On Fire – John Melvin’s True Flamed 2005 Chevrolet Silverado

The name John Melvin may not quite be a household name, but that depends a little bit on what kind of circles you run in. Performance junkies know that John is famous for building a killer Supercharged Silverado SS; one that set records just a few years ago. But while he was building that black-and-silver supercharged terror, he also was working on this 2005 crew cab Chevrolet Silverado. This gave him a duo of amazing trucks, both featured here at MyRideisMe.com.

Let’s start with the crew cab, a truck that also isn’t a slouch in the performance world. When we first found it, the truck needed only an interior to get to the upper level. The taillights were shaved, the true-fire flames on the front were painted, and from the outside, the truck was complete.

At the time, John owned a crew cab dually, but he was losing interest in it, so he traded it off at the dealership for a crew cab 4X4. Now he had two crew cabs, and two different interior colors, so he decided to make the swap and give his orange one a little classier look. After he called to say his Katzkin kit was on order, a photo shoot was lined up and things seemed to be moving forward.

Before that shoot could happen, another call came. “Hey, I got a supercharger. I’m going to put it on and get it all handled, then we’ll shoot it.” Nothing is simple though for John. Instead of just slapping the Vortech supercharger in the truck, he went the extra mile and airbrushed all of the plastic pieces under the hood silver with a rusted rivet look to match the iron cross on the hood. Everywhere from the valve covers on up was painted by John at his shop, JM Custom Concepts in Laveen, Arizona. Then the whole kit, painted up and pretty, was expertly installed by Kevin and Scott at Bartling Motorsports in Queen Creek, Arizona.

It may have taken some time, but in the end, John put out yet another high quality ride. Since this truck was finished, he’s built quite a few in the meantime, and also painted a few other magazine-worthy rides as well. But if you think this truck is hot, make sure you check out John’s silver and black supercharge terror.

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Demented Dodge – A Frame Draggin’ Ram by Demented Customs

Everyone gets into the truck scene differently. Some inherit the interest from their father, some get sucked in by their friends, and others, like Tony Saenz of Andrews, Texas, got into it by going into a convenience store to grab a tasty beverage. It was on that fateful day 3 years ago that he first saw a yellow Dodge in the parking lot of said store that was painted with ghost flames. A short conversation later, Tony had the number to the painter of that truck, Jamie Torrez, the owner of Demented Customs in Hobbs, New Mexico.

Hobbs isn’t known for being a big town, but for a city with just over 31,000 people, there’s a surprising number of custom car and truck guys. One of those shops is Demented Customs, who have slowly been building a reputation for themselves as powerhouses in the industry. Over the past few years they’ve put quite a few customs out on the pages of various magazines, so when Tony decided to take his car to them, it turned out to be a very fortuitous decision.

The first thing that Tony wanted to do was lay the truck out on the concrete. The 2004 and newer Dodge Ram is notorious for camber issues when the truck is bagged, so to rectify that, the crew decided to raise the upper control arm mounts and minimize the problem. Out back, an Ekstensive Metalworks 2-link kit was bolted to the stock rear end and the frame was notched. Between the parts from Ekstensive and the air supplies from Lowrider Depot, they got the truck dragging frame on 22-inch Bonspeed Tsunamis with 265/35 Hankook tires.

That was it for a while, as Tony took his truck back to Andrews and drug it around town for a few months, destroying his rollpan in the process. Over the course of the next year the Dodge went through a lot of changes, including an act of nature that caused some wicked hail damage across the truck. Between damage to the pan and the massive craters dotting the hood and roof, it was time for a new paint job, so it was back to Jamie and the posse at Demented for some bodywork.

Thing was, Tony didn’t want to pay a small fortune for his paintjob, so he did some negotiating. For months he’d call Jamie and ask for a price, Jamie would give him the same price every time, and Tony would say he’d think about it. Finally, Jamie gave him an answer he could work with. “If you let me do whatever I want with it, then I’ll give you a deal.” A quick handshake later and the plan was set.

The crew gathered around and discussed the build. It was just 5 months until the 2008 SEMA show, and they wanted to get the truck at the event to showcase their skills. The truck needed everything minus the suspension work they had already performed, so they had a lot of work ahead of them.

First, the door handles were shaved and then the doors were outfitted with GT Factory lambo-style doors up front and suicide doors out back. The handles were shaved at the same time, as was the tailgate handle, gas door, and antenna. A new Sir Mike’s pan was installed to replace the beat up and drug old unit, and the license plate was relocated into the tailgate. Then the whole thing was blocked straight, primed, and blocked again until the truck was straight as an arrow and every gap lined up perfectly.

Jamie is a big fan of bright colors – they’re kind of his thing. He had been experimenting with some of PPG’s Vibrance line of colors, and he hit upon this Key Lime Green shade that he really wanted to try out. The wicked flake and eye-blinding shade of neon green would make for a great base, but now Tony wanted to add some flames, so Jamie decided to lay down a cool flame job from stem to stern which fades from a purplish blue to a royal blue pearl. The end result is an amazing color change that really sets off the truck. The cool details abound here as well, like the underside of the Cervini’s hood that sports matching graphics to the exterior, or the doorjambs that have a flame strip of their own across the rocker. Details like that make this truck stand out above the rest.

Demented Customs is a one-stop shop, so when it came time to move to the interior, they decided to build the stereo themselves. The rear seat was removed and replaced with a half-dozen 12” subs and a trio of amps mounted in a custom fiberglass enclosure. An Eclipse AVX-2404 in-dash DVD player mounted in the factory location runs the system and provides video action at shows.

No one wants to sit on an egg crate, so the guys had to come up with a plan. They wanted something a little bit hot rod and a whole lot custom, so they called in Paul Reyes of Master Craft Interiors who reshaped the seats to have a lower back and no headrest. Then the interior was wrapped in granite Ultraleather and platinum Ultrasuede for a cool light gray look that looks clean and simple. Everything that wasn’t wrapped in fabric was painted the lime green, which really sets off the rest of the interior. The overall effect is exactly what they were going for, and turns heads.

It was down to the wire — as things usually are with the SEMA show — but the crew got it all done. There were a lot of people involved in the build, and Jamie would like to thank Scott Harris and Chad Fincher for all the phone calls they had to make, Aaron Lawson, Aaron Pina, Zach, Billy Titus, Paco and his son J.R. for all the long nights of sanding, scuffing, and doing anything that was needed. Keven at Hankook tires, Pat at Leer, Mitch at Ekstensive metalworks and Tom at Lowrider Depot. Special thanks to Andrew for the long nights of color sanding and buffing before the show and to his wife Veronica for her support. Also thanks to Tony and Lacey for allowing him to do whatever he wanted on the dodge.

Work Truck – Andrew’s Dumped ’72 Chevy C-10

It’s funny how trucks work. No matter how many stories are written about trucks and their experiences, they all seem to have a common thread: Guy buys a ride with the pure intention of just doing a few things here or there to make it a little bit better, and next thing you know, the truck is getting painted, the suspension is rebuilt and it becomes as far away from stock as normal.

This story is no different.

Andrew Moreno, of Tucson, Arizona, bought this ’72 Chevy truck in 2004 with the intention of fixing it up a bit. His brother was about to turn 16, so Andrew and his father figured that they’d rebuild the motor, give the truck a blue paintjob and some chrome wheels and it’d be a perfect driver for his little brother. Andrew and his dad tore into the truck, taking out the drivetrain in the process, and they discovered that the suspension all needed to be rebuilt. Plus it really needed a quality restoration if they wanted it to be safe. No reason why not, right?

A decision was made: Take the truck and use it as a showcase for Andrew’s company, Discount Grilles, but also make it reliable and a good cruiser for daily driving. That’s when the fun began.

With the motor out of the way, they decided to go with a little bit of old school and new school technology under the hood. They took the original ’72 long block and had it blueprinted and fully rebuilt with quality components, then mated a TPI system from a Corvette to the block, giving it the reliability of a fuel injected system. After the block was assembled, they mounted an old school v-belt system to the front end, chromed the whole thing out and bolted it to a rebuilt 700R4. Now the truck was reliable and usable with the overdrive tranny and fuel injected motor, so it seemed like it was ready to be given to his little brother.

The suspension was pretty trashed though, so there was no way he was going to give it to his bro that way. They needed to step it up a notch and rebuild everything. Every bushing and bolt was cleaned up or replaced with something better and put back together. At first the truck was just lowered, but that wasn’t going to last long. Andrew decided to bag the truck using tubular a-arms, viair compressors and Firestone bags, setting it so that the frame just kissed the concrete. Now the truck was laying out and looking slick.

Except for the paint.

Now it was the rough exterior that was nagging at him, so Andrew had to get that going. The truck was blocked out to perfection, and then Jim Geare at ACE Customs in Tucson, Arizona went to town on the paint. Originally, they wanted to paint the truck a solid blue color, but after more discussion they decided to lay out some green flames for effect. Inside the flames are little details like skulls and other airbrushed accents that set off the paint job that much more. The truck was assembled with other details in tow like a phantom billet grill and clear taillights, and for good measure some 20” and 22” Centerline’s were mounted to Nitto NT-555’s, completing the exterior of the truck, and making it finally worthy of passing on to his little brother.

Crap. There’s the interior too.

Well it had been three years as it was, so Andrew decided to go for broke and wrap the truck up by wrapping the interior in suede. It was a simple plan: wrap it or paint it — just make it look awesome. The stock bench was tossed out, and a set of junkyard bucket seats were reupholstered in gray suede. The stock wheel went too, and was replaced with a Billet Specialties wheel, then the door panels were all custom built from fiberglass and MDF. For the stereo, they wanted it custom but not too ridiculous, so a clean setup with JL subs and Diamond Audio mids and tweets really made it all perfect. The crossovers were hidden in the headliner, the console was all custom built in fiberglass and they even put some monitors in the doors for good measure.

Ok so it took three years, but the truck finally got done and was perfect. It was reliable, drivable, and a perfect advertisement for Discount Grilles. Andrew learned a lot along the way, and it even spawned a new business, ACE Customs, specializing in building killer rides just like this one. The truck has also seen time at the SEMA show in Las Vegas, and California Truck Jamboree, making it well traveled as well as perfectly built. Nowadays it’s not hauling wood to and from work, it’s hauling home trophies.

Cherish Her – Bear’s Nissan Hardbody

You’ve  probably met guys like Jerry before. He’s a good guy, always worked hard at his job, been around the local club scene for a while, and has built a few cool rides in his time. Then one day, he steps it up a notch and builds something really wicked. That’s just what happened to Jerry Taylor, of Glendale, Arizona and this Nissan Hardbody.

Except Jerry doesn’t go by Jerry. Most know him as “Bear,” a nickname used by all of his fellow club members in Kastawayz. He’s built a little stable of rides over the past few years, including a pair of Hondas, a bodydropped Nissan Hardbody, and a Toyota mini. When Bear bought this particular Hardbody a few years back, the goal was to really go above and beyond what he had done in the past. Something that would get some attention, and really take the custom scene by storm.

It started in Bear’s garage, a cozy little spot named “Bear’s Customs.” In that 20X20 space, he tore into his hardbody, starting with the suspension. The factory Nissan 6-lug had to go, so Bear did a spindle and rear axle swap with a ‘90’s Toyota pickup, giving him the coveted 5-lug he needed to get some decent wheels. Next, it was time to get it on the ground. Up front, Slam Specialties bags smooth out the ride, while the back was completely redone from the cab rearward, with a custom cantilever setup built around a pair of Firestone airbags. In the bed live a pair of 3-gallon air tanks, which are flanked by an Air Zenith compressor. The whole truck was hardlined with copper tubing, for that extra step of reliability.

With the frame resting on terra firma, it was on to the body. With a welder in hand, Bear went on a mission to weld up all the extraneous parts on his truck. That meant the third brake light, cowl vents, antenna, tailgate handle and gas door all went the way of the dodo. While the welder was out, he frenched a license plate box into the tailgate, and welded in a roll pan as well. As a finishing touch, Bear cut in an electric sliding ragtop to let the sun shine in.

The sheetmetal work was out of the way, so now he had to get it all straightened out. Around that time, Bear had started a new day job at Autostyle in Peoria, Arizona, and just two doors down was the crew at Auto Renew. Dave took control of the project, first by blocking the truck down to flat perfection. Then he sprayed the truck with a House of Kolor True Blue Pearl basecoat, then laid down a simple graphic in House of Kolor Light Blue. The result is a paintjob that plays tricks on you; It looks like a single color from some angles, and from others it’s got a killer graphic job.

At the time, Bear’s hardbody had a full interior, but it needed some work. Out it came, and with the help of Cameron from Autostyle, it was all replaced with a Katzkin black leather and blue suede kit. Now he needed a system, so he hopped next door to talk to Jason at Autostyle about doing his stereo. The crew installed a pair of 9” Icon monitors in the doors, and an Eclipse in-dash dvd player up front. Then the extra-cab section was gutted and in its place a mammoth fiberglass box was built. It holds the trio of JL Amps: one 450/4, and a pair of 1000/1’s. Those amps power a quartet of JL Audio 12W6’s, subs known for their poundability. Everything that needed paint, including the dash, was sent off to the legendary Krazy Kenny to lay down some more True Blue Pearl.

For a long time, the truck was rolling on some 18’s that were neat, but nothing crazy. A few phone calls later, and a set of 19” Bonspeed Laguna II’s were rolling Bear’s way, wrapped in some super low pro 215/35 Kumho tires.

It’s been a long, strange trip as they say, but Bear’s pretty happy with the results. He’d like to throw some shouts out to Scott at Autostyle, Air Zenith, Kumho, Auto Renew, his car club Kastawayz, his brother Justin for helping put things back together, and a special thanks to his wife Bobby Taylor, and their son for all their support.

Southern Charm – Chad’s Laid Out 1998 GMC Sierra

His accent says “West Texas”, which is only partially true. The tall guy with the all-American boy looks was born in Lubbock, Texas, but that’s only because his folks were in the area when he decided to break free. In reality, Chad Fincher is from Hobbs, New Mexico, a city famous for … well, nothing really. Chad spent his formative years growing up in this small town, and when he turned 18, his father bought him a 1998 GMC Sierra as a gift for graduating high school. That truck took him through college and came with him when he moved to Phoenix, Arizona in the summer of 2003 with his new wife, Shelly, to start their life together.

This is all boring stuff really, I mean Chad’s life in small town New Mexico shouldn’t have a lot of bearing on the direction his truck went in, and in most cases, that would be correct. But here, with Chad and his ’98, however, the city of Hobbs actually plays a vital role in this build, because his dedication to his hometown is bordering on legendary.

It was May of 2004, and Chad was driving around Scottsdale, doing the computer software thing that had become his trade. Next thing you know, Chad hits someone and the front of the truck is gone. At this point, the ’98 was doing alright; it had a 4/6-drop, a rollpan that was primered a purple-ish color, and a mild stereo. This accident was the catalyst to taking the truck up a notch, and he decided to seize the opportunity by having the bodyshop install a brand-new Escalade front clip. Now he was color matched and rolling in style.

When it came time to bag the truck, Chad went back to Hobbs, and a few weeks later he drove the 12-hour distance back to Phoenix in his freshly laid-out truck. The crew had installed a KP Components cantilever 6-link, notched the rear and installed Air Ride Technologies upper and lower control arms with Firestone airbags. A year or so later, he bought a set of 20” Boss wheels and bolted them up to the truck, and bombed around town with the truck partially primered on 20s, perfectly content to let it be. Well, he was content with it anyways.

As things always seem to work out in the custom truck world, Chad started making new friends who were also into building hot rides, and he also joined an online forum called GMFullsize.com. There, Chad met Russell Wood, a builder from Scottsdale who also had a cool truck, but did most of his own work. At that point, after a few months of teasing and prompting, Chad caved and decided to take his truck up to the next level. It was time to kick it up a notch.

The next few months were a whirlwind. Chad and Russell started body dropping the truck in Russell’s garage, performing a channel job documented in Truckin’ magazine. He then hooked up with Bonspeed wheels and picked up a set of 22X8.5 Bonspeed Quasars with 5.75 inches of backspacing and paired those with some 265/35 Hankook tires provided by his buddy Scott “Finger” Harris. His truck wouldn’t lay on the 22’s right off the bat, so he went to his good friend Todd Burton at Lowboy Motorsports in Mesa, Arizona for a little suspension tweaking. Todd redid the bridge, cut out some parts on the front end and set the truck on terra firma where it belonged. Chad also picked up a shell for $50 off Craigslist, and with his truck in a few different colors, he headed off to his favorite city — Hobbs, New Mexico — where the truck would be prepped for the SEMA Show.

Chad had met a guy named James Torrez, the owner of Demented Customs in Hobbs, and from September to November, he’d be the guy coordinating the build. The truck was stripped down and the bodywork began, with the doors and tailgate handle getting the axe. Next the gas door was taken out and tilted at a 45-degree angle, adding a custom touch that most people wouldn’t notice. Although it was a good thought, the $50 shell went in the junk pile, and instead Chad hooked up with Leer and got a new shell that was substantially better than the Craigslist special. Next the truck was painted the factory maroon with a touch of House of Kolor Kandy while flames were laid down the hood and sides in a stark white. (Click on a picture to see it full size)

A lot of the custom accents found on the exterior of the truck have made their way to the interior as well. James and his crew built the custom console and subwoofer enclosure out of MDF and fiberglass, and painted everything plastic to match. Anything that couldn’t be painted was wrapped in either tan leather or burgundy suede. Craigslist turned up another hot deal on a Colorado Custom billet steering wheel, which Chad picked up for under $100. The stereo itself is pretty impressive, made up of components by Kicker and Stinger, all provided by the crew at ZK Express. They’re another Hobbs company that was involved with this build, and they hooked Chad up on the stereo equipment, tinted the windows and even sprayed a color-matched Reflex bedliner in the bed to make everything under the shell look perfect.

The team in Hobbs only had a little bit of time to get the truck done in time for the 2007 SEMA show, but it got done. In fact, Chad saw the truck in person for the first time when James towed the truck to Chad’s house on the way to the show. He drove it off the trailer and into a parking space where it would sit for the next 6 days, then back onto the trailer to go back to Phoenix. Since then, Chad’s been driving it around town with no worries. He’s since taken off the Leer camper just to change things up a bit, tweaked the stereo a bit and redone a few minor things here and there, but for the most part, the truck is good to go.

So what’s next for the guy who’s so dedicated to his hometown that he’s willing to drive 12 hours at a time just to be there? Get this — turns out Chad’s grandfather had a ’67 Ford Econoline pickup sitting behind his peanut processing plant for the past 20 years, and Chad just got the title. It was buried axle deep in sand, and actually had an ant hill in the engine bay. Well James and Chad recently winched the hulk onto a trailer and hauled it back to Phoenix, where it will be Chad’s next project. And of course, James will be handling the paintwork in Hobbs. This truck also was recently traded off to a car builder in Ohio, in exchange for a killer ’51 Ford Custom with a 302 and A/C. It was difficult to watch the truck leave, but after 10 years or so with the truck, it was time to move forward.

It’s been a long road, but Chad would like to send thanks out to everyone who have helped out on the project: Bonspeed Wheels, Leer, ZK Express, James at Demented Customs, Little T, Russell Wood, all his friends in Negative Camber, his brother Cody and of course, his wife Shelly.

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