Very sad news: Jimmy Shine has finally announced his retirement due to his inability to…see.. more details
Very sad news: Jimmy Shine has finally announced his retirement due to his inability to…see.. more details
Jimmy Sparkle Studio is the name of the new 5,000-square-foot office in Orange, California, opened by a notable hot rodder and fabricator Jimmy Sparkle. Shine, who had been the shop manager at the Pomona-based SO-CAL Speed Shop for the previous 15 years, had been working toward opening his own shop for some time. He has now done so with the blessing of his former boss, Pete Chapouris, who is offering Shine some of his well-earned advice for running a hot rod shop. Shine had been working toward opening his own shop for some time. In addition to being a well-known maker of hot rod parts and vehicles (many people will remember his bare-steel 1934 Ford pickup), Shine has had his work featured on a number of cable TV shows over the years, including Car Warriors, American Icon, and Hard Shine, among others. He promises that this will continue with the new shop. Shine plans to work on customs, motorcycles, race cars, and, of course, hot rods while he is working with his wife, Nikki. He also wants to work on all of his automotive passions. A line of Baileigh Industrial shaping machines, ranging from a mill and power hammer to a slip roller and nibblers, can be found in the shop, as well as every kind of metal fabricating tool and machinery that a fervent “metal guy” could possibly want. One of the most impressive pieces in the Baileigh 78 x 39-inch fixture table is almost 1,500 pounds of precision ground steel, making it one inch thick. The Model A roadster that Tom Lieb finished at SO-CAL a few years ago is the first vehicle in the shop. It is being “re-purposed” for possible inclusion in the America’s Most Beautiful Roadster competition at the 2016 Grand National Roadster Show. Shine’s own clothing line of T-shirts and other apparel can be found in a large showroom, and additional designs are on the way. At JimmyShine.com, you can learn more about Jimmy and the shop. Geisert’s Eric Following a three-year spell at VW Patterns magazine, Eric Geisert joined ST REET RODDER in 1991. Eric was promoted to the 30-year-old position of editor of Kit Car magazine in 2004 after working there for 13 years. After moving back to ST REET RODDER in 2006, the magazine offered me a Senior Editor position. Eric was inducted into the Detroit Autorama’s Circle of Champions Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2013, Eric, who is 53 years old, divides his time between working on his 15-car collection, which typically includes a reproduction 1959 Lotus 11 and 356 Porsche speedster, a 1959 Karmann Ghia, a 32 Ford roadster, and a 34 Ford coupe with five windows. Throughout his career, Eric’s photographs have appeared on the covers of more than 250 magazines. Learn More Share Stories that MotorTrend recommends Related Articles ‘Thoroughly Clear’: Audi Says it Will Fabricate a U.S. Plant On the Move: Jimmy Shine, Todd Haas, and Their 1957 Chevy 150 Gasser Gasser Body Construction $135 Million Independent Test Place Opens in Michigan The Never-Never Rod: The Ford Roadster from 1932 In Norway, Audi is taking reservations for its forthcoming e-tron quattro.
