NZ Trip 2011....HR Blowout/shed visits/Nostalgia Drags...PICS GALORE!

I just had an awesome 10 day trip to New Zealand. The main reason was to attend the Scroungers Car Club's 10th annual "Hot Rod Blowout" car show. The following weekend was the Nostalgia Drags so I had to stick around for that. During the week I got to spend a few days with my parents and also got to check out plenty of hot rod sheds, that's what the locals call garages. I am a member of the Scroungers and I have to give a big thank's to my clubmates for a fantastic time and especially Chris for giving me a place to sleep and a car to get around in. Some of the pics I post will be off topic but since this is a thread about a trip I will put some scenery pics etc in to give you a feel for the country I grew up in and love dearly. New Zealand has a similar amount of land mass as California but spread out out over 2 islands so there are twice as many beaches, and the population is only 4 million.
First are some general pics from the trip and then I will break it down day by day, I have a lot of pic's to post, saw a lot of neat stuff so keep checking back if you are interested.

 

Keep em coming Kev.
This will be a cool thread.

 

Great photos Kev - looks like an amazing trip. Will keep watching for more.

 

Dead horse in a can, great idea!
The fish and chips looks killer!

 

Keep them comming Kev

 

Jeez, those boys have a lot of nice cars and parts.
Really nice Kevin, thanks for taking the time to share your trip with us.

 

ya know the ol story boys.....if ya can't beat em, join em

 

Wow. Thanx for posting these pix. Some day.... Gary

 

were a few of those scenery pics from awhitu penninsula??
i can see what looks to the steel mill at glenbrook..
i miss that area(home is pukekohe)...

or is that marsden point from whangarei heads??

great pics, looks like the nostalgias went off!!

 

Great pics Kev - its ashame I didnt get to catch up with you or Aaron

 

NZ is a beautiful place, with beautiful scenery and passionate rodders (and people in general).

Thanks for the photos

Cheers,

Drewfus

 

Most of those scenery pics are from Whangarei Heads where my parents live. Some of the beach shots are from Raglan.

DAY ONE, Friday....An afternoon with Mike Roberts.

My friend Mike picked me up from the airport and we headed back to his house in Papakura. He recently bought a good size house with a nice big workshop underneath where he is building a very special 28 pickup. If you don't know who Mike is check out this thread from an earlier trip... NZ Trip....Scrounger Mike ( awesome fab' pics) and here is a thread about the pickup.... Fresh Fab' Ideas....Mike Roberts '28 pu build pics
The workmanship is unbelievable! Mikes plan is to bring the truck over with a couple of the Scroungers cars to the 2012 LA Roadster show and swap meet.

























All the rear panels are built from scratch.....






Here is the wooden buck Mike has made for shaping the radiator tanks...



Mike lives very close to Ardmore airport and in a Hangar there is a company known worldwide for quality warbird restorations. Mike does a lot of metal shaping for them. Here's a sample of some of the panels he makes for them....

 

amazing craftsmenship mike

 

Awsome stuff....hard to belive those panels are fabbed and not pressed.......

a true craftsman indeed

.

.

 

E-fucking-mazing

 

Mike is the man!
BUT - for all his talent he is so very humble. He has a great deal of respect from everyone here and afar in the scene.
He also is very helpful and likes to teach others so they can do more themselves on their own projects (myself included - thanks Mike!)

Further up in this thread is a pic of the blown injected flattie digger of Grease Martin and Andrew Rea - this is their new fuel car. Mike did a considerable amount of work on this car from the chrome moly frame and axle to the rear end and body work - its an incredible car!

 

Next Mike took me to visit a friend of his who is building a Bugatti racer for a customer. He has been working on it in his home workshop for 18 months. Words cannot describe the unbelievable craftsmanship. A true work of art!

















check out the engine turned sump!.....


Check out the tool he made to put all the louvers in the hood.....







His personal ride is this Bugatti influenced special powered by a Lycoming air cooled airplane engine! Completely owner built. Once again the workmanship and finish was impeccable.









Check out how the cables hold the front axle in alignment under braking....


Hanging on the wall was this cool little finned head, it was for an Austin 7. It was a very interesting visit!

 

Thanks Kev, not going to sleep tonight seeing Mike's work , bet ya missed our Fish & Chip's , Watties sauce ,,,,,,,

 

So after that we had some fish and chips, it had been 3 years since I have had good fish and chips. Some of the simple things about New Zealand are the things I miss the most. That evening I went to a surprise birthday party for a friend and then over to a guys house with Chris to put the magneto back in his 34 coupe so he could drive it to the Blowout. There were rain showers and the report was iffy for Sunday, the day of the show.

 

Kev, Great to finally meet up with you at the Blowout. Love the shots of the countryside up here. Sometimes we just don't appreciate whats right on the doorstep.

I was crewing on the 409 powered FED at the Nostalgia's. We had a great weekend with better times each run. It was amazing to see the legends of NZ racing wandering around the pits and happy to share tips with our team, to help out on the car.

 

Kev,nice catching up with you and Aaron.Man,you get around,must'nt of got much sleep .Lots of cool pics,we need to take a look at the scenery more often.Mike's work is amazing,the little pickup is gonna be awsome.Lots of food pics....did you put on any weight? hehe

 

Good to catch up again Russ! Your 55 is badass! I am a non drinker, non smoker, I don't do drugs but eating bad food is a weakness. I think I put on about 5 pounds while I was there and enjoyed every minute of it.

 

fantastic ,thanks for the ride

 

great thread,thanks for sharing your good time

 

Hundreds more pics coming, will add as I get a chance.

 

Great shots both of the cars and trip. Looks to be a real great vacation!

 

Lot's of cool shit in NZ. Thanks for sharing your trip. Keep them coming.