Prolong High-Performance Grease Ideal For Wet Environment

Prolong Super Lubricant’s new Extreme High Performance EP-2 Multi-Purpose Grease is a next-generation grease engineered to provide long-lasting lubrication and surface protection in the harshest of conditions.

Formulated to withstand extreme pressure, Prolong’s EP-2 Grease is ideal for marine applications because it resists water wash out and helps prevent rust, corrosion and oxidation.  The product, which features a high load-carrying capability, is designed to perform over a wide temperature range.

“We have developed our EP-2 Grease using a premium formula that clings well, which eliminates the need to re-pack wheel bearings after trailers have been submerged in fresh or salt water,” said Jeff Victer, Domestic/International Sales Manager, Prolong.

“The grease is also compatible for use in the bottom of boats where traditional silicone-based grease is used around valves, or in the engine compartment near outlets where cooling water goes in and out.”

Prolong’s EP-2 Grease is available in 14 oz. tubes, which can be used in any standard cartridge loading grease gun.  Commercial- and industrial-sized applications are also available.

Contact: Prolong, www.prolong.com;  800.540.5823

Owner Profile

When Winning Isn’t Everything 

Owner-operator Voris Steward of Houston-based V.E.S. Transportation views his participation in Pride & Polish differently than many fellow competitors

by Bruce W. Smith

The black heavy-haul Kenworth daycab  is a bit of the odd truck out among dozens of brightly painted and bejeweled Peterbilt bobtails and combos parked around the floor of Dallas Convention Center. There’s neither  fancy signage in front detailing all the sponsors nor a small posse of helpers standing by to wipe away any specks of dust or fingerprints from admiring hands.

Instead, there’s one guy standing off at a distance leaning against the wall, relaxed with arms crossed, taking in the surroundings as the crowd mills among the custom rigs on display at Custom Rigs Pride & Polish contest.

Voris Steward is at peace. He doesn’t care whether or not he wins anything. Just being a participant at the Great American Trucking Show (GATS) in one of the premier truck beauty shows in the nation is enough for him.

“I’ve been a spectator at GATS for four of the last five years, and now I’m not” says the Houston owner-operator who holds the keys to the black ’94 KW W900 on display a few yards away. “This year the dream of having my truck in this show became real.”

But don’t think for a moment Steward doesn’t care how his truck looks. Quite the contrary; he’s proud of what his hands have created with a lot of hard work, perseverance, and the smallest of budgets.

The price is right

“I fell in love with Kenworths when I first started driving,” Steward says. “And I always wanted one of my own that I could fix up. Four years ago my dream came true when a friend told me about this one. It was a repo that went to auction in Houston. The price was so low I thought there had to be something wrong with it. But I put in a bid just the same. A few days later I got a call. The truck was mine.”

Steward says when he was shocked when he turned the key and the 60-Series Detroit fired right up. He slipped it into gear and drove down the road for a few hundred yards and hit the Jake.

“The truck had been sitting so long the tires were flat-spotted and when I hit the Jake to see if it worked, all I could see were bird’s nests flying out of the stacks,” he says. “But the 15-speed and four-speed auxiliary box worked fine. I was in shock that I’d been given such a great opportunity.”

During the next 3-1/2 years  Steward, a devout Christian and family man,  spent a good amount of his free time working on his truck named Redeemer.

Voris Steward's '94 KW W900

His passion for trucks, and wrenching in general, helped smooth the long process of turning a sanctuary for nesting birds into a reliable and nicely customized working rig for his one-truck transportation company.

Steward did everything from rebuild the engine and drivetrain to doing the fabrication and custom bodywork.

Among the many custom touches: a one-piece door glass and reskinned doors;  a quick-change four-bolt fender mounting system; custom stainless rear bumper; split passenger’s-side fuel tank to house hydraulic fluid.

Steward also extended the 5th wheel slide by merging two into one; two sets of air/hydraulic fittings, one in front of the 5th wheel, the other in the bumper; and  his own drop-air front suspension.

He also customized the front fenders so he could utilize the single headlights out of a T-800. And he installed a real granite floor using small tiles laid over top of hardboard with Dynamat underneath that so the tiles wouldn’t flex or crack.

“I don’t have the deep pockets or a big company behind me. So if I want something custom done on my truck  it comes from my hands,” says Steward. “And I’m proud of that in itself. There’s a certain sense of gratification that comes from knowing you did it on your own.”

About the only thing Steward doesn’t feel comfortable doing is paint. For that he turned to Big Truck Body & Paint in Houston for the Redeemer’s slick ’40s hot-rod look, which he favors over the modern styling.

Houston owner-operator Voris Steward at 2010 GATS Pride & Polish

As for his hopes of winning one of the Pride & Polish awards, Steward says, “I didn’t enter this show to compete. I’m here because I wanted to be a part of it. I wanted to be able to let people see the truck and appreciate what’s been done to it.

“When someone notices something that’s been changed and they make a comment, that’s my reward.”

The Pride & Polish judges were among those that did notice the first-time participant’s handiwork. Steward took Third in the First Show category, which honors first-time competitors.

“Being here is a stepping stone of sorts for me,” says Steward who works his truck five days a week. “I’ll be back next year with a few more things done on the truck. I’m going to spend some time fixing up the interior over the winter — and I’ve got a few ideas from what I’ve seen here.”

Dallas Pride & Polish Winners Announced

Truck beauty show’s 20 anniversary highlighted by wide range of winning big rigs in Dallas

Jonathan (left) and Pat Eilen brought their working rigs to Dallas from Minnesota and drove home with Best of Show in both Combo and Bobtail classes.

Andy Zary’s ’59 Purple Mack was on the road hauling loads 48 years before Jake Lindamood’s two-tone 379 Peterbilt ever set tire to pavement.

Mitch Larson’s black-and-green, 2010 daycab 389 Peterbilt is a stark contrast to Kevin McIntyre’s white-and-orange 1984 359.

And Jonathan Eilen’s 2010 Peterbilt 389 dump combo is way different from Lindamood’s.

But what all five of these customized big rigs have in common is they hauled away the Best of Show trophies at the end of the annual Custom Rigs Pride & Polish truck beauty show held in conjunction with the Great American Trucking Show (GATS) in Dallas.

This year’s GATS Pride & Polish show drew 53 customized bobtails and combos to the Dallas Convention Center, some coming from as far away as California and Minnesota.

Kevin McIntyre, 1984 Peterbilt 359

“This year’s truck show was one of the best we’ve had,” says Neil Holsomback, the on-site manager of the Pride & Polish events.

“The judges really had their work cut out for them because there were a lot of very nice trucks competing against one another in multiple categories.”

Click here to see the complete list of winners and their photos. –CR

Best of Show  – Builder’s Class: Kevin McIntyre, 1984 Peterbilt 359

Best of Show – Limited Mileage Bobtail: Andy Zary, 1959 Mack B-61

Best of Show – Limited Mileage Combo: Jake Lindamood, 2007 Peterbilt 379/CPS Dump

Best of Show -Working Bobtail: Mitch Larson/Pat Eilen Trucking, 2010 Peterbilt 389

Best of Show – Working Combo: Jonathan Eilen, 2010 Peterbilt 389/Mac Dump

Raul Mendez, Sr, owner of Triple R Diesel, was presented with a special award for having the most custom rigs entered in the show.

GATS show attendees had plenty to talk about as they cruised among more than 50 custom rigs in the Pride & Polish section.

Slick Mount Idea For Video Cameras

Walking among the dozens of custom big rigs at the 2010 Custom Rigs Pride & Polish event inside the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas reveals a lot of slick custom ideas.

Here’s one of interest to those who like having digital cameras used for recording what’s happening around the truck.

Michael Holland’s 2007 Peterbilt 379 sports 4-inch  lights on the top of the mirrors. But the lights aren’t lights at all –they are cameras housed in chrome light housings.

Holland says they busted out the lenses and used a Dremel tool to cut into the reflector so the tiny Windshield Cams could be slipped into the chrome light housings.

“They worked out really well,” says Holland. “The cameras are hidden in plain sight, and they look a lot better than just having the cameras mounted up there.”

We agree. Nice custom touch.

Charlie McDaniel with his restored 1969 Peterbilt 359.

The story behind Charlie McDaniel’s ’69 Pete 359

Take the time to walk among the 53 custom rigs in the Great American Trucking Show’s Pride & Polish display area and you’ll see a wide variety of fine rides.

One that caught our eye here at the 2010 GATS is the red & black ’69 Pete owned by Charlie McDaniel. It’s a step back in time.

“I used to lease out a 359 just like this one back in the early ’80s to a big trucking company called J.H. Rose in Houston,” says Charlie McDaniel, owner of Amigo Truck Ltd in Houston.

“Rose had some 800 trucks in their fleet and every one was painted with this red and black paint scheme just like you see here.”

McDaniel really liked his old Pete and had fond memories of working for J.H. Rose. So when he came across this one three years ago, he purchased it and immediately began restoring it in the Amigo shop.

When they had it well along they drove it to Truck Works in Cortland, California, to finish the restoration and paint. The complete resto job took 2-1/2 years.

Very few people have seen the finished truck, says McDaniel who brought it to GATS and enter in his first Pride & Polish truck beauty show. His 41-year-old Pete standing tall right along side customized trucks from the modern era.

“The only difference between my first 359 and this one is my old truck had white pinstripes instead of silver. And my first Pete was brand new at the time,” Says McDaniel.

As to the paint scheme, Emmett Fay, who is here with McDaniel and also worked for the big trucking company, remembered how passionate the owner was about the company colros.

“I remember one day a kid in the [J.H. Rose] paint shop asked Mr. Rose what color he wanted a new truck painted,” says Fay. “Rose said ‘I don’t care what color you paint it son, just as long as it dries red and black.’” Apparently that love of a certain color still has deep roots.

And that’s how it is here at GATS–there’s a story behind every truck on display. — Bruce W. Smith

Country Music Stars Perform at GATS

Singer-songwriter Randy Houser to treat show attendees at free concert

Randy Houser, one of the country's top music singers, will treat attendees of the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas Friday night.

Aficionados of custom trucks and lovers of country music attending the annual Great American Trucking Show in Dallas are in for a treat as singer Randy Houser will follow the Grascals opening act in a free concert tonight at 5:30 in Ballroom C.

Tickets for the concert, sponsored by Mobil Delvac, are available today in the Dallas Convention Center’s registration lobby.

With a vocal prowess reviewers say is riveting, Houser’s first single, “Anything Goes,” catapulted to the Top 20 following an appearance on the “Late Show with David Letterman” in 2009.

Another single that year, “Boots On,” peaked as No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Country Hits and reached the top 5 Hot Country Songs in 2009.

The singer-songwriter’s debut album, Anything Goes, released by Universal Records South, is described as exceptional. A new album, They Call Me Cadillac, will be released Sept. 21.

Houser is also the only new male artist to reach the top 5 on Hot Country Songs in 2009. “It’s hard to

believe that as a new artist I’ve got one that far up there,” he says.

A Mississippi native, Houser was born in Jackson and reared in the small town of Lake. His musical influences include R&B, Delta Blues, gospel and the country sounds of the deep South’s honky-tonks, says his publicist Ebie McFarland.

In 2008, the Grascals won Bluegrass Band of the Year and Instrumental Group of the Year awards given by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America.

The Grascals, a Nashville, Tenn.-based group, will entertain with band founders Jamie Johnson, Danny Roberts, Terry Smith and Terry Eldredge.

New to the bluegrass-country mix are fiddler Jeremy Abshire and award-winning banjoist Kristin Scott Benson.

The band’s fourth collection, The Famous Lefty Flynn’s, is an amalgam of pop, country, gospel and bluegrass.

The Big 10

Looking for the right shop to satisfy your custom needs? Here is a rundown of 10 chrome shops that can turn your ride into a dream rig.

A custom truck takes planning. So many products, styles and options flood the market, narrowing down the right course of action can be difficult. In the September issue of our digital INSIDER supplement, we assembled an interactive map that shows where 10 of the most productive – and cutting-edge – custom shops in the country are.

The shops on the map are famed for spearheading custom truck designs and builds and producing some of the more revolutionary custom trucks each year.

We’ve also assembled brief profiles of each shop and its strengths and personality and posted them to the Custom Rigs website – which can be accessed from the map by clicking on the boxes highlighting each shop and its location. For convenience, we’ve assembled the links below, as well.

Body Wraps Available For New KWs

Sirlin Enterprises partners with Kenworth to give new trucks the custom painted look with custom wraps

Kenworth Truck Company has partnered with Sirlin Enterprises and is launching a new way for the discriminating truck owner to further emphasize their commitment and passion: the Kenworth Wrap by Sirlin.

The prototype truck is on display at the “Great American Truck Show” in Dallas August 26-28.  The product line Sirlin Enterprises designed will target three different levels of detail and coverage, all at costs many times less than paint but with durability to last for years of hard abuse, the Kenworth Wrap will provide a distinctive and eye-grabbing upgrade.  Kenworth Wrap – show your pride. 

Check out the Sirlin-wrapped KW on display at GATS in person, and stay tuned for the full product launch in late 2010.

Cobra Electronics Introduces 7” Platinum Navigation System

New 7750 Platinum debuts at the 2010 Great American Trucking Show

DALLAS, TX (August 24, 2010) — Cobra Electronics Corporation (NASDAQ:COBR), today announced the debut of the 7750 Platinum, its new 7” navigation unit specifically designed for the professional driver.

The new 7750 Platinum features enhanced graphics, Junction View with Lane Assist, State Mileage Log, and Hours-of- Service Log.  In addition, the new 7750 Platinum features the industry’s best last-mile routing, offering superior road coverage on secondary highways. The 7750 Platinum is on display in the Cobra booth, #16074, at the upcoming Great American Trucking Show in Dallas, TX August 26-28, 2010.

The enhanced graphics and menu options on the 7750 Platinum provide maximum visibility in sunlight and optimized efficiency when scrolling through searches and settings of the unit. The new Quick-Tabs allow drivers to see critical information such as the distances to weigh stations, travel centers, rest areas and mile markers at a glance.

The new Junction View with Lane Assist provides drivers with 3D images of upcoming highway junctions as well as lane guidance and enhanced turn-by-turn directions.

Also, new on the 7750 are the State Mileage Log that tracks miles within a state for IFTA reporting and the Hours-of-Service timer that enables drivers to easily track their On-Duty, Off-Duty and Driving Time.

“As a leader in the trucking industry, it is our job to do what we can to simplify the lives of the professional driver,” said Sally Washlow, senior vice president of marketing and sales, Cobra Electronics. “The new features of the Cobra 7750 Platinum not only provide additional information to get drivers to their destination in the most efficient way, but it also helps them with responsibilities such as mile tracking and hour logging.”

The 7750 Platinum also features the map rated highest in route quality and reliability, based on the results of certified quality testing. The TeleAtlas map in the 7750 Platinum delivers more than 1 million additional miles of road coverage in the US than the competing map.

In addition to more miles of road coverage, the 7750 Platinum map provides drivers 17x more last mile (dock-to-dock) coverage and 4x more trucking attribute coverage on secondary highways.

Like its predecessor, the Cobra 7750 Platinum includes the 33,000 ProMiles® Software Development Corporation and TruckDown™ Info International, Inc. truck-specific points of interest (POIs) such as routable travel center locations, detailed amenity information, fueling stations, restaurants, heavy duty towing, truck and trailer repair shops, truck-friendly hotels, weigh stations and certified scales, the most truck-specific POIs in the industry.

It also features more than 12 million standard Tele Atlas POIs and branded icons, which visually represent participating businesses as instantly recognizable logos so users can accurately identify specific brands of interest.

Lastly, the 7750 Platinum includes 3 months of unlimited downloads from Cobra’s exclusive AURATM Camera & Driving Hazard Database, which alerts drivers to the locations of fixed speed and red-light cameras, dangerous intersections and known speed traps.

The Cobra 7750 Platinum will be available at travel centers nationwide for a suggested retail price of $499.95. For more information, stop by the Cobra Electronics booth, #16074 or at the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas, Texas, August 26-28, 2010, or visit  www.cobra.com.

Shop Profile: Homer’s Custom Chrome Shop

Notable builds/trucks: Homer’s Tow Truck

Location: Milwaukee, Wis.

Phone Number: (414) 355-4001

Homer’s Custom Chrome Shop was an inspiration from both Homer Schultz III’s love for building custom trucks and a few trips to Louisville for the Mid-America Truck Show, says shop manager Britta Schultz, Homer’s wife.

The shop started in what Britta says was a “very small little office,” selling chrome and accessories, mainly for interiors and exhaust. “Word of mouth spread fast. People started to realize we had a chrome shop, and that’s when the building started.”

Though Homer’s Custom Chrome Shop officially opened shop in 2005, its counterpart and parent company – Homer’s Towing and Service – traces back to 1965, when Homer’s granddad, Homer Schultz, owned a Texaco and a Spur Station, which would eventually evolve into the present-day towing and repair shop. “We do a little bit of everything,” Britta says.

Homer’s shop does small custom work and major custom builds, Britta says, and the shop is stocked with custom parts and accessories.