got there, later in the day I stopped by Jack’s home shop where he was working on getting the frame painted so it could be reassembled and reunited with the body.
 About an inch was taken out of the meat above the window area of the roof on this pickup. More on it in a few weeks, lots of mods going on here.
About an inch was taken out of the meat above the window area of the roof on this pickup. More on it in a few weeks, lots of mods going on here.
 1940 Chevy Convertible with new floor pans, new suspension and new 4 bar setup in the back.
1940 Chevy Convertible with new floor pans, new suspension and new 4 bar setup in the back.
 The new floor pans in the 1940 Chevy Convertible
The new floor pans in the 1940 Chevy Convertible
 The 1940 Chevy
The 1940 Chevy’s new front suspension.
 A new roll pan for the 40 Chevy Convertible
A new roll pan for the 40 Chevy Convertible
 The owner of this Vette wanted to update the car a bit. Chaotic is exaggerating some of the factory lines a bit more like what a factory dream car might have been like. Vette purists will hate it but, I dig it big time.
The owner of this Vette wanted to update the car a bit. Chaotic is exaggerating some of the factory lines a bit more like what a factory dream car might have been like. Vette purists will hate it but, I dig it big time.
 The rear bumpers were sucked in to the body and reshaped to fit.
The rear bumpers were sucked in to the body and reshaped to fit.
 Here you can see the peak of the passenger side fender has been raised about an inch. The more aggressive big block hood will be added as well.
Here you can see the peak of the passenger side fender has been raised about an inch. The more aggressive big block hood will be added as well.
 Here you can see the difference in the front fenders. The raised peak adds style and aggressiveness that should have been there from the factory.
Here you can see the difference in the front fenders. The raised peak adds style and aggressiveness that should have been there from the factory.
 A recently completed project at Chaotic, back in for a checkup.
A recently completed project at Chaotic, back in for a checkup.
 Chaotic just finished up Mike
Chaotic just finished up Mike’s 40 Ford pickup for SEMA and is now prepping it for the show circuit, starting next week!
 A Mustang fastback in the shop for some major upgrades. EFI 302, 6 speed Tremec, Mustang II style front suspension, removed shock towers, smoothed and flamed inner fenders, are just some of the mods on this car. More photos in a couple of weeks.
A Mustang fastback in the shop for some major upgrades. EFI 302, 6 speed Tremec, Mustang II style front suspension, removed shock towers, smoothed and flamed inner fenders, are just some of the mods on this car. More photos in a couple of weeks.

 

See you at a show,

Royboy

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It got COOOOOLD over the last couple of days, keep your head warm with one of these! On sale for $10 through the end of November. Click here to order yours!

beanie2

 

Shop Visit: Ryno Built and the Sharer 50 Merc “Sweet Memories”

Shop Visit: Ryno Built and the Sharer 50 Merc “Sweet Memories”

After the Stray Kat Feed my dad and I loaded up in the F250 and headed 2 hours east to Ryno Built to take a peek at a frame that he’s been working on for my buddy Jeff from Texas. The plan is to get the frame finished up, painted and then move on to body work including a chop. The frame came in with a Street Rod Engineering Mustang II subframe already installed but Ryno finished it out and smoothed out some of the welds, etc.

Here’s some photos of the Chassis with the new Coker wide whites and chrome wheels, notice the exhaust and fuel line/brake line tunnels made in the x-frame so that the frame lays flat.

Follow along with the entire build thread here.

 

See you at a show.

Royboy

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Don’t forget to get your 2014 Calendar for Charity order in ASAP! They’re already going fast, once they’re gone they’re gone!

Event Coverage: Chaotic Customs Open House Part 2

Another of Jack’s recently finished 51 Ford.

Jim’s Olds is coming together nicely after sitting for a long time.

The Stears’ Ford all the way from Kansas City

Don’s Buick again 🙂

The Mistretta Family rides in style.

One of the many full on kustom builds going on at Chaotic Customs. This started life as a 1953 Chevrolet, it’s being transformed into an Old after a chop and swapping on an Olds front clip.

I love Stella’s new look.

See you at a show,

Travis

Event Coverage: Chaotic Customs Open House

April 27, 2013
Chaotic Customs
246 Industrial Ave.
Mulvane, KS

For the 2nd year in a row I attended the Chaotic Customs Open House on Saturday April 27th. Here are some of the photos of the cars that showed up. A good time was easy to have with this many kool people. You need to make it next year.

Jack’s 40 Ford

Jack’s 40 Ford

Chris and Karma Carlson’s 1960 Pontiac “Stella”

Some new wall art in the shop.

Jack’s 51 Ford is done!

Mike’s 40 Ford Pickup is chopped, channeled, sectioned, lengthened, just about every ‘ed you can do to a vehicle. and it’s still a long way from done. Look for it’s debut at SEMA this year.

Don’s beautiful Buick

The 34 Ford that Chaotic took to SEMA and displayed at Barrett-Jackson in the last year.

Zombie Speed Shop’s International

More tomorrow!

See you at a show,

Travis

Shop Visit: Chaotic Customs

Often when I’m traveling I take some slight detours to stop at some shops that I know. On the way to the Texas Thaw I made a few of these stops. First at Chaotic Customs in Mulvane, KS.

View Larger Map

Chaotic is busy at work with this beautiful 40 Ford pickup for Mike Young. The truck’s body is being massaged in every way imaginable for what will in the end be a subtle custom look to the untrained eye. The cab has been chopped, lengthened, sectioned, channelled, but when finished you’ll have to have a stock one sitting next to it to see the full extent of the differences.
 

Another project currently underway at Chaotic is a 1950 Oldsmobile Delivery. Well it started life as a Chevy Delivery, then it was chopped, an olds front clip was grafted on and the customizing began. The custom hood’s underside is being finished now.

Spy pic of Jack’s 51 Ford, more on this to come when the car is done.

This 1982 Chevy Malibu wagon may not be a car you normally see customized but it’s turning out pretty kool.




The 34 Ford awaits another polish job before heading off to the Detroit Autorama (they are loaded in the building now for the show there this weekend.)

That’s some of what Chaotic is working on, stop by their facebook and say hi.

See you at a show,

Travis

Ryno Built Shop Visit 2-3-13

So, on Monday of this week I told you about my weekend, traveling to the Joplin area to shoot Ryno’s 61 Ford pickup, and then off to Aaron’s Fast AL’s Upholstery on the way home for a bit of a visit. Yesterday I shared some photos of the visit to Fast AL’s, here are some of the time spent at Ryno Built.

At first I wasn’t sure if Ryno had some secrets he wasn’t telling but no this is just the lace used to get all of the kool lacework in the paint job of the truck…
Some of the lace used to create the awesome paint on Ryno's 61 Ford Unibody Pickup. Feature coming soon!

Some TrueSpoke Supremes on a 1931 Studebaker President Sedan, info on the build can be found here.

With the frame nearing completion, the Stude body has been placed so the floor supports can be build and some other items fabbed.

Looks to be the beginnings of a healthy ride.

Floor supports in place.

A 4 door Stude is not your normal idea of a hot rod, but this is not your normal hot rod shop.

Next time I’ll get a bunch more photos of the wagon that is being built for Mrs. Ryno. For now for info on the 60 Chevrolet Kingswood Wagon that Ryno is building for his wife, click here.

For more info on Ryno Built you can contact him on Facebook. Hire him to build you something safe, kool and fast. For the last visit to Ryno Built click here.

See you at a show,

Travis

Heading out today for the 3rd Annual Mid Decembrrrr Run

So as I sit here typing we’re a couple of hours away from the 3rd Annual Mid Decembrrrr Run. Folks from hundreds of miles away are now on their way to Salina, KS to meet up and go on a long drive in our classic cars. It’s been a really good time so far, hopefully this year is too!

This will be it as far as 2012 goes for me and my cameras. It’s been a fantastic year, went new places, met new people and had a great time throughout it all. For 2012 there are 33 galleries with 7,987 photos so far, whew, my shutter finger is tired! To see them all go here: http://royboyproductions.smugmug.com/Cars/2012
Some of my favorites are

Fuel Altered “Black Mariah” doing a smoky burnout at the 2012 KKOA Leadsled Spectacular, see more from that weekend here.


Twin Hemi’d rail doing a smoky burnout at the 2012 KKOA Leadsled Spectacular, see more from that weekend here.


The Anderson 36 at the 2012 Iron Invasion, see more from that show here.


The Chrismas Brothers Coupe at the 2012 Iron Invasion, see more from that show here.

About a year ago I joined Instagram, it’s been a fun way to give new life to some old photos and spread the word about what it is that I do here. http://instagram.com/royboyprods is where you can find those photos if you are not already on Instagram.

Have a great weekend, I’m off with a bunch of my rod/kustom friends for a road trip. Merry Christmas and I’ll see you at a show,

Travis

 

Ryno Built Shop Visit

In early November I made the trip down to my buddy Ryno’s shop Ryno Built in SWMO. The plan was to shoot some video of Ryno’s 1961 Ford Unibody pickup for an upcoming feature video. While I was there I found too much cool stuff to not snap a few images.

Ryno Built Shop

Ryno’s Caddy was parked outside the shop, it’s just a kool vehicle all around.

He’s had it for years and has driven it all over the place, check your back issues of Car Kulture Deluxe for a feature on it with all of the pertinent details.

Also at Ryno’s shop were a few projects. This Pro-Touring Mustang build started out with a 1965 Shelby GT350 Mustang which had been dinged up pretty well in the Joplin tornado in 2011. Most of the damaged body has been replaced, and a ton of work has been done to prep the car for it’s massive tires and VASTLY improved suspension. Ryno’s worked with TCI to get the suspension customized for the size of rollers that he wanted to run. You can see the finished work is impeccable, and that there are lots of areas roughed in waiting for finalizing. You can find more info on the Mustang build here on pro-touring.com

Also under construction at the shop is a 31 Studebaker President Sedan, info on the build can be found here.

Although it’s moved on to a new owner this is a 63 Caddy that Ryno build a few years ago, here is a thread with more info on that build.
2011 Lonestar Roundup - Austin, TX

2011 Lonestar Roundup - Austin, TX

A smart husband makes the wife happy, here’s a 60 Chevrolet Kingswood Wagon that Ryno is building for his wife, more info on the build here.

 

Needless to say there is a lot going on at Ryno Built.

If you need some top notch fab work done, get ahold of Ryno!