I got some info on Street Beasts out of Plantation, FL. I live in Georgia and have been looking for a Kit to build. They offer a Tube Steel sub frame instead of the VW donor.
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I got some info on Street Beasts out of Plantation, FL. I live in Georgia and have been looking for a Kit to build. They offer a Tube Steel sub frame instead of the VW donor.
Denton,
I purchased and built a Streetbeast by myself in about 14 months. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have. Check out the pictures in my folder (JHS).
Jerome
www.speedsterowners.com/files/thmblist.asp?sf=%2FJHS
I purchased and built a Streetbeast by myself in about 14 months. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have. Check out the pictures in my folder (JHS).
Jerome
www.speedsterowners.com/files/thmblist.asp?sf=%2FJHS
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Thanks. Was looking for a classic style, which they said they had. Did you use their Tube Frame and Do you like it? How would you rate the car and the construction.
It's hard to "rate the car" because the final product has so much to do with the skill, experiance and budget of who built it. Also I have no frame of referance to compare the different manufacturer's products. I can however tell you some of the good and bad issues I dealt with.
1. In my opinion the tube frame is very good except for some minor fitting issues with the VW suspension. Cutting a pan and rewelding is for the birds, especcially for the home builder.
2. There were several "voids" between the gel coat layer and the base fiber glass. Especially the sharp corner that forms the opening of the trunk. I had to tap on the gel coat at all the corners to find the voids then patch them with body filler.
3. The preassembly package is worth it unless you are very experaianced body man. The door, trunk & deck lid seams had to be fit to get even gaps.
4. All the components that come with the kit are not high end or NOS they are the basic aftermarket. For example I'm not sure what the chrome will look like in a few years.
5. At the time I was building my car the tech support was pretty bad. There were some personel changes going on at SB and keep in mind the Speedster is a very small portion of there business so it was hard to get someone who was very knowldgeable with the ins and outs of the kit and VW's. The build manual is a joke. It really doesn't matter because this site will answer any question you may have.
6. If you purchase a SB don't call the 888 sales number ever again, if you have questions, call the factory and ask for Maria. Especially if you are missing a few parts from your kit. She is very professional and will send you anything missing right away.
7. No matter what the salesman says these builds take a serious personal commitment of time and money. I am an enginner by trade and had good amount of automotive repair skill growing up. This was the first project of this kind of scale I have ever done. It took me by myself 14 months of about 15-20 hours/week and about $25,000 total. The fact that I built the entire car without an air compressor or welder may say something about the simplicity of the kit.
I recently went to Knoxville to show my car with the Streetbeasts display and meet some of the SB folks. I talked with Hans the new president about how he is making changes in personel and philosiphy to improve the companys product and image. He admitted that they still have to deal with the old CMC baggage and are trying to get that monkey of their back. It also came to my attention that the Speedster line was in danger of being dropped until they began using my car in ads and sales improved. (My lawyer wife thinks I deserve a royalty).
Let me know if you have more questions...
Jerome
1. In my opinion the tube frame is very good except for some minor fitting issues with the VW suspension. Cutting a pan and rewelding is for the birds, especcially for the home builder.
2. There were several "voids" between the gel coat layer and the base fiber glass. Especially the sharp corner that forms the opening of the trunk. I had to tap on the gel coat at all the corners to find the voids then patch them with body filler.
3. The preassembly package is worth it unless you are very experaianced body man. The door, trunk & deck lid seams had to be fit to get even gaps.
4. All the components that come with the kit are not high end or NOS they are the basic aftermarket. For example I'm not sure what the chrome will look like in a few years.
5. At the time I was building my car the tech support was pretty bad. There were some personel changes going on at SB and keep in mind the Speedster is a very small portion of there business so it was hard to get someone who was very knowldgeable with the ins and outs of the kit and VW's. The build manual is a joke. It really doesn't matter because this site will answer any question you may have.
6. If you purchase a SB don't call the 888 sales number ever again, if you have questions, call the factory and ask for Maria. Especially if you are missing a few parts from your kit. She is very professional and will send you anything missing right away.
7. No matter what the salesman says these builds take a serious personal commitment of time and money. I am an enginner by trade and had good amount of automotive repair skill growing up. This was the first project of this kind of scale I have ever done. It took me by myself 14 months of about 15-20 hours/week and about $25,000 total. The fact that I built the entire car without an air compressor or welder may say something about the simplicity of the kit.
I recently went to Knoxville to show my car with the Streetbeasts display and meet some of the SB folks. I talked with Hans the new president about how he is making changes in personel and philosiphy to improve the companys product and image. He admitted that they still have to deal with the old CMC baggage and are trying to get that monkey of their back. It also came to my attention that the Speedster line was in danger of being dropped until they began using my car in ads and sales improved. (My lawyer wife thinks I deserve a royalty).
Let me know if you have more questions...
Jerome
I forgot to mention...
Besure to search the forum for "Streetbeast". Your questions have comeup before.
Jerome
Besure to search the forum for "Streetbeast". Your questions have comeup before.
Jerome
Jerome:
Sounds like they're either using the same source for their bodies as CMC did, or they're using the same people to build the bodies 'cause they have the same de-lam/voids problems as CMC had (and those were legendary, as I've spoken with several auto body guys who've worked on CMC bodies, both Speedsters (including mine) and Street Rods and they all described the same stuff as you).
gn
Sounds like they're either using the same source for their bodies as CMC did, or they're using the same people to build the bodies 'cause they have the same de-lam/voids problems as CMC had (and those were legendary, as I've spoken with several auto body guys who've worked on CMC bodies, both Speedsters (including mine) and Street Rods and they all described the same stuff as you).
gn
I had the pleasure of meeting Jerome and Holly Smith in Knoxville last month while they were here for a car show at Chilhowee Park. We met at SAW, became acquainted and then traded rides in his Speedster and my Cabriolet. Finally I got to meet a SOC member face to face. Now I really can't wait for Carlisle next spring! We met up again the next day at the show.
Jerome's car is probably the best home built car I have seen to date. His time and energy have resulted in a really beautiful ride.
John H.
Jerome's car is probably the best home built car I have seen to date. His time and energy have resulted in a really beautiful ride.
John H.
John,
Thanks for the compliment (blush) :)
It was a pleasure meeting and talking with you too. The Subytub was all that was promised and more. I thought that it wouldn't have the same ride experiance as the VW based speedsters out there. I was happily suprised. It has all the benifits of new technology while retaining the "smile factor" of the original. SAW has the beginnings of what could be the reason we still have Speedster replicas around for another 30 years.
You arn't the only one looking forward to Carlisle 2005!
Jerome
BTW: With all I learned building this one I hope to build another in the future. I've already started formulating a vision and joting down some ideas. Now if I could only find a bag of cash on the side of the road I could become the Boyd Coddington of Speedsters....I should have been a trust fund baby.
Thanks for the compliment (blush) :)
It was a pleasure meeting and talking with you too. The Subytub was all that was promised and more. I thought that it wouldn't have the same ride experiance as the VW based speedsters out there. I was happily suprised. It has all the benifits of new technology while retaining the "smile factor" of the original. SAW has the beginnings of what could be the reason we still have Speedster replicas around for another 30 years.
You arn't the only one looking forward to Carlisle 2005!
Jerome
BTW: With all I learned building this one I hope to build another in the future. I've already started formulating a vision and joting down some ideas. Now if I could only find a bag of cash on the side of the road I could become the Boyd Coddington of Speedsters....I should have been a trust fund baby.
Somebody say Carlisle? Oh, it's only August......zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Jerome,
Well I'll hop on the royalty bandwagon too!
Street Beasts has posted photos in the "Gallery" section of their web site of a speedster I built and it isn't even a Street Beasts product and they very well know this... I emailed them and told them to remove it promptly ( as of a week ago it's still there ) they make a claim in the text stating that it is one of their products !
I purchase a windshield two 4 months ago, in a conversation with "JR" from Street Beasts, I mentioned that I did a street rod type of speedster with a type 4 Raby motor.... he asked if, I would send along a pic or two, JR is one of the original "CMC Task Force" I had thought that, CMC now Street Beast's was on the up and up when they created Auto Resolutions the spin off company to resolve the former CMC customers shortages and non shipped kits....seems like the beginning of the same song and dance ...hope I am wrong as the kitcar and replicar industry doesn't need another black eye that CMC created.
Well I'll hop on the royalty bandwagon too!
Street Beasts has posted photos in the "Gallery" section of their web site of a speedster I built and it isn't even a Street Beasts product and they very well know this... I emailed them and told them to remove it promptly ( as of a week ago it's still there ) they make a claim in the text stating that it is one of their products !
I purchase a windshield two 4 months ago, in a conversation with "JR" from Street Beasts, I mentioned that I did a street rod type of speedster with a type 4 Raby motor.... he asked if, I would send along a pic or two, JR is one of the original "CMC Task Force" I had thought that, CMC now Street Beast's was on the up and up when they created Auto Resolutions the spin off company to resolve the former CMC customers shortages and non shipped kits....seems like the beginning of the same song and dance ...hope I am wrong as the kitcar and replicar industry doesn't need another black eye that CMC created.
Alan, I just checked out the photo of your car on the Street Beasts web site. All I can say is Sweeeet! What a good looking Speedster. Will you be posting photos of your current project? I really want to see it, let's have the details.
Stacey,
Thanks for the compliments... It was a fun project, I had an unlimited budge available to me through the vocational auto shop program (former employer) for at risk youth. The kids loved building the speedster and it was a great venue to teach basic automotive skills to kids that had no direction what so ever.
The speedster was built with a street rod theme with Jake Raby's type IV engine with a DTM shroud and matched trans . it was featured at Carlisle '03 where they did an nice write up in the Carlisle show program.
The car now sits in a shop garage and not driven. They did try to sell it at one time but have decided to retain it for eye candy.
Thanks for the compliments... It was a fun project, I had an unlimited budge available to me through the vocational auto shop program (former employer) for at risk youth. The kids loved building the speedster and it was a great venue to teach basic automotive skills to kids that had no direction what so ever.
The speedster was built with a street rod theme with Jake Raby's type IV engine with a DTM shroud and matched trans . it was featured at Carlisle '03 where they did an nice write up in the Carlisle show program.
The car now sits in a shop garage and not driven. They did try to sell it at one time but have decided to retain it for eye candy.
Guess I'll get on the Jerome-praise bandwagon and say that both Chris and I were extremely impressed with Jerome's car when we saw it at Carlisle. Not so much the personal touches (and there are many), but the level of thoughtful workmanship and finish detail is extraordinary. I'm still amazed that he was able to produce that level of finish in such a short time......my finish isn't that good and it took me YEARS! (and I think I'm pretty good at this!) Besides all that, he's just a nice guy to know and talk with, even if Bruce's wife womped the heck out of him and the rest of us on the go-kart track.
Theron: Thanks for the reminder.....with at least a dozen federal lawsuits pending against CMC back then (including mine for mail and wire fraud and other things), they either had to create Auto Resolutions and make things right or spend years in jail. Guess I would've tried to avoid jail, too.
To Street Beasts credit, at least it looks like they're trying in most areas to be a better company than CMC was.......but there's still those lingering ghosts lurking around.
There is a huge and thriving Kit Car industry in Europe, especially in the UK......I wonder how that compares (and the companies involved) with what we have in the US? Simon - you tuned in?
Theron: Thanks for the reminder.....with at least a dozen federal lawsuits pending against CMC back then (including mine for mail and wire fraud and other things), they either had to create Auto Resolutions and make things right or spend years in jail. Guess I would've tried to avoid jail, too.
To Street Beasts credit, at least it looks like they're trying in most areas to be a better company than CMC was.......but there's still those lingering ghosts lurking around.
There is a huge and thriving Kit Car industry in Europe, especially in the UK......I wonder how that compares (and the companies involved) with what we have in the US? Simon - you tuned in?
Not to repeat what's already been said, but...
Jerome's car is superb. As he mentioned, he's an engineer by trade, and it is reflected in the originality and ingenuity he used in all of the small touches ALL OVER his car. When I finally get around to building a kit sometime myself, I'm sure he's going to regret having given me his email address, because I'd love to replicate some of the more creative approaches he took to finish off parts of his car. :)
Next year at Carlisle is going to be a blast though, that's for sure.
Jerome's car is superb. As he mentioned, he's an engineer by trade, and it is reflected in the originality and ingenuity he used in all of the small touches ALL OVER his car. When I finally get around to building a kit sometime myself, I'm sure he's going to regret having given me his email address, because I'd love to replicate some of the more creative approaches he took to finish off parts of his car. :)
Next year at Carlisle is going to be a blast though, that's for sure.
Ok you guys can stop now, this is getting embarassing!
Jerome
Jerome
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While I certainly don't want to interupt with the Jerome hommage (although I certainly agree...saw his car at Carlisle)...last time I called Street Beasts looking for a classic fender to repair my CMC, I was told they no longer offer the classic body style. They told me they no longer had the molds. Their website...at last look...only showed the flared version.
OK, Jerome has this REALLY BIG starter button on his dash.
From anything farther away than 5 feet, it looks like a Coca Cola symbol.
There.......you can stop blushing now......
From anything farther away than 5 feet, it looks like a Coca Cola symbol.
There.......you can stop blushing now......
GO BABY GO!
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Speaking of starter buttons, a friend of mine just bought a Subie STi and ran out of parking spaces at his apartment in Boston, so I offered to garage his Honda S2000 for the last two weeks remaining on his lease in exchange for being able to drive it around.
First of all, convertibles are fun. Second of all, it's so weird having to hit a button to start the car. I feel like I'm in a racecar or something. It's a different feeling being able to hit a button and feel the car rumble to life. :)
First of all, convertibles are fun. Second of all, it's so weird having to hit a button to start the car. I feel like I'm in a racecar or something. It's a different feeling being able to hit a button and feel the car rumble to life. :)
Gordon,
I'm tuned in; Not quite sure what your question is.
The UK has a vast number of specialist companies producing kitcars, aided by 1998 (ish) legislation that helped legitimise home built cars/very low volume manufacture (limited to 25 cars / manufacturer / year).
We have our share of great companies and villains past and present....
In speedster space, there are:
Chesil: probably the most recognised builder, with strongest brand
Pilgrim: Taken on the L&B speedster kit from Belgium. Pilgrim have strong kit car heritage with cobra and other replicas. Should develop into something on par with Chesil
speedsterclinic: somewhat unknown to me; run by ex-legend employee?
banham: rover metro front engined speedster-esque car. avoid! banham range recently sold to another company. I had the misfortune to build a banham 550 spyder....
and there were:
Legend: many unhappy customers
Martin & Walker: good reputation. small number of cars; now focus on 904 & other porsche replicas (including 356 coupe)
Technic: European company. I think this was Martin & Walkers offering
Was this the question!?
I'm tuned in; Not quite sure what your question is.
The UK has a vast number of specialist companies producing kitcars, aided by 1998 (ish) legislation that helped legitimise home built cars/very low volume manufacture (limited to 25 cars / manufacturer / year).
We have our share of great companies and villains past and present....
In speedster space, there are:
Chesil: probably the most recognised builder, with strongest brand
Pilgrim: Taken on the L&B speedster kit from Belgium. Pilgrim have strong kit car heritage with cobra and other replicas. Should develop into something on par with Chesil
speedsterclinic: somewhat unknown to me; run by ex-legend employee?
banham: rover metro front engined speedster-esque car. avoid! banham range recently sold to another company. I had the misfortune to build a banham 550 spyder....
and there were:
Legend: many unhappy customers
Martin & Walker: good reputation. small number of cars; now focus on 904 & other porsche replicas (including 356 coupe)
Technic: European company. I think this was Martin & Walkers offering
Was this the question!?
Simon:
Yup, you hit it. I remember seeing all kinds of exotic stuff on my trips to Europe (mostly Ireland, Germany and the UK) and very often I would find that I was looking at a replica. There are far more of them and many more different styles available than here in the US.
On the started button thing, first vehicle I ever drove was a Ferguson tractor (from England, and eventually bought by Ford) with a starter button next to the gearshift on top of the tranny. Next one was a '30 Model "A" made into a tractor, with a third pedal, smaller and between the brake and clutch, which you stepped on to start it, then I graduated up to a '37 Chevy 1 1/2 ton truck with a real starter button on the dash, along with our venerable '46 Ford Cab-over, also with a button, but not on the dash - it was on the dog-house, next to the shift lever, with a rubber boot over it. Come to think of it, my '46 Ford Business Coupe Street Rod had a starter button on the dash, too, but it didn't light up or look like a Coke sign...........That car had two speeds (due to a .200+ overbored flathead V-8) Really, really quick (when it would start) and really, really slow (when Kathy had to help push it to get it running).
Ahhhh, the good old days!
Yup, you hit it. I remember seeing all kinds of exotic stuff on my trips to Europe (mostly Ireland, Germany and the UK) and very often I would find that I was looking at a replica. There are far more of them and many more different styles available than here in the US.
On the started button thing, first vehicle I ever drove was a Ferguson tractor (from England, and eventually bought by Ford) with a starter button next to the gearshift on top of the tranny. Next one was a '30 Model "A" made into a tractor, with a third pedal, smaller and between the brake and clutch, which you stepped on to start it, then I graduated up to a '37 Chevy 1 1/2 ton truck with a real starter button on the dash, along with our venerable '46 Ford Cab-over, also with a button, but not on the dash - it was on the dog-house, next to the shift lever, with a rubber boot over it. Come to think of it, my '46 Ford Business Coupe Street Rod had a starter button on the dash, too, but it didn't light up or look like a Coke sign...........That car had two speeds (due to a .200+ overbored flathead V-8) Really, really quick (when it would start) and really, really slow (when Kathy had to help push it to get it running).
Ahhhh, the good old days!
My starter button is like the one in Gordon's 46 Ford. Only mine was NOS for a 46 Hudson.
BD
BD
I had a 49 dodge pick up. The starter button was on the floor. The body was made of 1/8" steel. Well it looked like 1/8" probably it was a little less, anyway it was a whole lot thicker than todays trucks/cars.
Jerome,
What type of wheel adapters are you using? What size wheels and tires are you using? What is the brand of wheel that you use? It all looks awesome....
Michael
What type of wheel adapters are you using? What size wheels and tires are you using? What is the brand of wheel that you use? It all looks awesome....
Michael
They are TSW 17X8 with a 40mm positive offset. Tires are GY Eagles GS-DS 245/35's The adapters are custom made, rears are 1.5" thick, fronts are 2.25" thick.
Jerome
Jerome
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Jerome,
is it a commercial shop that made these or was it a friend? If its a commercial shop, any chance of getting the number? I have the 359 and the options for wheels with the 4 bolt are slim. I would like to fill up the wheel wells and that seems the way to go.
Thanks,
Michael
is it a commercial shop that made these or was it a friend? If its a commercial shop, any chance of getting the number? I have the 359 and the options for wheels with the 4 bolt are slim. I would like to fill up the wheel wells and that seems the way to go.
Thanks,
Michael
I would beware of this company... This is the information listed under makers on this website.
Classic Motor Carriage - OUT OF BUSINESS
History:
Fit and Finish of CMCs varied widely. CMC went out of business around 1994.
In it heyday, Classic Motor Carriages produced and sold more kit cars than the rest of the industry combined. When CMC closed, hundreds of people were left without the parts or kits they had paid for.
The molds and tooling along with most of the staff of CMC, reopened as Street-Beasts. In addition, due to a class-action lawsuit, the Florida state attorney general ordered the owners of CMC to fulfill the kits and parts which were not delivered. Auto Resolution was opened by the former owners of CMC to provide the kits which were not delivered and continues to be monitored by the Florida state attorney general. It should also be noted that the Florida state attorney general continues to monitor Street-Beasts.
Many CMC owners have reported that they had their cars finished by Vintage Speedsters. Vintage Speedsters has never had any relation to CMC, although they do re-manufacture many of the parts
Classic Motor Carriage - OUT OF BUSINESS
History:
Fit and Finish of CMCs varied widely. CMC went out of business around 1994.
In it heyday, Classic Motor Carriages produced and sold more kit cars than the rest of the industry combined. When CMC closed, hundreds of people were left without the parts or kits they had paid for.
The molds and tooling along with most of the staff of CMC, reopened as Street-Beasts. In addition, due to a class-action lawsuit, the Florida state attorney general ordered the owners of CMC to fulfill the kits and parts which were not delivered. Auto Resolution was opened by the former owners of CMC to provide the kits which were not delivered and continues to be monitored by the Florida state attorney general. It should also be noted that the Florida state attorney general continues to monitor Street-Beasts.
Many CMC owners have reported that they had their cars finished by Vintage Speedsters. Vintage Speedsters has never had any relation to CMC, although they do re-manufacture many of the parts
In response to the same questions about my adapters from November....
The wheels are TSW 17" X 8" with a 112mm X 5 bolt pattern (Audi pattern I think). I purchased brake drums and discs drilled with a 130mm X 5 Porsche pattern (from CIP1.com) I then redrilled them to 112 X 5 and installed 1/2-20 studs from Summitracing.com. The wheel adapters were designed by yours truly and built by a buddy of mine who has a machine shop. I have about $200 in material and about 20-25 man hours into them. If you priced them out to a shop to fabricate them you would be looking at about $1200! All it cost me was the $200 in material and a keg of beer for my buddy. The tires are Goodyear Eagle GS-DS 245/35's
I did check on a company that makes wheel adapters but never got a quote from them. www.wheeladapters.com
Good Luck,
Jerome
The wheels are TSW 17" X 8" with a 112mm X 5 bolt pattern (Audi pattern I think). I purchased brake drums and discs drilled with a 130mm X 5 Porsche pattern (from CIP1.com) I then redrilled them to 112 X 5 and installed 1/2-20 studs from Summitracing.com. The wheel adapters were designed by yours truly and built by a buddy of mine who has a machine shop. I have about $200 in material and about 20-25 man hours into them. If you priced them out to a shop to fabricate them you would be looking at about $1200! All it cost me was the $200 in material and a keg of beer for my buddy. The tires are Goodyear Eagle GS-DS 245/35's
I did check on a company that makes wheel adapters but never got a quote from them. www.wheeladapters.com
Good Luck,
Jerome
Surge
Thanks for your response to my original question. Someone is on top of things! I think something is also going on at Street Beasts now because they keep calling me with "fantastic" deal, when I only called them once. They don't have a Classic which I am really looking for. I am afraid of ordering a kit from the "Left Coast" due to the distance to Georgia and the ability to get support in the building process. I have looked at VS and JPS but they are too far away. Any help?
Thanks for your response to my original question. Someone is on top of things! I think something is also going on at Street Beasts now because they keep calling me with "fantastic" deal, when I only called them once. They don't have a Classic which I am really looking for. I am afraid of ordering a kit from the "Left Coast" due to the distance to Georgia and the ability to get support in the building process. I have looked at VS and JPS but they are too far away. Any help?
Denton,
The "fantastic" deal is normal operating procedure for them that goes back to the CMC days. They figure that if you are interested enough to call at the list price you are more likly to buy when a couple of thousand bucks are knocked off. My deal was $1000 off the list and the shipping (est $1500), fiberglass floor pan ($1500) and pre assembly ($1500) "free". Everyone gets the same fantastic deal "this weekend only" (until next weekend). When I questioned Bob Southern about pushy salesmen he told me that if a potential customer tells one of his salesmen to please stop calling they will. It would be interesting to see if that works for you. Or was he feeding me a line?
Have you looked into a Beck? Email Carey Hines about them.
Jerome
The "fantastic" deal is normal operating procedure for them that goes back to the CMC days. They figure that if you are interested enough to call at the list price you are more likly to buy when a couple of thousand bucks are knocked off. My deal was $1000 off the list and the shipping (est $1500), fiberglass floor pan ($1500) and pre assembly ($1500) "free". Everyone gets the same fantastic deal "this weekend only" (until next weekend). When I questioned Bob Southern about pushy salesmen he told me that if a potential customer tells one of his salesmen to please stop calling they will. It would be interesting to see if that works for you. Or was he feeding me a line?
Have you looked into a Beck? Email Carey Hines about them.
Jerome
Denton ,
Have you considered an unassembled or particially assembled kit that someone else purchased and has lost interest ? ( One now on ebay ) Even if it is missing some parts, they are all available and you can save major bucks on your build . On a very positive side , the finished speedster that you assemble, is well worth the time and effort that goes into a build.
Alan M
Have you considered an unassembled or particially assembled kit that someone else purchased and has lost interest ? ( One now on ebay ) Even if it is missing some parts, they are all available and you can save major bucks on your build . On a very positive side , the finished speedster that you assemble, is well worth the time and effort that goes into a build.
Alan M
Yeah, Denton - check out the CMC kit for sale in the classifieds on this forum. Although it's up in New England (Fall River, Mass. - near Cape Cod) for the money you could buy it and ship it home and STILL be way ahead.
I just bought the Street Beasts Speedster last October and can't wait to get it, build and drive it! I like this kit also the for the same reasons Jerome Smith did. I do not no anything about the customer service yet at Street Beasts, since I dont have my kit yet, but soon enough.
Thanks,
Kevin Pittman
Thanks,
Kevin Pittman
Kevin, welcome to the world of Speedster Builders!
Be a frequent member of this forum as you complete your build and many of us will bend over backwards to answer questions and provide help.
Jerome finished his in something like 14 months - don't know how he did it and not get divorced - or maybe he wasn't yet married! ;>)
Others of us took YEARS, usually because of conflicting family/work pressures, but when you get out on the road that first time, the feeling is priceless!
Be a frequent member of this forum as you complete your build and many of us will bend over backwards to answer questions and provide help.
Jerome finished his in something like 14 months - don't know how he did it and not get divorced - or maybe he wasn't yet married! ;>)
Others of us took YEARS, usually because of conflicting family/work pressures, but when you get out on the road that first time, the feeling is priceless!
I fall in the "years to complete" group. I think I took delivery of my Street Beast a few months before Jerome. I'm still not done, not due to the complexity of the build, just time, work and family. Like everyone else. Jerome is right about SB. Don't listen the to the sales BS, their customer service (Maria) is really pretty good. I stopped at the plant in Miami and took a tour & met alot of the folks you deal with after the sale. The Speedster kits are a small part of their business. They seem to be geared more towards the street rodders and cobra group.
..If the river don't rise & the good Lord's willin', I'll be on the road come spring...
..If the river don't rise & the good Lord's willin', I'll be on the road come spring...
Jerome
I talked to Carey Hines at Beck and he e-mailed me before he was going to Carmel to the Classic Road Races. I like the car's but looks a little pricey. The tubular frame is a real plus. But the car only comes in a 90% complete form. His father started the business after leaving Avanti. Sounds like the engineering is good with that type of background. The cars sound and look great. I also had some questions about engines. He uses CB Products and suggested at least a 1915cc type I high performance, dual 44 IDF Webers (125hp). Anyone have an opinion?
Denton
I talked to Carey Hines at Beck and he e-mailed me before he was going to Carmel to the Classic Road Races. I like the car's but looks a little pricey. The tubular frame is a real plus. But the car only comes in a 90% complete form. His father started the business after leaving Avanti. Sounds like the engineering is good with that type of background. The cars sound and look great. I also had some questions about engines. He uses CB Products and suggested at least a 1915cc type I high performance, dual 44 IDF Webers (125hp). Anyone have an opinion?
Denton
Denton:
A bunch of us saw Carey's cars at Carlisle. Very nicely done with top notch workmanship, and they spend a lot of time talking with customers to insure that they build what the customer wants. finishing off that last 10% is a breeze compared to completing an entire kit, and you'll get lots of help from this forum if you need it (or even if you don't!)
On the engine size, lots of people start with a 1600 or even a 1776, and then wish they had something larger. Sometimes they go the type 1 route and get something around 1835 - 2110 (and CB engines are popular, along with Bernie Bergman and several other builders), or, if they have a little more cash they might opt for a type 4 starting over 2180 cc's and going up from there. It's all in how much power is enough, and how deep your credit card is.
A bunch of us saw Carey's cars at Carlisle. Very nicely done with top notch workmanship, and they spend a lot of time talking with customers to insure that they build what the customer wants. finishing off that last 10% is a breeze compared to completing an entire kit, and you'll get lots of help from this forum if you need it (or even if you don't!)
On the engine size, lots of people start with a 1600 or even a 1776, and then wish they had something larger. Sometimes they go the type 1 route and get something around 1835 - 2110 (and CB engines are popular, along with Bernie Bergman and several other builders), or, if they have a little more cash they might opt for a type 4 starting over 2180 cc's and going up from there. It's all in how much power is enough, and how deep your credit card is.
Gordon
Thanks for your reply. Do you have some web sites for engines? So I can check them out. I am odviously new to this and don't know all the players. Don't want to make a mistake. They can be costly and time consuming. You live on the east coast, what do you think is best kit out there for around here?
Thanks
Thanks for your reply. Do you have some web sites for engines? So I can check them out. I am odviously new to this and don't know all the players. Don't want to make a mistake. They can be costly and time consuming. You live on the east coast, what do you think is best kit out there for around here?
Thanks