Vendor Spotlight: Danchuk Manufacturing
Transcription
Vendor Spotlight: Danchuk Manufacturing
Issue SEVEN in this issue >>> Vendor Spotlight: Danchuk Manufacturing Somernites Trifive Cruise Member Show Coverage Reader Rides Tech Tip: Powder Coating A quarterly Newsletter for the members of Trifive.com quick topic >>> Frame-Off Restoration on your 55-57 Chevrolet Lifting the Body Vendor Spotlight: Danchuk Manufacturing The World’s Largest USA Manufacturer of 55-57 Parts! I consider myself fortunate to live only 30 minutes away from one of the best places on earth: Danchuk Manufacturing. Without this amazing place, with its incredible history, people and parts, most of our trifives would not be what they are today. As part of the Tire Tracks Vendor Spotlight series Otis had set up an interview at Danchuk and I drove the 56’ down for a tour. Now that you have decided to start a “frame-off” for your 55-57 Chevy you should decide on how you are going to remove the body safely. The first thing to decided on is a safe lifting device. I had the opportunity to meet with Steve Brown, General Manager of Danchuk, and spend the morning with him on a tour of the Danchuk facility. I had the chance to ask him many questions and decided instead of the usual “marketing” type questions I would ask the ones that have always crossed my mind when purchasing trifive parts. I hope you find the questions fun and informative! Question: Most members know your company and are familiar with the Danchuk name. Your catalog also tells of your history and some of your manufacturing details and process. Is there anything special or not printed that you would like to share with the trifive.com members? Answer: “As you mentioned, our catalog says it all but we always like to stress that we’ve been doing this for over 35 years, we pride ourselves on our American manufacturing, we’re the largest in the industry and we ONLY focus our attention on 55-56-57 Chevrolets rather than taxing our employees with other lines.” (interview continued on next page) You can use: Garage hoist (some shops rent “lift time”) Portable gantry crane (rentals around $100) Six strong adults as shown here! Floor jacks and wood supports What ever equipment you use make sure you are safe and have a friend to help and check loads. The next issue will talk about stands and rotisseries. Pictured Above: Tire Tracks Editor Tim Daleo (Daleo56) with Danchuk General Manager Steve Brown. Vendor Spotlight: Danchuk (cont.) Question: Most trifive members have ordered directly through you or have bought your parts through other suppliers. How many parts do you actually offer for 55-57s? Answer: “We have a little over 8000 different parts available. Beyond the thousands and thousands of “hard parts”, which are parts that are original to the vehicles, we have an absolute ton of upgrade and aftermarket parts available that are custom made for the Trifives.” Question: You also bring in parts from other vendors like CPP, American Autowire and Be Cool. Do you work with the vendors for new ideas and parts? Do you interact with other retailers? Answer: “Absolutely. There are an equal number of times that a vendor will ask us for help or ideas as us reaching out to them requesting something new or improved. We do interact with other retailers. As long as we’ve been in the industry and as much as we value all our relationships we try to make a point of interacting with all in the industry as much as possible whether they are a supplier, customer or dealer.” Question: Most of us have heard of the California retail location but we are not familiar with the Indiana location you opened four years ago. Was that location created just to help out with shipping? Is there a retail outlet at that location? Answer: “Yeah, we started out in Indiana about six years ago actually but didn’t talk much about it until we were sure we had it wired. We opened the facility as a shipping hub to give better service and support to our customers. Once we had it running smooth we opened a counter for walk-ins and we even have them answer phones from 7:00-10:00 EST to help expand our hours of operation.” Question: You are an active sponsor of www.trifive.com and even have an area dedicated to Danchuk forum posts. Do you have employees that are active on the trifive.com web site? Answer: “We have a number of employees that monitor it as much as possible and jump in with responses when needed. As you can imagine it is a full time job to monitor all of the chat forums that we come up in so we do our best.” Pictured Above: 57’ Chevrolet at Danchuk Manufacturing in Santa Ana, California. Forums: Ask the experts >>> Q: What size is the pitman arm nut? A: 1-5/16 for most, some are 1-3/8. From member Jalepeno on post: Steering box steering arm nut size Did you know... ...that trifive.com has a Facebook page? Check it out HERE! Vendor Spotlight : Danchuk “We’ll actually have a full set of American made body stainless available by the years end!” Question: Chevrolet made approximately Answer: “I guess I went into that a bit above Answer: “I’m glad you brought it up. Since 1.7M cars in 1955, 1.6M cars in 1956 and but the answer is an absolute yes. Four the beginning this has been the gossip and 1.5M in 1957. Although that seems like a lot, doors aren’t just being used as a cheap way debate. What about the ’56? What about we all know that many were crushed and to enter the hobby, people are finally realiz- the four doors, etc? The main reason that destroyed over the years or left to rot in ing how convenient they are for taking fami- things were slow for them was that as much fields and barns. Have you seen the pool ly and friends for rides or to shows, they are as you and I know that the ’56 is one of the drying up over the last few years or have at least as good looking all around in my most beautiful cars and would probably be more been coming out of the woodwork? opinion and more and more parts are being my first choice as it has obviously been yours, produced specific to them so they are becom- they were real slow to take off on popularity. ing just as easy to restore. We’ll actually The ’57 was always the most popular then have a full set of American made body stain- the ’55 and then the ’56. Not just Danchuk less available by the years end!” but virtually everybody that got in this industry in the early to mid-1970’s were dirt poor Answer: “Back in the late 80’s and even in the early 90’s there was rumblings in the industry about things slowing down due to the availability of cars left that were salvageable but thanks to many factors it’s only gotten better. As popular and valuable as the cars are we see cars being restored nu- but hard working enthusiasts with a dream. Question: Ok, now for a little bit more on Dan and Art were a slight exception since the parts side of the interview. I have a few they are tool and die makers and could 56’s and one thing a 56’ owner always wants afford slightly more complex projects than to know is why was it left out of the fender, most but still if a tooling investment didn’t inner fender and hood repro choice? Is there have a strong chance of a fairly quick return anything in the works? it was just to hard on the budget and survival of the company. So, as you can imagine we merous times over the decades. Also, car were forced to start with the projects that type popularity has favorably shifted to in- would be most popular and allow us to con- clude all styles like four-doors, sedans, 150’s, tinue to grow and expand. But let’s be clear ; you name it. And one of the biggest things -), that was then and this is now. 1956 Chev- that have really added to our industry is the rolets, four door cars and all the rest are not availability of good sheet metal. The days of only right where they need to be in relation finding three beat up cars that can be cut up to popularity but we’ve finally gotten to the to save one are gone. You can now go back point that we can justify most projects even to the barn and resurrect the other two no if the return on investment will drag out for problem, we have entire one piece floors, many years, which it often does. As I men- hoods, fenders, quarters you name it.” tioned above, we are in the process of manufacturing 100% in-house all side stainless for Question: Out of all of the trifives made all three cars but we are starting with the about 40% were four doors. Many of us are 1956 and including all the four door stainless turning to these “crew cabs” as a less expen- that hasn’t been available since GM did it sive way to get a second car or into the sport back in the 50’s!” for the first time. They all look the same from the driver seat, right? Are you seeing an increase in requests for four door parts? http://www.danchuk.com Vendor Spotlight : Danchuk “The beauty of our business is that it’s not just a product you need it’s a hobby, passion and even an investment ” Question: What is the difference between People widely thought that all the metal was Answer: “Yes, it was a bit of both. We’ve the Danchuk “Good” and “Best” when pur- the same and that we were just price goug- been producing the rubber gasket for dec- chasing parts? Some parts like the sending ing on ours. That obviously wasn’t true and ades and everyone seemed to love it and unit and rear window seals also are sold in we found that when we made the import have no problems but then people started Good and Best. What is the difference on metal available it turned out to be a huge asking about whether rubber impregnated parts like that? educational tool for both us and our custom- cork was better. We did our research based ers that has helped all of us to achieve what on those customer questions and determined we want. Now our customers realize the that for our application, as GM decided back difference and can make the choice that in ’55, rubber impregnated was best. We works for them, we have over 100 new appli- offer both in case a customer feels differently cations available in sheet metal and if a cus- but the cork gasket is the one we give with a tomer is dead set on only American metal he sending unit now. Answer: “It’s quite simple. For decades we would only carry what we considered to be the best part available for a given application. It worked great for many years but as more competition started to enter the industry the lines started becoming very blurry and since we can’t be everywhere answering every question we found that our customers were becoming more and more confused can choose from the hundreds of pieces we have available and then figure out what to do if any areas are left un-addressed.” about what their choices were or if there actually were choices. So now we offer the same part that we have always offered labeled “Best” and whatever else is available labeled “Good”. These are our opinions based on installing and testing the parts ourselves. The good parts have been tested and do work, you may just find that occa- We do get a lot of feedback from customers. sionally there is a slight difference in the The beauty of our business is that it’s not just appearance like our American chrome versus a product you need it’s a hobby, passion and imported or very slightly different metal even an investment so our customers love to thicknesses or something. Question: Speaking of sending units, there One example in particular was the sheet has always been mixed thoughts on the gas- metal battle. For years we only carried sheet ket. I see that Danchuk now is making a cork metal that was made in the USA regardless gasket #195D. Was this in response to your of whether the import metal was “just as customers? Do you get a lot of feedback good”, better or completely unique. We from customers and how do you weigh allowed our American pride and mission which feedback to act on with parts? How do statement, if you will, to get in the way of you collect customer requests and sugges- taking the best care of our customers and tions for changes like that? ourselves. give us help and suggestions. We attempt to look into all suggestions, questions or concerns but if I had to answer how we “weigh” there importance I would say that possible problems get number one priority, need or demand get number two and then we do our best to look into some of the fun but not critical ideas. We use the forums, our email system, the phones through Customer Service, the US mail etc. to monitor needs and concerns. We have a full time employee in Quality Control that his main job is to look into all issues and http://www.danchuk.com Vendor Spotlight : Danchuk “We will continue to make all bumpers.” Question: You now actually make a replace- Question: I come down every other week- Answer: “Finally someone asked! Back in ment roof panel now for hardtops? What end for parts and always look at the con- the very early nineties when we did the dis- was involved making an actual roof replace- vertibles while I am there. You have four of play all the day glow colors like hot pink etc. ment? Is there actually a market for new the most beautiful trifives in the museum were just dying out or perhaps had actually roofs? part of your So Cal location. Many people died but one of the owners was dead set that saw them on Wheeler Dealers when we saw it was still the cool thing to do so he won the the 57 apart for test fitting front end fight ;-). We’ve been threatening to update chrome. Do these cars still run and ever get some of the items and switch to a bright blue outside? or something.” Answer: “Good question. The roof panel is actually being produced by one of our sheet metal suppliers and was done mostly out of necessity for their future needs. They are making entire bodies so they need to make everything whether there is a strong restora- Question: Most members cannot get to the tion demand or not. It has really been work- SoCal location but I did see that you have ing out well for us because that is one of trailers that go to shows. How many shows those pieces that the tooling would cost way do you go to and where is the schedule too much to justify the project but since it’s listed? been made we do have customers that have a decent hard top with a severely rotted roof that can now take advantage of it being available.” Answer: “Yes, they all run and we attempt to get them out every couple of years or so for Question: I do know there is a market for maintenance and usually a photo shoot or nice bumpers. The rumor is your bumper line show appearance.” up is changing. Some members have been told the one piece bumper is no longer available. Is that true? If so, what was the rea- Question: I also see in the 57 demo frame son? inside while I am waiting for Joe to get my Answer: “We attend over 40 shows a year parts. It is neat to see the original and ex- between our smaller “West Coast” rig pic- haust side by side and even a transmission tured below and our full blown show rig that split in half but what’s up with the pink? stays mostly in the mid-west and back east. Answer: “Bumpers have been a great line for us and nothing is changing except that we are going to finish up with the 1956’s since We post our schedule on our quarterly news- those are the only one’s left that we don’t letters and the internet.” have some control over the quality of. The 1957 one piece front was looking like they were going to be put on hold for a while because the company that we had partnered with to produce them had gone out of business without giving us any notice. Luckily, the tooling and availability has resurfaced and we should be just fine. We will continue to make all bumpers.” http://www.danchuk.com Vendor Spotlight: Danchuk (cont.) Question: Are there any new Danchuk parts or vendors in the pipeline that you can tell us about? Answer: “We always seem to have a couple of dozen in the works between new parts, improving products etc., but the most notable upcoming new parts are the side stainless.” Question: I bought some parts at your Annual Blem Sale. Can you tell me a little about how that works? I had heard a rumor you can ask about availability outside of the annual sale. Is that true? Answer: “Well, the blem sale is the bulk of the flawed products that we manufacture. We only put them on the sale if there are enough of them to handle the demand for a respectable amount of time. Back in the beginning of the annual sale we would put everything out we had and customers were very dissatisfied if they call 20 minutes into the sale and we were already out of something, so now we list what we have adequate stock on and also have others available but not listed. If there is a part number you are hoping for in a flawed and discounted condition just ad a “B” to the front and ask a representative to check for you. The way it works is that we start answering phones and California walk-ins at 7:00 PST sharp and it’s first come first serve. Most people the first day will get everything they want and then stock will start to run out as the week or weeks drag on. Yes, that is true. We don’t advertise or remind people very often but anytime throughout the year is you are interested in a Blemished part you can ask and if available purchase.” Question: In closing, where do you see the trifive industry going? With over 25,000 members the trifive.com site shows no sign of slowing down. Where do you see Danchuk’s business going in the next 5-10 years? Answer: “Trust me when I say that it is not and will not slow down. We’ve been at it over 35 years and I’ve been here for 27 of it and between the passion and love for these cars and companies like us they will live on forever. Our business will go where the economy and industry allows us as it always has. It will remain family owned and operated, driven on American pride and stable. The founders and still owners Dan and Art Danchuk have no desire to drastically change their proven formula so we will keep plugging away.” I would like to say thank you to Steve Brown and to Danchuk for answering all of my questions, clearing up some rumors and showing me around their beautiful Southern California facility! Timothy Daleo, Tire Tracks Editor Pictured Above: Tire Tracks Editor Tim Daleo (Daleo56) with Danchuk General Manager Steve Brown discussing the 57’ Demo Vehicle at Danchuk. CRUISE WEEKEND October 25th-26th-27th! To All Members of Trifive.com Last year Julie & I made the cruise to Somerset Ky. for the special Trifive Event. We had a wonderful time; it was like being back in the fifties, with people setting in lawn chairs on both sides of the street to watch all the classic cars cruise by. I was cruising when a yellow 32 Ford street rod pulled up on my left side at a streetlight. It was just like in the movie American Graffiti. Of course you cannot race on the main street, (so I think the street rod got to Save Face) The Friday night block party was great with live music, plenty of vendors, lots of cool cars and lots of food. The cruise the next morning to the falls was a great deal of fun for those that went and we have photos at the link below. Then on Saturday was the main show where everyone gathered around the town square to share found memories and show off their cars. We even got to see Hotrod Joe's Hemi in his 55 Chevy. Later in the day they had a raffle drawing and gave away a Camaro and a beautiful enclosed trailer. This year's raffle they are giving away a 74 Challenger and an enclosed trailer. We ate dinner a couple of times with other members of Trifive.com at a great barbeque place and a buffet. We are excited about going this year again, and look forward to seeing many Trifivers there. Below is a link to some photos from last Year's Cruise, taken by - HotRodJoe http://www.trifive.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71131 I also have a link to more photos from the Cumberland fall's fun run cruise, taken by - 1PDQ55 Shawn http://www.trifive.com/forums/album.php?albumid=3182 Here is the Info for this year's Cruise. Hope to see you there. Otis :) For more information go to: http://www.trifive.com/forums/showthread.php?t=91486 CRUISE WEEKEND October 25th-26th-27th! Thursday, October 25th, 7PM-????: Tune Up Cruise-in at Dairy Queen on US 27 (stoplight #6) If you live locally or are planning on getting to town early, join as we relax and tell some cruising' tales while enjoying some tasty ice cream! This is a very relaxing way to kick off the cruisin’ weekend. Friday, October 26th, Noon-2PM: Early Bird Meet & Greet/Q97 Live Remote from Danny's Rod Shop! Announcing a new home for the Friday Meet & Greet! Danny's Rod Shop, approx. 2.5 miles north of Somerset on US 27 will host the Pepsi Meet & Greet each Friday, Noon-2pm on Cruise weekends! Danny's shop will be open for business during the event and ready to fill your performance and dress up parts needs. Be sure to come by and see us! Friday, October 26th, 6PM-10PM: Rock & Roll Block Party sponsored by Wal-Mart in Downtown Somerset! Bring your classic or hotrod and enjoy this fun for the entire family! Door prizes, contests, food, live bands and dancing! Over 300 show cars attend this event each month, don't miss it! Feel free to cruise the strip on Friday night as well! Cruise weekend is just getting started! Saturday, October 27th, 8:00AM: Saturday Morning Fun Run at Hardee's South, stoplight #22 on south US 27! Fun Run participants will receive a FREE breakfast before departing. We will depart at 9:00AM promptly for the October destination...Cumberland Falls State Park! Known as the Niagara of the South, Cumberland Falls forms a 125 foot wide curtain of water that plunges 60 feet into a gorge below, making it the 2nd largest waterfall in North America. This breathtaking scenic wonder is nestled in the rolling hills of south central KY and is definitely our most popular Fun Run of the year! Saturday, October 27th, 1PM: Entrance Gates Open in Downtown Somerset for the Show & Shine!!! It’s the Big Show!!! Blocks and blocks of show cars and trucks! Stroll thru the downtown area admiring all the chrome and horsepower, talk to car owners and enjoy the family oriented atmosphere! Don't forget to visit our official merchandise trailer for the brand new 2012 t-shirts for adults and kids. In the Vendor Alley, you can sample great food, check out vendor displays and shop for new performance and restoration parts. There is plenty to see and do at Somernites Cruise and always a few surprises! You will enjoy the great cruisin’ tunes all over town too! We offer a Car Corral and a FREE hourly shuttle bus to local shopping centers! Specialty Area for October is Chevy Tri-fives!!! Bel-Air's™, Nomad's™, 210 Coupes, wagons and more! We are rolling out the red carpet for 55-56-57 Chevy owners in our popular show-within-ashow specialty area this month! So, shine up that chrome, armor-all the tires and bring those beauties out! What says a cruising’ better than a sharp Tri-Five Chevy rolling down the boulevard? If you are a member of a Tri-Five Chevy club, we encourage you to use this event as a mini-meet or group outing. We will gladly park your group together! Let's see all those Tri-Five cruisers! Due to a scheduling conflict Danchuk will not be able to attend the 2012 October show. They remain the October event sponsor. 2012 Rafflecar and Car Trailer drawings!!! We just love giving stuff away! So, starting at approx. 6:00PM on the Square in Downtown Somerset it's time to draw out some lucky winners! We have been selling tickets all year long on that sweet 1974 Dodge Challenger sponsored by Don Marshall dealership located between stoplights 10 and 11. AND on the super Enclosed Car Trailer courtesy of GatorMade Trailers! Drawing for the trailer will be at approx. 6pm and will be closely followed by the Mustang drawing around 6:30pm. Hopefully you already have your tickets on both fantastic prizes! If not, get them today! Remember, you do NOT need to be present to win, don’t worry, we will call you! Kids Kruze Zone!!! Kids gotta have fun too right??? Located right in the heart of the Somernites Show & Shine is the Kids Kruze. Zone with fun inflatables sure to put a smile on the faces of the entire family! This area is monitored and safe. Inflatables provided by Jumping Jacks. Wristbands for unlimited play time are $6. Individual tickets are $1 each. You will find the Kids Kruze Zone at Judicial Center Plaza. Member Car Shows >>> 2012 Northwest Classic Chevy Club Car Show “Here a few shots from the Northwest Classic Chevy Club's 13th Annual 1955-56-57 Chevy Show in August. This was another awesome one day show with 176 Trifives registered. There were a lot of beautiful cars, trucks and Corvettes. The Triple XXX Drive In is covered floor to ceiling with automobile memorabilia...interesting place. Fun to browse while drinking a tall frosty Root Beer float!” Next years show is scheduled for Sunday August 14, 2013. Wanda Cliff's Classic Chevrolet, Portland OR Member car shows >>> DACC Fall Classic Chevy Show “The Dallas Area Classic Chevy Club car show had a nice showing of Tri-5's at Reliable Chevrolet in Richardson, Texas. The weather was wonderful for this time of year in Texas. The club has a DJ that played 50's music and we had a great time kickin' tires and shootin' bull. This is a non-judged event, except the Club sponsors pick a favorite. Forty three tri-5's registered and there were so many real Will Tucker (ChevyWT) driving my 1956 Chevrolet 150 Sedan in Azusa, California while on a visit to Southern California. On Location! I had a chance to meet with Will Tucker for the evening in September and we had a nice cars, that I would not want to choose a favorite. Larry from Heritage Insurance, a sponsor of our club as well as TriFive.com, was nice enough to pick my car as the Heritage Insurance favorite, thanks Larry. I was always at the wrong place, as I wanted to visit with several Tri-5 members that I missed completely.” Don (acardon) great time talking about our Chevys and driving around in the 56’s having fun. If you are going to be in the Los Angeles area let me know and maybe we can meet! Have a picture of you at a trifive vendor or a picture of you car next to something unique? Send us a jpg and we might just feature it in an upcoming issue. For more information on DACC check out their website at: http://www.dallasclassicchevy.com/ READER RIDES In each issue we will showcase pictures of our trifive.com members rides. If you would like to see your Chevrolet in the newsletter please send your pictures to: READER RIDES editor@trifive.com 1957 Nomad - joninomader 1955 Bel Air - mickeywestsr 1956 Bel Air - belairv8 1957 Bel Air - 57borntorun 1955 Bel Air - ChevsRUs 1956 Bel Air - belairv8 editors thoughts... Finding An That’s For the You I finally settled intoAgent a groove that balancesRight work, restoring 56’s and publishing Tire Tracks once a quarter. I was in twelve shows in three different states this season and met a lot of great people and quite a few members. I hope next years car show season is even better! Please feel to contact me at editor@trifive.com for any comments, car show links, future article requests or suggestions! We are always looking for coverage for local shows and event schedules so let us know and we will put your show dates in a future issue. All we need is a short paragraph and a few pictures to mention your show or event in the newsletter! Tim Daleo - Daleo 56, Tire Tracks Editor From the Archives coming soon >>> In The Next Issue Vendor Spotlight : Ciadella Interiors Restoration >>> Restoration Tech Tip by Tim Powder coating parts can be a quick and easy way to make an old part look new again. Instead of buying new control arms, rims or even a fan pulley, take the part down to your local powder coater and see what they would charge to strip and repaint the part. Often times the price is cheaper than if you painted it yourself. 55-57 Chevrolets had most parts in gloss and semi-gloss black so no special colors are needed. You can also get creative with the part colors to match your restoration. My wife decided she wanted “silver” for her frame so almost everything including the frame itself was powder coated silver. It costs us about $500 for the frame alone. A picture of a 1956 Bel Air Two Door Hardtop and a 1970 Super Bird at a Hot August Nights cruise that my sister took during our second time in 2002. Our 56 was in pieces back then but we always loved the look of the red and white! An original part that came off of your Chevrolet will usually fit better and gives you the satisfaction of knowing the history of the parts on your car. Courtesy member Daleo56. A few hints for powder coating: Each issue we will select an original picture from a Find a local place if possible with references member submission that shows a trifive picture Check for prices before you leave your parts Ask for samples or to see current jobs For lower cost, try to choose standard colors Plan you color scheme ahead of time Keep your freshly painted parts clean Drill and grind (if needed) BEFORE painting from the days of old. Please send your picture and description to editor@trifive.com For more information go to Have fun and make sure you post your progress!