My Knob is Better Than Yours

LynzeC · 07:12 AM

About a year ago I asked @maisonvi; if he would make me one of his custom shifter knobs. Little did I know it would turn out to be so custom it would take 2 more of the NATOR MI guys ( @mole; & @HawkeyeGeoff) to pull such a custom piece off.

I can't put into words how much I appreciate what they did for me and continue to do for me or how much something like this means to me. These guys are my brothers and truly hold a special place in my heart.

@maisonvi; - Thank you doesn't seem like enough and I said I'd say it 5001 times so you have a few more to go. Thank you for all the hard work you put into this. I hear you talk about just the basic knobs you make so I can't even imagine how much work you put into this. I am forever gratful. I've decided my next mod will be a very intense car alarm to protect it.

@mole; - Thank you doesn't seem like enough to tell you either. I know it about killed you to keep a secret for damn near a year but you did it! I adore you to pieces and am thankful to have you in my life. Again, thank you for everything. You're a wonderful man.

@HawkeyeGeoff; - You sir, thank you! My broksi, my lunch date a couple times a month, Uncle Geoff to C and just an awesome guy. I'm thankful for everything you did and even more thankful you ended up in NATOR MI.

Now, on to the non mushy good stuff..

For those of you who don't know, I have a strong love for Iron Man. Ok, I'm borderline obsessed and might like Iron Man as much as I like my car. The knob is modeled after Iron Man's heart in the 3rd movie, my favorite. The heart design takes 7 minutes to fully charge and tests thus far show that it will stay glowing for at least 12 hours once fully charged. The custom paint itself has about 10 years worth of life in it. The labor hours, materials and everything put into the knob put the cost upwards of $500. That being said, I'll answer a few questions for the guys in advance:

No you may not have it. No you may not buy it and no they will not make another like this or another similar to it. Our apologies.

speed3 britz

One special knob for one special lady by some awesome Nator Guys!

HawkeyeGeoff

First!!! And this knob is bitchin'!

Sent while granny shiftin' and not double clutching like I should

MazdaBoy2.3

Awesome!

maisonvi

Glad you like it. You said you wanted something different that no one else has. Well you got it.

LynzeC

Originally Posted by maisonvi

Glad you like it. You said you wanted something different that no one else has. Well you got it.

And then some. I expected maybe a glowing ball but not anything like this.

HawkeyeGeoff

Originally Posted by LynzeC

And then some. I expected maybe a glowing ball but not anything like this.

You should be happy we didnt go through with the initial glowing dildo shift knob idea I gave out

Sent while granny shiftin' and not double clutching like I should

Mauro_Penguin

Wow! That's awesome work!

maisonvi

Thought maybe people might like to see the process. With all the testing of various coatings and machining work, this did actually take a solid 6 months.

Step 1: Machining. Rough machined the round sphere, and CNC’ed the logo into the top.

Step 2: Polish. Many hours of 120 grit->240->600->1000 wet->2000 wet

Step 3: Black coating. After multiple test pieces with various coatings, settled on a black oxide. Not a typical choice for something like this, but it gave the luster I wanted.

Step 4: Tape. This is where @mole; took the reigns. As you can see, time, and exacto and patience are involved.

Step 5: Primer. We tested numerous primers as well to get the one that would work with the glow paint.

Step 6: Glow. This had to be layered on slowly, by hand with a tiny brush. The paint is too thick to spray we found out, and couldn’t be put on in one large layer, so it was done over a span of days one layer at a time.

Step 7: Clean up. Un-taped the top and carefully cleaned up any run over of the glow.

Step 8: Test. With a flashlight and a dark room, the results speak for themselves. At this point we are stoked. Sunlight works even better.

Step 9: Clear. Using a special automotive grade clear coat we sealed up the coatings so scratches and wear wont ever be an issue.

Step 10: Winning. See @LynzeC;’s post above.

LynzeC

@maisonvi; - Why you gotta make me cry like a sissy at work... You guys did too much. Thank you, thank you, thank you. You're all so wonderful.

Kyle Undefined

That's so badass! Stark now has his heart

LynzeC

Originally Posted by Kyle Undefined

That's so badass! Stark now has his heart

I affectionately named the knob, Jarvis.

Hamilton69

GOD DAMN NATOR AT ITS FINEST. That's what it's about man, congrats @LynzeC; I wanna slob on your knob

LynzeC

Originally Posted by Hamilton69

GOD DAMN NATOR AT ITS FINEST. That's what it's about man, congrats @LynzeC; I wanna slob on your knob

I've never cried like a puss over something so much in my life. It's pretty friggin amazing.

Kyle Undefined

I always thought you were a man, I'm second guessing that now

anavrinIV

what paint is that? I can see it's glow paint but what brand, type?

maisonvi

Originally Posted by anavrinIV

what paint is that? I can see it's glow paint but what brand, type?

Im not 100% sure the brand, but I know @mole; had to special order it to get the right color. And it only comes in quarts that cost over $100 each. We will probably keep that part secret. We will just say it was hard to get it right.

btstarcher

Simply amazing. Beautiful work! The lengths you go to for the people you care about speak volumes.

maisonvi

Originally Posted by btstarcher

Simply amazing. Beautiful work! The lengths you go to for the people you care about speak volumes.

Nator MI takes care of its own!

LynzeC

Originally Posted by maisonvi

Nator MI takes care of its own!

And to think, less than a year ago we didn't even exist, now look at us!

Enough can't be said about how awesome the NATOR MI family is. I am honored to be a part of this and excited to see where we will be in another year.

InkedInspector

Originally Posted by Hamilton69

GOD DAMN NATOR AT ITS FINEST. That's what it's about man, congrats @LynzeC; I wanna slob on your knob

Not as much as I wanna slob the chick in your signature. On a serious note, absolutely badass. Both the knob and the effort put forth to create it.

dsb_chicago

A M A Z I N G ! !

LynzeC

Just to clarify, the "charge" we are talking about does not come from the car battery, it is "charged" by sunlight or artificial light. Like Glow-In-The-Dark paint or stickers, etc.

mole

@LynzeC; You're very welcome! It was such an awesome project to work on with @maisonvi; and @HawkeyeGeoff;. We all know how much work you put into this chapter and keeping us all as close as family and I hope this pays it back just a little and shows you how much we care about you.

Now for some answers to questions...
1. There will not be another made by us
2. No you can't put your dick in it, this knob is way out of your league anyway (come on, it glows..)
3. The paint is a industrial safety grade photo-luminescent paint and the color is a custom color made up by the owner who happens to be an awesome car guy
4. No I won't divulge the maker of the paint or any specifics (you're a big boy/girl, you can use google)
5. The primer is a mix of two primers, self etching primer and a white sandable primer and I tested different mixes of them on washers to figure out the best way
6. This wasn't a project done by one single person, there were many hands involved in this project and none of us thought about the amount of work that we were putting in because of who it was for, this isn't a gimmick of sorts, it's a one of a kind gift

LynzeC

@mole; - I am not sure I've made it more than 8 hours without crying since I got this knob.

You guys are my family and I would do anything for any one of you. None of you will ever know what a special place you hold in my heart. I don't even know what to say, I'm so overwhelmed. Thank you again, you guys continue to melt my heart.

maisonvi

Originally Posted by mole

Now for some answers to questions...
2. No you can't put your dick in it, this knob is way out of your league anyway (come on, it glows..)

This one was not for lack of effort. @HawkeyeGeoff;'s contribution"

Chef_A2

Whoa!!! Awesome work gentlemen. That thing is killer. One more piece on lynze's ride for us to drool over. Terminator rocks!! Glad to a part of it!

lobitoPU

I hope these guys got nudes in exchange for all the work lol ijs

LynzeC

Originally Posted by lobitoPU

I hope these guys got nudes in exchange for all the work lol ijs

There always has to be that ONNNNNE guy...

Sent from my black biatch using Tapatalk

Kim@CorkSport

MUST say this is EPIC guys!!! <3 it and so happy it went to someone so amazing and deserving! <3

LynzeC

Originally Posted by Kim@CorkSport

MUST say this is EPIC guys!!! <3 it and so happy it went to someone so amazing and deserving! <3

I didn't do anything. I just showed up with a loud mouth, said I came to do work, asked who was with me and they were ready to go. If they hadn't supported me from day 1 and trusted me enough to meet me at the BW3 last March 2nd, I'd be nowhere near where I am today. The thanks is all to them.

No one in their right mind would trade what we have here for anything. They're my brothers, my bros, my broskis. I love them and there isn't anything in the world I wouldn't do for them.

I'm the cream of the crop, I rise to the top
I never eat a pig 'cause a pig is a cop
Or better yet a terMINATOR
Like Arnold Schwarzenegger...
I'm coming to get ya, I'm coming to get ya

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7IVAH1JauE

speed3 britz

Originally Posted by LynzeC

I didn't do anything. I just showed up with a loud mouth, said I came to do work, asked who was with me and they were ready to go. If they hadn't supported me from day 1 and trusted me enough to meet me at the BW3 last March 2nd, I'd be nowhere near where I am today. The thanks is all to them.

No one in their right mind would trade what we have here for anything. They're my brothers, my bros, my broskis. I love them and there isn't anything in the world I wouldn't do for them.

I'm the cream of the crop, I rise to the top
I never eat a pig 'cause a pig is a cop
Or better yet a terMINATOR
Like Arnold Schwarzenegger...
I'm coming to get ya, I'm coming to get ya

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7IVAH1JauE

terMINATOR!!! Honored to be apart of it!

Even when @LynzeC; slaps us around a little

Funkster777

The journey started a year ago when a stranger offered to pick me up at work because my car was broken the first time (of four last year). @LynzeC; was nice and friendly. That started something that started with kindness and moved through friendship to family. I trust her with my daughter and she provides a strong role model for her as well as several other photographer NATORs. Her car is often copied. She is often pressured. She is a much stronger woman than one year ago. She deserves this. The other NATOR brothers did an awesome job making it. We did an awesome job not revealing it too soon. Her reactions were priceless and the reason for our strong terMINATOR connection. One year ago we were strangers. Today, we are close family. Thank you @LynzeC; for sharing this with us.