The Edible Color of Race Cars

Over at favorite blog thingsmagazine.net, there is a little set of photographs taken at the Ferrari factory in Maranello. Race cars have a special exemption from color theory and practice. Race cars can pull off color combinations that are otherwise acceptable only in the world of Fisher Price. There is something about the density, saturation and depth of race car livery that looks like you could dip an ice cream scoop in the fender for dessert. Granted, this assembly line Ferrari is not a race car, those blue body panels are seemingly temporary and you can't really count the floor but, damn, that looks good despite the yellow-red-orange-blue odds.

Though this is not the original Gulf GT-40, it is the best photo I could find to show off the perhaps most successful (and unlikely) livery color combination ever. There is something about a little bit of of milky white in the blue that makes it looks soft like Playdoh.

Modern race cars look too primary color for my tastes, but the Renault F1 car captures that same sherbert-like appearance with a little white in the mix. The red hot disc rotor doesn't hurt one whit.

I am still an advocate of the ferocious attitude of black/gold from the Hemi Under Glass to the Bandit Trans-Am, and the one true scheme for a funny car is red,white and blue. However, these milky saturated colors are going to drive me to Baskin Robbins this afternoon to do some more color research. In the name of science.

P.S. Superb funny car archive here

Mister Jalopy on TV

Less volatile and less moustache than the Orange County Choppers guys, but there I am on Discovery Channel Canada. I think producer Carol did a super job. The sound guy, JT, and I were talking about Jessco The Dancing Outlaw immediately prior to firing up the giant Ipod so, when the sweet sounds of old timey twang came from the mystery machine, I was moved to do a jig. Suffice to say, I was not expecting that I would be doing any dancing on television, but there I was. Dancing.

Daily Planet Homepage here. Video archive here. Any Hooptyriders know how to get the Daily Planet video viewer to work on a Mac? Seems even PCs have problems with the audio.

Blue, Red and White

Before - Subtle like a STP sticker

Though a tremendous color scheme for a funny car, I found the red, white and blue to be a bit much for the day to day. My high school history teacher would liven up his slide presentations with gratuitous photos of bicentennial fire plugs. I had always called them fire hydrants, but he was the expert. Not counting the tax-deductible travel costs, the collection was modestly priced, more varied than you would think and, as a photo album, compact. Not surprisingly, he said that it was getting harder and harder to find new bicentennial fire plugs to add to his collection.

After - Official Flag of Hooptyland, two patches of pegboard crossed with a field of chalkboard

Rather than the go-go patriotic theme, I chose a palette more befitting a mulch pile. The counter is the natural hub of Hooptyrides and, despite countless work benches, I end up doing a lot of work at the nucleus of the operation. It only made sense to install pegboard to store the most commonly misused tools. That is a 4x8 expanse of handy. A 4x4 slab of pegboard, a 2x4 sheet of masonite painted with chalkboard paint and a final 2x4 sheet of pegboard to round it out. The whole shooting match is hung on a perimeter frame made of old pallet wood with a couple vertical members on each side of the chalkboard.

So, why no posting to Hooptyrides? I have been a little busy.

Mister Jalopy on the TV! - Canadians will be able to see Mister Jalopy discuss garage sales, giant ipods and why it is worth smashing your thumbs for glory on the Discovery Channel Canada's Daily Planet show. Maybe April 4th, maybe April 5th. Whatever the case, those that miss it (including non-Canadians) will be able to see the archived show on the Daily Planet site.

Maker's Faire - I will be attending the Maker's Faire with the Country Squire, the giant ipod, my copystand and my new hack - an 80's Panasonic Boombox with a Playstation LCD screen, TV tuning and remote control! Visit Mister Jalopy's Garage to see my cool junk, learn to punch and pop rivet sheet metal, see the $15 close-up photography rig, listen to the Ipod, watch the boombox TV and attend my workshop, How to Buy, Live, Tune and Die with Old Cars. We will tune-up the Country Squire - live!

Jalopyjunktown.com - I have been too busy to post to Hooptyrides, so what do I do? Solve it like the North Koreans would! Resolve issues by introducing new problems that dwarf the original! Inspired by the Mad Professor, Jalopy Junktown is a more frequently updated site with cool stuff that I come across and the riveting, weekly garage sale update on the best item of the week.

The Country Squire

Boss, right?! 70's-style low rider dingle-berries by the way of Chinatown red plastic Christmas tree lanterns running off battery power! Why? Well, it really creates a stir when you go cruising in a Buddhist temple. Can't wait for the Make article? Re-wire from the stock serial wiring to parallel and connect to a 7.2V remote control battery. Come to the Maker's Faire and check 'em out up close and personal.