Just wanted to put a quick note in for the McBride trailer on Ebay. This was a true showpiece. I’m sure it’s worth every dime they are asking as nothing was left undone. Of course I’m biased and a little proud, but the pictures don’t do it justice. This was an amazing trailer and they are great people. Any help I can be, just drop me an email.

Jimmy

I guess I suffer from an identity crisis, but the more stuff I find myself doing, the more I want to hone in on a name or specific business title that says it all. I fight with all the ideas of what to describe my skills as. Fabricator. Designer. Artist. Restorations. Vintage Airstream…You get the idea. So it finally comes to me. I already had it…Kinda, I mean I already had a info plate for my special projects. My one off trailers, special fab projects for local artist, custom set pieces and so forth. Then it hit me. I have a business name. Built from Skratch. Crisis resolved.

Now, on to the new things I have been talking about. Like I have mentioned on my twitter page, which you should be following ( @SKRATCHCO ), I have been working on some new stage pieces for an artist here in Nashville Tn. I’ll post some of the pics as we move along. I don’t wanna let the cat out of the bag too soon. I have also started taking on the next few projects. Things are heating up here and with the new trailers and more custom designed pieces I think it’s gonna be a good summer.

You want something Built From Skratch? Let’s Talk.

I know there are a lot of re-furbed trailers out there. I know that anyone who has ever been to a Home Depot has thought, Hey, I can do that. And while that may be true, and I am certainly not knocking anyone for trying, I would like to point out that more goes into some of these builds than a fresh coat of paint. Another trailer came in yesterday, and you guessed it, it had a rotten floor. Hard to see it though, cause they laid the 3/4 inch plywood directly over it. Then proceded to fancy it up with some tiles. Then passed it off to a customer of mine. You can’t build on quicksand and you shouldn’t lay new floor over bad. If you insist on doing this yourself…take the time and do it right. We want these trailers to be around for a long time. It’ll just cost more in the long run to fix it right.

I always get excited when I’m getting near the end of a long project. We are getting close to completion on the Williams’ trailer and I’m looking forward to what’s next. These guys have been awesome and I hope they will enjoy their time in the trailer. I will be getting some pictures up ASAP.
We have some other new things in the works around here and I look forward to what it brings with it. I’ll have more on that later. Keep checking back to see what we’ve BUILT FROM SKRATCH.

Jimmy

The longer I do this, the more I develope a set in stone attitude. Being a service based business, you go into it with a ” just doing what the customer wants” approach. That has evolved for me. I understand more and more that customer’s ( you ) have ideas, but I have a ever growing base of knowledge. I learn more and more with every single build I do. As time goes on, cerian things tend to become clear and others stop making sense.
I am referring to the idea that a person can save money by just doing this one part of a trailer or restoration. For instance, ” Leave the bathroom, we’ll just do the front area to save money.” It truly sounds like a good idea. However, you should only do this if you can visually inspect every square inch of flooring. In some of these trailers, the shower area is a vast fiberglass pod covering a lot of space. If you work around this, you may do like I did and later find so much rot under it, that it has to come out anyway. Did we save any money? Not Really. By the time you repair the flooring in a now more confined location, carefully try to re-install the pod you removed you may even end up spending more than had you scrapped the idea and started fresh.
We are all here looking for ways to save these trailers one at a time. I am here to guide people as much as I can, do the best work I can, and flat out put out rolling art. You can’t paint a partial picture, and you just can’t afford to do a partial restoration. I am more sure of that now more than ever. Now, I’m headed back out there to finish that floor.

Have I ranted about leaks lately? The importance of finding the leak is by far and away at the top of the list. Otherwise, what have you got….a few years before the floors are soft, woods moldy and it stinks all to hell. So I say again, while you have them empty, look. Then look some more. Check the vents, water likes to run in where the screws are. Check the windows, doors, and the fancy little pieces above the windows. After 30 some odd years the caulk will open up and let rain run straight in. I sometimes chase leaks for days only to find one rivet that is the problem. I truly despise leaks with a passion. Have I told you that?

The unveiling went off without a hitch, er…no pun intended. We had a blast! Thanks to the McBride’s for having us. The trailer made a big splash. Music, food and vintage trailers..What else do you need? I hope to keep making clients this happy for a long time.

As I’m preparing to start another one, I realize that I will continue to hit the same wall. How can I design this trailer differently? The factory did things a certain way for a reason. Like most factories, I’m sure that reason was that it would be easiest to mass produce. This is why I like doing what I do. I don’t have to worry about mass production. I have to worry about finished product. Will this meet every need of my customer? Will it look so good, that when I’m done people will want to know how they can get theirs? Will this be another piece of Americana? Will this be another chance to make my mark? Yeah, I’ve got concerns, but mass production didn’t make the list. I gotta get back to this new layout.

This 1979 Has been a long process, but I like to think it was worth the wait. Complete interior overhaul. Hand- made walnut cabinetry, cork flooring, an A/V system that’ll blow your socks off, and 100% luxury to boot. All the features of everyday with the appeal of a swanky night club that a doorman wouldn’t let you in. At least we have pictures. Check out the full gallery on the motion pictures page.

As always, the final few days of a build, feels more like Hell Week. Walking around with a punch list that somehow gets longer as you mark things off. I’m not complaining though. When it has to be perfect, and your reputation is at stake, you do whatever it takes. The sense of pride is overwhelming, when you sit back and take it in. It is truly satisfying to bring a project like this 1979 Airstream full circle. Terry had a cool response to one of the pics, It said, ” Welcome to the Airstream Nightclub.” Pics will follow soon.