Dodge Aspen 1980 "Air Morse One"

[JarmoN]

Continuing with the last post


Time to swap the Supremes for wires.

While the last year's trip to Japan we also visited Mopona lowrider show there. Walking between the sellers tables my girlfriend suddenly
pointed to some wire wheels and said - "Are these really only 20000 JPY?". That's about 125 Euros.
Right at the moment we stopped, the seller said "18000JPY".
I was like, whoa... hold yer horses there.... We started discussing the possibilities of getting them back home. I remembered I saw from one of the Australian
dude's Instagram that he took a set of wheels home from Japan with just the luggage.
In about three minutes the seller said "15000" and right then I was the owner of 14" Roadster 100-spoke wire wheels and we we're packing them
into our local friend's Toyota GT86.

Wheels we're quite patinaed, but still - street quality. And I actually hoped for some washing magic to happen.

We bought some cheap bags, boguth an extra luggage for our flight, wrapped the bags in plastic and got them home.
All the cost - purchase + transport - geared up to around 300€. Plus the 200€ for the local detailing shop for cleaning and
ceramic-coating them, but this cost I covered with some custom painting for the guy.

It was a bit of a struggle in deed to get the 5 suitcases through all those train stations and trains and airport, but it was all worth it.
And I also have a story to tell














Took three bags to the main train station a day before, for a bit easier commuting on the departure day.





BEFORE






AFTER





Mounted.



Not the best wheels of course, cause the better ones cost more €€€, but definitely quite decent amount of street quality right there.
I'm lusting after a set of 14" 35-spoke Starwires though, that's definitely my main wheel-goal for the future.

[JarmoN]

Continuing with the last post


As the previous roof paint was my first attempt with flakes and candies back in 2016, then I wanted to do it all over.
And also I was in the process of making the version no. 2 anyway.
Started with flaking the roof in June.



As I didn't (and don't) have too much free time between the jobs, then I did the kandies and panels in July
















Not nearly done of course, cause it needs a lot more pinstriping and then a hefty amount of clearing and sanding and clearing and sanding and clearing and
sanding yadda-yadda-yadda...




t's a rolling project, so everything happens once in a while.
In June I asked my friend Erkki Joon (@joonkustoms in Instagram) to make me a pair of frenched antennas. As the Aspen is boxy, then
I wanted the diamond shaped ones.
Antennas are dummies and these are actually telescopic magnets from AliExpress, under 1£ for a pair.
Remember, it's not a showcar, but a fun dailydriven street quality machine













Next up was the custom grille.
As the direction is seventies lowrider, then of course I wanted the twisted bar grille.
Got the material and got my friend Tarvo Porroson to build it to me.
You see, I'm more of a man with paints. I can of course handle the metal and tools etc, but other people are just better with those






Painted it with epoxy primer, then 2K black and then some faux chrome, which works fine, cause with the real chrome it
would just look out of place next to all the faded old chrome pieces on the car.



I don't have the good photo of just the grille, but you can see it a bit from these





Turn signals are now a small, approx 1.5cm in diamater, motorcycle led lights, mounted behind the grille.



Btw, with Tarvo we also built this seventies lowrider style wheelchair for Tommy Cash and Rick Owens exhibition in Estonian national art museum KUMU.

[JarmoN]

Continuing with the last post


I also wanted a biscuit tuck and coffin pleats upholstery.
Did my first biscuit tuck pieces on the Tommy Cash's wheelchair and this gave me the final push to do the whole car's interior on my own.
Or at least trying to.
Started with everything above the glass line.

First up a bit of sound deadening to the ceiling






Then wrapped some coffin pleats around stuff






Little helper




Had to straighten the old headliner a bit
BEFORE



AFTER, bit less curvy now




Then a lot of handcraft - covering the buttons with fabric







And then all the rest of it




















Next I'm gonna do the doorcards and then I need to figure out how to biscuit tuck the seats.
It's easy on the straighter surface, but seats seem to be a bit more dramatic to me.
I've searched with "button tuft" and "biscuit tuck" from YouTube and Google, but haven't found a good info about it.
Been looking through the LayItLow forum's interior section as well, but as the search-function doesn’t seem
to be working there anymore, then it takes a lot of time to comb through it all.
I'd appreciate it if some of yous can direct me to some good info.

[JarmoN]

Continuing with the last post


Wanted some more pink and purple theme going on, so worked a bit with some panels.
The roof is sprayed on, but everything else I'm gonna handpaint here.
All done with 1Shot paints, panels covered with 2K clear, applied by brush.





Clearing





Another lil' helper. Third one is yet to be caught on the picture.





Let's stripe!

[Fruttolo]

This definitely floats my boat

[Asshole Bicycle]

Oh my Lord this is amazing.

[samulis]

Do like it, alot! Specially the DIY attitude of yours. It needs air lift to front as well. And how about chain steering wheel?
I'm wondering have I seen you in Helsinki cruise nights?

[JarmoN]

Thanks everyone, appreciate it

It needs air lift to front as well. And how about chain steering wheel?
I'm wondering have I seen you in Helsinki cruise nights?

Probably not gonna bother with installing the air to the front axle, just too much work because of the torsion suspension. But I do have the itch to juice this car in the future, cause hydraulics would make it a proper lowrider and the people who I go to for the mechanical stuff, told me it’d be a lot easier to add hydros for the front. Then, of course, all four corners would be juiced. But let’s see what the future will bring, cause right now it’s only a dream

Chain steering wheel - most likely no. These are definitely the pinnacle of seventies style lowrider interiors and I do like to see them in someone else’s cars, but don’t want it in my car. First I will probably change the purple flake steering wheel for the gold flake round or octagon Moon steering wheel (the purple will probably go to my custom van project) and then later maybe a heart shaped or twisted bar chrome steering wheel. Cruzwell did really nice heart wheels, would defnitely love one of those.

If you were at the Malmi Pre-Cruising and Stadin cruising in August 2018, then probably you might saw it there, yep Actually planning to visit the Malmi Pre-Cruising and Stadin Cruising on September 6th too, fingers crossed that nothing’s gonna mess up the plan
Last year we went to Forssa after this, for Maisema Ruise on Saturday evening and Forssa Pick-Nick on Sunday.
And I was also at the 2016 Do-Dads Reunion with the Aspen. Last year’s Do-Dad’s we visited with my then-owned Beetle, the Wonky Bastard:

[gnmzl]

I am truly amazed. Don't know how I missed this over the years, but will be keeping an eye peeled for more progress.

[JarmoN]

I am truly amazed. Don't know how I missed this over the years, but will be keeping an eye peeled for more progress.

Thanks!
Well, I guess it wasn't that hard to miss as I've been quite slow on posting and there's a mass of all other threads in here too, so...

[Asshole Bicycle]

I had a 1966 AMC Rambler lowrider with a chain steering wheel. It was miserable to drive with.

[samulis]

I think I will be in Malmi pre-cruise 6th of september, I'll see if I find you. Last year I was there in august, for first time and was blown away, hundreds of cars, so much better than the real cruises in Kauppatori. Do-Dads nostalgic drags is great, athmosphere is so laid back and seeing childhood hero, Hitler's Revenge live was great. Puhut sä Suomea?

[JarmoN]

Puhut sä Suomea?

Jepulis, puhun vähän
En kyllä tiedä kaikkia sanoja ja sit joskus puhun Finglishia

But yeah, Malmi event was cool and Do-Dad's as well.
I just got the e-mail though that I'm gonna be pinstriping at the Jenkkiautonäyttely in late September, so this might change the plans about coming to Helsinki on Sept. 6th,
but we'll see what kind of ideas the new week will bring.