218 results for author: TD Customs

Motorcycle Paint Job: Match to original color

A recent motorcycle paint job gave us a run for our money when it came to matching the color of the fender to the tank. Being mindful of keeping the gas tank as original as possible, the customer didn't want to repaint the tank, but wanted the fender to be painted to match the tank. Painting the tank would have slightly altered the original color that many people are after. In this case, it also would have given us issues with finding the exact right decals he wanted, so we understood the predicament. The bike, a 1994 Honda CB1000 Super Four, originally from the UK, was brought in by a customer wanting us to paint the fender pearl red and ...

Throwback to that day the shop had a squirrel

It's not every day you see a squirrel wander into an auto body shop! Thanks to the TimeHop app, I was recently reminded of our little squirrel buddy who showed up at the shop about a year ago. So in honor of #throwbackthursday (we're not much for the #hashtags, but we're trying), I thought I'd post about our lil friend. An employee at the time, Darryl, was sweeping up the shop, when all of a sudden I hear him yelling about something and telling me to come look. I ran out of the office and saw that a squirrel had run up his leg and was clinging to his jeans. I snapped a quick picture, thinking the squirrel would for sure run off. Ins...

Exact Replica Motorcycle Paint

We had a customer come to us with a 1976 Triumph Bonneville motorcycle tank that was faded from the sun. The paint was looking a bit rough, and they wanted the exact same paint job to bring it back to its original glory. This custom motorcycle paint job may have posed a problem for some, but Tim is great at working with the lines of a certain design and getting them to match up just right. He was able to tape off the lines and create the exact same look the bike originally had. After taping lines and applying custom mixed paint, the motorcycle now looks brand new again, with the same paint job the customer had in the very beginning. ...

Mazda Pickup Truck Restoration Almost Finished

The latest restoration at TD Customs has been the 1972 Mazda pickup truck restoration. It's needed full body work on most of the exterior, and interior and exterior paint. This week has mostly been devoted to working on the truck, including finishing up any body work that needs to get done, sanding it smooth, and then painting it and sanding it once again. There's a lot of sanding that goes on with these jobs! That's what it takes to make sure the body is sleek and smooth, and can win car shows with its flawlessness. No waves here. The paint is a lighter than the picture shows, and it looks great outside. We've been trying to post more ...

Custom painted handrails

More and more, we are getting requests to custom paint something totally outside of the auto body box. And we love it! It's fun to work with something else every once in awhile, like a desk or a kegerator, for example. (Yep, we've done both!) Lately we've been doing a few jobs a month for a local construction company, sanding down and painting steel handrails and staircase railings. They are made of heavy steel and come to us as rough pieces. The home owners are looking for a modern sanded down steel look with the classic swirls and markings. When customers want that raw steel look, we need to sand the pieces and spray a clear coat that will ...

Keeping those classic restorations sparkling

The '56 Buick Special is a full classic restoration we did a little over a year ago, and today, it's back in the shop for a detailed wash and professional polish job. Our classic restorations leave the shop looking brand new and perfectly clean. But after driving around and taking it to car shows this summer, it could use some TLC to bring it back to that sparkling, just painted look. Auto restorations are a big investment into the life of a classic car, so it's important to maintain not only the engine, but the body and the paint job as well. Show car detailing helps to maintain the perfect shine and gloss on the paint. We've experimented ...

Custom Paint Job: Antique Corn Grinder

It's not every day that we get a huge old-fashioned corn grinder in the shop for a custom paint job! Also known as a hammer mill, the customer got the 80-year old corn grinder from his grandfather, and brought it to us to strip down and put some brand new paint on. The classic decals are next, giving it just the right look as the customer remembers it. We love doing custom paint jobs like this. It's not your average job, and it's just fun to work on something so out of the ordinary. Plus, Tim is always in when there is a level of nostalgia to the project. We put a picture on Facebook and asked our followers if they knew what it was (I sure ...

Latest Custom Motorcycle Paint Job

The latest custom motorcycle paint job included repair for a small dent in the tank and a custom paint scheme, using several different colors. It has a black and blue marble effect on a silver base, with a tribal design and white border dividing the two layers. When it comes to painting bikes, there are so many possibilities for custom paint schemes. Even after this one was done, Tim kept thinking about new ways to possibly design the silver layer, like maybe a marble effect there as well or more shading of the edges or giving it more of a layered steel look. Doing these bike paint jobs are a lot of fun. Tim is able to get creative, and ...

Classic Restoration: ’79 Corvette

We've got a couple classic restorations going on at TD Customs, including this 1979 L82 Chevy Corvette. This classic restoration started out bright green in color, affectionately known as "bugger green" by its owners, and just needed an updated look. The new paint color is going to be a custom mixed steel grey with blue undertones. It is going to look great! There were some body flaws, but after some sanding, fiberglass repairs and bondo work to fix the minor dents, it is going to be smooth and flawless. Tim is always bending down to look at the lines of the car to make sure there are no small waves, pin pricks or anything that needs to be ...

FAST turnaround on the tractor trailer

Not all auto body paint jobs take less than a week to do, but this big rig was in and out of the shop in only FOUR business days. The customer was on a tight deadline and needed his truck back quick, and luckily, the timing was right for us, so we were able to get it done in record time. It took a lot of sanding (there is a lot of surface area on this thing!) and prep to get it ready, including some fiberglass repairs to some holes in the body. Tim painted it Friday afternoon so it could set over the weekend. This morning, we took care of final assembly for the parts we took off and gave it a good wash. All before noon on Monday! Not many ...