As promised, more on "Alex in wonderland"!

Now every crack and crevice has something cool in it, but the big spaces have "AWESOME" in them! The radical Panhead chopper along the wall Alex built back in the late 60's for himself still sports the very same handmade parts and metal flake paint it did the day he finished it. It's a time capsule, It is so cool it's frozen! The other bike is a bone stock 1952 Panhead, Alex did nothing to it, it's all factory stock except the red paint job. The American Picker guys would bust a mental nut in the "Wonderland". My personal fav. is the 1957 Chevy convertible, 283 4 barrel V-8, automatic trans, and factory continental kit. Now sit down so you don't fall over, true story here gang, Alex bought this out of the local swap & trade paper back in 1969 from a guy that collected Edsels for $250.00 bucks and drove it home! It is stone factory stock & unrestored. The only non factory thing on this car is the Earl Schielb paint job! Alex has a plank of plywood across the trunk and uses it as a work bench to build model airplanes!!!! I know it kills me also, LOL. Sitting inside the Chevy is a mannequin with a full flight suite too, its just so crazy it all seems normal.
"Get out in the garage and build something"
(just not on the trunk of a vintage American car)
Fritz

I Return to the city of my Birth, ..... Or a Day with Alex in Wonderland!

Every year I try to head back to the east cost at least once to remind myself why I moved out to Kustom City Missouri. It's great to catch up with my folks and friends, Al "The Chines kid" - "Pepe" - Gary "The Local Brush" - "Poncho Bill" - "Greaser Mike" and Alex "In Wonderland"
Yeah yeah, New York City was Great. The traffic sucks, the Pizza was great, the traffic sucks, you get the idea.



I wanted to pick out Alex cause he has such a crazy collection of stuff. For this post I am gonna stick with the aircraft stuff. Which is why I call him the "crazy airplane guy". This isn't some little batch of stuff that cropped up over night. Alex has got to be in his 60's now and he has been collecting aviation memorabilia and airplane parts since he was a kid. The pics you see are from his one car garage, I'll get the the wacky stuff in his yard in another post. The model ships, planes, engines are too many to list and too many to even see the walls or the ceiling! ITS JUST CRAZY MAN! WW 1 - WW 2 - Korea - Vietnam - and private aircraft are all represented here, even a small Gemini NASA space cap still with parachutes hangs from the rafters. It's really just an amazing little winged wonderland indeed. This is just a teaser, the over the top stuff will follow
"Get out in the garage and build something."
Fritz

Viewer Mail

Does this stuff really come from outer space? Nah it comes from small garages across America and garages in other countries also. Its great when I get an e-mail from you guys and I love that I can share it on this blog. I really dig your ideas, suggestions, and seeing the crazy stuff you have going on. Mark here has Taken a VW Karmann Ghia and trans formed it into whats going to be a hip little space aged show car!





"Hey Fritz, I got your DVD (Build a Fiberglass body at home) while I was gone and watched it today on my day off! I just wanted to let you know that you solved so many problems for me with your help! THANK YOU! You also gave me the confidence to continue with my own project. Unfortunately I have already started my Dub-N-Aire in metal, but have ideas for the next couple projects! The only thing I am curious about is when lifting the ring, how did you figure out the geometry? Also, how much of a “throw” did the screw jack have on the "Rosewell Rod"? Did you do the same with the "Baja Bandeeto"?
Anyway – hope your hand/arm gets better soon!
If I was closer, I’d be over to help ya!"
Mark Gosson
Medford, OR

To Answer Mark's question. I bought an electric screw motor from "Autoloc" they list the length that the screw shaft travels. I first made carboard templets from old beer & pizza boxes to figure the shape of the hinge & area I wanted to be in. then moved on to a 1/4 inch plywood template that I bolted up to a makeshift hinge & screw shaft assembly on the car and touched the wires from the screw motor to a car battery to see how everything would travel. a hit or miss operation but it works. the further away from the pivot point you mount the screw motor shaft on the hinge the less travel you will get. Geezz I hope that all sounds right and makes sense to you guys!?!?!?!
Thanks for asking Mark, My arm is healing up but i'll have a wicked nasty looking scar.
but just ask Capt. Kirk, hot green alien chicks dig scars!