The door panels are built completely different than what we have ever done before. The first thing that we did was to take the factory panels off, and put them directly into the trashcan. Well, not really but they are completely rebuilt. We started with a 1/16" base plate of aluminum. This base plate has a channel on the top edge that mounts to the door. This complete assembly (base plate & channel) hangs from the top edge of the door. Two mounting bolts at the bottom will insure a solid mount. After establishing the foundation, we then added the cosmetic appeal. The base plate connects to thin wood parts with foam injected inside to keep it light. We then shaped the wood and foam, getting it ready for fiberglass primer and vinyl. The center's painted inserts are almost completely made out of ABS plastic. The plastic works really well, it's light, flexible, and paints [easily]. The industrial door handles spaced off the door with oval tubing. They weld to a aluminum arc, sandwiched by two pieces of machined and painted wood.
The battery box cover and the bed floor is also made of ABS plastic, it works great. The internals of the battery box holds six batteries and two 90 amp power supplies. It's built out of 1" square tubing, then is welded, ground smooth and then powder coated. The batteries are connected with 5/16-machined aluminum with a satin finish.
The over head video console and the floor console are built very similar.
They are both built with ABS plastic, fiberglass, body filler, primer and painted.
We used a lot of aluminum tubing throughout the installation. These aluminum arcs are used as speaker grills. Cosmetic arcs and as the center consoles. I think this type of look is aggressive but still has flow to it.
The TIG or Gas Tungsten Arc Welding machine (GTAW) is very difficult to use and takes lots of practice.
CA&E: What if any challenges did you encounter through out the install?
Bryan: I would say the most difficult part of the any project is coming up with the over all design (or the vision). Without a good design you will always compromise your end result. The execution of those ideas is not always easy or simple. I try taking these ideas or concepts and making them evolve. I guess you could say that one idea builds into many ideas creating a complete design.
CA&E: How did you come up with the idea-or the concept behind the install, the concept behind the bikes?
Bryan: The idea behind the bikes was to have a complete presentation. I have never seen a demo vehicle in our industry with things like bikes or surfboards as a part of the installation. It's [something] like this that really makes it different and sets you apart. When designing this vehicle I always tried to think of our core customer: 18 to 25 year males/females! This goes back to that active life style and extreme attitude. My goal was to make this truck every kid's dream. The thing that I like best about this truck is that our core customer could actually afford it. The paint and installation might not be very practical, but the truck and audio system could be.
CA&E: What was the most difficult part of the install and how did you manage to overcome it?
Bryan: The most difficult part was getting everything to flow together. I like to make all lines and arcs come together so they make sense; this was the most difficult.
CA&E: Was there any one idea you wanted to do but ran out of time or decided not to do.
Bryan: No, there was really no major idea that we weren't able to finish.
CA&E: Were you happy with the end result?
Bryan: We are very happy with the end result. This by far is the most intense installation I have ever completed. It was definitely worth it. The only problem with this vehicle is we have to top it next year!
CA&E: Were you shocked that you were able to blow Fishman and Mad dog's mind away?