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History’s Road Hauks blew us away this week — with a build melding the look and vibe of a Colt .45 revolver with a 1947 Willys pickup.
To really make their mark at the SEMA show in Las Vegas, Kenny Hauk needed to imagine greater for a vehicle that would earn him press and notoriety.
In the episode, he and the crew saddle up and head West to the biggest custom car show in North America.
Who doesn’t love guns and trucks? “Out here in the country, That’s all we have,” says Rick Shultz.
“It would be really cool to take a Colt .45 and add its design elements to a vehicle,” muses Kenny, adding: “Those old guns had such an iconic look to them, we are taking a chunk of the past and putting it into a vehicle.”
The guys head to Roger’s Scrapyard where they pick an old truck for the design.
A 1947 Willys Jeep is spied. Used by farmers, it’s a hauling beastie. Roger wants $4,000 and Kenny haggles with him, Pennsylvania style.
“How ’bout…$2,500?’
An accord is reached at $3,000 and Hauk better have hundreds on him, as Roger just can’t with the smaller bills.
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The guys back at the shop are slinging the barbs over Kenny’s old truck. They know a lot of work is ahead of them.
He debuts the inspiration — the single action Colt .45 — as the guys try to wrap their heads around the SEMA convention in Las Vegas, the largest custom build show in the USA. “This is the show you prepare for all year long,” says Shultz.
Kenny knows he needs to create a jaw-dropper that will bring the “high rollers” to his build shop back home for high-dollar builds.
Kenny wants copper and wood Western elements. The design is simple — chop the top and extend the front frame to accommodate a monster 6-cylinder Cummins diesel transplant.
The crew will add one-ton axles, a custom three-link suspension system with Fox and Synergy Suspension components and Dually tires with a gun-shaped vertical exhaust. A piece of cake!
Josh Moe finds a decaying mouse nest as they rip apart the truck. Just another day!
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The first step is to chop the cab and elevate it three inches. Rob Bittner is the talented lead fabricator and he gives us a step-by-step on his “improv” plans.
He and Kenny do it perfectly as there is no room for error.
“All kinds of head room now,” says Josh, as Kenny remarks: “It’s a convertible.”
Rob and “classy date” Josh go on a mock rendezvous in their new airy ride.
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Back to business. Rob has his hands full with surgical cuts as Kenny says: “I want the Hauk .45 to have the profile of a Colt .45, with long stretched body lines and simple curves.”
You know there’s more bidniz going on at Hauk’s shop. An F-250 diesel is rolled in.
Justin Kapfer wants it to be “nasty” and jack it up, in the best possible sense of that word.
He tells mechanics Brian Starliper and Dylan King he wants a quick flip to offset the haemorrhaging that Kenny has with the SEMA build. They have a real clunker on their hands.
Now the truck is stretched but minor calamity strikes as Moe accidentally burns Kenny’s foot in a welding mishap.
Just think if Kenny was like sister series’ Swamp People’s Glenn Guist, the perpetually barefoot Cajun. A real hospital visit would likely have to happen.
He makes Moe pay by wedging him a tight space to weld.
Antique firearm expert Jeremiah Hornbaker is called in to consult. Old style engraving is decided upon.
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Shultz wants a big engine. Hauk wants it to sit up higher. He wants to backtrack and fix the issue. Rob’s work welding the new tunnel has to be cut into.
About 18 days to SEMA, the truck is about half way finished. Vianna Hauk designs a great steering wheel on the Plasma cutter. The wheel gets a hand turned sweet wood finish.
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The Old West theme is very important to Hauk. They even give the truck Colt .45 handles on the side doors!
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Justin brings a bit of stress relief with a paintball wild west duel. Clint Wolabaugh wins the first challenge as Rob is up against Rick.
Now it’s Clint versus Rick as Clint ultimately takes the win.
The truck is coming together fast now as the guys are totally geeking up for the show.
Ack! No room for a gas tank! This ain’t no electric car so there’s a big problem. In this segment, we learn Rick likes to throw hammers, while Rob cleverly makes a gas tank out of an old beer keg.
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An Old West masthead steer skull is placed on the front as Justin frets about money, with the deadline for SEMA just two weeks away.
Josh chains up the engine with them all pulling late nights. Everybody is cranky. Kenny’s airbrusher and engraver are giving the old truck love.
Justin’s piece of junk truck redo is debuted.
“This is sick,” says Kenny. They revitalized the old Ford 250 and gave it off-roader swagger and a sinister look. Justin sells it for $35,000.
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Now the team rushes with the final detail of the SEMA build. The interior is as sweet as the exterior with all sorts of western flourish.
The body boasts a custom-aged finish with repurposed taillights (old motorcycle headlights), chicken-wire glass, a walnut bed, gun-cylinder bed rails with shell casing lug nuts, and the piece de resistance, the Colt .45 Peacemaker door handles.
So far over $71,000 has been spent, and the little hiccups are ironed out. Vianna saves the day for the guys with a special plate as Rob helps get the front end done.
The exterior is amazing, with warmed-up hand-filigree panels and inside there’s a nice leather interior, Vianna’s beautiful walnut steering wheel and more.
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Off to Vegas, baby! The details on top of details make everyone gasp at the unveiling.
This is a work of art and another great calling card for Hauk Designs is turned out.
Road Hauks airs Saturday nights 10/9c on History