Builder Spotlight – It’s Ben Modified [videos]

Hailing from our very own Build Threads Communal Garage is a very creative chap who runs a channel called It’s Ben Modified. The ‘about’ page says “Anything with Wheels and a Motor”, and to be honest I can’t think of a better way to describe the types of automobiles being pieced together in this shop. The projects range from (but aren’t limited to) 400 Hp V8 VW Truck, an electric conversion of a VW Bus, a pedal electric motorcycle and even an Autobianchi Bianchina being converted to bike-power. Long-term readers might remember one of these unique creations from a previous post, the Hayabusa Reverse Trike. Don’t forget to join the discussion group if you haven’t already, you never know what you might find or who you might meet in there!

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The world of Sakurama

Since building my own garage, I’ve been hanging around The Garage Journal a lot more, which has made me re-discover some threads that I had breezed over back when I was a casual visitor. Amongst all the amazing (and huge!) garages on the forum, I became reacquainted with a great thread that showcased not only a garage, but the renovation of the whole architect-designed mid-century home attached to it. I made myself sit down and read it from start to finish, taking in all of the gorgeous photography (did I mention the owner is a photographer?), various materials, construction techniques and bespoke joinery. As the page count increased, I realised that apart from the renovation of the gorgeous home and garage, the thread is also peppered with links to Gregor’s other passion, restoring and modifying motorbikes. For this reason I decided to make this post a builder spotlight, where you’ll find links to all of the visually delightful projects at the bottom of the page.

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Check out Gregor’s personal website here.

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Greengoon – retro afficionado

Since I’m a regular Ratsun browser from way back, I became very familiar with a certain green 510 wagon belonging to Greengoon, aka Duane. This wagon was always a bit different from the others, especially with it’s folding ragtop. I always looked forward to updates over the past few years, especially enjoying his DIY solutions to getting the ‘goon sitting closer to the ground and various tyre size testing on later-model OEM wheels. Heading over to the Non-Datsun section of the forum made me realise Duane’s penchant for old cars wasn’t restricted to just Datsuns, as he had another 2 project cars under his belt from the Toyota stable, including one very charismatic ’71 Hilux. I’m not the only one to sit up and take note of Duane’s skills, he was even the subject of his own Depth of Speed video, arguably the best series of automotive videos on the net (if you ask me). Head below to familiarise yourself with this trio of vintage vehicles.

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The Adventures of Mystery Machine

Earlier this year I made two consecutive posts about the automotive exploits of one Retro Rides member by the name of Bruce (aka Mystery Machine), a person who truly understands the appeal of a good build thread. Bruce not only built a very cool MX5 along with a number of other awesome rides, but he also spearheads and bankrolls a communal garage space known as Area52. You should already know what type of guy he is (a die-hard car nut), so it’s no surprise to learn his hands have been less than idle since the last time he graced these pages. I thought I’d do a little ‘catch up’ piece on his latest projects (a Land Rover and a Lotus, can’t get more variance than that!), since I’m enjoying reading them so much myself, it’s only fair to share it with all of you…

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Racer86, project car extraordinaire

I’ve been following the Racer86 blog for a while now, ever since I first saw pictures of his KP30 Starlet which gave me the inspiration to fit a MK1 Rabbit front lip to my Datsun.

Rob is a prominent figure in the retro car scene in the UK due to his multiple project cars and his affiliation with the team at Retro Cars Magazine. Not content with one ballin’ old school ride, he also owns a dumped & flush NA MX5 and recently acquired a Vauxhall Chevette which he wasted no time in modifying. To check out his 3 projects and get a fix of general automotive shenanigans head over to Racer86.com

UPDATE! Since this post was first published, Rob has since moved on to even more projects, buying and modding an assortment of oldschool rides such as; a MK1 Cavalier, W123 Benz, Triumph Herald, an E28 BMW, a 924 Porsche, an E30 BMW, and another Mazda Roadster! Does anyone else live the retro car lifestyle as much as this guy? I doubt it!

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