There's a storm coming

We are finally approaching the last few days of winter, and as always, this means we are all psyched to take our cars out for road trips, attend race tracks, and car meets! I'm just going to take this time to update you guys on current events, and a small forecast of what storm we, at Machine Zealots here, are brewing up.

First off, if you guys have seen the most recent episode, Subaru Engine Oil Change, you may have noticed about two minutes into the episode there seems to be something blurring the lower left hand corner of the lens. Now granted, no one has commented on it yet, but I'm sure most of you have seen it, lol. This was due to myself being clumsy and dropping the camera on the pavement, lens first. You can hardly see it on the outside, it's such a small scratch, but of course, GoPro's fantastic wide angle lens just amplifies the scratch making it into a huge blur. This episode was aired a week later than planned due to this issue, but as they say, "The show must go on."

I finished the episode, hoping that my editing skills could divert the attention away from that awful blur. If you guys had no idea of the blur, then I suppose I did a good job, but then again, I ended up telling you guys I made a mistake anyway. Oops.

Well, I admit to my fault because this has something to do with the upcoming weeks. I got a new set of lenses from GoPro for this camera, but then I got hooked on the GoPro HD Hero 2, so I'm now trying to get my hands on one, lol.

Lens replacement kit. Comes with 2 lenses, waterproof seals, screws, and a screwdriver.

Anyway, I thought to myself, while I'm waiting for the new GoPro Camera, I may as well shoot the new episodes with it. So what to do in this waiting period? Well, I remastered two episodes from my old Project Spades V6 days. I plan on airing them starting Friday, March 2nd, back to back weeks. In the show business, they would just play re-runs while they were catching up to airing schedule dates. Sadly, I can not do that for Youtube, since viewing videos online is not totally linearly based. Therefore, I am hoping these videos will keep most of you guys entertained for the next couple of weeks as I get my affairs in order.

Airing March 2nd - Caliper Painting with the G2 Caliper Paint Kit.

Airing March 9th - Camaro Engine Oil Change with Castrol Edge.

For those who have watched these episodes in the past, keep in mind that these are remastered, not just re-rendered. New background music, removed a lot of unnecessary stuff, and applied new filtering effects. For those of you who are just looking for videos on the STI, I'm afraid you will have to wait.

I've also made a new tab on the blog called "MZ Projects". Although it is under some construction, I plan to have this page feature all the cars Machine Zealots gets their hands on. You can also refer to it for upcoming modifications planned for each Project Car. I'll be expanding the page as time goes on, but as you can see, there are several things on the plate for the STI already. A couple of other people I've talked to recently want to help with the videos with their cars, but I'll tell you guys more about that when we get there. Some car club meets, and car shows are just over the horizon as well. Needless to say, this is looking to be one of our busiest years!

Painting your Calipers

Interestingly, this mod is one of the cheapest, easiest, and best looking mods that I have done so far. For those of you who want professional looking paint jobs, powder coating is probably the best way to go. However, if you want a Do-It-Yourself paint job, something light on the wallet, and easy to do, then the G2 Caliper Paint kit is the best way to go. I bought this kit from R1 Concepts, it costed me around $40. They were having a sale on rotors and pads, so I just picked up a kit on the way to the check out.

You can buy these paint kits pretty much anywhere online. You can find them from $35-$40 on Ebay, or Amazon. You can check your local auto parts stores as well. I checked mine, and it costed $80, way too expensive. If you go straight to the G2 website, you can actually mix your own custom colors! Otherwise, it comes standard in Red, Blue, Green, Yellow, White, Black, Silver, and some other ones.

Now, I understand painting calipers isn't for everyone. There are different ideologies when it comes to caliper paints. Some people think it's stupid, while others think it adds more flare, and a sense of speed. Personally, I'm going all out. Colored brake calipers just look super sexy when you can see them through some custom wheels. (Which I'll be getting to soon... but another day, another story)

I would advise you guys to give yourself a full two days to do this project. It technically took me 3 days to get the car out of the garage. However, I admit I slacked on day one, lol. There really isn't much to this DIY, and it almost feels silly for me to make such a long video for it. However, I know when I was doing research, a video like this would have helped me. Hopefully my tips and advice will help you guys do even better!

First, you need to remove all four of your wheels, which means you need four axle stands. I'd say an average house hold owns at least two axle stands. If you don't have four, borrow one from your neighbour =D. (I actually only own two, I 'borrowed' the other two from my neighbour and close friend)

Something I came across when I was removing my wheels, my rear wheels were seized onto the wheel hub. Since most of my DIY's so far have only required me to remove the front wheels, they were loosey goosey. However, the rear wheels have been on since it left the dealership a year ago. They don't anti-seize your wheels from the factory apparently, so my rear wheels were stuck on super tight. I tried to kick it, hammer it, no movement, nothing.

Here is what I learned on how to solve this issue, and a USEFUL TIP for you guys incase you run into the same problem: This will work 100%. First off, with your wheel lifted on the floor jack, loosen all lug nuts to halfway. IT IS CRITICAL THAT IT IS HALFWAY! Next, lower the car slowly so that the weight of the car pops the wheel off. You will hear a distinct pop. As soon as you hear it, stop lowering! Lift the car back up, and proceed in removing your wheels =). Obviously, I don't have to say why you needed the lugs on half way. You guys are smart enough ;)

With that issue out of the way. It was pretty much smooth sailing. Make sure you do a good job masking off everything that shouldn't be painted. If you didn't remove the calipers for painting, then I would say painting the underside of the caliper and the back side might get tricky. Here's another tip: Grab a small mirror to assist your vision in painting weird angles and tight corners. It's also a good way to spot any unpainted areas. Took me around 30 minutes to paint one coat on each caliper. Wait one or two hours before you apply another coat. You'll take around 6 hours to paint them all, and you'll need another 24 hours for the paint to dry. Don't forget to heat up those brakes after they dry.

That's pretty much it guys. You guys have now graduated, and are ready to paint your own calipers! Last word of advice, the final result for painting anything, has to do with preparation. Make sure you clean those brake calipers very thoroughly. Take your time, and have fun with it!

Go Team LLT!

Alright, so the C5 Forums have this thing going on where the V8's seperate themselves into Team LS3, and Team L99. A couple of the V6 guys said, "Hey, let's be Team LLT!"

With the new LFX V6 engine just around the corner, everyone agrees that there should be a Team LLT. Especially with our very own member HDRS, being the first to run the quarter mile in 11.961 SECONDS!

Everyone has been changing up their signatures on the forums, plastering "Team LLT" across their designs. I thought to myself, "Hey! I'm proud of having an LLT too! Why not show it by wearing clothes that represent that!" (I'm such a nerd)

Version 1

Version 2

I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to be wearing this when I go to car meets, LOL. I think I like Version 1 better, but let me know what you guys think!

As you can see, I've gone ahead and made a concept for the women too. You are welcome ladies ;). Notice the design decisions I have made for the women. I placed the "Spades V6" on the back of the shirt across the bottom. Why? People read shirts, doesn't matter what it says, it's human nature. This leads the eye straight to the hips... Nice eh? ;)

Go Team LLT! =D

Camaro of the Month [COTM]

I have seen some exciting things in the last couple of months, some people have really changed their car drastically since they have bought it. Whether you are a die hard modding fan, or you are just taking it slow and steady, every ONE of you clearly love your cars!

Most of you may have started reading this blog because: You are interested in learning on how to do-it-yourself, like following my project, or just plainly find my writing and films entertaining? (lol). Whatever your reasons may be, I could not have continued to put so much effort into Spades V6 if it wasn't because of you guys, so I really thank you guys once again.

As a token of my gratitude, and because I love seeing other people's projects come to fruition, I am starting a new segment: Camaro of the Month. The title is obvious, I will pick and choose a worthy car every month, feature it on the blog, and make your car part of the Spades V6 CALENDAR PROJECT! =D

Click to enlarge! It's already May 11th, but my car will start off the Calendar Project. Spades as the month of May.

I am constantly on the lookout for really cool Camaros. Whether you drive a V6 or V8, please feel free to post some of your best vanity pictures on the Facebook page! It would help me pick your car if you've got something different from everyone else. Take pictures of the whole car, exterior, interior, and any special mod you think you could show off! Picture quality, image composition, scenery, and background ALL MATTERS! Think of it this way, pretend you are submitting your car to a magazine company, looking for cover cars to put on the Latest issue of Spades Magazine! =D Obviously you'd want to take the best pictures right? Make sure your images are larger than 1280 pixels by 800 pixels. This will be the format I will make the calendar at. If you name your Camaro, your name will be where 'Spades' is placed. If you don't have a name, I will leave it blank. I will take requests like changing the font of your Camaro's name, to give some more character to each car. I will also place the logos of the aftermarket parts you have installed on your Camaro.

Now, I understand not everyone is in the same budget margins. Like I have said before, some people can complete their project in less than a year, while some people may have their plans stretched out to 5 to 10 years! That does NOT matter when I select a car for COTM... even if you have a stock car with some rally stripes, you can still be chosen if you take some really nice pictures!

Here is how it's going to go down: You submit your pictures to me, I select the best for that month, and the chosen car will be on the following month's calendar spread! Obviously I can not guarantee that ANYONE will submit their pictures to Spades V6, but if there isn't any pictures by the end of May, then the June edition will be my car again. You wouldn't want to see my car every month! Right? C'mon guys ;)

Spades V6, modifying

I'm trying to enhance Spades V6 in multiple areas. When I have some time off from work, and when I'm not working on the Camaro, I like to edit videos, and think of expansion and areas of improvement. As the weeks/months go by, you may notice small changes.

I am trying to make this blog more "efficient" and "entertaining". This video is just the start. I am hoping everything falls into place in the next few months.

But like I have said, I am planning to FINALLY paint my calipers over the long weekend, and there is a Porsche club Autocross event being held on the 28th of May. I am going to attend it, whether or not I get to drive.

The Camaro V6, in a nutshell.

Ah, the LLT, a 3.6L, Direct Injected, DOHC with VVT. A wonderful engine. Actually I have the utmost respect when it comes to engines. Every part has their part to play, and every part is developed through hours and hours of sweat and blood. Cheers to those hard workers. Click on the image to get the full scope of the engine... I just love it, and I think I would like to make that into a poster.

Anyway, lets take a moment to really appreciate all the nuts and bolts that make our V6 power machines.

 

One year with the Camaro

I took delivery of this car on April 6th, 2010. It's amazing how much I have done to the car, how much I've learned, and experienced with this car in just one year. Time flies when you are having fun right? Then I suppose I really had a lot of fun with the Camaro.

It's very interesting how this blog has evolved as well, as you can see compared to my very first post. Hopefully, my car will continue to change in good ways, same as the blog and the rest of Spades V6.

For this one year occasion, I have ordered something very special, a secret weapon so-to-speak. It hasn't arrived in the mail yet, though I am expecting it in the next week or so.

The Big, The Bad, and the Camaro

Feels like I can't do things fast enough. With work and daily life, I feel like I've been locked up, and I really want to burst out of this cage of excitement!

For those of you reading and coming to this blog on a regular basis, I appreciate it, and it will only get better. How much better?




My friend and fellow Camaro owner and I were hanging out yesterday. I tuned his car via the Trifecta tune, free'd up some locked ponies, and got rid of the nasty Check Engine Light left from his BBK Long Tube Headers. All in all, I think he was satisfied with the tune. Although, we are waiting for results of the tune's datalog. The video above was just a test video we shot with the GoPro HD Hero. In my opinion, the quality is top notch, though the Mic is crap. After my superior editing skills, and some epic background music, I thought it would be best if I made it into something more fun. Thus, I made it into a teaser for the upcoming videos.

For those of you who haven't yet, please subscribe to the Spades V6 Youtube Channel, and Join the Facebook page as well. For those of you who have, thanks!

Outrun and Spades

In other news, B&M Racing's own Kenji has e-mailed me this morning, telling me the paddle shifter paddles has shipped, even gave me a tracking number! It could possibly be arriving tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow. At that time, I will post teaser pictures for you guys, but no review. With consent from Kenji, and the B&M Racing team, I will do a full video review and install for you guys.

Thanks for supporting Spades V6

I know this isn't a Camaro post... but I just wanted to say thanks to all you guys who have been following and leaving awesome comments and messages for me to read. I would still be doing all the things I've been doing, but I probably wouldn't have spent the extra time to perfect each aspect of this long term project car if it wasn't for you guys.

The blog has hit 10,000 views since yesterday! That number amazes me, especially as this started out as just a personal blog, and even more specifically just about ONE make, ONE model, and ONE trim sub model V6! A couple of months ago, searching "Spades V6" on Google would get you no where. Now, Spades V6 has been established as a brand.

I'm about to up the ante on Spades V6. I'll be investing in better equipment, and begin to do more video documentations, DIYs, tests, reviews, and all the stuff I've been doing in writing. This being said, it's really just a test, seeing how the audience responds. Very much like this blog, if there is a need, I will fill the void.

I am very excited to see the transformation of my car, as well as the transformation of this blog and social network.

So again, big thanks you guys for sticking with Spades V6! ;)