-Look at that.
-That's a backup camera.
-[Kevin] Cut into the bumper.
-[Dave] That's rad.
We're gonna have to get rid
of that though.
Yeah.
[upbeat music playing]
Garbage.
Twenty years ago,
this car was awesome.
[Kevin]
It's a blast from the past.
I don't know
if it's been in a barn.
I got some body hammers.
I think we're gonna need
a big hammer.
-[upbeat music playing]
-[machine whirring]
[Dave] This is gonna be
the ticket right here.
Can we call this
Heinz 57 Sauce?
Probably gonna hit it all
the way up to 10,000 pounds.
Into the red.
[Kevin] Success.
Engine's out.
When in doubt, cut it out.
Cut it out.
[rock music playing]
[narrator] When I look at
a blank canvas,
I see endless possibilities.
As the ideas come to mind,
the lines start
to fall into place.
And before you know it,
we have a bitchin' ride.
[screeching]
[narrator] A bitchin' ride
has intense color...
-[man 1] This is gorgeous.
-[man 2 laughs]
[narrator] Performance...
[man] It's fantastic.
[narrator]
Stance, wheels, sound.
[engine revs]
[narrator] There's one thing
that makes our car stand out.
Ours are bitchin' rides.
[engine revs]
[man] Well, it never gets old.
[man 2 laughs]
[Dave]
Oh, Bill's car got here, huh?
Yeah.
What in the Betty Crocker...
-I'm just kidding.
-[laughs] I know.
It's a blast from the past.
What do you expect the date
of the build on this car?
Oh, I would probably
have to say...
early... Late '90s,
early 2000s.
Wow. You're gonna
go late '90s?
Yeah.
[upbeat music playing]
[Dave] You know what?
I'm gonna guess
it's probably '96.
That was the first year
they come out with the LS.
-Oh.
-[Kevin] There it is.
That Wilson Manifold
is not a cheap manifold.
[Dave] No.
That's a full billet,
-yeah.
-[Kevin] That's an expensive
piece.
It's got an Art Morrison.
It does look like
an early Morrison.
It's all right.
It's a Morrison.
What transmission's in this?
It looks like it
has a 6-speed manual.
-It's a manual?
-Mmm-hmm.
[Dave] Okay.
This '57 reminds me
of a couple of trips
in a time machine.
One goes back to the '50s,
the other one goes
to the early '90s
when it was customized.
What kind of junk we got
in the trunk?
Oh.
Red and white.
This looks like Santa Claus.
[Kevin] Again,
it's kind of older stuff.
You can tell by the carpet.
[Dave] She just got a lot
of really dated stuff on her.
Totally. Look at that.
That's a backup camera.
-[Kevin] Cut into the bumper.
-[Dave] That's rad.
We're gonna have to get
rid of that though.
[Kevin] Yeah.
Santa needs new sleigh.
h*, h*, h*. h*, h*, h*, h*.
[laughter]
[Dave] Whoa.
There's some old-school
stuff going on in here.
[Kevin] Hey, I already called
dibs on that steering wheel.
[Dave]
I get the floor mats done.
-[Kevin] Oh, heck yeah, dude.
-[laughs]
When Bill Smith sent
this car to us,
he made it very clear
what he wanted,
and that was the car to not be
trendy or too in the now.
We want it very classic.
And that means that he sent
it to the right shop.
[Kevin] It's got the older
Dakota Digital gauges.
It's got a TV
not only in the dash
but it also has one
in the console
-for the people
in the backseat.
-[Dave] Oh, nice.
[Kevin] I don't know
where it's been sitting
but it's pretty water-spotted
and pretty dirty.
-[Dave] Okay.
-I don't know
if it's been in a barn.
[Dave] Well, I think
it's a cool car.
Obviously, it's a little
bit on the dated side.
Let's straighten out
all the body panels.
-[Kevin] Okay.
-[Dave] All-new upholstery.
Let's bring it
into the generation
-that we're in now.
-[Kevin] What do we call this
then?
Clean up on aisle 57?
-This is--
-Can we call this
Heinz 57 Sauce?
See how I'm starting
names right now?
I always feel like
I get passed up on names.
-[Dave] Well, you know what?
-Red Hot 57.
That's a pretty good one.
-Oh, yeah.
-[Dave] Yeah.
What color are we painting it?
Red?
[Dave] Honestly, I don't know.
I probably ought
to get on the phone
and ask Bill
what he'd like to do with it.
Well, as soon as you find out
though, let me know
so I can start coming up
with names.
-I think that's a great idea.
-[Kevin] Sweet
[laughs]
[upbeat music playing]
Just getting everything
stripped down
so we can pull this
engine out.
One thing is for sure,
before we can get a game
plan together
on this entire build,
we know we're changing
that engine,
that means this one
is going out.
[Justin] And this one's not
a bad platform to start.
It's a little dated but...
it's got a lot of decent
parts on it,
a lot of really nice stuff.
So the one we're going to,
way better.
Everything up here is undone.
[man] It's free.
It's free, Kenny.
[Kenny] Should be able
to slide it out, hopefully.
One piece with the trans
on there and everything, so...
That's the plan anyways.
We'll see if it works
out here.
[man speaking]
Well, if it works,
it was mine,
but if it don't work,
it was Justin's idea.
But we're gonna work with him.
[suspenseful music playing]
[Kenny] All right.
Let's try to walk it out.
That starter catching
on the motor mount?
[Kenny] Yeah,
but you can go up.
Okay.
Now, walk it out a little.
Oh.
Watch that grille.
Still doing good here.
Let's pull it out
a little more.
Getting a little close
to the hood but...
So it just about touches
the latch in there.
Swing it to that... Hold on.
Kind of go your way with it
a little bit, Kenny,
that way, we can clear
the latch when it comes out.
There we go.
Come forward.
[Kenny] Up. Up.
[Justin] Stuck in the crack.
[Kenny] Success.
Engine's out.
[Dave] The trick here
is taking the LS out
and putting this massive
Mercury Racing SB4 in.
This is gonna take up
a lot more real estate.
We're gonna have
some moving to do.
My only concern
would probably be
firewall clearance.
[Kenny] I got a feeling
we'll make it work.
Top end-wise,
the heads are bigger,
-the intake's
a little different.
-I got some body hammers.
I mean, I think
we're gonna need a big hammer.
[upbeat music playing]
Now that we've
had this car here
and we've had a chance
to walk around the car,
I've got a lot of great ideas,
but now it's time
to check in with Bill
and find out if he has a list
so we can mesh them together.
How are you, Bill?
Doing great, Dave.
[Dave] We got your 1957
Chevy Bel Air hardtop here.
And kind of a blast
from the past, buddy.
How long have you had the car?
I literally just bought
the car
and I hadn't even driven
the car yet, you know?
If I'm gonna do
something to this car,
I wanna send it to the best,
and so I just had them
ship it straight out to you
and say,
"Let's go from there.
Let's create something
really special."
That's awesome.
It's at the right hospital.
And here at
Kindig Academy Hospital,
we care about our patients.
-And we'll take
good care of her.
-Yeah.
[laughter]
Do you have kind of an idea
of what you wanna do
with the car?
The car has a little bit
of a sentimental value.
The gentleman
that I bought it from...
Well, I actually bought it
from his wife.
Was a mentor of mine
at Clemson University.
We served on the board
of trustees together.
So I have a...
Probably some quirky Clemson
things I'd like to...
You to take a look at
or consider doing
on the car as far as...
You know, Clemson's colors
are purple and orange.
And you'll probably go,
"Well, how are you
gonna fit that into the car?"
Well, you read my mind.
[laughs]
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So I was thinking maybe,
you know,
the exterior
being a really dark
sort of eggplant-type purple.
And I've seen some things
you've done in the past
that's got an orange
interior.
I'd be interested
in your thoughts on that.
If you have a minute,
I'm gonna hurry
and call my therapist
really quick
because this purple on orange
thing is--
-[laughter]
-I'm kidding you.
But I think that there's a way
if we were to try
and come up with something
that's not quirky.
You know, there's one thing
that you said
that makes a car
and that's the stance,
the sound, and the color.
Correct.
And I wanna keep the classic
look of the '57
but I wanna spice it up.
I like the big tires
on the back.
Now, I love horsepower.
-I like horses under
the hood.
-[Dave] Okay.
I really like the fact
that he wants some horsepower,
but I've already
taken the initiative.
I've already unloaded the old
and I hope he likes the new.
It's a Mercury Racing SB4.
It's a four-cam
twin throttle body
This will spin
at like 8,200 RPMs.
And if you keep
your foot out of it,
you'll probably
get 30 miles to the gallon.
-It's just a crazy motor.
-Oh, that's great.
-It's cool.
And it looks so cool.
-Yeah. That's great.
That'd be great. I mean,
they don't really have
a blank canvas for you
to kind of
use your creative juices.
On the interior right now,
it has a bench seat.
Do you want
me to maybe go back
to the drawing board
a little bit?
Maybe cleaner center console,
bucket seats might be
a little bit more updated,
and a little bit more
of that sporty feel?
Let's take a look at that
as well.
I'm really jazzed
about what this thing can be,
and working with you on it
and coming up with some cool
ideas and...
This will be a very special
car for me and all my family.
I would love to put
a rendering together
for you based
on some of these ideas.
I'll put a couple of samples
of leather together for you
and a couple spray-out samples
and we'll just go from there.
That'd be great.
That's fantastic.
I'm looking forward
to building this car
with you, Bill.
This is gonna be awesome.
-Go Clemson.
-Yeah. Go Clemson.
[laughs] Don't tell
anybody that you...
You know, I said that
'cause I gotta kind...
Oh, I won't. I won't.
I appreciate that.
-[laughs]
-[Bill] Thanks, bud.
[upbeat music playing]
That's a lot of sheet metal
for just one fender.
-You know that?
-Yeah.
Okay. So we've gotten multiple
tape measures out now
and we've measured
multiple times,
which means
that we are correct
when we think
that it's gonna take up
a lot more room
than we thought.
We're gonna have
to move some metal.
Right here where
the yellow tape is,
the head on that would
actually rub right there.
So cut out the firewall.
Let's make a wider area for it
so that the SB4
can actually fit in there
without any interference.
We're ditching the old-school
vintage air stuff
and putting some more updated
equipment in there.
It's a little smaller,
a little more condensed,
-easier to work with.
-Garbage.
Twenty years ago,
this car was awesome.
I think it is still.
I mean, you're a little
simple, so--
Now I'm simple.
[upbeat music playing]
From what I've seen,
it was pretty top-tier car.
I mean, I'm just looking at
what they did with all
the upholstery and everything.
In 1957, originally,
this car was the king
of the road.
In the 1990s,
well, it might have been
the king of the road again.
Could definitely use
a little bit of a refresh
on the interior.
To bring it back to the status
of king of the road,
we're gonna have
to do the entire car.
Cut it out.
When in doubt, cut it out.
When in doubt...
cut it out.
[upbeat music playing]
I didn't think
I'd be wrestling carpet today.
I'm getting my workout
in for the day.
Definitely.
There we go.
[machine whirring]
Now that the car
is thoroughly gutted,
it's time to get this
firewall out of the way
so we can make some room
for the new engine.
I am gonna set the engine
and transmission in this thing
and we'll see
if we have any room.
Kind of doubt it
but we're gonna find out.
Will do.
I was gonna get it
kind of close.
I still gotta bump
that motor mount.
It's probably right there.
It's fine.
It's still early
but it looks like
this engine is gonna fit.
It's super big
and we're gonna have
to make some
sizable adjustments.
That quarter supports lands
straight up on top of this.
Straight up.
So we kind of got room
there just fine.
But, to me,
the biggest thing is like
let's get the angle kind of
pinned down a little better.
We got three and a half
back here.
So that's sitting on
the trans mount, right?
Yeah. And we got a ton of room
once we come down.
Now we're like...
Try again.
A little leveling device
makes it
so we just dial it right in.
The whole trick
with the angles on the engine
and transmission combo
is it has to work
with the rear axle.
Pretty straightforward setup
but pretty important too.
We'll try to get it
as spot on as possible.
That's super comfortable
there.
So what I would say is
let's get the radiator in.
Awesome.
[whirring]
Right here.
[Eric speaking]
We got the engine to fit.
This radiator though,
I don't know.
[Eric speaking]
No.
Hmm.
Unfortunately,
unlike the engine,
this radiator
is nowhere close.
It just isn't gonna fit.
[Will] Oh.
Are you kidding me, man?
[machine whirring]
We got this big old radiator
to keep this
big old engine cool,
and it just isn't gonna fit
as snug as I want it to.
So I basically gotta
just dissect this thing,
extend a couple pieces out
so the fans can sit back
as far as possible,
make a little room, I hope.
[upbeat music playing]
When it's all said and done,
this build is gonna be
awesome.
It's actually gonna be
the talk of Bill's town.
We just gotta get there
and it's gonna take
a little bit of work.
-[upbeat music playing]
-[machine whirring]
[hammer pounding]
[Eric] Just widening
it up a little bit.
I gonna notch out
for these water pipes here.
[machine whirring]
[Eric] I think that'll work.
This is gonna be
the ticket right here.
[upbeat music playing]
[Dave] Much like
any other kind of creation,
when you're putting kind of
a theme together,
you gotta start somewhere.
And this is where we happen
to be starting now.
It's a very specific theme
and that is that he loves
Clemson.
And so we are going to
give him
what he's asking for.
We're gonna make sure
that we include our thoughts
and the process
of building a car
and what will look great
to everybody, including him.
And it won't look kitschy
or weird
or anything like that.
So what I'm doing here
is just simply getting
purple on the car.
And as you'll
see in a second here,
we're gonna get some
orange in the interior,
and then we're gonna
start stylizing it.
Now, what I'm doing
is I'm going in
and I'm adding
that ultra-dark color.
But with the purple
undertones,
this will allow me to do
any shine-through marks.
We'll have that highlight
of purple.
It's funny
is when people think
that you're going to do
something
that's not going to look good
and then you get it done
and you go,
"Well, come on, guys.
You just have to have
a little bit of faith
in old Uncle Dave."
I'm actually kind of digging
this Clemson vehicle.
It's a great theme.
Darker purple, almost black
with that basketball orange
interior
says Clemson
to me all day long.
[upbeat music playing]
[machine whirring]
Had to clean off
the old engine mounts.
They just weren't gonna jive
with our setup
and where we needed the motor.
So we're gonna fab
some fresh ones up.
I'm trying to make
a little cardboard template
to see if I can grab a hold
of this engine mount
in a good fashion.
I think it's gonna work.
I think that is about it.
Go ahead and weld those up.
We'll pop 'em on.
Now, it's time to create
a new firewall
to go around
this massive engine.
[Will speaking]
Where would we widen it
that would be the smartest?
Would we go right down
the center?
I think so.
Then cut it that way.
[Eric] Okay.
I'll get it set in there.
-[upbeat music playing]
-[machine whirring]
This engine is so enormous,
we're gonna have to customize
our custom firewall
just to make it fit.
[hammer pounding]
I got this firewall modified
and fitting around
that big old engine.
We're gonna get it
tacked in here
and then make sure
I'm happy with it.
Fully weld it
and finish it out.
Be done with it.
[upbeat music playing]
The firewall's done,
the tunnel's done,
and the engine mounts
are done.
So I got the engine
put back in here.
Happy with it.
I'm just gonna stamp out
a couple of little reliefs
to pocket around
the reservoirs
and the radiator cap here.
So I'm gonna go ahead
and start with that
and then we'll trim them in.
So let's go put some things
in the press.
The fun part.
Just like that.
[upbeat music playing]
Probably gonna hit it
all the way up
to 10,000 pounds.
Into the red.
That's it.
Bam. Bam. Perfect piece.
I know that my reservoirs
are kind of towards
the edge of the engine bay,
so I'm hoping
I have enough room.
So we try to put nice
round corners
on just about everything
we're splicing
into a flat sheet.
[sighs]
My leg's all sore now
for doing the stair-stepper.
-[upbeat music playing]
-[machine whirring]
[Eric] So you can see
how close these ones
are gonna be.
They might overlap
a little bit.
We'll just make like a little
Siamese amoeba on this guy.
Five and a quarter from three,
so we need an inch
and an eighth on each tip.
[machine whirring]
I think I better be smart
about this
and just do one at a time,
that way, this panel
doesn't get away from you.
[upbeat music playing]
[machine whirring]
There it is. There's one.
[upbeat music playing]
I've got the top portion
of this radiator
cover buttoned up.
Got all the recesses
in for the overflows
and the cap for the radiator.
So far, so good.
Really happy with it.
[upbeat music playing]
To get this massive engine
to fit this engine bay,
we had to move the firewall
back and move the radiator
forward to give us
a little bit more room
around the accessory drive.
Happy with it.
[Dave]
The upholstery and wiring
have also been removed
from the car
for good reason.
It's a cool car.
Obviously, it's a little
bit on the dated side.
Look at that.
That's a backup camera.
-[Kevin] Cut into the bumper.
-[Dave] That's rad.
We're gonna have to get
rid of that though.
Yeah.
[man] Twenty years ago,
this car was awesome.
And there you have it,
out with the aged
and in with the ageless.
That's our guy.
The top portion
of the radiator cover
is looking beautiful
and is dialed in.
Now all's we got left is,
well, everything else.
This is gonna be the opening
for the radiator here.
And then this is gonna be
the sides
that kind of roll back
into the fenders there.
Gonna draw it out first
and then we'll confirm
it all fits.
We want everything
to have a little bit
of a radius to it.
Gonna go ahead
and cut it into here.
And then this
piece, I'll put a little
bead roll on it.
How thin can we get it
without it breaking off?
[upbeat music playing]
[Eric] So I'm tipping this
edge over at a 45,
and it's gonna meet up
with the other 45
to make a 90
and that's where
I'll weld it together
is right in between
these two.
Let's see if I can massage
those lines out a little bit.
Let's go see where we're at.
It's probably close enough
to start welding it together.
You can see
how it's gonna make a nice
full radius in here.
Looks like it is all
welded together.
See if I can get a good enough
tack on here to start with.
Trick is getting a nice hot
tack on there
that you know
is gonna stay real well.
You notice I'm doing this
without any filler at all.
It's just a fusion weld
so you can kind of pry on it
if you need to.
And fitment is key on this.
No gap at all.
That way you don't burn
through.
Now, I've got it all
tacked together.
You can see it kept a nice
soft edge like
trying to keep that
number seven sweep
this way, this way,
every which way
just so it's a little bit zen
or whatever, you know.
Now, I'm gonna go through it
and just kind of hammer
these tacks,
and get this all trued up,
and then we'll come through
a nice weld
across the whole thing.
Let's weld.
[machine whirring]
[Eric] We're gonna see
if this thing fits.
I haven't really checked yet,
so.
-Hey, it clipped in.
-[Will] Yeah.
-Should we see
if this thing closes?
-Yeah.
I know. I'm a little
nervous with that too.
You think?
This should be fine?
I don't see any marks.
That's not. That's not.
Um, if this hood won't close,
we're gonna have
major problems.
Is that...
What is that?
[birds chirping]
[suspense music playing]
[thuds]
The new core support
cover and radiator cover
is looking beautiful,
but we've run into
a little bit
of an issue with the latch.
Now, if we can't make
this thing latch,
it's back to the drawing
board.
Let's see.
Oh. [laughs]
Could be my light smashing
into the freaking...
Yeah, it was just my light
Right on.
This dog will hunt.
Yeah.
[Eric]
Whipping this thing out.
[upbeat music playing]
[machine whirring]
Got this radiator cover
mapped out.
We're gonna cut the hole
for it.
Like that when they just pop
right on.
Overall, I think
it looks pretty decent.
Let me see if I can find Will
and we'll go from there.
I'm going ahead
and making a little frame
for this so we can make
a doubler.
-[Will] Yeah.
-[Eric] And I was gonna pluck
some holes in it,
cut some of these,
put some studs
so we have something to mount
that grille to.
-Perfect.
-I want to kind of
get with you and see
what grille we're using.
Structurally, this radiator
cover's all there.
Now we just wanna throw
some style to it.
The trick is we kind of need
to decide like
how bold do we want it,
you know, you can see
the difference.
And I know we're gonna
paint 'em both black.
I like how strong that is.
But this will just go away
a lot more.
Once you get your perimeter
on there,
we'll throw it behind there.
Maybe we'll throw it
in the car,
kind of get a,
-you know, some concept.
-[Eric] Yeah.
-See what we like?
-[Will] Yeah.
With these cars,
trial and error
is just the way it goes.
Well, let's get some material
and I'll get this on.
And when I get it in,
I'll come grab you
and we can see
if we wanna embox it and...
-[Will] Yeah, figure out
whatever trim details.
-kind of trim it out?
-[Will] Okay, cool.
-Right on.
[upbeat music playing]
At last, the front
of the car's looking bitchin'.
Now, it's to catch
the rest of the car up
before it goes the body.
[Eric speaking]
Got it.
To get the new wheel fitment
to work,
we're gonna have
to do some serious surgery
on those back tubs.
Front bumper fitment
and the rockers
were not perfect before
but they are now, baby.
They're tight and right.
I'm happy with this so far.
I'm gonna go ahead
and finish up
a couple of odds and ends
and then work my way down.
[Dave] Speaking
of tight and right,
the gap on the doors, trunk,
and hood are looking spot on.
[Eric]
I'm really happy with it.
[upbeat music playing]
It's pretty much
a known universal fact
that the trim for a '57 Chevy
has to be used,
because there's
so much of it.
Our friends at Ogden Chrome
are gonna make sure
that all of the bright work
on this car comes out
perfect.
[Kevin] What's up, buddy?
-[Jose] How's it going, man?
-Long-time no see, right?
-It's been a while.
-I know, I know.
-So I was in the area.
-Okay.
I know you have the bumpers
for the '57
that we're finishing up,
and I was just checking,
I mean,
how do the bumpers look?
-They're in pretty good shape.
-Mmm-hmm.
I'm glad you went with OEM.
The metal of the gauge
of the OEM's a lot thicker
-than the aftermarket stuff...
-Okay. Okay.
so we have a lot more
metal to work with.
It's just so important
that all the bright work
on any car, but especially
these Tri-Fives,
-they have so much.
-Right.
And if it's not right,
it just ruins the whole thing.
You might as well
put a set of non-shiny
wheels on the car.
A lot of people think that
these bumpers are just
"throw 'em in a tank"
or "clean 'em really quick
and they come out shiny,"
but...
that's wrong, right?
-Definitely.
-I mean, there's like what,
like, 100 steps, if not more?
About. Yeah.
It's a massive process.
It's a ton of work.
I'm so glad that I just
have to pick up
the finished product.
I mean,
are they ready to pick up?
How are they coming?
They're not but it's funny
that you mentioned prep work.
I do need some help,
so I'm glad you came in today.
-What? What do you mean?
-You guys always need 'em
quicker, so here you go.
Have at it.
I wasn't planning
on working here today,
but what the heck?
I'll make the best of it.
A hard day's work
never hurt anybody.
Look at all this.
I gotta have to roll around
in the dirt with this stuff.
Well, let's get suited
and let's get you dirty.
-Let's do it. I'm game.
-Let's go, man.
[birds chirping]
[upbeat music playing]
[Jose] So I'll have you start
grinding on this bumper.
What we're gonna do here
is we're gonna try
to eliminate
all the hammer marks
we've created
from straightening the bumper.
I came to Ogden Chrome
today to pick up
the bumpers for the '57
Bel Air,
but instead these guys
are putting me to work.
[Jose] This is the thickest
grit that we do
-which is 50 grit.
-So 50 grits.
So you're really
ripping material off.
-Right.
-You gotta be very careful.
You can dig a hole in this
bumper very quickly
if you don't have,
like, a smooth
-kind of technique on here.
-Right.
So let me grab a grinder then.
So you guys use
the big grinders?
-Yes, sir. Yeah.
-Wall grinders?
And then what does this
whole stand that holds this?
[Jose] It holds it so that
the bumper's not shifting
on you, right?
[Kevin] Well, I'm gonna
give her a shot.
If you see me make a mistake,
please stop me.
Nope, go ahead.
[grinder whirring]
[dramatic music playing]
[Kevin]
I gotta be honest here.
This is a little
nerve-racking.
I fully intend to make
it look perfect,
but there's a lot
that could go wrong.
I could even be hurt.
Jose wasn't messing
around when he said
he was putting me to work.
[Jose] So now that
we're done grinding it,
we're gonna go into
the polishing department.
We're gonna do about the other
-Okay.
-So go ahead
and push that forward.
-It'll release
it and let's go.
-[Kevin] Okay.
So the next step is...
So this is the 120 grit belt.
What it's gonna do is try
to get rid of all the...
-[Kevin]
The 50 grit scratches, right?
-[Jose] Right. Exactly.
This one
is also critical, too,
'cause you have
to do a certain way,
'cause otherwise
it'll start bouncing on you
and you're gonna start
chopping it.
That's just like having
a hand grinder
and, like, bouncing it...
-[Jose] Exactly. Exactly.
-on the thing
or else
you're gonna dig a hole.
-Exactly.
-Now, I'm gonna just
let you know that,
like, this machine
is a tiny bit intimidating.
I mean, I've gotten,
like, brake lines
and things, like,
wound up in a buffer.
I mean, this is no joke.
Like, this won't
stop no matter what.
There's no safety to it.
So you have to be
very careful.
You know, even me,
I won't do these machines
'cause they're too dangerous.
So he's too scared
to run the machine himself.
But he's okay if I run it?
I don't know how
that makes me feel.
Looks like I got a nice
little flat piece here.
I mean, I can only imagine
having something
-that's funky shaped and...
-Yeah.
having this thing get
a hold of it.
Whoo!
This is definitely no joke.
[Jose] Yup.
-You ready?
-[Kevin] All right,
let's do this.
[Jose] Here we go.
[grinder whirring]
Oh, that's a workout, bro.
No wonder
you got big arms, dude.
These are probably
deeper scratches
-from the 50 grit, right?
-[Jose] Yup.
-That I still need to work?
-Exactly. Yup.
Also another thing we need
to do is the edges.
You have to hit it
on the edges.
Every little thing
counts on a show car.
Because I've seen judges
where they run their hands
along the edge of the bumper.
So we're gonna do
is we're also gonna clean
the edge to make sure
that when you touch the back,
-it's smooth as the face.
-Okay.
[Jose] I don't want
Dave calling me saying
I cut myself.
[laughs]
-It'll probably be me, bro.
-Oh yeah, that's right.
And then we should be able
to go to the next process.
-Yeah?
-Okay. Sounds good.
This is what we call
a dry fine wheel.
-Okay.
-So this is a 220 grit.
[Kevin] It almost looks
like a polishing wheel.
It does. And, you know,
these are some of the wheels
that we make here
in the house.
-[Kevin] Oh, you make this?
-[Jose] Exactly. Yup.
Put the glue, we put
the grit of sand that we have.
Oh really? So you glue
all the wheels together,
then you basically
coat it with sand?
-[Jose] Exactly.
-[Kevin] Wow.
-Exactly.
-This really takes like a...
Just an amazing craftsman.
Oh, 100%. And there's only
one guy that's gonna
be able to do this
kind of stuff, so...
Well, there's two now.
I'm just kidding.
[Jose] Well, I'll ask
my guys when you leave.
-Please don't.
-All right, man.
-You ready?
-Yeah, I'm ready.
Let's get it.
[upbeat music playing]
[grinder whirring]
[Kevin] I know that the work
that Ogden Chrome
does takes a ton of skill,
but I never actually
realized how much
work goes into it.
Whew. I'm sweating.
I didn't know I was gonna
work this hard today.
I always had respect for you,
but I have
way more respect for you now.
And then the blocking
process.
[Jose] I actually have
the front bumper
to the '57, the front end.
-Okay.
-And we can go ahead
and start blocking
on that one so you have
an idea of what we're
dealing with
when we're
blocking the copper.
[Kevin] Let's do it.
It's so weird...
to block just raw steel.
-Usually it's like a filler
of some kind.
-[Jose] Yeah.
To be honest, I don't think
I've ever blocked copper.
[Jose] Copper is what makes
it have that deep mirror
that you're looking
for on a show car.
You see it looks
pretty smooth now.
-[Kevin] Right.
-[Jose] You got rid
of all the waves there.
So now, what we're
gonna do is gonna go
into the buff machine.
[Kevin] And basically take
these scratches out, right?
Exactly. Yeah.
Now, you said that machine
over there was intimidating.
[Kevin] Yeah.
This is a lot more
intimidating.
You have to have a lot
of respect for these machines.
This machine is going
about 60,000 RPM.
[Kevin] So if it
catches it wrong,
they will rip your arm
completely off
and not even stop
and not even care.
Exactly, yup.
It'll keep going.
I just wanna point out,
I care so much
on how these bumpers turn out.
I'm willing
to get my hands dirty.
Copper's such a soft metal
that once it starts
getting warmer,
the copper will start
actually getting...
-Flow out?
-you can move it. Yeah.
-Oh, really?
-So let's say you have
a little pit here.
You can grab the copper here,
buff it with the buff machine,
and it'll bend it.
-[Kevin]
It'll kind move the...
-Exactly.
-Wow.
-Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sounds like you know
what you're doing.
So let's hit it.
[Kevin] Okay. I'll...
Gotta make it real dude.
[slow upbeat music playing]
[Kevin] So basically,
you have to get this
all shined back up.
So you're gonna
work this until
-all the scratch is gone?
-Exactly. Yup.
That's what we're keeping.
I think I'm gonna
sleep well tonight.
Everything's
feeling a little sore.
I think I've used some
muscles I haven't used
in a while.
I'm gonna leave the rest
of this to the professionals.
I know that this is my bumper
and I don't want it
screwed up.
So, uh, I guess that's
pretty much all from here.
So my day's done then, right?
-Oh, no.
-What do you mean?
We still have plating.
This is not done yet.
We have to go nickel
and then we have to go chrome.
-So let's go plate a part.
-[Kevin] All right.
-[Jose] I'll show you
how to do that.
-Let's do it.
[dramatic music playing]
[Kevin] The part is in here.
What is this tank?
[Jose] This is a alkaline
soap tank.
So what this tank's
gonna do is gonna get rid
of any greases,
all the compounds off.
[Kevin] This is like the wax
and grease step?
-[Jose] Exactly. Yup.
-[Kevin] You're removing
all the impurities
from the surface.
Fingerprints, all that stuff.
This is our part.
And then what...
Do you just scrub it down?
Right. So if you
wanna grab that hook.
Okay.
-So you soak--
-So then you just scrub it
down, make sure...
-Yup, yup.
-there's nothing left on it?
[Jose] Exactly. Yup.
It's like washing
dishes with chemicals.
[Kevin] Hey, I'm really
good at washing dishes.
Compared to polishing wheels,
this is a cake walk.
And on top of that,
I don't think I can
do anything wrong here.
[Jose] Grab this sponge.
This is kind of
a quick touch over
to make sure we got rid
of everything,
because all the work
that we've done
-in the first steps...
-[Kevin] Mmm-hmm.
if we leave any compound here,
-it'll--
-It's all for naught?
-Exactly. Yup.
-[Kevin] So does this go back
in there, get rinsed off or...
[Jose] Nope.
So you're good to go .
So now, you're gonna go into
that electrical tank.
And then this tank
is a negative
to positive tank.
So what you're gonna do is
you're gonna put it in here.
[Kevin] Just set it...
Hook it on the thing?
[Jose] Yes, sir. Yup.
And as soon as you make
contact,
-go to the...
-[Kevin] Oh.
[Jose] Oh. Never mind.
-Pause.
-[Jose] Sorry.
Juan, Joe...
[in Spanish]
[Kevin] Yeah,
I dropped it in there.
[Jose speaking]
[Jose in Spanish]
-[man in Spanish]
-[Jose] Yeah, yeah.
[Kevin] Sorry.
[suspenseful music playing]
[birds chirping]
[suspenseful music playing]
[Kevin] I may or may
have not dropped the part
into the bath.
I don't necessarily
think it's a huge deal.
So you have to watch the etch
'cause it's charged?
[Jose] Yeah,
the whole tank is charged.
'Cause when you're plating,
you're doing
a negative to positive.
Right?
You're charging the part.
That's when you're
doing the opposite.
[speaking Spanish]
[Jose] Yeah, it's good.
[Kevin]
My hands are all wet, dude.
-[Jose] Here.
-[Kevin] Crisis averted.
Part's fine. Everybody relax.
I just got a little scared.
[Jose] Right,
so you're gonna go into
the electrical cleaner.
So this is
a electric-charged tank.
-[crackles]
-[Kevin] Whoa.
I guess, dude.
That's kind of scared me.
-Yeah. So if you look here.
-Oh, wow.
It's already activating. Yup.
So we go in here
about 30 seconds
-to a minute, depending...
-Okay.
-on what--
-Well, that's crazy.
[Jose] Yeah.
This is basically electricity
scrubbing the part.
-[Kevin] Okay.
-[Jose] So now we're ready
to go.
-[Kevin] Okay.
-[Jose] Let's lift it up
and I'll help you rinse it.
So you hold it
and I'll rinse it.
[Kevin] Okay.
So you just rinse all
the solution off?
[Jose] Right, 'cause we don't
wanna have a lot of drag
going from tank to tank.
[Kevin] That makes sense.
You wanna make...
-[Jose] Right.
-[Kevin] sure everything's
clean.
[Jose] So then you're gonna
go in that tank.
[Kevin] And which
tank is this?
[Jose]
This is neutralized pH water.
[Kevin] Okay.
I'll just hold it?
[Jose] And just rinse
this in there, yup.
And you pull it out.
You're gonna skip this one.
You're gonna go to the third
one over there.
-[Kevin] Okay.
-[Jose] It's another rinse.
[Kevin] It's so important
because of all
the work you've done.
[Jose] Exactly.
If you miss any dirt,
it's like painting over it.
[Jose] Exactly.
So then we're gonna go up
to that tank right there
that looks blue.
[Kevin] Oh yeah. It looks like
I could swim in here.
-[Jose] Yeah.
-[Kevin] What is this?
[Jose]
This is sulfuric acid etch.
[Kevin] Oh, I don't wanna
swim in that.
[Jose] No, no, you don't
wanna swim on that.
And what it's doing,
it's gonna etch so that
the nickel's gonna
bond to the copper.
[Kevin] This is like
an adhesive promoter.
[Jose] Exactly.
And then we'll go
into the nickel.
All of that was just to prep
the copper for nickel.
There is just step
after step after step.
This process is super cool.
Into the nickel.
We're all clean.
This is the second step
of the cleaning process?
[Jose] Exactly.
So now, we're gonna
go to the nickel
and then you'll hear it
make the contact.
So right there
the part is activated. Right?
-[Kevin] Right.
-[Jose] So if you pull it out,
-you see the different finish?
-[Kevin] Oh, wow.
[Jose] Now, nickel
has a yellowish tint, right?
-Right. Right.
-So now, we're gonna go
into the rinse tank.
-So you go in here.
-[Kevin] So this is
a nickel rinse?
[Jose] Yup.
[Kevin] Okay.
[Jose] And then let's go
to the next one.
You go in here
and then we're gonna go
into the pre chrome bath.
So this is another thing
to make sure it adheres?
[Jose] Exactly. Yup.
[Kevin] Oh, look how smooth
that is, too.
Ah, you guys k*ll it.
[Jose]
This is chromic acid etch.
In case it has any
brighteners from the nickel.
-It'll k*ll 'em here.
-[Kevin] Oh, okay.
[Jose] You pull it out
of there and you go straight
into here.
[Kevin]
That's the chrome tank?
[Jose] Yup.
This is the chrome tank.
[Kevin] And then it's just
gonna be a charge on this one
-and keep it
on the etch, right?
-[Jose] Yup.
So you're gonna go in there,
you're gonna set it.
-[Kevin] Okay.
-[Jose] So now you're good.
The tank is not activated yet.
So the chrome is the only one
that doesn't stay activated.
It only activates
when you tell it to.
-Okay.
-So this is our control panel.
-Okay.
-So you're looking at volts
and we're looking
at our amperage.
So what I'm gonna have you do
is I want you to go
to eight volt on this one.
'Cause it needs to be highly
charged, all right?
-So you... Exactly. Yup.
-To get into
those tight spots?
You'll hit the green button
and this is your dial.
-Just turn it on to eight?
-Just tune it on to eight.
-Yup.
-[Kevin] Okay.
So here we go.
We're gonna chrome parts.
[upbeat music playing]
[Jose] All right.
We leave it there for a bit.
[Kevin] Wow. Look at it.
[Jose] The part is charged.
So now the chrome
is plating on it.
We go in the chrome tank
for about two minutes.
That's all it takes
for chrome, right?
Because chrome is just a clear
coat that goes over there.
Exactly. Chrome
is the final layer, right?
-[Jose] Exactly. Yup.
-[Kevin] That makes sense.
[Jose] Once the part
is plated,
we're gonna rinse it
and then we're gonna inspect
it, make sure it's good.
Let's say we find
something wrong with it.
-Gotta go back.
-All the way to the...
-Exactly.
-back of the line.
Exactly. So now it's been
there about two minutes.
So let's go ahead
and hit it off.
-Okay.
-Perfect.
-We turn the dial down?
-Dial down,
and then
we're gonna lift it up.
Okay.
Ah bro.
[Jose] Now, you're gonna go
right into that one.
-[Kevin] This one right here?
-[Jose] Yup.
Let me squeeze over to you.
Okay. Let's pull it out.
And there's chrome.
[Kevin] Wow.
So basically
took the yellow away.
[Jose] Right.
You see that different color?
-[Kevin] Totally.
-So now we're gonna go
take it down there
-and let's see what we did.
-Okay.
This process is insane.
Oh, look at that.
-You can look at yourself.
-Yup, totally.
[Jose] See? So that's
what we're looking for.
-Now, we're gonna
clean it off.
-Okay.
[Jose] Let's see if we have
any imperfections
in the actual part.
-[Kevin] Okay.
-So what we're
looking for is...
one, if the guys
missed any pits.
Two, we're gonna be looking
for any orange peel.
We want it to have
that mirror finish.
So just kind of give
it a rub with this?
Exactly. Now, let's go ahead
and wipe it with this one.
[suspenseful music playing]
I think it looks good, man.
I think we're good to go.
I think you are, too.
That looks great.
-That's ready
to go to you guys?
-Nice and smooth, it's...
-[Jose] Yup.
-[Kevin] money.
[Jose]
Now, had it had a flaw here,
let's say it had a pit or they
missed something small,
my QA lady,
she's gonna reject it to them.
She's gonna highlight
to them, say,
"Hey, you missed a spot here."
-You guys gotta redo it again.
-So she's like the person
-that nobody likes in this?
-Exactly.
-She's a Kevin. So--
-[laughter]
I didn't appreciate you
saying it that way,
-but I understand, man.
-[Jose] Okay.
No kits, no orange peel,
every blemish buffed out.
Just the amount of work
that goes into one part.
I'm gonna actually think twice
or maybe even three times
before I call
and bother you anymore.
-Right.
-I'm exhausted.
I'm ready to get these
parts back to the shop
and not go to work
tomorrow at Ogden Chrome.
Now, I can charge you more.
Okay. You... Maybe.
We'll talk about...
Let's talk about it.
Let me take you to lunch
-or something.
-All right,
let's go. Let's go.
[notification beeps]
Hey, good morning, Bill.
How are you?
Doing great, Dave.
How about yourself?
[Dave]
Doing wonderful, thank you.
The time is now to find
out if Bill, the biggest
Clemson guy we've
ever met at the shop,
is happy with this
Clemson-themed '57 Bel Air.
You got the samples,
you got the rendering.
What'd you think?
Well, I did get the rendering
and you certainly did
just what I asked,
purple and orange.
And, you know,
I've been a Clemson man.
I love those colors.
But, uh,
I think this was probably
just a little too much.
[dramatic music playing]
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10x19 - The Bitchin' Bel Air
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Reality show featuring Dave Kindig from the Salt Lake City, Utah-based company Kindig It Designs as they show their process of restoring and rebuilding vehicles.
Reality show featuring Dave Kindig from the Salt Lake City, Utah-based company Kindig It Designs as they show their process of restoring and rebuilding vehicles.