My friend Brandon owns a shop in American Canyon Ca. called Altissimo Restorations. They do some of the most amazing work and are known for their restorations of the finest classic automobiles.

But he also has a real love of Kustoms and some of the finest have come out of his shop, Including my 1962 Ford Thunderbird.  Brandon’s style is very subtle.  He’s all about a really mild chop and a lot of detail.  To the point many people look at the cars and can’t tell what has been done.  You just know it looks “Right”.

Anyway, A couple of years ago, Brandon took in a project 1936 Ford 5 window coupe, on a trade.  It had already had some work done to put it on the ground. But it was just a shell after that.  Brandon had some ideas for the coupe. He wanted to do a roadster with style queues from some of the finest deco rides from days gone by.

After sitting for a couple of years, it was finally its turn.  They started with striping the body of all the old paint so they could see what the were working with and then removing the entire roof.  This body had a lot of potential, but there were a lot of rust issues as well. The and wheel wells and floor panels had to be replaced from the trunk forward as well as the lip for the deck lid, so Brandon got to work.

Brandon is not the type to take the easy way out. He didn’t have the correct shape die’s needed to make the floor panels ‘s on his Pullmax, so he made them. He then got to work on the fresh panels and the necessary structural repairs. Making an integrated tube frame to wrap within the shell was also needed.

That is where these photos start.  He welded in the tube around the top of the body and has now just cut them for the doors. New  sheet metal will be hammered into place creating a nice smooth radius for the lip. I will try to chronicle this build all the way to the BIG SHOW, as much as I can and will add to it as it progresses.

I hope you enjoy it… – Johnny

OK…Update on this amazing Custom. 10/27/2016

This car is coming together amazingly.

So much has been done since I last saw it.  Most of the body is done and in primer.  There is still work going on, but I think the majority of modifications are complete.  The grill is in copper and the handmade windshield frame is out to chrome also. Sherm’s Custom Plating in Sacramento is where most the show car owners go in Nor Cal, and this car is no different. Sheri’s has a reputation for being the best… Copper plating is  something Brandon does to any chrome piece that comes up against a body panel.  To make sure they get the best gaps, he sends it for the copper first and then fits is to the body. Does all the primer and finish work and then sends it back to chrome.  This way when it comes back its perfect and fits the cars to the highest tollerence. Its absolutely amazing.  I hope you enjoy the updates.  Keep an eye out for this one and stop by and “like” Altissimo Restorations on Face Book.  He has allot of photos of stuff they are working on.  This is only one of them, and I think it is going to be huge for the 2017 car show season. – Johnny

Update GNRS 2017 just a couple weeks away.

You decide.

Cause I already have…  So I stopped by Altissimo today and shot a few “Katchup Shots”.  The car leaves for Pomona next Thursday, so I wanted to see what the next week was gong to be like for Brandon and the Team.  I must say, I think they are closer with this one than any of the others Ive seen at this stage. I think Brandon may show up actually sleeping some… the week before the show.  I spoke to Brandon tonight and he said it will be ready to fire on Monday and that they will finish building next week.  Soooo…Their close.   😉  Anyway, here are just a few shots. It was on the rack today when I snuck in around lunch so we don’t get the true “stance”. But I have to say, it is soooo beautiful.  I am truly proud of what my friends created.  I will be their Monday to check it and hope to get a glimpse on the ground, and better shots of the interior.  What I saw today was stunning. – Johnny