Are you interested in Hot Rods and car restoration? Do you have a project car that you want to pass off to the professionals? Have you checked out Acme Chop Shop? If you haven’t, you are in for a treat. The owner, Jack Weaver, welcomes the public to visit and prides himself on his clean, well-lit and welcoming shop.
Jack, who was born and raised here, has been interested in cars since he was little. He learned from his Dad how to fix up old cars. As an adult he worked in the oil field then later in a construction trucking company before he decided to open up shop. He has had a lot of success, but is very humble about it and claims it has all come the old-fashioned way: a lot of trial and error and a lot of hard work.
It is obvious that he is passionate about his work, and about doing very good work. He and his team strive for repeat business and they make a point to be consistent both in their work timelines and in their communication. Their shop is unique in that they welcome car owners to stop by and see the progress of their cars. Jack says the shop runs to pay the bills, and he is happy with the work, but what he really loves is the training program he has created.
He noticed about 15 years ago people started asking him a lot of how-to questions. Then about 5 years ago, as he was having trouble finding the trained help that he needed in his shop, he decided to create his own training program for fresh students and the Kustom Built Cars Educational Workshop was born.
The Kustom Build Cars Educational Workshop is a start-to-finish restoration training program for young adults. In the past, students have been from all across the country. This year's class, who will be starting in June, are all students from here in Grand Junction. The training program is 5 months long and starts with stripping a car down to the bare bones. Then the students assess what needs to be done and they build it back up. The students do it all: rust removal, fabrication, body work, paint, electrical, engine work, everything except upholstery, which they order, and glass, which is installed by a glass shop.
The students get a broad overview while learning foundational skills, both car skills and real world work experience. The program really strives to teach students that there are so many options for jobs and they can go in any direction they want. Jack wants these students to know that if they put in the work, never stop learning and keep problem solving that they will have success in whatever they choose to do.
At the end of the program the car is auctioned off at Barrett-Jackson in Las Vegas, and the proceeds go towards funding the program for the following year. This year they are excited that they will have a dedicated booth at the show, rather than just a parking spot. This year the project car is a ‘72 Ford Bronco. To learn more and see builds from previous years you can visit their website kustombuiltcars.org.
