Progress has begun and
parts and material have been ordered!
It’s January 2010 and the “Sema Show Crunch” has already started!
Looking back at the past 3 body shops in the last 5 years, only 30 hours of
actual labor has gone into my dream truck by “professionals”.
So with that being said, it’s time to inspect their
work and this doesn’t look good…
The first body shop shaved the 3rd brake light and it warped the top of the
cab.
The new front bed panel has been installed wrong, and all the old dings and
dents that have been “fixed” were simply smoothed out with body filler…
The second body shop shaved the lower body line on the
fenders and shaved all the holes on the inside of the fender wells.
Even though the fenders have been sitting in storage, the lower body line has
already cracked out and the inside fender wells will be getting cut out for
clearance.
The body line on the front fascia was in the process of being shaved.
Moving on to the awesome one-off custom body mods
(damage) by
Hill’s Hot Rods from Lubbock, Texas. My smoothed out frame and suspension
have been rusted after being neglected by the body shop under the
supervision of the owner Jason Hill.
Both doors were left sitting outside which now have hail damage and other
dents. At this
point it’s
still a mystery if the wiring and electrical components still work.
The bed has been dropped which has crushed both rear rocker panels breaking
the support rods and denting the inside fender lips. I call it "Red Rockered"...
| First, Second, and Third Body Shop = 30 hours in 5 years? | ||
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| Warped Cab (Hard to tell in the picture.) | Cracked out shaved body line. | Inner fenders will be cut out for clearance. |
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| Ready to be shaved. | This will be replaced by a one-off metal bumper. | After it come back rusted from Hill's Hot Rods. |
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| Rusted | Thrashed out doors. | Dropped on its rockers. |
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| Dented Fender Lips | Dented door. | More Dents. |
| Before Hill's Hot Rods from Lubbock, Texas. | ||
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So now it’s 5 years later and it’s time to completely start over again for the 4th time…
"The Curse Of The
First!"
It seems that almost
everything about this adventure of mine has gone completely wrong from the
start. Since MY patent was misinterpreted by my lawyer,
his mistake has cost me double which is still adding up today due to
maintenance fees that double every 3.5 years. (Which are due this year.)
This truck project has included a total of 4 body shops, 5 body shops total
if you count the body shop that fiberglassed and painted my prototype after
my dad and I built it from scratch.
Keeping in mind that I started all of this when I was 16, filed for a
patent when I was 18, and then built my prototype when I was 21.
I then showed my truck at 5 shows and took it apart in 2005, and then went
through 3 body shops that have only worked a total of 30 hours period.
Since the first 3 body shops, I have spent more money just on FUEL
than I have on actual labor!
In fact, over my 40 month nightmare that I endured with Hill's Hot Rods from
Lubbock, Texas.
I have spent more money on travel expenses, plus losing a days pay just to
check up on so called "progress" than what I originally paid for my truck!
I only made about 3-4 trips a year to Lubbock, so it
adds up over time. It's not Jason Hill's fault, he told me that "I never told
you to come down here and visit."
So he's in the clear, it's all my fault for making my road trips to check in
on my 11 year dream truck.
So looking back at this
project and everything else that I have been through, I asked myself if this
is really worth it anymore just to take it to the next level in my business
adventure of being a patented inventor.
Having a top-of-the-line demo truck
on display at the Sema Show with my product has always been my goal!
However, after seeing my hard work getting destroyed by others and the labor
that was done by "professionals" being a complete mess,
I have decided that I will no longer be pursuing my dream
truck.
I had every intention to finish my truck after
everything that has happened in the last 5 years but the truth is, I'm just
physically, mentally, and emotionally worn out with this truck. This truck
stopped being fun years ago! When I had to sit down and write a grown man a
letter in 2008,
begging him to work on my truck I pretty much just checked
out from there. Sure I gained interest and then lost it again every time I
was told another lie about progress being made.
I've done all the work that I feel comfortable with
over the years and I have learned a lot from it. Building my dream truck was
never something that I wanted to rush through. I pay close attention to
every detail so I have spent a lot of time thinking of new ideas and trying
to perfect them.
Fixing everyone's mistakes just to start over wouldn't have
taken very long to overcome. It is just another delay in the build process
that most people have to deal with.
As for me... Just the thought of having to completely redo everything that I
have already done or already paid for... well it just plain wore me out.
I CAN'T do it all myself and apparently neither can some professionals...
Even though everything was going as planned at the 4th body shop, I just
decided it wasn't worth it anymore.
Plus, at the first of the year I found out that I will be the "Best Man" at
my brothers wedding which is the same week as Sema this year.
So after all this time, money, and effort, I am now the one that is
neglecting the truck because I just don't care anymore...
| July 2010 | ||
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(2005 - 2010) Technically a Nightmare is a dream, but this is not exactly what I had in mind. If you add up all my parts, my prototype expenses, the labor that was done the year before the tear down, and then the first two body shops, and then all the travel expenses back and forth to Lubbock, Texas... I have over $30,000 invested in my truck. You'd quit too... |
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So I would like to apologize to anyone that feels cheated or mislead
with this "build-up" over the past couple of months.
Now you know how I felt during the build up with 3 body shops.
"Everything happens for a reason." and this is exactly what I put myself through everyday for the past 5 years.
I wanted to showcase this "build-up" even though it was a failure
because I do have a lot of time invested and to show people that I
actually DID work on my truck!
It's time to move on to bigger and better things and to put this
experience behind me. I will bounce back and I do not want to be known
as the guy that had to "trash" a well known body shop from Texas to get
attention.
Popularity means nothing to me and I did what I thought
needed to be done in my situation and I never did it for remorse or
sympathy.
Those 40 months have been the key to my failure and I'm not going
anywhere, but I will be taking a break from custom trucks for a little
awhile.
I have other goals and other plans for my future and the funds that I
have saved for this truck are long gone.
I have no plans to finish it next year or any other year.
Thank you for your time and thanks reading! This will be my 11th page,
of my 11 year build up!
Sorry you won't be able to see my dream truck at Sema this
year!!! (Or any other year.)
Thanks!
Kelly Jance Burch
THE END
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Have fun at Sema! The clock is ticking!!!
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"Built To Enjoy!
NOT
To Destroy!"