Thanksgiving 2012

Taking the morning chill out of the air

TJ just laying around her condo on wheels

Hillbilly bushing press, ya make due with whatcha got

The King of the Hill

Melissa's PT cruisers trans case

Melissa's old and new gears

We made the trip south to Senatobia Mississippi for Thanksgiving. Melissa's pt cruiser had been down here for Herb to fix a bad vibration but he wasn't able to remove the engine craddle due to good ol Illinois rust. I had to cut some of the cowl open to access spinning lock bolts to remove it. I installed a new ring and pinion along with rebuilt axles and control arm bushings. Thanksgiving dinner was Awsome as usual and it was great to visit with distant family. I wasn't able to hunt this time, maybe we will come down for Christmas and I get some time then.

Bob & Melissa

Slip Roller - Brake - Shear

Picked up this 3 in 1 combo unit from a good friend. He was offered a job in Texas and wasn't going to drag this along so he let me have it for a decent price along with a disk-belt sander. Just in time for me to do floor pans in the Falcon wagon.

Great Weekend

What a great weekend, Melissa and I loaded up the RV and the dogs and headed out to White Pines State Park on Friday. Krystal and Josh joined us on Saturday and we cooked dinner over a fire and it was perfect. They set up a tent and spent the night. The fire was warm as well as the company.

Sent from my HTC on the Now Network from Sprint!

Flatline Kustoms Signage is up!

Sent from my HTC on the Now Network from Sprint!

We are thinking that the front of the building sign is definitely to small! My good friend Steve @ Xtreme Graphics is going to hook me up with a larger (8 footer) sign, I like it!

Drama....... Drama....... Drama

School yard shit, It's unbelievable! I'm to old for this CRAP and back in high school I'd be pounding the crap out of the whiny little bitch! Age brings calm, no need to get involved in the he said she said bullshit, you can't be friends with me if your friends with them........ Time to move on and find true loyal friends and not back stabbing Jealous little bitches

Ooohhh That Smell

TJ..... It was only a matter of time

About two weeks ago Melissa let TJ out in the yard, unknown to her the neighbor had a visitor in the yard next to us, a skunk. TJ jumped the fence and was dosed with the wonderful cologne. TJ blasted the laundry room door swinging it wide open and proceeded to run along the couches downstairs in the family room grinding that smell deep into the cushions. This all happened about 10pm the night before I was to leave at 5am for Good Guys in Kansas city Kansas. Last night I let TJ and Orion out and now we stay outside with them, it's like having kids again. TJ spots a skunk in the neighbors yard and proceeds to blast over the fence until I yelled at her, she stops in mid flight rite on top of the fence, this awkward balance but she listened and we didn't have any wonderful smells.

Ahh Life @ 52

I gave it a shot, I went to work for someone else. I closed up our business, a hard thing to do being in business for myself since 1989. My thoughts were that if I did this I would have to make the situation work, so I leased a seasonal spot down in Momence, parked the RV and took that to good to be true offer and went to work for a friend with a small unknown custom shop.

In the meantime I still had a customer wanting me to transport his car to shows across the country and this friend knew and agreed to let me do this. It just didn't work out with him, some is his issues and some where mine so I moved on and left this unknown custom shop. I had an offer to do Search and Restore with Tim Strange on Spike TV's power block and was scheduled to be there until I received the offer, a very well know Hot Rod Shop asked if I could come on board to help with a Sema Show project while most of the crew went to Bonneville but it clashed with the taping of S&R. A great opportunity like this doesn't come along to often and I agreed to help out.

Great people, I learned a lot the little time I spent there and also learned that I can't work for anyone but myself. I'm at it again but doing it different, I leased a VERY small controllable shop and I am going to concentrate on what I enjoy doing. I was able to help out on Search and Restore and it was rewarding to do so and will Volunteer again on another build.

Time to knuckle down and make some CASH and do what I do! BB

Too good to be True

Well this daunting feeling is apon me again, I have been self employed for so long and have been told I couldn't work for anyone and I now truly believe them. The dream offer is just a job, I've gained great knowledge on how to step up my quality in what I do thanks to Adam and Troy but with in a short period. What I can say is that with my past experiences you need to follow your heart and do what ever it takes to make your dream a reality, I once again will give it a try. Continue to follow the want, the drive, the dream to be who you inspire to be. Bob

The Offer......

OK, yesterday I was blown out of the water by an offer. I was asked to help out on a Sema Project by Troy @ Rad Rides. This is a great opportunity for me and I'm excited about the possibilities. I have always admired his work being around Troy since the very early 90's. This is not a job but what I enjoy doing and to be part of team makes it that much sweeter

The issue I'm struggling with is a commitment I made to Tim Strange to volunteer on Search and Restore, I believe in your word and to follow through on your promises but the scheduling will not allow me to be part of Search and Restore and I apologized to Tim. This is one of those opportunities you can not pass on, it's one that later on I don't want to be doing "what if". Day by day things are progressing for the better.

I asked Melissa to ride with me to Syracuse New York and we leave in the morning with Moxie in tow. Moxie has also given us an opportunity to see this wonderful country of ours and has also given us two great friends Scott and Jane!



Long Beach Ca on the Queen Mary

Somewhere in the Utah desert

Melissa enjoy the view



Columbus Ohio 104 degrees!



James Bondo

Melissa and I received some bad news, our friend Ron Press passed away. The really sad part is that we have lost touch with Ron over this past year and a half with making the move out to Elgin, in Schaumburg Ron would always stop in the shop while he was making his rounds.

I found out of his passing last week from a mutual friend, he had past late February due to a hart attack.

Please take a moment and make a phone call, or write that e-mail or Face Book that friend you haven't talk to in a while, friends are few and good ones are hard to come by!

Ron you will be missed!

Bob & Melissa