"Groovy baby" Austin Powers guitar Musicvox Spaceranger

[harrison phipps]

Just wanted to share a photo of another strange thing in my shop.

[Eric Steven Johansen]

Far freakin out. Never seen one of these, cool the way they achieved the straight through string pull.

[Russell Vance]

Probably one of the original reasons they started "The War on Drugs".............

[Allen L Wall]

LOL! You guys are too much!

[Ned Knepp]

Which end of that do you hold to play? 

[Mark A. Kane]

The guitar is kooky, but I'm FAR more interested in that tool with the crank handle on the bench. What is it?

[harrison phipps]

Its a hand cranked grinder, came with a stone, replaced that with a 6 in. diameter wood wheel. I stick on a 6 in. sandpaper disk and use it to rough shape nuts, saddles, cleats for patching cracks and many other things. Lots of control.

[Allen L Wall]

That's great. I was going to ask the same thing but I got sidetracked.

[Robbie Collins]

When Musicvox was shutting down they sold their remaining inventory on eBay. I tried to buy a really cool prototype but it got away.  The Austin Powers band, in case you weren't paying attention, included Susannah Hoffs of the Bangles and Matthew Sweet who was part of the Athens music scene and played with Michael Stipe's sister in Oh-OK.

[Peter Poyser]

Quote: "Just wanted to share a photo of another strange thing in my shop."

 

This in the picture, is what some of my pals made for the Austin Powers Movie.

We have a few of them lying about the place, as I keep on bumping into them, here and there, in the most surprising places, when I least expect it.

Today, the Union Jack Car is used by Apprentices to take into Schools, so the local kids can climb inside and have lots of fun in it, and get perhaps interested in eventually taking an Engineering Apprenticeship themselves. The Apprentices here are award winning, the best in the U.K.

A friend of mine, a Director at the local Plant, retired recently.

He planned to learn to play the Guitar when he retired and had always wanted a Fender Stratocaster and a Vox Amp.

So they gave him both of those as a leaving present, and they also got the Apprentices to take a Chilli Red New MINI Body Shell, and cut it in half to make it into a super Home Computer Desk. Fitted it out with Lights, Drawers and every office convenience.

He had worked at the Plant for over 40 years. My Father did also  along with original Mini Designer Sir Alex Issigonis, who started at the post of steering and suspension engineer at the Plant, and along with by William Morris, the founder, who later became Lord Nuffield.

 

When Designer Frank Stephenson conceived the New BMW MINI, as used with a Union Jack in the Mike Myers Movie.

He had in his mind the idea of a Panther, poised to leap. So when you look at the Vehicle, even when it stood still you have the feeling it's going to suddenly jump forward at any moment.

When Frank showed the Life Sized Clay Model to the Chairman and Supervisory Board of BMW, he and his Modelling Team had been working very hard indeed for quite a while to get finished.

When they finally did, Frank ordered a Crate of Beer as a reward for his Team to celebrate. With just an hour to go before the High Powered Executives arrived, Frank suddenly realised he had forgotten to include an exhaust pipe on the Clay Model.

He didn't know what to do, and had little time for anything, but with a flash of inspiration grabbed an Empty Beer Can, covered it in Clay, and worked it expertly into the Rear Bumper so no one would notice. Everyone on The BMW Board loved the Car, and the parting instruction of the BMW Chairman to Frank was, "don't change a single thing."

 

Fast forward a few months, and Frank Stevenson was called to the Bosses Offices, and asked specifically about the Tailpipe.

"We've had invoices for the cost of Special Tooling and Dies to make this Special Tailpipe. It's going to cost us a small fortune to make this! Why didn't you use a normal Tailpipe?"

Frank stood there, umming and ahhing, and shuffled uneasily from foot to foot. Then, he told them the full story of what had happened, and how it came about, that the MINI Cooper had a Tailpipe manufactured to the exact proportions of a Beer Can.

The Mangement couldn't believe what they were hearing, and just laughed and laughed when they properly understood what was had happened. It was just like something out of a Movie.  But the Chairman had said 'don't change a single thing' so they bought the Tailpipe Design off, and it was incorporated into the Design of the New MINI Cooper.

Have a good look the next time you see one. It's just like the end of a Beer Can, and that's why!

Ferrari were so impressed with the MINI they head hunted Frank.

To become their Head of Design.

 

 

P

[Mark Pollock]

Harrison just had a nice appearance in the local paper, btw. http://www.davisenterprise.com/local-news/local-artists-worlds-coll...