Lethal Weapon

Monster Truck Racing

7/12/07

                         With the front and rear ends completed at last we needed to get some measurements with the drop box back in and the transmission in place.  Once the measurements were taken we bolted in a spare block to start taking measurements for the motor mounts that still needed to be fabricated.  At this point we had no idea how many brackets for various parts of the truck we were going to need, we were soon going to find out. 

                 We are happy to introduce the newest member of the Lethal Weapon fabrication team, Cliff Briggs.  Cliff is Les’s cousin, and we are thrilled to have him aboard.  In 2000 Cliff received the NASCAR True Value Mechanic of the year Award.  Cliff has been involved in motor sports since he was a toddler.  Most recently Cliff has been racing snowmobiles in the snow and the grass.   Not only does he race them he builds turbos for them.  We are very excited to utilize the knowledge Cliff will bring with him. 

                 We are also excited to say that B&M Racing has also come on board with the Lethal Weapon Team and will be a sponsor for us.  They have great products and we are thrilled to be able to use them in our truck.  Check out their website at www.bmracing.com for tons of awesome products.

 8/19/07                

                         When we got the truck we cut quite a bit of the original body off, now  it was time to start fabricating a new roll cage that would fit our ‘41 Willys  body.  After finding the right tubing and purchasing a tubing bender we got to work and for once it went pretty smooth.  As with any custom project you are going to have a few glitches but for the most part the cage came together better and faster than we anticipated.  Dave Holt (Les’s uncle and Cliff’s dad) helped with the welding and it turned out great.

 

 

 

 

 

9/5/07      

                         The cage turned out to be one of the easier things on the truck so far.  It went pretty smooth and there weren’t to many surprises.  We only measured wrong a few times and ended up using the tubing for something else.  I never realized how much goes into a roll cage but watching Mark build it from nothing gave me a new appreciation.  It looked better and better and resembled a real truck each time he finished a new part of the cage.  Kandis thought it was a jungle gym just for her. 

9/30/07  

                         Before we get started on our updates I wanted to say Congratulations to Cliff and Melissa who just had a baby boy, Cayson, on 9/23/07.  He is precious and is already outfitted in all the latest BBR and Lethal Weapon gear.  This little guy was born to be a gear head.  Cayson was 7 lbs 9 oz and 20 inches long.  He has a ton of dark hair and we couldn’t have been happier to finally get him here.  Between getting Cayson here and preparing for Marks trip to Red Bluff, CA on 10/3/07 to help the Flame Motorsports team (King Krunch and El Matador) there was a delay in the progress of the truck.  Here are some more roll cage pictures and some of the happy new family.

 

11/6/07  

                 Wow it’s been more than a month since we updated!  Time just flies but there hasn’t been a ton going on around here since Mark has been traveling and working his day job.  The first part of October he made his second trip to Red Bluff, CA to help with the Flame Motorsports trucks, Nitro Fish and Nitro Hornet.   David won Sunday night so it was a good way to end the weekend.  Then at the end of October Cliff, their  buddy Aaron, and Mark headed to Vegas for a guys weekend and to check out the sights at SEMA.  What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right….

             Now it’s back to work.  We finished the cage and the motor mounts were already in, then it was time to put the tranny and motor in and see if we measured right.  Again, luck was on our side and it all fit pretty good.  There were some minor adjustments to be made but at least we were that much closer to being finished and hearing the motor fire was just around the corner.     

11/22/07

                 The chassis is done, here are some pictures of the front clip.  The motor fired!  It was amazing.  Mark and Cliff worked non-stop for two days straight to get it wired and set up correctly.  We had our fingers crossed, especially since Cliff is color bind and that is who was doing the wiring!  Let me tell you, it was the best thing ever to hear it turn over for the first time.  We had neighbors and strangers stopping to see what was going on.

                 Now the only things left to do are body work and the steering system.   I am hoping Santa will deliver a completed truck by Christmas…  I can hope, can’t I??

                 Living here in Utah it gets cold and that is slowing some of the fiberglass work up.  We are learning a ton about Fiberglass, a special thanks to Uncle Dino who has been doing Fiberglass the last 20 years.  Also a big thanks to Alan Briggs for lending us a portion of his warm shop to get it done.

                 This time of year, especially today, is about family, friendship and giving thanks for everything that we have.  Thanks to Kandis, our little girl, who is not so little anymore.  She thrives in our busy life and is such a happy and good girl.  Thanks again to Cliff for everything he has done to help us get this started, truck # 2 is all his.  Melissa for being there to keep me company, listening to me vent, and sharing Cayson with us since my baby is getting so big.  My parents, who live around the block.  Dad is always willing to lend an extra set of hands or spare tools when needed.  My father-in-law Don, he’s stood behind Mark and supported all the choices he’s made.  David Smith has provided so much advice and knowledge along with a healthy dose of crap.  Thanks to all of our sponsors who help make this happen.  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and I hope the rest of your holidays are full of love and laughter.