It’s not like I ever need a reason to go to a car show, but when our buddy Jeff Lee at Hammerhead IRS suggested that I make an appearance at the Fontanel Car Cruise-In, we were intrigued. When he offered to get us a tour of the Fontanel Mansion, the missus was on board. And when he said that I would be meeting Stacey David that night, I was sold, but was a little cautious. I’ve met celebrities before, and while everyone has their own personality and the camera doesn’t show everything accurately, it’s a hit-or-miss as to whether it’s a pleasant experience or not. Some guys are exactly as they are on TV, and it’s not a good thing. Some guys are cool enough, but it’s all about them, not you. It’s very rare that it’s a reciprocal encounter with a celebrity. At least that’s how I was viewing things as I drove down to Fontanel.

Meeting Stacey threw my preconceptions out of the window. That particular Fontanel show got stormed out that night, yet he was talking with people, shaking hands and signing autographs well after the heavens opened up until everyone had left. Afterwards, he hung around for a bit to shoot the breeze with Jeff, my wife and myself. As he was leaving he handed me a card and suggested that I set up a time to come down and visit his shop at the Rattletrap Productions studios in White House, Tennessee. About a week later the wife and I were sitting in the parking lot of Rattletrap Productions in the Imperial, wondering if we had the right place. You’d never know that in a fairly nondescript warehouse building off of the highway was everything needed for both a television show and the kind of shop needed to support the work that Stacey does. We were let in and waited in the lobby, which was gorgeous, with memorabilia and classic signs everywhere. After a short wait Stacey arrived. We chatted for a few minutes, then he led us to the door to the shop.

The first shop had the Rat Roaster ’32 Ford and Heavy Metal, the Duramax-powered 1969 International Loadstar wrecker that would give Brian fits. But the first thing that Stacey showed us is what sold me on just how down-to-earth this guy really is: on one side of the shop is a highly detailed slot car track with the kinds of cars that you normally see in the full-fledged events overseas. Besides being fun, it’s toys like this (whether high dollar or not) that are a starting point for a lot of kids. Next up was some of his remote-controlled vehicles, including this absolutely stunning early 1980s Toyota 4×4. These aren’t the ballistic and hyperactive R/C cars you normally see, but are actual rockcrawlers, with suspension travel and all. Dig the Power Wagon truck behind it…it has functioning Rockwell axles!  After looking the Ford and the International over, we moved on to the main shop area.

I’d be lying if I said that I felt like a kid walking into Willy Wonka’s factory. The shop is as clean as it appears on television. To my left stood “SGT. Rock”, a Dodge Power Wagon that has an absolutely huge presence. On the other side sat the “Street Sweeper” 1973 Plymouth Sebring and the “V8 Interceptor” 1967 Mercury Cougar. In the center on flat-rollers was the Superlite Coupe. All around the walls you have the kinds of memorabilia that gearheads crave: a collection of steering wheels, valve covers, old signs, flags, tools, even a Christmas tree.  We checked out each vehicle (more on them in a minute) and moved on to the back shops. In the back there was a ’71 Road Runner that had seen some better days. This is not one of Stacey’s projects per se, but a sign of what he’s about: the Gearz Nation, his forum of followers, showcases their rides and occasionally Stacey will go out and assist a fan with a project. For that task he has a Chevy box truck loaded to the gills with tools ready to help. This was slightly different, as the Road Runner belongs to a service member who is currently overseas, so the car is brought in. Pimp My Ride this ain’t, but Stacey will pick certain areas to help with for each car instead of just doing it all for them. This keeps the project as the owner’s build that got helped by a celebrity instead of what is essentially winning the automotive Lottery. Stacey’s take on those “life transformation” shows isn’t a positive one, as he feels that they take away from the accessibility of hot rodding from anyone. Over the course of the afternoon we talked about his time on Trucks!, some of the behind-the-scenes stories, how he was approached to do reality shows (hint: never gonna happen) and his current work.

The entire theme of the conversation we had: making hot rodding accessible again. And here’s the truth: talking with Stacey in his shop felt like I was hanging around at any of my friend’s garages, provided you ignored the budget difference. His builds have dollars invested, no doubt, but a lot of that is for viewership and he’s quick to point out what he spent money on and how an average builder can avoid having to go the high-dollar route. This is particularly emphasized with the Sebring build. Yes, under the hood is a Ray Barton Hemi, but a solid 440 or even the 360 this car came with could do the trick. He is a man of details with his builds. He showed us how he reworked the inner fenders on the Power Wagon to both show off the headers and to make the body look complete. The velocity stacks on the Cougar were cut to create a slope that compensates for the car’s raked stance. The bodyline stripe on the ’32 Ford isn’t a stripe, but bare metal with clearcoat to prove that the car is steel-bodied. I could go on for hours about the details that he focuses on, some we noticed, a lot we didn’t until they were pointed out. He isn’t nose-high or even jaded when it comes to vehicles. During the Fontanel show he was looking at everything just like I was, from a lime-green Trabant to a factory-perfect Pontiac convertible. This guy gets it. Period.

As we were leaving I asked Stacey if he’d take a quick look at the Imperial just to get his opinion on the car. He had noticed it when he came in, but let’s face facts: Up close that car is pretty rough.  Did that deter him? Nope. He looked at it for what it is, checking out details of the nose, the engine bay, the interior, the opera lights, even the wheel choice. There was no negative, just a guy into cars checking out another car guy’s pride and joy, as it should be.

And of course I couldn’t get away without pictures for you guys:

This is the “Street Sweeper” ’73 Plymouth Satellite. Other than the wheels, he’s leaving the visuals alone. Under the hood is a Ray Barton Hemi. He wants this thing to play just as well on the autocross as it will on the strip.

The Power Wagon is a beast. Lots of minor details come together to make one insane truck. Note the front bumper: it’s off a late model FJ Cruiser.

The SL-C is a take on a kit supercar. The car is from Race Car Replicas and is packing a LS-7 with twin turbos hooked to a Porsche six-speed transaxle.

This is “Project Heavy Metal”, the 1969 International Loadstar cabover wrecker. Powered by a 6.6L Duramax, this beast is still in-progress. This isn’t a rat rod build.

Note the split-boom wrecker arms…

…the bomber-jacket style seats, and the plaque on the dash. This Loadstar was formerly property of the U.S. Navy.