Airmonkeysmagazineissue13

Issue Thirteen

DTA End of Season Meet 58 Beetle RSVP BBQ Beach Buggy Bash Smitherz NEC Classic Motor Show

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M a ga zi n e The Air Monkeys Crew: Joe Eynon • Editor • Feature Writer • Photographer Samantha Eynon • Deputy Editor • Feature Writer • Photographer/ Illustrator Edd Thorpe • Feature Writer Scott Savage • Photographer John Hilton • Layouts • Website Designer Richard Thorpe • Proof Reader • Feature Writer Martin Cox • Photographer

he whole concept of friendship in the VW scene is what made me stick around. I was into British classic cars for a few years before I bought my bus and never saw what we take for granted in the VW scene. I can post on social media that I have a problem and within an hour I have a dozen people wanting to help me out, whether it is car related or not.

This, however, becomes tarnished when people use social media to insult and belittle another person’s cars and passions. I have a simple rule which is to never insult another person’s car, however awful you think it may be, leave it alone.

It’s their car and it’s how they want it to look.

There is no fashionable wheel choice or accessory in my opinion, it’s all the owners choice. If you wish to have the same as the guy next door then great, if you want to be different and carve your own path then equally great!

That’s what we like to do here at Air Monkeys.

We’re not setting any trends or starting new fashions. We like what we like, and all we ask is that you join in with your own spin on life.

Joe Eynon Editor

Joss Ashley • Photographer Henry Powell • Photographer Ed Kellas Nikola Woodhall

Contributors: Hazel Buller, Danny Bullock, Richard Creamer, Jessica Edwards, Stephen Hill, Stephen Holland, Andrea Lattanzio, Nick Lau, Samantha Lowbridge, Daniel Pike, Matt Rudd, Dan Smith, Neil Smith, Roel Verhagen.

What’s inside?

Regular Features Feature Vehicles Spanked!

Cool Sh*t Tasty Tees With Love Bakery Page 45 Technical Focus Earworm Show Reports

NEC Classic Motor Show

Beach Buggy Bash

Custom Lego

DTA End of Season Meet

RSVP BBQ

SERVICE

MODIFICATION

RESTORATION

PARTS

ACCESSORIES

Graphic design & creative solutions Logo & brand conception

Hand-drawn illustrations

Rebranding

Websites

Stationery

Product design & visualisation

Promotional collateral

Photography

Get in touch to see how we can support you... hello@sebrightcreative.co.uk | www.sebrightcreative.co.uk | 07891 894582

Words: Joe Eynon Photos: Joss Ashley/ Wide5’s Photography

Show Report | DTA Meet

DTA

END OF SEASON MEET. BIRMINGHAM, UK.

Show Report | DTA Meet

DTA End of Season Meet 19th October 2014.

James Cond Printing Works, Birmingham, UK Evolution is a wonderful thing, we see it all the time in the automotive scene. Car builders are well aquatinted with the word, and we’ve even evolved in our previous 12 issues of Air Monkeys. There is one Birmingham based air-cooled VW and Porsche club though, that are the trend setters when it comes to evolving and morphing. We went to the very first DTA meet when Stanford Hall was cancelled, back in 2012. It was clear, on that day, that it was the start of something really special. We are proud to have been at every one of their meets, BBQs and gatherings since. All have led to this moment.

On the 19th October 2014 an event occured in the air-cooled scene that may change the way we do VW shows for years to come. The boys and girls in DTA decided that they needed a new location as they had out-grown their old street-side one. They found the abandoned James Cond Printing Works in the city centre of Brum. Word quickly got passed around that this was the place to be. Teaser shots of the location appeared to get the punters excited, and before we knew it we began to get our cars ready for the one day event.

On the day, we cruised with a group of guys from Yorkshire who had made the journey down, and then met more excited air-cooled owners along the way. Some by pure luck on the motorways through the West Midlands.

After bumping and scraping through the city back streets, we made our way through the doors and into what, in recent

Show Report | DTA Meet

years, had been used as a public car park.

You would think that this allowed for bags of space, but the show was so popular that cars were having to be moved into a nearby car park and along the streets outside.

The event had a mixed bunch of air-cooled VW’s and also a large number of early 911’s and 912’s. The day had no trade stalls, nothing was for sale, except food and drinks from The Splitscreen Bakery guys, which made the day much more relaxing. The free to attend event was purely for the love of our cars and the desire to meet with friends from all over the country. Infact people travelled from Yorkshire, Wales, Cornwall and even the Bugpeople guys came over from Holland.

The trophies were something else. The hard work and dedication that had gone into making some of them was insane, and all went to deserving winners. Gav from Trailer Queen Restos custom painted long-boardz and Ben Lewis’ hand made bus model stood out for me as the trophies I wanted to take home.

Stef Rossi rolled his sunbleached 912 into the show and the GFK boys made a scene with some amazing cars.

This show was the greatest one day event I have ever been to. All other shows should take note of how it was organised because they’ve got some serious competition now!

Show Report | DTA Meet

DTA

END OF SEASON MEET. BIRMINGHAM, UK.

Words: Hazel Buller

13th September 2014 Since 2014 was the 50th anniversary of the Beach Buggy, it seemed only appropriate to take a trip to Black Rock Sands, Porthmadog, at the end of the season as a last hurrah of the year. We had clearly been watching far too many road trip films, but it is the sort of thing that Bruce Myers intended it to be when he started out after all. With the prospect of being allowed to drive on a beach (black rock is still considered a highway) and the campsite we were staying at was literally a hop skip and a jump over the dunes from the beach, we were excited to say the least.

It was also set to be Dan Peyto -that 70’s kid’s ‘final fling’ since his care free days of being spontaneous were

Event | Beach Buggy Bash

to be pretty much over, what with Gemma blessing him with a screaming baby #fatherlyresponsibilities #babysickandcrying.

The plan was to zoom down to the beach in the bugs, throw a tent up, chuck some burgers on a BBQ and cook them to a crisp, then watch the sun go down on the sands while staring thoughtfully into the distance.

One Saturday morning I joined 2 brave Midlands buggy folk, Dan Peyto and David Wainmann – I say brave, because for me getting anywhere in my buggy is half the challenge!

My Dad considerately gave it the once over the night before to make sure nothing could go wrong.

All was well until reaching Shrewsbury, when my buggy started coughing and sputtering because he’d forgotten to pop the oil cap back on after giving it a top up. Nothing a donated scrap of Dan’s airbed, tape and cable ties couldn’t fix.

We topped up on fuel and continued on with vigilant eagerness, enjoying the landscape when A-roads became B-roads, as we crossed the border and soldiered into Wales and up

Event | Beach Buggy Bash

into the hills. We were running later than planned, but it would have been rude not take a breather at the scenery that was Bala Lake, the largest natural body of water in Wales. I think it was here that Dan began his staring thoughtfully into the distance and pondering life…

Once we arrived at Black Rock Touring Park there were already 6 buggies and tents set up, we had tried their patience for long enough and only had a moment to set up camp before zooming down to the beach. The beasts were unleashed, buggies everywhere along the beach. Some were more cautious than others due to their ‘chromosexual’ tendencies, while others whizzed around and around. This was the chance to set our buggies free in their natural habitat and one went off with a bang!

It was a reflective evening but some of us couldn’t help but pop back to the sand while the sun was setting, and then again in the morning before leaving. It was all too much for one particular bugger, upon returning in the darkness, slipping and sliding like a mad man… Little did we know the Police had popped down to warn a group on quad bikes that this is a public highway and there are rules to abide by including a speed limit – Dan offered out his hand and took a slap on the wrist from the local bobby despite said mad man now kicking up sand in a spin behind him.

We came as clusters and left together as one for as long as we could, through the country roads.

Together, another stop was made at Bala Lake to try and warm up and say a few goodbyes, the end of the season was being

Event | Beach Buggy Bash

kind not to give us rain, but there was no denying it was bleak.

To us buggy folk this is what it’s all about though, friends having fun on the beach in cars built for the job.

Although this was the first annual Beach Buggy Bash, it could easily become a rite of passage for buggers to get their buggy where it was destined to be, to become a beach babe and get the sand between the tread of your tyres and the contours of your buggy.

Bear in mind that if you are to take the pilgrimage to Black Rock, it is one of the very few beaches we are

still allowed to drive on, so be careful not to condemn us all by getting kicked off.

Remember to check out www.beachbuggyclub. com and www. beachbuggybrummies. co.uk to keep up to date on future events, cruises and gatherings.

Head on over to www. beachbuggybrummies. co.uk/beach-buggy-bash/ bash-2014-gallery/ for more photos! All photos credited and belong to Hazel Buller.

The Classic Motor Show

National Exhibition Centre. Birmingham.

13th-15th November 2014.

Show Report | NEC Classic

words and photos: Joe Eynon

The Classic Motor Show 13th-15th November 2014.

National Exhibition Centre.

Birmingham, U.K.

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his show needs no introduction, but seeing as this is a magazine, I suppose I should The Classic Motor Show is the U.K’s biggest classic motoring show and has over 1700 cars on display. With nearly 300 British motoring clubs participating throughout the weekend, there is something for everyone’s taste.

You enter the show and your are immediately greeted with some large displays from the likes of some Jaguar, BMW and Mercedes clubs. The first of the air-cooled clubs were there too with The Porsche Club of Great Britain showing off their finest examples.

The show is held over 3 days and to be honest you would need all three to get the most from the event. The car clubs take 5 halls of the venue and the other 3 are trade. There was a massive auto jumble there this year with everything from Brietlings to Bandanas for sale.

Every make and marque is catered for at the event, with a large American car scene present, plus motorcyclves showing their face all weekend.

There was even a wall of death for you to watch. One of the best things about this show is that the smallest and most unusual car clubs can get

Show Report | NEC Classic

exposure. Isn’t that what it’s all about? I guarantee that at some point, walking round, you will come across a car you have never heard of or had totally forgotten about.

I really enjoyed looking at some of the very original barn find classic cars that some of the clubs displayed. Many of them will never be restored due to there not being enough market value in the car.

The standard of cars at this event is very high. The Meguiers host the concours event, and there was everything from Jaguars to Rat Rods, plus there was a Fiat Uno Turbo which was great.

If you’ve never been before please try it next year.

Get a taste of other car scenes and clubs and get some inspiration from other people. You will not regret it.

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words: Joe Eynon photos: Joss Ashley/ Wide 5’s Photography

Show Report | RSVP BBQ

RSVP BBQ

Bidford-on-Avon, Warwickshire, U.K. 28th September 2014.

R.S.V.P. BBQ. 28th September 2014.

Bidford-on-Avon.

Warwickshire, U.K. We’ve covered this event for a number of years now. It may be a little repetitive of us to keep reviewing it but we simply cannot leave it out.

Always falling in the last few weeks in September, and announced at fairly late notice this year, the BBQ ran by the Redditch based R.S.V.P air-cooled club,

has become a season closer; a final chance to say goodbye to friends until the sun reappears in the Spring.

Although this years BBQ was only advertised a month before the event it hadn’t appeared to put many people off. It was the busiest ever, with cars travelling from all over the country to come and chill out in the lush countryside.

The setting could not be more perfect.

Set in a parish council run picnic site, all

Show Report | RSVP BBQ

you pay is the car parking fee to allow you to park on the field, and then the RSVP guys direct you where to park.

having low cars and everyone had obviously read the dress code! We even took the Air Monkeys Fastback out for a rare show in 2014 and it looked right at home in the grass.

The club obviously had their own line up, but other than that you just filled the As you can imagine from the name of corner of the field commandeered for the event there was a BBQ there, which the afternoon. was a relaxed affair. It was simply lit and you came and went as you pleased with The range of vehicles was great but your own food. No money, no hassle. there did appear to be a common Just friends enjoying driving their cars in theme; slammed! the late summer sunshine.

The R.S.V.P guys are well known for

The atmosphere there was great. The club itself is a close knit community, but always up for a chat at shows and demonstrating their openess by putting on an event which anyone can bring their air-cooled VW’s to. Even though slammed was the theme there was plenty of stock height VW’s there, proving people still rock the stock.

The Hayburner guys came along and brought the Canada Dry bus out, and there was some really early cars there such as Dave Hall’s Barndoor and James

Murtough’s 47 Beetle. The air-cooled cars in the U.K. scene appear to be getting older and older.

Towards the end of the day the awards are handed out from the R.S.V.P. boys and girls for their favourite cars.

Every year this event never fails to impress and it is always a pleasure to be there.

Make sure you are there in 2015!

Show Report | RSVP BBQ

Show Report | RSVP BBQ

The Perfect Family Car!?

Words: Samantha Eynon Photos: Henry Powell

Feature | 58 Beetle

D

aniel Pike grew up with his dad and uncle both having, and working on, UK styled beetles in the late 80s, and early 90’s. He remembers loving his dad’s Beetle and being gutted to see it go. Despite this, he didn’t really attend any shows and rarely saw any VWs at all in the area he lived. Fast forward to 2009 ,and now with 2 kids of his own, he was picking his son up from a club and noticed a 65 bug, it instantly re-awakened his VW love. When he got home he mentioned it to his girlfriend and the cogs started turning, as he worked out how he could get one.

The initial plan was to borrow the money from his girlfriend, find one for a couple of grand and buy it to use daily, and sell his audi to pay the money back. So the search began, but fell at it’s first hurdle, as it became apparent that he was drawn to pre 60 beetles, and the ones he found were double what he’d planned to borrow!

Luckily for Daniel, his girlfriend Kerry agreed to lend him as much as he needed so he could get what he wanted; he understandably says she is “awesome!”

With this in mind, he went down to Project01 in Hampshire, to check out a car with his dad.

It was a good job too, as he had to calm Daniel down. He struggled to play it cool, as he loved the car straight away. Fortunately the car was really solid, and he and the owner Matt got on well, with their shared interest in basketball.

Now Daniel was set with a great Beetle, ‘Nancy’, that needed some personal touches to make it his own. However, he didn’t want to use her as his daily, as he wanted to keep her in such good condition, so the second part of the plan was changed as well, as he kept his Audi to drive to work. Again Kerry was super understanding and didn’t mind at all, as long as Daniel was happy.

She has since said that she doesn’t want the money paid back unless he sells Nancy, which he assures us will not be happening! His friends like to refer to the Beetle as Kerry’s car!

Feature | 58 Beetle

Feature | 58 Beetle

The first thing he needed to do was fit seatbelts so it could be used as a family car, with that done they then used Nancy for a year, as she was, just enjoying her, and getting used to owning a classic aircooled car. Kerry hated the original interior, which was ripped, had no carpet and was pretty much falling apart. They decided to have a go at doing it themselves, so they stripped it and removed the seat covers which just disintegrated as they came off! All the frames were powder coated, as near to the original colour as Daniel could find. The floor was checked over, treated and painted, sound proofing and then an oatmeal carpet fitted. A TMI seat cover set and door cards were fitted , with new padding and a little extra to keep them tight and add a little more comfort.

The headliner was next. Daniel says he hated doing this, even with the help of his dad (who also hated it!). He says “Its the one bit that I don’t like now it’s finished and I wont be doing it again, and will pay someone to do it next time!!”

So it became summer again and more enjoying the sun, shows and cruising. The whole family

loving using her and adding more personal touches as they went. The next winter Daniel wanted to pull the engine out so he could tidy the bay up, change the clutch and smarten the whole lot up. All the engine tin went to be powder coated satin black with the manifold being gloss black. The whole engine was cleaned, a new tar board was fitted in the bay and he changed the clutch and seals. The engine was refitted and she fired up again fine.

He did have an interesting trip to the Le Bug Show in Spa though, with a stop off in Brugge. The drive to the tunnel went smoothly, as did the other side to Brugge, but then the clutch started slipping badly Daniel managed to nurse Nancy all the way there, some of it only doing 20 on the motorway! Lorries were flying by and then the sat nav would say to keep left, which meant pulling out into the fast lane! Despite that, he had an awesome time.

Nancy was trailered back to the UK from Spa as he didn’t fancy sitting on the side of the road waiting to be towed if he broke down on the way back. Daniel is looking forward to many more future adventures in Nancy, just the way it should be!

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Interview | Smitherz

Smitherz Full Name: Neil Smith Artist Name: SMITHERZ (Automortal Kustom Paint Studio) Location: Nottingham/ Derby Day Job: Designer Thanks for taking the time to talk to us.

We’ve been a fan of your work since you first hit the scene. What do you think makes your work different to others?

I have been drawing and painting since I was very young and it has always been something that interested me greatly. In my late teens I got heavily involved in the Graffiti scene which allowed me to travel all over Europe and gain exposure to a wide variety of artistic influences.

Alongside this, my father and I have always loved old cars and Hotrods, and between us we have owned and built a few, more recently Aircooled VWs. I started reading Custom Car and Street Machine in my early teens and learned about Pinstriping and Greaser Culture. I guess my style is a fusion of all of these influences, which for me is the perfect mix of new and old school.

Which artists do you draw influence from?

Without doubt the artist I respect the most in the

Pinstriping world is Neil Melliard. He was the artist I would see in old Hotrod mags as a teenager, Pinstriping and Lettering drag cars, and he paints the most perfect flames. Neil and the guys from The Paintbox have collaborated on some of my favourite Drag Cars and VWs! Neil also has one of the cleanest and wellproportioned Pinstriping styles and I have worked hard to ensure I don’t simply copy his style. I also hugely respect Larry Watson and respect his bravery back in the day to push Kustom painting further and further. His influence can still be seen today.

How long have you been painting?

I took Neil Melliards Pinstriping course in 2004 which was awesome, but did nothing with the great amount of knowledge I absorbed that day….until January 2014 when

I picked up the brushes and started working hard developing my style and trying to make a name for myself. I have learned so much over the last 12 months, but still very much consider myself a novice with much to learn. To be honest, the day you think you have mastered something and that there is no more to learn, is probably the day you should stop. I aim never to be complacent and stop evolving.

What is your background?

I studied 3D Design at Uni and have forged a successful career for myself as a computer based 3D Designer, travelling the world within my job roles. Painting and Signwriting is not my day job. My day job is very precise and controlled with multiple client and stakeholders to gratify. When I paint, I am not so bothered about nailing the symmetry or line consistency.

It’s a brush and my work looks hand painted, because it is. If I wanted it to be precise, I would use a computer. I have fun when I paint and try to use whatever I am painting on to dictate the form and composition.

An artist always has a favourite brush or paint. What is yours? What paint/ equipment do you use the majority of the time?

This is probably the question I get asked the most, “What brush should I use to learn Pinstriping?”. My answer is always the same.

It is impossible to answer as every artist and style is different. My advice to anyone is to buy a few brushes and have a go. I struggled with short handled sword liners at first. I couldn’t achieve and kind of natural flow and wasn’t enjoying it. After trying loads of different brushes I now paint mostly with Mack long handled – round ferruled scrolling brushes. They fit best in my long spindly fingers! I have 10 – 15 brushes that I regularly paint with, but I will always continue to experiment.

Interview | Smitherz

In terms of paint, I use 1Shot Lettering Enamel if the job does not require clear coating, or House Of Kolor Striping Enamels if the job is to be clear coated, but again, I will always experiment with new products when I come across them. I am in the early stages of mastering Metal Flake / Candy paint jobs at the moment which I am loving, but it makes one hell of a mess! I have unknowingly gone to work with a sparkly beard more than once!

You obviously have a keen interest in Hot Rods and Air-cooled VWs. What other stuff floats your boat?

For most people their teen years shape their adult life and I am no different.

For me growing up was skate / snowboarding, graffiti and music. As a teenager in the 90’s growing up in a big city (Nottingham) I was blessed as there was never a shortage of mischief to get into and an overload of cultural influence. I’m a Gentleman with a punk heart!

Do you see other artists as competitors or collaborators?

I find other artists hugely influential and am constantly absorbing ideas and techniques from the artists I follow on sites like Tumblr and Instagram, and a lot of artists will

openly share techniques and advice which is the great thing about the internet. There’s a fine line to tread from taking influence and straight up copying someone else’s work. I have consciously never copied anything, in my graffiti days you could lose teeth for copying other artist’s work! I am very open and will share my experiences and more importantly the mistakes I have made with anyone who wants to know.

Would you ever work with another artist on the same piece of work?

Having only painted seriously for a short time, I have not yet collaborated with anyone. Instead I have been locked away in my workshop practicing. I hope to use 2015 to venture out into the wide world as a Pinstriper and Sign Painter and hook up with other artists.

Which piece of work are you most proud of and why?

This is a tricky question to answer as I am an obsessive perfectionist but have consciously aimed to keep my style loose and free so I don’t get bogged down in details and spend hours correcting every little detail each time I paint. But I don’t feel I have done my favourite piece of work yet and I will continue to strive and find it. If I had to choose, it would be the “Bad To The Bone” longboard I painted in January 2014, as this was the piece that got

me painting again!

What is your favourite technique and what do you find most challenging?

When learning about Pinstriping I was fascinated by scroll brush work by artists such as Steve Kafka, which has a very organic flow to the finished brush strokes, but is incredibly difficult and technically demanding to get right.

I have started mixing in some scroll strokes into my Pinstriping and am enjoying the challenge.

Do you think your art moves with current trends or do you think it is capturing a period in time?

If my style ever stops evolving I may as well stop painting. I always want to evolve and learn new skills and techniques, as well as refine the skills I already have.

Interview | Smitherz

What surface is your favourite to paint on?

You can’t beat painting on top of a freshly painted and polished surface, particularly if you have laid the base coats yourself. I get to paint on many weird and wonderful surfaces and holding straight lines over a bumpy rusty surface can be challenging.

If you could only do one piece of artwork ever again what would you do?

I would paint a Metalflake / Candy Flame, Lace and Pinstriped paint job on a Harley Sportster Tank and use it to build a chopper. FTW! FTF! Whats the oddest thing you’ve striped?

A miniature bird house.

Jam or Peanut butter on toast?

Sausages and Ketchup please.

Does anyone help you with your work?

I would like to give a huge shout out to my beautiful wife for being incredibly supportive and tolerant. Neil Melliard and Jonny Letterknight for showing me the basics of brush control and paint mixing. All of my customers and followers who have supported me on my journey so far!

I also want to give special Thanks to you and the Air Monkey’s team for supporting the scene and individuals like myself, who wouldn’t normally get an opportunity like this!

What plans have you got for 2015?

I’m planning to keep painting as much as possible and developing my skillset in 2015. I have some exciting projects lined up already which I will be posting on my Instagram / Facebook pages so please check them out! #smitherz #automortal

We would like to thank Neil for allowing us to feature his art and for being so open with us about his work, passions and future plans.

We wish him all the best for 2015 and beyond!

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Meet Macy

Words: Joe Eynon Photos: Joss Ashley / Wide5 Photography

Feature | Slammed 63

Meet Matt Rudd and Sam Lowbridge’s slammed 63 Beetle. We had noticed Macy quite a lot at various VW events throughout 2014 and she never failed to grab our attention. From her colour right down to her stance, she is spot on (in our opinion) in every way. After seeing her again at the D.T.A. meet in Birmingham we finally organised a shoot for a feature.

I will leave it to Matt to tell his and Macy’s story in his own words. Enjoy!

“Mate your wheels are bent!”

The first time I heard that I looked back at the horning pointer and reassuringly said nah it’s fine man, it’s ok ! Wonky, bent, broken, leaning and collapsed! Driving all over the UK this summer, windows down, in a shiny bug was brilliant, even when people are calling your car all of the above.

This is my first VW since regretting selling my sixties square back years ago. I’ve built a fair few really low, new and old VW’s. My parents, friends and family all have had air-cooled vehicles all my life, and going show to show since the mid-nineties, it was just a matter of time till we were waving goodbye to our comfy

cars. We insured our standard import 1963 1200A beetle and went to get our first free tax disc.

< I nearly crashed on the test drive! > Earlier in the year I’d set some savings aside and we looked and looked every day for months at what’s got to be fifty beetles and variants in all years shapes and heights. It took until boxing day 2013, and up popped an ad from a family selling off the cars they had imported from Sweden. I knew whilst driving

Feature | Slammed 63

the 150 miles to see that car that I would have Macy on my drive by supper. I nearly crashed on the test drive!

It was like driving a tea tray, but after bagging a bargain and driving home in -5 with disconnected heater cables and a leaky iced up death trap spec carburettor, it was on my drive.

Major result! It took a few months of use, once the heaters were hooked up, to dry out properly , and now it’ll cook you on a cold day, it’s great.

It’s had a wing and front panel replaced way back, but is mostly unmolested. I had to replace the petrol tank first off. Then after seeing many uk models we realised It had a different petrol gauge, Swedish seat belt set and a strange cloth interior, maybe out of an oval? It had a

nasty aerial on the front, so i took that straight off. I also fitted an old Hutchinson turbine horn I’ve had on all my cars. It’s a family tradition to have a crap loud horn that makes an apocalyptic entrance!

Being a 1200, it’s slow, reallllly slow, but I’m not going to mess around with it. It’s staying standard, as we just want reliability of some sort and so far we’ve had just that. My girlfriend, Samantha , restored most of the paint. It’s dark and snows for a few months a year and the temperature in north Sweden can reach -30 to 40 so I think it lasted well in its little shed. The rear wings had filler in them and were cracked a little. We uncovered a few crap touch ups and when it is due a polish it’s a bit

patchy but then again it is 52 this month!

Once we started taking Macy to all the shows , we had very few weekends at home all year.

We kept cutting, waxing and using the car everyday, it became clean and very reliable.

After seeing some of the DTA guys down at Air-cooled engineering (ACE-VW.COM), we got a little advice and made the essential “ fix her up “ road side spares and tools carry kit, everything they suggested for road side fixes was perfect for when we ferried all our camping gear up and down the country to all the shows, so massive props for the spare beam, for us to narrow, and the advice.

I have a unit that’s full of my family’s projects and I’m building a bug panned Jetta coupe that I drove daily on air ride for years. It’s educating me in what’s what under the bug’s

skin. I wanted to narrow and lower the beetle myself there, but my friend Kirsty Greatrex had had her beetle lowered by Seann Hodson. I had seen his brown bug at bug jam the year before and knew he had a firm spanner hand and a quick turn around on any work he does, so I left my standard car there with the spare beam, lime bug dropped spindles and low/thin front tyres. We chatted back n forth and decided on a rather conservative (for Seann) 6” narrower on the beam and a tank raise. Seann welded the beam back up with the towers, so I can run short shocks and turned the back spring plate’s three splines. Before my drive home Seann said it’ll settle a lot just like everything you lower, but on the drive home it settled a few inches and turned into a road muncher with the beam being wound all the way up the wings skimmed the floor, chuffed ain’t the word!

Feature | Slammed 63

The car had a crap aftermarket red carpet in it and I hated it, so with help from my friend James, I removed it. I looked for new biscuit carpets but they were nuts expensive so I looked around ikea for the same type and found some large thin mats that we could cut using the old carpet as templates. It transformed the inside and meets the haggard look of the battered seats which we cleaned but left unrepaired.

So me, Sam & co went to water cooled shows to join the few who take their old

< Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a family tradition to have a crap loud horn that makes an apocalyptic entrance! >

Feature | Slammed 63 road chippers along to try and dilute the ratio of new / old cars. After having put so much work into the car I wanted to show it off. As as air-ride is massive now, and after dragging it countrywide, I toyed with fitting an airlift v1 4 way kit I had for ages, to make it mot and hump friendly, but it would just be over complicating a simple car. I love the car the way it is and it’s been a good year camping and we’ve collected awards, trophy’s and loads of cleaning products from different show sponsors.

Life in the slow lane has made this year fly by, and we’ve travelled a lot and in 2015 we want to do the European shows. We should have abandoned our comfy new cars a while back.

Keeping old VW’s on the road is a gift to others now, even if you end up push starting it all weekend, like we did at VW Festival or breaking down on a motorway somewhere, it’s just an adventure every week. I see onlookers daily in their cars loving and hating it. Keeping my old car clean and using it is important now and who knows maybe someday if we can gather enough new parts Macy might be fully rebuilt and maybe painted. Never say never!

I’ve got to thank Seann hodson, my bro Andy, Jason and Alex @ Rothfink, James , Sian, Simon and crew at Autofinesse, my cousin John, friends James, Richard, Joe, Clique 53, E38crew, FittedUK, Slam Sanctuary, wide5sphotography, the D.T.A, Cumbriavag, Sitting Dubs and a shout out to the happy campers you know who you are!

Page 45 review some of the best comic books out there for us. Head to their website www.page45.com, or pop in to their Nottingham store.

water cannons then rabid, salivating dogs unleashed against school children by Police Chief Eugene “Bull” Connor in Alabama. These were not college students but school children aged 7 upwards and nearly a thousand were arrested on May 2nd 1963 during their peaceful protest.

All this very real horror - this leering and jeering and sneering and snarling and spitting and mob attacks by white civilians and policemen and militia upon defenceless black pacifists - is depicted unflinchingly

by Nate Powell (SWALLOW ME WHOLE, ANY EMPIRE, THE YEAR OF THE BEASTS, SOUNDS OF YOUR NAME). It is at times claustrophobic when The Freedom Riders are trapped on buses which were firebombed... or penned in a waiting room in the dark surrounded by the Ku Klux Klan and affiliated officials and laymen... or thrown into prison for refusing to endorse segregation by paying their fines, so left at the mercy of vicious prison officers given free rein by their equally malicious governor, Fred Jones, away from any possibility of being caught on camera.

March Book 2 s/c back John Lewis, Andrew Aydin & Nate Powell Review by Stephen L. Holland

“I’ll end up where I need to be.”

Autobiography from indomitable Civil Rights campaigner - now United States Congressman John Lewis.

Every event chronicled here in painful, painstaking detail happened to John Lewis and those around him between 1961 and 1963 during The Freedom Rides and Operation Open City.

And there is so much blood.

There is so much blood, so much ferocious anger, so many heads smashed against floors and so many skulls caved in by police batons. Never mind the

In one savage onslaught a woman holding a baby screams at the quiet and respectful pacifists simply standing their ground by standing in line, “GET THE NIGGERS! GET THE NIGGERS!” and it is all one can do not to weep.

This self-contained volume of the trilogy - which began in MARCH BOOK 1 with John Lewis’ childhood then early sit-ins at whites-only cafeterias which were later, here, met with a lock-in and fumigation - is yet again intercut with the Inauguration of America’s first black President, Barrack Obama, in Washington DC on January 20th 2009.

There is an arresting double-page spread of Aretha Franklin, right arm flung wide, singing her heart and soul out at the ceremony in an electric rendition of ‘My Country, ‘Tis Of Thee’, its lyrics splashed across the paper from border to border:

Regular | Page 45 “LONG MAY OUR LAND BE BRIGHT, WITH FREEDOM’S HOLY LIGHT, PROTECT US BY THY MIGHT, OH LET FREEDOM RING!”

All of which is juxtaposed against a montage of memories - the price which the fight for that freedom cost while those selfsame words were being sung so patriotically but emptily by others of a policeman casually, dispassionately lighting a cigarette and of the bandaged, bloodied bodies the police were (either directly or through their culpable, collaborative refusal to protect) responsible for.

It’s a testament to Nate Powell that not once do the hundreds of individuals depicted here seem generic: the first black and white Freedom Riders defying transportation segregation by sitting together, each of them identified; the young girl who will not be moved even as a speeding truck screeches to a halt in front of her then revs threateningly, angrily as its driver contemplates running her right over; another schoolgirl on May 2nd 1963 asking for no more than the basic right to freedom as dozens of her fellow protestors are bundled into a police van.

As well as identifying each individual member of the SNCC and the specific, heroic roles they played at each juncture, John Lewis names and shames those who engaged in overt racism on a local, State or national level even as a seemingly powerless government failed to enforce integration, Attorney General Robert Kennedy being completely ignored.

Mendacity was rife.

You may have wondered about the back cover, as I surely did: the stained glass window, the face of Christ smashed in, letting a white light shine through. It was actually night-time on May 21st 1961, to be precise.

“After hearing of the violence at the bus station, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. flew to Montgomery. A mass meeting was called at Ralph Abernathy’s church.

Governor Patterson, despite promising to protect us, has warrants sworn out for our arrest.”

Yet another angry mob swelled outside, that brick breached the stained glass window but the troops supposedly sent to protect the church’s vulnerable occupants did nothing of the sort.

“General Henry Graham of the Alabama National Guard, a real estate agent in his civilian life, refused to allow anyone to leave.”

Worst of all was that Police Chief Eugene “Bull” Connor, determined to deport any Freedom Riders who finally made it to Birmingham, Alabama, without their bus being firebombed after letting the mob have its way. Asked on television why there were no police officers at the bus station, he replied: “Mother’s Day. We try and let off as many of our policemen as possible, so they can spend Mother’s Day at home with their families.”

As I said: mendacity.

“We found out later that he’d promised the Ku Klux Klan fifteen minutes with the bus before he’d make any arrests.”

May 18th 1961 seemed most terrifying to me. After Lewis et al had been banged up in police cells yet again, towards midnight Chief Connor made a personal visit.

“I’m putting you people under protective custody, and sending you all the way back to Nashville where you belong. And just to make sure you get there...

I’m gonna ride along.”

All the way back to Nashville...? No. As soon as they reached the Tennessee line, the men and women were summarily ejected from the car in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere without transportation... right in the heart of Klan country.

What this gripping graphic novel makes abundantly clear over and over again is that it is a miracle John Lewis survived to end up where he needed to be: in Washington for the march on August 28th 1963 as chairman of the SNCC. It wasn’t a day without conflict - this time from within - but it did prove a milestone in American history.

However, it isn’t where the book ends, I’m afraid.

Someone always has to get the last word in.

It ends on September 15th 1963, outside the Baptist Church of Sixteenth Street, Birmingham, Alabama.

Youth Sunday.

Truths are often much more enlightening when seen from a fresher perspective.

It is a truth universally acknowledged, for example, that children are created by parents - not just by procreation but by osmosis as well: nature and nurture. The behaviour of parents rubs off on their progeny. But even without the following reversal, the behaviour of children must surely, similarly, rub off on their parents? Or at least wear them down. Or buoy them up. We just haven’t given that enough consideration yet.

But what if children created their parents? We might look at things differently then, and so now we do.

“We were sat on Peter Cake’s Mum as usual. Pete’s Mum used to be a dinner lady at the school. She had a breakdown in the playground a few months back and no one has come to pick her up yet. It’s funny, Pete never used to go near her when she was working.”

The Motherless Oven Rob Davis

Review by Stephen L. Holland

“Mums know more than they let on.”

Never were truer words written.

“They say it’s natural for mothers to be protective of their kids. I don’t see why. They need protecting as much as we do.”

Welcome to a graphic novel that is so wickedly new and so densely inventive that comparison points virtually elude me. Its warped reality reminds me of Gorillaz tracks with their attendant videos. There are weather clocks issuing knife-storm warnings; instead of the goggle box there’s a Daily Wheel to watch; and teenage Scarper Lee may not know his birthday but he certainly knows his deathday: it’s in three weeks time.

I shouldn’t be surprised and I’m not: THE MOTHERLESS OVEN comes from Rob Davis, the creator of THE COMPLETE DON QUIXOTE and the instigator, director and chief writer of NELSON, another all-time classic which - like the equally original THE NAO OF BROWN - won the British Comic Awards for best graphic novel of its year, deservedly.

Everything here will sound so very familiar although almost everything here has been turned on its head.

It is so typical of Rob Davis’ love of language that he bestows on the word “breakdown” two different meanings with identical results.

In THE MOTHERLESS OVEN, you see, children fashion their parents as paintings or mechanical objects as if made from Meccano, and Pete’s Mum had a physical breakdown like any old car and a mental breakdown like any highly stressed, underpaid, overworked parent trying to provide with a job. Now she just lies there where she fell, inert, like so much scrap metal. They sit on her.

“Turned out today is the day they tow Pete’s Mum away. They’ll take her to the Mother Ruins, unless Pete’s Dad can get permission for a permanent residence in their front garden. He wants to turn her into an ornamental fountain.”

Another play on words: Mother’s Ruin becomes Mother Ruins and wait until you see that nurseless nursing home.

Scarper Lee isn’t a misanthrope. He actually cares.

He’s just very private and prefers sitting at home.

He’d rather not be bothered with people.

Then along comes Vera Pike, the most bothersome girl in the world, and Scarper Lee can’t get her out of his head. She’s direct, disruptive and completely unphased by the weather. She’ll even go out in a knife storm, carrying a thick wooden table over her head like an umbrella.

“You don’t like the laughing gales, then? You do

Regular | Page 45 realise the wind isn’t laughing at you, don’t you? I mean, you’re not so vain and neurotic as to think that, are you, Scarper?”

I know for a fact the wind is laughing at me.

“Having said that, if the wind is laughing at you, you might as well just laugh along, right?”

Needless to say, at school she’s immediately shunted off into the deaf unit where all the kids with “special needs” go - just like Castro, whom she calls her “new toy”. Castro has “medicated interference syndrome”, with a “brain aid” to modulate his behaviour.

“Just watch him go when I turn it all the way up! Ask him a question. Go on, Scarper, ask him anything!”

“Y’alright, mate? Your nose is bleeding! D’you need a tissue?”

I told you he cared.

Scarper cares most about his Dad, a brass, landbound boat yacht whom he polishes meticulously every Sunday, tightening his seals. He keeps his Dad chained up in the shed for his own safety, though on Saturdays he’ll sail down the pub, as you do.

Saturdays are the best!

“Saturday is the day when I feel like I can see the horizon. It’s the day that doesn’t ask for anything and is happy with what you give it.”

That’s a fabulous page: a small-town high street on a sunny day with a thrilling, open perspective.

There are shops, snap-frame A boards and Scarper himself, idling along the pavement in a striped jumper and jacket and tight, black denim jeans.

You might not even notice the parents being driven down the road.

Davis’ designs on the Daily Wheels are well worth studying closely, but it’s his faces and figure work I love most: lithe forms with slim legs, and Scarper’s bushy hair, bulbous bottom lip and eyebrows as thick as big, black caterpillars frowning deep over his eyes. Ian Culbard told me Mike McMahon is a huge influence on Rob and I can see that, transformed here into something a lot less angular and cheekier so I’m sticking with my Jamie Hewlett comparison. It creates a stark contrast with the sculptures, murals and trundling mechanical objects which are everyone’s parents.

The grey, pen-brush washes are warm and soft, while the knife storms - kitchen-knife storms - are stark and sharp and I’m never going to complain about hail again.

As to the inventiveness, it’s thoroughly organic.

Davis doesn’t just drop a pun and run. He rolls an idea out, rolls it around in his mind, follows it through then sits it spinning in yours, whether it’s nature, billboard newspapers, circular history, Castro’s Mum or the secret of the Motherless Oven itself. Here’s my favourite exchange, Scarper being “reassured” by his headmaster about his impending deathday: “When I was your age, a classmate of mine faced his deathday in year eleven, just like you. And, just like yours, his deathday was on a Wednesday.

I saw him on the morning of his death, stood at the bus stop. His mother was beside him, leaking everywhere. His father, it turned out, was hiding in his pocket…

“He did all his lessons that day and afterwards played for the school football team against the local girls’ school. Thirty minutes in, a big girl with an eye patch stood on his leg and snapped his shin. The poor fellow bled to death on the halfway line.

“The boy’s father remained in the lost property box for years. The mother went quite doolally, I’m sad to say.

“She had a propeller hairstyle, all the rage in those days - damn thing went into a hysterical spin cycle.

Ripped her head off her shoulders. It flew around the school for weeks before the groundsman shot it down.”

So with his deathday approaching and the clock ticking inexorably on, what will Scarper Lee do with the little time left? Momentum doesn’t seem to be something he’s ever built up. He’ll probably just stay at home with his Mum and Dad. Ah. And then that happens...

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Monteverde One Touch Stylus Ballpoint Tool Pen For someone who is a fan of tools, this one is great; 9 tools in one!

It is a heavy weight, 6-sided barrel that houses a smooth writing SoftRoll ballpoint at one end and an ultra sensitive touch screen stylus at the other. Under the stylus top are phillips and flat head screwdrivers, while on the barrel are a built in level, ruler and 3 different scale functions.This pleases us greatly!

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Ob1 Wallet In need of good quality wallet, a staple every man should have? Well our friends at Ob1 have this top piece for sale; 100% handmade and designed in the UK from brown vegetable tanned leather, with hand stitched and burnished edges and a hand stamped embossed logo. A lot of love and hard work has gone into each and every one.

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Regular | Cool Sh*t

NO JUNK MAIL - Letter Box Sign Fed up of the amount of junk mail that gets crammed through your letter box everyday, and inevitably goes straight out for paper recycling (apart from the odd takeaway menu!)? Well here is a great looking solution that is designed and laser cut in the UK. Available from Telegramme.co.uk

Wooden Beer Tote These cool looking beer carriers are made to order in the UK, each one holds 6 bottles (up to 75 mm).

All are fitted with a vintage style bottle opener, and can be made up with an engraving, or your own custom artwork.

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re thinking itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to get one in preparation for show season!

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Star Wars™ X-Wing™ Knife Block If you like cooking, (or just like knives!) and like Star Wars, this knife block is a bit of a no-brainer.

Turning your knife collection into a work of art; the chrome finished knife block holds 5 high quality knives for all your chopping needs!

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Virtual Keyboard The future is here, in the form of a virtual keyboard! Revolutionary laser technology projects a virtual keyboard on any flat surface, and advanced optics track your fingers like magic.

You can use it with your smart phone or tablet with Bluetooth® wireless technology.

Time to pretend your in a sci-fi movie, it’s not quite Minority Report, but it’s getting there!

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Regular | Cool Sh*t

Sugar Skull Spoon Are you guilty of having too much sugar in your tea, or in anything else for that matter? Well the sugar skull spoon is here to help remind you that too much sugar is BAD. Firstly it helps you cut down, as excess sugar falls through the gaps, and also the skull is a reminder of the doom you are inviting into your life in the form of type 2 diabetes, if you go overboard!

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Sunset Skateboards Ok we admit it is quite gimmicky- a skateboard that lights up- but we canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t help but want one!

The boards are made from waterclear polycarbonate (PC) plastic.

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Sunset Skateboards designed the Original Flare LED Wheels. These motion-powered, multi-coloured wheels light up without the need for any batteries and are rated to last up to 100,000 hours Get skating and light stuff up!

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Grant 15” Nostalgia Slot Steering Wheel Machine7 £117.50 This aluminium, aftermarket, steering wheel is designed to complement a race themed interior, as well as support driver comfort. At approximately ½” smaller in diameter than your stock item, this wheel gives much-appreciated extra knee room for the taller drivers amongst you, without adversely affecting steering input effort. A ‘dish’ of 4 1/8” puts the rim closer to the driver over stock, which I find puts me in a more comfortable driving position, especially on longer journeys. The supple, rubberised rim is chunkier than the standard Beetle item, inspiring confidence as well as cutting down on some road vibes transmitted through the steering column.

Simple installation using the comprehensive boss adapter kit, (sold separately specific to your application) allows a no-fuss swap from stock. One modification we made whilst fitting this to my ’67 Bug was to cut the length of the supplied horn wire in order to remove an excess loop in the cable, which would need to be tucked under the centre cap. This centre cap acts as the horn-push on this model, with the cap suspended away from the spokes on a newly supplied spring.

One very important note is to remove and keep your ‘turn signal cam’, or indicator cam to our British readers, and relocate this onto the back of your new Grant boss. This allows the indicators to cancel themselves as in the original stock application, (if your vehicle was equipped with this function).

Regular | Tech Focus

A round up of the best products for your VW from around the world.

Fast Fab Billet Throttle Pedal LimeBug £98.45 (Late Style Type 1) A considerable investment, at the sharp end of £100, but then again that new shifter just cost you nearly 3 times that, right…?

Any user interface components (such as steering wheels, shifters, pedals etc) that can be improved or developed to better suit your needs is a sure investment in my book.

Designed to directly replace (with all hardware included) your pressed steel standard component, this 6061 billet Aluminium, CNC machined, throttle pedal really does improve the driveability of your vehicle.

A great deal of care and attention has gone into the design of the throttle actuating cam on the back of the pedal. This runs along the roller of the accelerator arm and thus transmits pedal travel into the tension or release of the accelerator cable, as required. A smooth, progressive cam will transmit into better ‘feel’ as you accelerate and has even helped to smooth out a certain ‘flat spot’ in my application. This may well be high time to treat yourself to a new throttle pedal return spring, too, if yours is particularly worn.

Event | Limebug Open Day

Limebug Coffee Morning

Words: Edd Thorpe Photos: Rich Thorpe

LimeBug Coffee Morning Stoke-on-Trent, U.K.

W

e’re not sure if it was the fact that there was a local event on during the bleak month of December, the chance to see behind the scenes of one of the most innovative parts suppliers in the scene, or simply the offer of cake and coffee, which made us partake in the trip to Stoke - but we knew we had to be there!

So keen were we in fact, that my ‘67 bug rolled up to the doors of LimeBug to be met with a firmly closed shop. Hmm. Bit keen?

Could say so! Apparently 9am on a Facebook event means ‘ish’ very ‘ish’, Such is the laidback nature of Craig, Leanne and the LimeBug team!

Soon the coffee was flowing and the seemingly endless supply of cake was being eagerly scoffed, as we took in the vast realm of

products on offer at LimeBug. Their shop is ever evolving, as new products are trialled and tested before hitting the shelves.

It was a great opportunity to get up close and examine the range of Air Ride products fresh onto the market. It is believed that LimeBug offer the UK’s only true bolt-on integrated solution for fitting up your Type 1 with an allround air ride kit. More on this as we continue..!

The layout of the shop allows all nature of products, to be displayed in great context, from the pair of fully mocked up floor pans on display, to the racks of performance, restoration and accessory products to suit your every given desire.

As some of you keen readers may well have twigged by looking at our Tech Focus section already, I simply couldn’t resist investing

in a couple of products that have caught my eye from the LimeBug HQ for quite a while now. On an ever evolving quest to improve the drivability of my ‘67, a Fast Fab billet aluminium throttle pedal and LimeBug’s own billet throttle cable roller tube were duly purchased and have since been installed.

The part that really made my trip was being able to get behind the scenes into the workshop, an area normally (and rightfully) out-ofbounds to the regular customer, for obvious reasons. An open day really gives that fantastic opportunity to ‘throw open the doors’ for a covet glance inside.

The shop is currently heaving with projects, from their renowned floor pan restoration service, to the shop’s own ‘67 Beetle Gasser project. The chance to see the air ride kits during their installation process in the workshop was a

Event | Limebug Open Day

<Their shop is ever evolving, as new products are trialled and tested before hitting the shelves>

real eye opener to me and allowed my many questions to be answered. This gave a real depth of discussion between Craig and I just as to the sheer level of development, forethought and planning that goes into these kits, and the potential for further and future development. For example by the time you

read this, the kit has already solved an early issue involving conflict between the rear torsion bar part of the kit and the standard Beetle heater pipe work. Coincidently great discussion evolved around the further application of this setup for mounting oil coolers and other ancillaries.

The nature of their air ride kits is comprehensive.

LimeBug can supply the complete kit necessary to get your Bug laying frame, from a new air ride front beam with solid through-rods to replace your leaves and relocated bag mounts over stock, to the aforementioned newly created rear torsion bar set up, which allows the rear bags to be located way up out of harm’s way. Receiver tanks, compressor, hard lines and flexis – yep you got it, EVERYTHING you could possibly need to go super low with daily practicality!

Back into the main shop area and we think you’ll agree that the LimeBug Tempo Matador looks right at home next to the main entrance – a great tribute to the capability of LimeBug to carry out such immense, visionary creations.

A whole hearted thanks is extended from Rich and I for LimeBug’s hospitality – we very much look forward to the next open day!

So, it’s that time of year again, the one we all love to hate.

The day usually set aside for weirdly over caring stuffed toys and more roses then a Mariah Carey video. How about this year you change it up a little bit, put in a tiny bit of effort and make your significant other something that you will most definitely be “thanked” for later.

It took a little while of checking ideas around with Dan to work out what i should make for this little segment and the two things that came up time and time again, Steak and Chocolate! This may be the obvious choice and i apologise to any veggies out there but you’ve got to be crazy not to love a good slab of cow.

Regular | With Love

Steak Salad (veggie option included) This really is pretty simple, but its the little touches that will make it seem like you have been working really hard to show how much you really care. This all only really takes 15min at the most, plenty of time to open that wine.

You will need….

Steak, a nice chunk of rib eye will do just nicely.

Salad leaves, try to stick to the slightly peppery ones like rocket and watercress Red pepper Onion Fresh basil Garlic Lemon Pine nuts Ciabatta, or another chunky flavoursome bread V - You could use some nice fat field Mushrooms or Halloumi cheese and griddle it the same way as the steak.

First things first, the steak. Make sure this is at room temperature, cooking a steak straight from the fridge does it no favours at all. Now give it a little TLC, rub a little olive oil all over it (everyone loves a rub down), and sprinkle with black pepper (no salt yet).

Get your pan on and heating, you want it smoking hot before you put your meat in. While thats heating, slice your peppers and onions into nice long and even strips, chuck into a separate pan on a moderate heat with a nob of butter, a teaspoon of sugar and season well. keep an eye on this and stir occasionally until it’s all cooked down and jammy. Now that your steak pan is threatening to set the house on fire you can turn it down a touch and start cooking. You want to get a nice even cook, so try and flip it every minute until its just under how you want it cooked, remember it will carry on cooking a bit while you rest it. Toast your bread in your steak pan, it’ll make the best croutons. Time to make a quick pesto (if you don’t have a mini chopper, stick blender or pestle and mortar just buy a jar of the good stuff, i wont tell). Simply throw a handful of basil in to your contraption with a hand full or pine nuts, 1 clove of garlic, salt, pepper and some lemon zest. Now glug in some olive oil (a quarter cup should do it) and get blitzing, you want it to be pretty smooth. The easy bit is construction, simply layer you leaves, peppers and onions with a little pesto. Thinly slice your steak and layer over with your croutons and some more of the pesto. See i told you it was easy! Alternatively, pile everything into the toasted bread and have yourself a cracking sandwich, slightly less classy but just as tasty.

Chocolate hazelnut cake (GF) This cake it so simple i had our 2 year old make it with minimal help, if Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m honest she did eat a fair amount of the mix prior to cooking! It is completely grain and sugar free and comes out quite rich, like a cross between brownies and a baked cheesecake. with only 5 ingredients, what can possibly go wrong?

250g Ricotta 50g Cocoa powder (sifted) 1/2 cup of Maple syrup 3 large Eggs 50, chopped hazelnuts

Regular | With Love Get yourself two bowls, and separate your eggs yolks into one and your whites into the other. whisk your whites with a pinch of salt until they are firm.

Add everything else to the bowl with the yolks in and mix until it is pretty smooth. Now fold the whites slowly into the chocolate mix and pour into a buttered cake tin.

This needs to go into a preheated oven at 140c for about 50min, it should still be slightly squidgy in the middle. Leave this to cool but do not put it in the fridge. Serve with your choice of fresh fruit (to be healthy) and a dollop of creme fraiche.

Minimum effort, Maximum effect. Perfect x

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ndrea Lattanzio (aka Norton74) has been a fan of LEGO since childhood. He loves to build great scale models and especially trucks and vans.

His models have been featured in many specialised magazines and he’s well known in the international LEGO fan communities.

When he is not building LEGO models, Andrea spends his free time restoring classic motorcycles and bicycles (he is one of the founders of Officina Super Sprint). He collects memorabilia, automobilia and vintage toys.

He works in the communication department of an Italian non profit organisation. He lives with his Spanish wife and two children in Milan (Italy).

Below Andrea describes some of his models.

1. Garage Life: oldtimer Volkswagen service and repair LEGO workshop.

Besides my passion for LEGO bricks I’ve always been involved in vintage car and motorcycles and I have always been fascinated by “garage life”.

For this reason I devoted myself to build a workshop for a vintage VW Transporter.

I was inspired by the Oldtimers department of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles that is now located into a new 7,000 square-meter facility in Hannover, Germany, where its staff of 13, dedicates itself to the restoration and preservation of old VW Buses. Today, the Bulli are sought after and very expensive and so many owners decide to restore them directly where the Bulli was born many years ago.

I started with few sketches on paper to have an idea of what I was going to build. Then I started to build the walls and some details.

In order to build the internal of the workshop I referred to my real garage where I spend a lot of time restoring and repairing old motorcycles and bicycles.

There are many tools and details in the workshop.

Let’s take a look.

A workbench, with wrenches and vice, is positioned at the centre of the workshop. There is also a mobile roller cabinet with four drawers and the air compressor. Beside the workbench is positioned a column drill press in classic green.

Close to the right door there is the oxy-acetylene welder. There is also the folding engine crane to lift up the aircooled engines.

A vintage stereo cassette is positioned on the shelf with helmets and various trophies; two neon lights light up the garage. Many chequered flags are positioned between the ceiling supports.

Oil cans, hammers, wrenches and many other

Feature | Custom Lego

utensils are everywhere in the garage. The entrance is made of two double folding doors.

There are still many details to be discovered, but I will leave them to you.

I built the garage in the winter 2013/2014 and I spent many nights building it. The garage is made approximately of 2000 bricks.

All my models are made of 100% original LEGO bricks except some wires and the stickers that I made myself with Adobe Illustrator and then printed on to adhesive PVC. As usual I used both my LEGO bricks and used pieces bought on a dedicated to sell/buy bricks web site (www.bricklink.com).

After building the LEGO models I take pictures in a professional way: taking good pictures is very important!

2. Volkswagen T1 road service – canvas pick-up In 2011 I bought the original LEGO set # 10220, I think it’s a detailed and well designed set.

Furthermore I like vintage vehicles and especially the Samba. I hadn’t bought original LEGO sets for many years and it was a pleasure to have a new LEGO box in my hands.

Personally I prefer “working vehicles” and I wasn’t satisfied with the camper version. I waited to build it until I had the idea to build a canvas pick-up for “road service”.

I think the pick-up looks real thanks to the ropes I used for the canvas.

The T1 has two side doors below the load compartment; two shovels for road emergencies are mounted on the doors.

Two spare wheels, a fuel tank and a wooden box with various tools are positioned on the rack.

The plate is an Italian one and the numbers are the original ones of a real T1, (I love the old Italian plate style). Two HELLA supplemental lights are fitted on the front bumper.

I built the T1 in January 2014.

3. Volkswagen T2 surfer pick-up.

After having built the T1 I decided to design and

create the model that replaced it, the iconic VW T2, introduced in late 1967 and built in Germany until 1979. The T2 is also called Bay or Bay Window.

I personally prefer the T2 than the T1, in my opinion the front is more appealing.

My T2 is a classic single-cab pick-up in blue. The pick-up configuration was very widespread in the seventies, both in Europe and in the USA. The T2 has surely been the most loved van/pickup by the surfers of the world. So I placed two surfboards on the load compartment and close to it I put a classic LEGO palm tree from the pirates series.

My T2 has two side doors below the load compartment, which is made of wood.

Two S.E.V. Marchal supplemental lights are fitted on the front bumper. These were very common in the seventies. The rear hood can be opened and you can see the classic air-cooled boxer engine.

In a little toy store I found for a few Euros a tin model of VW T2 (I love old toys and tin cars/ trucks); it’s identical to the one I built in LEGO and so I bought it right away and I took pictures of the two pick-up side by side.

I built the T2 in may 2014.

4. VW T1 Snowcat Adventuremobile Here I am with another Bulli. This time it’s something really special.

VW vans has been a favourite of surfers, tradesmen, hippies, couriers, families and more. It has also been popular with customizers. However, few T1s have been altered quite as radically as the white one above.

Here’s the story.

An Austrian engineer recently retrofitted a 1966 VW Bus Bulli T1 with late-’60s Bombardier caterpillar tracks and a DJ sound system capable of causing an avalanche… And I rebuilt it in LEGO bricks.

The front doors are welded shut – cabin access is now through the sliding rear door on the passenger side – and the stock wheel wells have been filled in. They aren’t necessary anymore because the Adventuremobile isn’t riding on wheels anymore; instead, the Bulli body has been placed on the chassis of a 1960 Bombardier B01 Spurgrat snowcat. A vintage Ford of Germany Taunus V4 sends power to the left and right tracks via a transmission system that allows the van to move forward, backward, and spin on its own axis.

The little machine can reach up to 30 mph (50 km/h) in the snow and when parked a DJ booth pops out of the freakin’ roof! Fresh mixes are

Feature | Custom Lego bumped toward the crowd by way of a 1,000 watt subwoofer, 2 × 300 watt speakers, a five-channel Behringer mixer and a pair of Technic turntables.

Not exactly the stuff beginners would use. Let the party begin!

To build the LEGO model I started with the official LEGO set 10220, modifying it in many parts.

The caterpillar tracks are made of old technic link tread; at the beginning I used black wheels for the caterpillar tracks but they were too dark and it was very difficult to distinguish them. So I changed them to light grey ones. The side doors and the rear window can be opened. Inside there’s a light grey Ford Taunus V4 engine.

I built an alpine background with snow and a snowy tree.

It has been hard to take photos of the models because the white bricks I used weren’t all new and some of them were yellowed. Also the black isn’t an easy colour to shoot…

I built the Adventuremobile in October 2014.

Thanks to Andrea for sharing his amazing models wit us. You can see more of his models here: https:// www.flickr.com/photos/71040750@N08/sets/

Feature | Custom Lego

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photo by Wide 5â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Photography

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Interview | Hero & Cape

Hero & Cape Q & A One of our favourite new clothing companies is Hero & Cape, with their fresh and eye catching designs. We had a chat with Nick, the man behind the brand.

Tell us a bit about yourself….

My name is Nick and I am the founder of Hero&Cape. I illustrate and print everything you’ll find on heroandcape.com! I’m from the North East and I’m incredibly proud of that, and it’s exciting to see the North East arts scene thriving.

When I was a kid I wanted to be…

For as long as remember I always wanted to be a car designer. My dad, uncle and granddad were all into cars, so my obsession for cars grew! I was always either drawing or playing with toy cars, I had a large collection of them by the time I was 5 years old! As an adult, I spent a period of time chasing the dream of becoming a car designer! I actually went on to graduate from the Automotive Design degree at Northumbria University in Newcastle Upon Tyne.

I started my company becauseâ&#x20AC;Ś I started Hero&Cape because I became disillusioned with the car industry. I found myself working 12-hour days for less than minimum wage in London and decided enough was enough! My love for cars was slipping, and I stopped enjoying the job, and all the creativity I had at university was muted by the corporate mentality of the job. I wanted to do something that is liberating

Interview | Hero & Cape

and fresh enough to allow me to express my creativity and passion for design.

During my time as a student, e-commerce was just beginning to boom and I had a good friend who had started a very successful online retail business. I learned a lot and it just felt like the right time to start something new before I got too sucked into something I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t enjoying.

My inspiration for my designs comes from…

The inspiration for Hero&Cape products come from a combination of things.

I am literally inspired by anything and everything I see! I don’t allow to put a restriction on where my inspiration comes from. I see the designs as a realization of my passion for illustration and graphic design. So, I guess the inspiration is everything that excites me! Everything from pop culture of my teenage years in the 90’s to the work of artists and designers who I admire, like Mike Perry and Paul Smith. I love street art as well and the

Interview | Hero & Cape

spontaneity of it, the idea of being able to create something at any moment the inspiration strikes is very exciting.

In five years time I hope to beâ&#x20AC;Ś This is a tough one! Personally, I would love just continue what I am doing, the freedom of creating what I want and seeing it through from idea to sketch to finished product is really cool. For Hero&Cape, I hope it continues to grow! Since I started the company, I always had this idea of a store/

studio, where the customers can have the opportunity to see how our clothing is created and printed. I think that would be a really cool way for the customers to experience the brand, and it would be nice for the customers to feel invested and connected to the clothing they wear. It would be very cool for it not “just be another clothing shop”, but for it to be an experience and a destination in the town or city. I’ll save this Q&A and check it in 5 years!

If I could design a tshirt for anyone it would be…

Will Smith! But Will Smith in the 90s during his Fresh Prince era. He was just super cool and he just so perfectly sums up the exciting MTV generation, when being individual and different started becoming cool!

Music that has been doing the rounds at Air Monkeys HQ Shop.

The band will this year turn the grand old age of 21, their vast longevity and experience are poured into this album with everything that they have. Well, you’d expect no less from Foo Fighters really, would you?

Foo Fighters Sonic Highways Edd Thorpe

This album has been out for a little while now at the time of going to press, but this latest offering from Foo Fighters is sure to remain a timeless classic.

The 8th studio album from the Washington outfit takes the concept of album craft to a whole new level.

“A love letter to the history of American music” is no better fitting description of this epic masterpiece.

Each of the 8 tracks have been recorded in a different iconic recording studio across the entire United States of America. These 8 Studios are namely Chicago’s Electrical Audio Studios, Washington D.C’s Inner Ear Studios, Nashville’s Southern Ground, Austin City Limits, Palm Desert in Los Angeles, Preservation Hall New Orleans, Seattle’s Robert Lang Studios with the finale to this album being recorded at New York’s The Magic

The opening track and first single, ‘Something From Nothing’ sets a great footing for the rest of the album, exhibiting the great flourish of contrast capable from the band. A quiet haunting opening of vocal and guitar gradually evolves into the all-gunsblazing riot fully expected of any great Foo’s track!

This particular track has come under some scrutiny from many an armchair critic for ‘stealing’ the riff of Ronnie James Dio’s ‘Holy Diver’. Surely any listener will identify the fact that this particular riff is based on a two part ‘call and response’ setup. The Foo Fighters only seem to use the first half, or the ‘call’ of this lick. Besides, if that’s really the only thing you can nit-pick at than that only reinforces the significance of a truly fantastic album.

My personal favourite track is the rather lengthy titled “What Did I Do? / God As My Witness”. This track is a real game of two halves, befitting of the title. An almost showbiz intro sets an upbeat jangly classic track, however this 5:43 track splits its personality into an almighty-sounding reflective masterpiece around the 3:30 mark, this track really sounds a mile deep at this point, really setting to justice the capability of the Austin City Limits studio.

Rating: This album gets an 11 out of ten for me and yes this one goes to 11!

Sounds like: Soundgarden, Audioslave, Queens of The Stone Age Standout Track: What Did I Do? / God As My Witness”

Regular | Earworm

Rancid Honor Is All We Know Edd Thorpe

It’s been a long 5 years for Rancid fans since their last album ‘Let The Dominoes Fall’ landed in 2009. ‘Honor Is All We Know’ forms the 8th Studio album from the Berkeley, CA band, and after 22 years strong they still hold 3 original members, with drummer Branden Steineckert joining ship in 2006. Tim ‘timebomb’ Armstrong fronts the 4 piece band on vocal and rhythm guitar duties, with Lars Frederiksen taking the helm of lead guitar and backing vocals, whilst 4 stringer Matt Freeman holds

a rock solid rhythm section with Branden.

At 22 years of age Rancid have long since been given the key to the door, yet remain relevant in today’s punk rock scene, having earned their stripes with hard graft, constantly working on the bands various side projects such as The Transplants, Devils Brigade and Lars Frederiksen and The Bastards.

Many consider Rancid to be the Godfathers of punk rock; giving strong influence to bands such as Pennywise and Rise Against.

This latest offering really nails the sound honed on the L.T.D.F album of ’09, with the opening track “Back Where I Belong” giving that thumb-griphandshake kinda welcome befitting of the band, acting as a real welcome back for diehard Rancid fans. The album goes on to create underclass anthems which sound like they’ve lived in your record collection all along – truly an instant classic, timeless record. Those looking for Rancid’s unique ska sound should drop the needle on track 13 for “Everybody’s Sufferin’ ” or track 4 with “Evil Is My Friend” Barely a track lasts much into the 2 minute bracket, making this is an upbeat record in every sense of the word, with hard hitting gritty vocals from Tim, dealing with issues of social injustice, judgemental prejudice and heralds of a band just doing what they love despite all around them.

Rating: 10/10 Sounds like: Pennywise, Rise Against, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones Standout Track: Honor Is All We Know

The Decemberists What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World

Samantha Eynon

In 2011 The Decemberists scored a surprise US number 1, with The King is Dead. In the four years since, lead singer, Colin Meloy, has been working on a children’s book series, whilst the rest of the band have been recording and touring with Portland bluegrass group Black Prairie. They return with a heartfelt album full of warmth. The record is one about taking stock of life, and being able to dance even in the bad times.

The subject matter of the songs has certainly shifted; in previous offerings, Meloy had used Civil War history, Japanese folk tales and literature to fuel his lyrics, but here we see a much more personal aproach. It is also definitely their most approachable and poppy album, with catchy choruses and hooks, this may upset some long time fans, but it is a pleasure to listen to.

Rating: 8/10 Sounds like: The Mountain Goats, The Shins, The New Pornographers Standout Track: Cavalry Captain

Angels and Airwaves The Dream Walker Samantha Eynon

Over the years the line-up of AVA has changed several times, always with Tom DeLonge as the driving force. This is probably the first full length album where you can really hear the influence of another artist, (Though producer Jeff ‘Critter’ Newell who died on New Years Eve in 2011, did a lot to

engineer the bands sound), with the addition of Ilan Rubin. Ilan Rubin has drummed for Lost Prophets, Nine Inch Nails and Paramore, and has his own solo project The New Regime. Rubin is partly responsible for the more synth heavy jams on this album, which we were introduced to on the ‘Stomping the Phantom Break Pedal’ LP, which consisted mainly of remixes by Rubin of previous AVA songs.

To a certain extent, you get what you’d expect from an AVA album; DeLonge’s yearning vocals with U2-espue guitar chimes, (circa 1987), shimmering keyboard and lyrics that seem hopeful and apocalyptic at the same time. However, the introduction of more futuristic new wave synths and some atmospheric electronic work, adds a new level to this full length. There seems to be more experimentation going on to push their music further, and there is certainly a range of tempos on this album, with gothic, Cure-esque, ‘Kiss With a Spell’ and ‘The Disease’ alongside ‘Bullets in The Wind’, which owes a lot to British Punk, and finishing with the pared down, sweet love song ‘Anomaly’, which harks back to ‘There is’ from DeLonge’s Box Car Racer days. I’m looking forward to seeing what DeLonge and Rubin’s collaboration comes up with next.

Rating: 9/10 Sounds Like: The Cure, U2, Box Car Racer Standout Track: Tunnels

Belle and Sebastian Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance Samantha Eynon

Belle and Sebastian return with their first album since 2010. The album opens with ‘Nobody’s Empire’ , which Murdoch has said is the most personal song he has ever written, as it speaks about his struggle with ME. There is a suggestion that the album has a more political slant, with the song ‘Allie’ and its reference to “Bombs in The Middle East” and the Song title ‘The Party Line’, but the album is still one that largely looks inward and focuses on matters of the heart.

The band hired producer Ben H. Allen III for this album, to help them experiment with their sound and the album jumps around a lot in it’s make up, from the subdued, acoustic ‘The Cat With The Cream’, straight into the camp, pet shop boy-esque ‘Enter Sylvia Plath’

of being lost behind the synthesisers and dance grooves.

Murdoch’s writing is as wonderful as ever, with his clever word play, and his skill of pointing out societies injustices with a pinch of sweetness, but at times the meaning behind the words is at risk

Rating: 7/10 Sounds Like: Camera Obscura, Jens Lekman, The Boy Least Likely To Standout Track: Play For Today

Regular | Earworm release of their fourth album, and they also parted ways with their record label Interscope. They have since signed with Harvest, and have come back with their fifth and more expensive sounding recording. It is easy to hear that the production values are higher on ‘Seeds’, and it is definitely the most poppy and catchy album in their oeuvre, but the basic structure of the music is thankfully the same.

It is an album of healing, they seem to direct their anger, frustration and grief into an infectious energy. Despite the poppiness of the album as a whole, TVOTR retain their ability to create a sense of dread and urgency.

It’s great to have them back after several years, and as the title of the album suggests, this is just the start of things to come.

TV On The Radio Seeds Samantha Eynon

Rating: 8/10 Sounds like: Spoon, Yeasayer, Grizzly Bear Standout Track: Happy Idiot

TV On The Radio have had a bit of a tough time in the past three years; they lost their bassist Gerard Smith to lung cancer in 2011, just 9 days after the

Enter Shikari The Mindsweep Joe Eynon

Enter Shikari have an established layout which is used for all their albums. Firstly they have a crowd surging introduction, secondly they intertwine political ideals with personal feelings, and their last characteristic is to try to become a movement.

Their hardcore fans may disagree but the band have never become a movement. They have strong, and sometimes quite commendable, visions of the future and what they wish to do with it, but they fall short of the mark each album. This is not a reflection of the quality of their music but a reflection on their marketing.

This album has all the makings of another record to create politcal anarchy. The words spoken, bellowed and screamed throughout the record speak of corruption and leadership. Enter Shikari wish to enforce their young audience to be able to take their future and shape it how they wish.

This album is great but it’s much of the same again.

Enter Shikari are continuing to shout the same messages again and again. I’m just not sure if anyone is actually listening.

Rating: 6/10 Sounds like: Asking Alexandria, Don Broco, 30 Seconds to Mars Standout Track: The Last Garrison

For a brief period I ignored my Groucho tendencies and joined a club, the Southern Dune Buggy Club to be exact... ending up as their cartoonist for a brief period Hilly dons the olâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; rose tints and goes

Back in the day...

A look at some old leftfield stuff thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s VW related...

hilly.moto@btinternet.com

Feature | Back in the day...

This involved producing a strip for each newsletter, which evolved from Life’s a Beach into Bill ‘n’ Ben the Buggy men... I also designed a cool T shirt as a prize for the club’s annual get together (see bottom left).

Also did the odd editorial toon to illustrate an article like the one on rust proofing your buggy! (right).

Went on to do caricatures of owners and their buggies to accompany articles... which was cool and led to a few commissions which was very cool.... (below).

Just to prove I was mad enough to own a Fugative here’s my other half, then girlfriend, sat in it... (I do wonder why on Earth she married me?)

I think it was owning this that got me honoury membership in the buggy club, that and free cartoons... Next time Bug Jam in a buggy!

Tasty Tees!

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Each magazine we try to bring you the freshest T-Shirts by cool brands and independent artists and makers.

If you want to be featured contact: samantha.eynon@airmonkeys.co.uk

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1- Shitshow- buymebrunch.com 2- Rad- heroandcape.com 3- Pluto Never Forget- lookhuman. com 4- The Internet- seibei.com 5- Timber- etsy.com/shop/ timberps 6- AND skate life teeandclothingstore.co.uk 7- A sheep on arrival- society6. com/toulouse

Here at Forty Horse, we live and breathe all things classic cars! So we decided to take that passion and turn it into a range of t-shirts and apparel for all the car enthusiasts who love their restored car like it is a human being.

We have lovingly restored our own 1965 Volkswagen Squareback, plus, we are rolling up our sleeves and have started the process of restoring a 1962 Volkswagen Beetle.

All our designs are HAND DRAWN, HAND PRINTED and completely UNIQUE to us (and therefore you!)

We won't ever rip off a manufacturer's logo or another company's design, we spend the time to think outside the box and make our t-shirts as creative as possible.

We also do custom design ranges that we can handle from concept and design to printing so if you are a business, car club, school, sports team (anything really!!) give us a call.

Find more at fortyhorse.com.au

Feature | Forty Horse

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Webshop Blog

The Worker Bee Photos by Scott Savage and Joe Eynon

Many of you moan about trailer queens and cars that never get driven. I imagine you wouldnt moan quite as much if this was the trailer.

We take a closer look at Roel Verhagenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s custom made car transporter.

Car Feature | Custom Bay

The early bay window cab remains much the same.

Car Feature | Custom Bay

A few tasteful accessories adorn the truck.

Car Feature | Custom Bay

Simple coachlines down the side transforms the flat grey paint.

The bed is long enough that Roelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Type 34 fits on it.

Large bench seats make long journeys a pleasure

Car Feature | Custom Bay

Custom ramps are stored in the side lockers.

J

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If you need a Bespoke gift for someone who loves VWâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. Cars or motorbikes then get in touch. Framed car portraits or large Wall art on canvas, board or direct to your wall...

All commissions welcome affordable prices happy to discuss anything...

TOONED

01707 377583 hilly.moto@btinternet.com

Prices from ÂŁ50

Get in touch 07732 51 15 26 or hilly.moto@btinternet.com

Keep a watchful eye on: www.airmonkeys.co.uk and www.facebook.com/airmonkeys for more information on the Air Monkeys cars and what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re up to.

Also if you want to be considered to be featured in a future issue email info@airmonkeys.co.uk