Posted By
Devlin
Smith
,
December 22, 2011
Fuel cell users can now upgrade their cells from the troublesome flip-style filler to the Easy Turn Fill Cap Assembly from Pro-Werks. The assembly features positive grip finger notches, quick-starting coarse threads and a radial squeeze O-ring.
The assembly is precision-machined of lightweight billet aluminum to exacting tolerances, according to the company, and is available in a large selection of Pro-Werks Brilliance Anodize Finish colors or micro-polished aluminum.
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Posted By
Ashley
Smissen
,
December 21, 2011
1 comment
When Harold and Ruth Wiley brought in pieces of a 1939 Buick to Kindig-It Design, they were looking to have a daily driver built. The Salt-Lake-City-based shop had already built the couple a 1949 Chevy pickup truck, so the Wileys knew they could expect a high-quality vehicle from the Kindig-It Design team. Little did they know that the Buick that started in pieces would go on to become an award-winning show car.
“The Buick came to us with the original straight-eight [engine] in it,” said Dave Kindig, co-owner of Kindig-It Design. “The body itself was in fair shape. The intention of the owners was not to [have it become] a show car.”
Things changed as the build began. Over the following eight months, the build team (which included a combination of 10 people) worked to turn the body and parts into an elegant daily driver for the Wileys.
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Posted By
Ashley
Smissen
,
December 21, 2011
Attendees of the 2012 Hotrod & Restoration Trade Show will have the opportunity to take advantage of a full morning of informative business seminars designed to help you run your small business. All of the seminars are free to attend.
On Saturday morning, ARMO will be hosting four business seminars to teach attendees how to market and run their businesses more efficiently. The seminars will be organized into two time slots.
The first seminar, The Business of Small Business, will take place from 8 a.m.–9:00 a.m. and will cover ways to take your business to the next level.
The Marketing Your Small Business 101 panel will also take place from 8 a.m.–9 a.m. During this time, industry experts including Eric Saltrick of Steele Rubber and Tyler Tanaka of CIE Studios will answer questions about how to utilize free (or almost free) Internet tools when marketing your small business. The panel will be moderated by Laura Bergan of American Collectors Insurance.
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Posted By
Ashley
Smissen
,
December 21, 2011
The Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles has announced that it will be celebrating the 80th anniversary of the 1932 Ford by hosting Deuce Week Feb. 29–March 3, 2012.
The museum will be hosting a variety of events to celebrate the birthday of this iconic car. All proceeds raised during the events will help fund educational programs and exhibits at the museum.
In addition to the Deuce Week events, an exhibit of historic 1932 Fords will be featured inside the museum starting Feb. 29 and running until March 25, 2012. In addition, nine 1932 Ford pedal cars that have been customized by some of the industry’s most noted hot rod builders will also be on display.
The following events will take place at the museum during the Deuce Week celebration:
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Posted By
Devlin
Smith
,
December 20, 2011
1 comment
Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis will host the Super Bowl in February and the Hotrod & Restoration Trade Show in March.
Prior to playing host to the 2012 Hotrod & Restoration Trade Show March 22–24, Lucas Oil Stadium will host Super Bowl XLVI on Feb. 5. While the Super Bowl lasts only three-and-a-half hours, preparation for the game takes thousands of hours and thousands of workers. Fans will have the opportunity to gain access to the behind-the-scenes inner workings of Super Bowl XLVI with special tours of Lucas Oil Stadium, the Super Bowl Media Center and, for the first time, Media Day in January and February, the stadium has announced.
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Posted By
Devlin
Smith
,
December 20, 2011
Even in the age of social media, your business’ success is still driven by your brand its reputation, so wrote Mary Rosenbaum, a personal branding strategist, in a recent Fox Business article.
“With all the hype surrounding social media, it’s easy to take your eye off the ball of what really drives your business,” she wrote. “But as an entrepreneur or small business owner, your top two areas of focus should be your reputation and your brand. It takes a great deal of time to build a strong reputation and very little time to destroy it.”
You develop your brand not just through the products and services you offer, but the way you interact with customers, according to Rosenbaum.
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Posted By
Devlin
Smith
,
December 20, 2011
Whether you have a formal system in place for rewarding your top employees or just praise employees whenever they do an exceptionally good job, it’s important to take the time to recognize excellent employee performance both for the benefit of your employees and of your business as a whole, according to Jeff Haden, who covered the topic in a recent CBS MoneyWatch article.
“Recognizing effort and achievement is self-reinforcing: When you do a better job of recognizing employees they tend to perform better — giving you even more achievements to recognize,” Haden wrote.
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Posted By
Ashley
Smissen
,
December 19, 2011
Inglese has introduced its new EZ-EFI Eight Stack Induction System, a self-learning fuel injection system that tunes itself as you drive without requiring a laptop. The system uses FAST EZ-EFI electronics as well as the company’s Precision-Flow Fuel Injectors, which are integrated into Inglese’s cast aluminum 50mm IDA-style throttle bodies.
The system’s EZ-EFI controller will establish the base tuning file and then “learn” as the car drives while honing in on the optimum tune, according to the company. It only requires the driver to answer a few questions before operating the unit.
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Posted By
Ashley
Smissen
,
December 16, 2011
The new Road Race Power Race-and-Pinion from Flaming River features a quick ratio design to allow for a rack gain of 2.27 inches per revolution of the pinion. It has an adjustable positive-lock rack gear that will maintain a positive mesh between the rack gear and the pinion gear during vibration, making it ideal for racing applications, said the company.
The rack-and-pinion’s travel, pivot points, length and inner end dimensions are all customizable to suit a variety of vehicle applications. It comes with low-profile braided stainless pressure lines for added clearance and is made of all new components.
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Posted By
Ashley
Smissen
,
December 14, 2011
1 comment
The 401k Club Staff (left to right): Andy Martaus, Trevor Dick, Mike Skipps, owner Dana Manier, Osmar Mata, Jim Johnston and Bernt Karlsson
Back in December 2008, I wrote a Restorer Profile about The 401k Club. At the time, the owners of the Anaheim, California-based rod shop were working hard to build the business, which, at the time, was servicing mostly 1950s and 1960s hot rods and classic trucks. They had big plans for the shop.
A lot has changed in the hot rod industry in the last three years, so I decided to check back in with The 401k Club and see what’s happened to the shop since we profiled it three years ago.
Since then, the shop, which in 2008 was owned by three people, has undergone a major change of ownership. Dana Manier is now the sole owner of the business. His staff has also changed dramatically in the three years since we last visited. In 2008, the shop had about 11 employees; today Manier employs six people.
“Last year was a tough year for us,” Manier told me. “It kicked our butt, but this year has been all about getting back to normal and 2011 has been a good year for us.”
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