The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

[cjforumadmin]

http://www.bangshift.com/blog/The-Hack-Job-General-Lee-Update-Light-at-the-End-of-the-Tunnel.html

[tiresmoke!]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

I'd still want to strangle the lousy "essobees" from BK Auto.....that kind of treachery should be punishable by hanging.

On a brighter note, that Charger is lookin' GOOD....solid bod panels go a long way!

[skip68]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

Just one more update for all that may not be reading the thread on the DodgeCharger.com site. As of yesterday 4/14/09 I can officially say that I have successfully shut BK Automotive down. This came from Annie Pena from Mayor Bill Whites office in Houston, Texas. ;) I had a nice 40 minute phone call with Annie. She told me to pat myself on the back and that I've gotten farther than most people can get. She said this and I quote "You have done a great job and successfully shut BK Automotive down." Right now BK is trying to get a Lic. and any permits that he needs to do business. I don't know if that will happen but if it does it will be good for all and this is why. If he becomes legal, he will then have normal inspections, carry insurance / bond, and we can keep an eye on him Annie said. This is better then him just going away because we all know what he will be doing. This IS NOT over and there are still other things coming for my friends at BK. I have paved a solid foundation for the road ahead and done what I said I would do. ;) This has been one hell of a ride and there has been times when I wanted off. I don't know why I did what I did or do the things I do, I just do it. :-\ This had to be done and if I DID NOT DO IT WHO WOULD ? I am 1,500 miles away from BK and 3,000 miles away from Jeff, so you can imagine that this was not easy. I have never met Jeff but hope to some day. There are no ties between us other than the fact that we both love cars and he needed help with a bad problem, "BK" ;). I've had a few post on the charger site that were cheap shots at me from time to time as you can imagine from a few other members over this ordeal. Not everyone is going to like me and that's fine but I want to make sure that everyone knows I did this for nothing. There is no hidden intent, no money, no fame and I don't know why some people just don't understand that. I have given up so much of my time to try and make a difference so that this becomes bigger than BK. What I mean by that is so that all the readers on all the sites learn about BK but also learn what to look out for with any shop. Sorry for my little rant guys, I'm just tired. ;) Thank you Brian L., ;) and all you guys here for the support and any help that has been given. I know my place and now I'm going back to it. (under the rock) Jeff and his car are the stars here and I'm just the guy that brings his water. ;D ;) ;D Best wishes to all. Chuck.........

[fahrenschnell]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

Kudos Chuck.....You did the right thing.

Seth

[TheSilverBuick]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

Kudos Chuck.....You did the right thing.

Seth

x2!

[Monk]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

Chuck
Just think of all the headaches and dollars you
saved some other un suspecting hobbyists down the road.

As far as BK goes........ya reap what ya sow
Karma's a real bitch when she shows up

Also.......screw anyone who would bad mouth you for
your crusade here..........ya did good buddy

[min301]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

"Also.......screw anyone who would bad mouth you for
your crusade here..........ya did good buddy"


My sentiments exactly.

[Bamfster]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

You did do it for something.....PRINCIPAL!.....My hat is off to you sir

[nosnerd]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

You did do it for something.....PRINCIPAL!.....My hat is off to you sir

my words exactly!!

too many f'n poseurs....

[JB666]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

Hey again guys... First, I can't say enough for the time, effort and resources that Chuck has put into this mission. While I've been trying to keep my head above water with this car, he's just plowed through the mountain of legal issues and has made BK "pay" for what they've done.

What some don't understand is that this entire thing(thread on DC.com) has been about is PRINCIPAL. It's making sure some other poor sucker doesn't get taken on a shiny Orange car like this....

People have asked me "Did you even get to drive it before you had to have it restored??". Why does that matter? I'm glad I DIDN'T. Imagine having your daughter in the back seat, wife in the front seat, and you're out for a Sunday afternoon cruise when suddenly your rusted gas tank braces snap, leaving your full tank of fuel dragging down route3... Not something I want to imagine, and I'm glad I'm not posting a story like "This car killed someone I love...". IT COULD ALWAYS BE WORSE. So I'm paying to have the car built right.. Big deal, I plan on keeping it forever.

Let me end by saying these guys (at the body shop) are to paint & body work what Jon Sandahl is to the Chassis/Drag Racing world --- AMAZING and untouchable. Every weekend when I head to the shop I leave there saying how LUCKY I am to be in the position I'm in.. They have 2 years worth of work BEHIND my car. Did mine have to be done now? NO way.. It could be sitting in the back of a barn to be worked on in 2012.

I am fortunate.. I'll have the car of my dreams very shortly and I'll have made a LOT of great friends along the way. To me, there's no price tag for any of this...

[skip68]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

OK, lets get something straight Jeff. Hold it right there. : We (you and I) are not friends ! When this is done, I want you to loose my phone number, get rid of my email, shred my address and forget you even know me. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D I only kid. :-* I wish we met under other circumstances but that's OK. I think what we are doing is a great story in itself. ;) We are an odd couple and 3,000 miles apart, but yet we do have a "BONDO" ;D between us. OK, no more jokes. I know we want BK so bad we can taste it and I think we will get what we want. But, just in case we don't get everything we want, we need to remember that we have allready done a great deed. This has opened eyes for so many and more to come as this will grow. So, if we look at it that way, we have allready won. So it really doesn't matter what happens to bk in the end. We (you and I Jeff) have made a difference. And we need to be proud of that. ;) I'm glad I could help but I still want my custom BK shifter. Thanks again guys for the kind words. Chuck...............

[Brian Lohnes]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

Chuck, high fives all around for grabbing this thing by the nuts and seeing it through.

I think you used the vulcan mind meld to get through all the governmental red tape like you did. Pretty amazing stuff. We'd be honored to have you as part of the BS.com legal dream team that will have to defend Chad when he really blows something up.

Great work!

Brian

[JB666]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

Just a quick update here , but THE PAINT JOB is underway!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, here we go. First, the reason certain door parts were primed with the door was because BK had painted them orange when they weren't supposed to be. So they were removed, stripped down and put back on to be primed. They were then removed and painted correctly before being reassembled.

Remember, these are fresh shots. The car was being worked on when I walked in and the guys just got out of my way so I could snap some shots. So if you see something that looks out of place, well, it very well could be. It was the middle of the day and not everyone got to leave work at noon today :icon_smile_big:

Ok, here's what I saw when I walked in, and my jaw hit the ground. I couldn't believe what had been done in such a short time.





Until the motor comes out and the engine bay is completely finished (to match the car) they did a nice seperation line between the body (color) and the black. The motor's coming out this Fall, at which point the engine bay will look as nice as the rest of the car.



As discussed, I went with the body color under the hood. It's the way I wanted it (sorry Warner Brothers for breaking the ethical code of General Lee owners).



The bars Jon welded to give the push bar a bit more stability (AND the ability to remove it with ease) was sanded and painted, along with the rest of the Black you can see. The engine bay (paint) was a horrific mess before. I THINK it was prepped with a BBQ brush and (rolled on ) Rustoleum to complete the look



Here you can see the spot on the firewall where there used to be a hole big enough to fit your head through (that BK covered with DYNAMAT).



This shot shows the new inner fender area that Jon did where BK had a large hole, battery terminals and (God knows what else) a bit more going on.. Keep in mind here guys that the wiring isn't tied up, complete or by any means ready to "show"



Jon's flush mount push bar mount along with the nice (BK supplied) Orange overspray on the front sway bar. This will not be there much longer.



Moving around to the driver's door..









TO BE CONTINUED...

[JB666]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

Keep in mind, before this job, BK had painted ALL of the door/hood hardware with the car..













The trunk's done exactly how I wanted it. It's being "spackle painted" where you can see it and the rest will be covered in Dynamat.

[JB666]

Re: The Hack Job General Lee: Update, Light at the End of the Tunnel

And just a few shots of a really cool 40's Pontiac they were painting when I was there.









Hope you enjoyed today's presentation.