"Faceless".  That's about the only way to describe what we were all faced with Monday morning.  Mark Hall's Raminator #007 sat in the main shop bay missing its normal graphics, Viper-red front clip and bumper.  In place of the normal pieces were an uncut black gel-coated '06 Ram front clip being held up by human Jack stands, and an '06 front bumper of the same appearance (being held up by a real jack stand, thankfully).  Definitely not appealing, though it would be the primary mission of the week to change that.

Mark Hall and Dale Benear beginning the mounting process.

Mark's a very talented fabricator, and his work proves itself every weekend.  Mark also has good eyes and is very picky about how things look on HBR trucks, so having him as the chief of body mounting duties is probably a good thing.  While on the way to a gig in Kansas this past weekend, Darrell and I picked up the fiberglass front end from GTS in Wentzville, MO that we began mounting Monday.  The first step in the process was to hold the unit up to the cab, and simulate (in a not-so-precise way) where the front clip would sit once finished.  After moving it a bit this way, down a bit here and up a bit here, the proper marks were made, the proper holes drilled, and thankfully they all lined up well with Mark's already fabbed body mounts.

After the front bumper mounts were tack-welded onto the front clip mounts, it was time to stand back and see how it looked.  See, a tape measurer can only do so much; sometimes you have to stand back, cock your head a certain way, and stick your tongue out at a specific angle to make sure it all looks right.  So, after an assortment of dusty black-clad pro's had their chance to eye it up, it was on to the next part.
 

Gloomy weather in Thomasboro (home to HBR) didn't stop the progress inside the shop.

Cutting the fenders out isn't something that should be rushed, unless you don't mind a sloppy cut-out.  A roll of masking tape and a lot of head tilting and tongue-sticking-out later, the final arcs-de-fiberglass were decided on and Darrell busted out the saw.  Using the now cut-out fenders as a guide, more tape was used to lay out the cut for the edges of the bumper, which in stock form is massive compared to what the truck will actually use.  Before it is all said and done, both ends of the bumper end up getting lopped off, along with the chin air dam, which tends to be particularly fond of crush car roofs (read: not good).  Once the final seal of approval was laid on the finished cut pieces, it was on to the prep department.

Darrell is pretty much the prep department, but I jumped into assist him in sanding and wet sanding the new front clip, bumper, and grille due to the short schedule we are on.  You see, this new front end needs to be mounted, painted, and have all of its graphics on by Friday morning, when the truck will depart for the RCA Dome in Indy for the SEPS race.  Once the prep was concluded, the paint gun started spitting primer by order of Darrell.  Thankfully, the Spies-Hecker primer dries fast, and before the end of the day on Tuesday the body parts had been primed, sanded, and five coats of Spies-Hecker Viper Red rested on them.  At the time this was written, the paint was still drying...literally.
 

Darrell laying down the first coat of Spies-Hecker primer.

Other important tasks can't be overlooked under any circumstances, especially with two important events coming up this weekend (the race in Indy, and a Freightliner Corporate event in Charlotte, NC).  Everything from washing trucks to disassembling flywheels to servicing transmissions and engines, to replacing the broken reading light in the semi that pulls the R/T trailer.  Sounds like it could get boring to some people, but I like the fact that it is always something different.
 

Travis removing friction plates from an worn-out aluminum flywheel.

Speaking of different, as promised, Mark's Raminator hauler complete with new graphics arrived back at the shop Monday night, just in time to leave Tuesday morning!  The rig hauled our display Raminator wearing the "Rupert" scheme over to Indy for some PR stuff, then headed right back home, in time for me to shoot some pictures before it got too dark.  As you can see, the graphics match up with the new Raminator race truck graphics.  There's even some ghostly "hidden" texture graphics (similar to what the HBR display transporter has) that really only appear in certain lighting.  The design folks at Competition Graphics took a NASCAR/NHRA-style approach in helping with driver recognition, as Mark's actual signature was added to the sides and back of the hauler, along with the National Champion text.

The "Rupert" Raminator returns.  Yes, that's tye dye.

Mark Hall's refreshed ride: 2005 Freightliner Coronado with T&E Ent. trailer, complete with new graphics.

Mark's signature turned out pretty slick.

New graphics for both Rammunition and the Rammunition hauler, as well as the other Raminator haulers and the merchandise trailer are all in the pipeline.  As you read this, the Raminator show truck hauler is being re-done at CG.  Pictures of it will be here on the Monster Blog next week!  This weekend finds us, as mentioned above, at the RCA Dome in Indy and at LMS in Charlotte.  I'll be heading down to LMS with our R/T, but fear not...I'll still have some pictures for you from Indy.

On a slightly unrelated note, I'd like to encourage everyone to realize that with the holidays being close, it is as important as ever to remember those less fortunate than us, and to give to your favorite charity, group, or fund to help those who might not be able to enjoy the fine life that most of us live.  Last weekend in Salina, KS, the Raminator R/T raised over $1200 in donations from riders in only a few hours.  The donations went to the Marine Corps Christmas Fund, and I would like to personally thank everyone who rode and donated their hard earned money to such a great organization.  Though it is good to give anytime you can, make double sure to keep the less fortunate in your thoughts this time of year.  Your contributions help them not only physically, but emotionally as well.  'Till next time, keep rockin' hard, and thanks for reading.

- KD

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