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Question: “Armin, the time has now come for the AGM-Jimco X6 SCORE Trophy Truck to be unleashed. How exciting is that?”

Armin Schwarz: “Unbelievably exciting. But I’m even more looking forward to testing the vehicle. The truck runs very quietly, just like the WRC cars I used to drive. We did a great deal of work on the geometry and on the pivot points of all axles. It seems almost like a hybrid between a buggy and trophy truck. It’s very agile and manageable, but still it demonstrates excellent resilience in tough terrain – and that’s exactly what a SCORE Trophy Truck should have.”

Question: “How long did it take from the first drawings to the premiere of the Trophy Truck?”

Armin Schwarz: “Martin and I drew up the first plans back in mid-2009 when we were both feeling frustrated at having to start behind all the SCORE Trophy Trucks. In June 2010 the first drawings were completed. We then developed the first components. But only when we sold our very successful Class One Buggy to Australia after clinching overall victory at the 2010 Baja 250 and a superb racing season could we concentrate totally on our Trophy Truck project. That was in November 2010.”

Question: “When can we see the Trophy Truck in action for the first time?”

Armin Schwarz: “Our first race is in November this year at the Baja 1000. But, we don’t have any race strategy whatsoever. For us it’ll be more a major test outing, perhaps the biggest test that you can possibly put a race car through. Martin, our team and I all think that we can conduct test kilometres in a competition environment. Our partners support us wholeheartedly and they know that we’ll be going for victory in 2012.”

Question: “What will now become of the AGM Buggy with which you were so successful in the US SCORE Championship to now? And how does your crew line-up look for 2012?

Armin Schwarz: “Martin sold the Buggy to a successful racer from the Australian Offroad Championship who is very happy with the car. For 2012 we are obviously planning some important steps in further developing the truck. And we will also work on the reliability because that’s the most crucial factor if you want to win. And we have many other innovative ideas in mind, but we won’t share these ideas for the time being.
Moreover, AGM still has another Class One Buggy with which Armin Kremer was so successful in the last years. I don’t want to say too much about that either – but I will say this: Armin is in the AGM team and he’ll be staying there. We have a great time together and Armin is a fighter. He complements our team very well.”

Question: “What are your goals for the 2012 season?”

Armin Schwarz: “We aim to finish all races and win as many as possible. Martin, the team and I have one very clear goal and that is to win the Baja 1000 – regardless of whether it’s in 2012 or 2013. The main thing is to win this awesome race! In all the years that Sal Fish has run the SCORE Organisation, and all his helpers have found unbelievably beautiful and tough tracks, never before has a non-North American won. Only in 2010 did a Mexican, let’s say an ‘almost’ North American, manage this feat – and that was our friend from the Vildosola team. We want to be the first Europeans to do this and that is our aim.
I want to express my thanks to my friend who has virtually ‘carried’ me after my active WRC time: Wilfried Eibach, whose company celebrated its 60th anniversary a fortnight ago. Dear Wilfried, you really sorted out a wonderful “post-WRC” activity for me. And man, is it fun. There are very few of these types – people like Wilfried Eibach, Sal Fish, Yves Morizot and of course my friend and team mate Martin Christensen. To you all, and my family of course, I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support and patience.”

Information on the AGM-Jimco X6 SCORE Trophy Truck

All German Motorsports built the Trophy Truck in the USA in close collaboration with Jimco, the most experienced and best chassis manufacturer in the international offroad scene. Jimco is responsible for the chassis and the construction of the vehicle. TriStar Metals, a US subsidiary of AGM partner Stammcut, supplied premium quality material for the new chassis under the BMW X6 silhouette.
The design of the new Trophy Truck was developed in close cooperation with the creative team of Achim Storz. DESIGN STORZ based in Zell am See (Austria) developed the silhouette of the Trophy Truck with the body of the BMW X6 as an inspiration.
Another partner is Meziere Enterprises, a long-standing supporter of AGM that specialises in machined and lathed parts for racing. Team boss Christensen worked with the engineers from Meziere to develop calculations, drawings and CAD data. An incredible amount of machined parts feature on the Trophy Truck, made Meziere from lightweight material like aluminium, magnesium or titanium. All carbon-fibre components on the vehicle, for instance the internal parts that are exposed to strong vibrations, are supplied by partner Lynx Composites.
With the suspension, All German Motorsports places it trust in partners Eibach (springs) and Fox (shocks). Powering the AGM-Jimco X6 Trophy Truck is a 725 hp V8 Denzio BMW engine. The filter system and the air ducting were set-up by K&N in Riverside, California. Partner Remus built an ultra-lightweight exhaust with a multi-flow 4-in-1 exhaust system – giving the unmistakeable sound that fans so love to hear. Liqui Moly is the supplier of all lubricants which have been specifically developed for the hot, sandy and difficult conditions of offroad racing in the desert. Fuel comes from the long-standing partner F&L Fuels that delivers virtually all high-performance petrol to the SCORE Series.
Fortin delivers the gearbox: A four-speed sequential shift automatic gearbox. At the rear axle All German Motorsports works with Drexler Motorsport, experts in the field of differentials. The team selected a differential which gives considerably better vehicle handling on the twisty and rolling tracks than a rigid drive. And the tyres are supplied by the reliable partner, BF Goodrich. AGM now use an Alcon 6-piston brake system.
All German Motorsports get all the safety systems, like the Recaro seats, the Schroth harness system, race wear, helmets and the Stand21 HANS system, as well as all the small parts like switches and so forth, from their partner Off Road Warehouse ORW. The monster features a Powerstride battery system. With the software, the team has launched a development project in conjunction with B&M Tricon. IT solutions were found that are intended to contribute to simplifying and optimising the set-up of the vehicle in the future.

In only his second season racing in Best In The Desert’s unlimited ranks, Garrick Freitas has made his presence known by winning the TSCO Vegas to Reno race.  Winning in desert racing’s premier Class 1500 and coming in 2^nd overall out of 298 vehicles in the longest off-road race in America was anything but easy though.  Freitas was still harboring demons from last year’s Vegas to Reno event.  In 2010 Garrick was running at the front of the pack when he cart wheeled his Jimco Champion less than 100 miles from the finish line.

Race-Dezert.com headed to Vista, CA for a quick stop at ID Designs for the latest shop tour. ID Designs is owned by Ivan Davis and David Perrault, both are 33 years old. They were initially friends in high school and then went different ways until 2002 when they built a company called SPD building high end racing parts and trophy trucks. While owning SPD the pair built several successful vehicles including Bobby and BJ Baldwins Trophy Trucks, along with many other TT’s and other projects. In 2008 they dissolved their partnership with the 3rd party in SPD and decided to start their own business since they retained all of the tooling and drawings from the projects they had built at SPD.

Overview of the shop

Their shop is very well organized and the tools and machining is set up in a way that makes it easy to transition from one machine to the next as assembly takes place. Currently one of the projects in the shop is their 7200/6 build. This truck was designed for both use in the USA and Australia, they have sold 5 of these to Australia already.

7200 Chassis Build

7200 Truck

This truck features a 118″ wheel base and 85″ track width which will cycle 22″ of travel in the front and 26″ in the rear. Is also uses ID Designs Hubs and rear end housing.

ID Designs Hubs

This is what the truck looks like before assembly and this is how most of the orders are shipped to Australia.

7200 Truck Parts

All of the tools used to build these parts are stored in various Snap On tool boxes around the shop, this might be one of the biggest ones we have ever seen!

Snap-On Tool Box

Since ID Designs builds almost all of their parts in-house it is essential to have the correct tooling. There are many cool machines all throughout the shop that will let you build just about anything you can draw up.

Tooling

Tooling

One of their recent projects was an upgrade to BJ Baldwins current trophy truck, was a completely new front suspension design. This included new a-arms, spindles, and hubs. With all the changes they were able to reduce the unsprung weight by 22lb per corner!

Upright

Lower A-Arm

This is one of their new fuel cell designs. Think this thing will fit in your daily driver??

Fuel Cell

ID Designs is one of only 6 distributors of Brembo Racing Brakes in the USA. So if your shopping for Brembo, ID Designs is the place to go!

Brembo Brakes

All of the designs start out in the office using CAD or alike programs. On the wall off the office is some of the projects of the past. Many of the past designs have had great success winning several SCORE and BITD races including the Baja 500!

Office

Thanks again to ID Designs for letting RDC stop by and take a shop tour. Be sure to check out the rest of the pictures in the gallery below of the many other products they build and the rest of the shop. If you have any questions about ID Designs you can visit their Facebook page: ID Designs or visit their website at http://www.iddesigns.net/

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Dear Friends,

I am very happy and proud to present the following press release to you, that we sent out to the international media just a few hours ago. Our AGM-Jimco X6 Trophy Truck is rapidly taking shape, and we are looking at conducting first test runs in August. It’s all very exciting. But read yourself:

For months now the offroad scene has eagerly awaited the premiere of the AGM-Jimco X6 SCORE Trophy Truck. Now it’s all go: In late September the new desert monster will be presented in Germany, with which rally ace Armin Schwarz and the All German Motorsports team tackle the US SCORE Championship. Here are the first impressions and technical description of the vehicle for those who simply can’t wait any longer.

Team boss Martin Christensen and his crew are working flat out round the clock on the new vehicle. All German Motorsports assemble the Trophy Truck in the USA in close collaboration with Jimco, the most experienced and best chassis manufacturer in the international offroad scene. Jimco is responsible for the chassis and the construction of the vehicle. TriStar Metals, a US subsidiary of Stammcut, supply premium quality material for the new frame under the X6 silhouette.

A real stunner – we all can’t wait to fire up the V8 for the first time

The design of the new Trophy Truck was developed in close cooperation with the creative team of Achim Storz. DESIGN STORZ based in Zell am See (Austria) developed the silhouette of the Trophy Truck with the body of the BMW X6 as an inspiration. The team found the greatest challenges in realising the idea of this special shape while incorporating the technical features of a Trophy Truck.

Another partner is Meziere Enterprises, a long-standing supporter of AGM that specialises in machined and lathed parts for racing. Team boss Christensen spent many nights with engineers from Meziere, developing calculations, drawings and CAD data. “There is an incredible amount of machined parts on this Trophy Truck. We rely on the lightweight construction – whether it’s aluminium, magnesium or titanium – that Meziere has made for us,” says Armin Schwarz. All carbon-fibre components on the vehicle, for instance the internal parts that are exposed to strong vibrations, are supplied by partner Lynx Composites.

With the suspension, All German Motorsports places it trust in partners Eibach and Fox. They equip the Trophy Truck not only with springs and shock absorbers, but also contribute to the planning. In conjunction with Eibach and Fox, team boss Christensen calculated what the suspension must withstand and provide taking the weight of the vehicle into consideration.

The cockpit: on the dashboard the positions of the instruments are marked. Between the seats you can see the front mid engine and gearbox and the special AGM desert jack (red/blue cap)

Powering the AGM-Jimco X6 Trophy Truck is a 725 hp V8 Denzio BMW engine. The filter system and the air ducting were set-up by K&N in Riverside, California. Partner Remus built an ultra-lightweight exhaust with a multi-flow 4-in-1 exhaust system. “This provides the unmistakeable sound of the Trophy Truck. That’s exactly what our fans love to hear,” said Schwarz. Liqui Moly is the supplier of all lubricants which have been specifically developed for the hot, sandy and difficult conditions of offroad racing in the desert.

Fortin delivers the gearbox: A sequential shift automatic gearbox. “At the rear axle we work with Drexler Motorsport for the first time. They are experts in the field of differentials. We selected a differential which gives us considerably better vehicle handling on the twisty and rolling tracks than a rigid drive,” explains Schwarz. “And as far as tyres are concerned, we are sticking with our good and reliable partner, BF Goodrich. Their rubber is a must.”

All German Motorsports get all the safety systems, like the Recaro seats, the Schroth harness system, race wear, helmets and the Stand21 HANS system, as well as all the small parts like switches and so forth, from their partner Off Road Warehouse ORW.

Weighs close to nothing, can take close the everything: the super rigid tubular frame made by Jimco. TriStar Metals, a US subsidiary of Stammcut, delivered the special steel tubes

But it’s not just about hardware in the AGM-Jimco X6 SCORE Trophy Truck, it’s also about the software. In conjunction with B&M Tricon, the team launched a development project. IT solutions were found that are intended to contribute to simplifying and optimising the set-up of the vehicle in the future.

For August, All German Motorsports plan comparison tests with the new vehicle, which stands out from other Trophy Trucks through its low weight and substantially better aerodynamics. In September, the AGM-Jimco X6 SCORE Trophy Truck will celebrate its public launch in Germany. As part of the presentation, new partners will be announced.

The men behind the project: Jimco’s Mike Julson (l.) and AGM boss Martin Christensen

“Our first race with the AGM-Jimco Trophy Truck will be in November at the BAJA 1000,” says Schwarz. “We’re regarding the BAJA 1000 more as a test run and as a good preparation for the 2012 season in the US SCORE Offroad Championship. That’s when we want to secure our first wins.”

Tech Specs: AGM-Jimco X6 Trophy Truck

Chassis:          Tubular frame, AGM-Jimco design
Body:               AGM/ BMW – X6 carbon body
Total weight:   2,200 kg (without fuel)
Engine:            V8 Denzio – BMW special engine, 7.0-litres, 725 hp, 780 Nm torque
Engine mounting: Meziere bulkhead for motor and aggregates like lightflow-water and oil pumps
Exhaust:          Remus multi-flow 4-in-1 sound system
Electronics:      Motec engine and control electronics
Gearbox:          Fortin 4-speed sequential automatic
Rear axle:        Drexler Motorsport variable limited split differential
Wheelbase:     314 cm
Wheel travel front:    80 cm
Wheel travel rear:    100 cm
Shock absorbers:      3.5 inch FOX Bypass – TT Shocks
Springs:            Eibach special offroad springs linear
Anti-roll bars:    AGM special anti-roll bars
Brakes:             Alcon 355mm inner-vented discs/ 6 piston callipers
Rims:                Method Offroad Racing rims, 17 inch, 6.5 x 17″
Tyres:               BFGoodrich KRT 37/13.50×17″
Suspension:     Meziere special offroad, upright, suspension & hub
Seats:              Recaro Profi SPA
Safety Equipment:    Stand21, HANS system, Schroth harness, ORW Racing equipment
Special:                     AGM hydraulic jack, Soltec lights

Mad Media, a San Diego based multi-disciplinary creative agency, has produced and published a new website for famed off-road vehicle builders Jimco Racing Inc. Based in Santee, CA, Jimco has been the leading builder of off-road race vehicles worldwide for the past three decades. Founded by car builder and racer Mike Julson, Jimco stands for quality, performance and passion. With more wins than any other builder, Jimco Racing Inc. continues to be a leader in off-road vehicle design and manufacturing.

The Mad Media designed Jimco website, was created to showcase Jimco’s hand-built race vehicles and showcase their other services as well. It was programmed to be search engine friendly, integrate social media, and be easy to maintain. The site features a custom content management system that allows Jimco to handle the majority of their own website updates, including news.

“Jimco is the premier off-road vehicle builder on the planet. We built them a custom website that showcases their vehicles, and is a functional tool to support their business,” stated Mad Media’s CEO/Creative Director Matt Martelli. “Jimco founder Mike Julson wanted a clean website that was easy to navigate and update, and that’s what we delivered.”

“I think like a lot of companies, we put off fixing our website because it seemed really complicated and expensive. The guys at Mad Media came up with a very clean, elegant design. They helped us simplify the presentation, and they made it so we could do all the updates ourselves. It’s so great that they know off-road racing too – you can just tell that they really focused on what our customers are looking for as they designed the site,” commented Julson. “It really helps to use a group that is passionate about the culture of off-road racing.”

“Web design is constantly changing, so we are always trying to evolve the websites we design to take advantage of technology. But we also focus on creating custom websites that fit your business needs and are easy to update. The most powerful marketing tool a business has is its website.” stated Martelli.

Visit the website and judge the work for yourself: http://www.jimcorace.com/

About Mad Media:

Mad Media is San Diego based multi-discipline creative agency that offers professional print, web, and film production. Mad Media specializes in creating culturally relevant brand messaging that features professional athletes, musicians, and artists for the action sports, motor sports and mixed martial arts cultures. Known for producing the viral series “Gymkhana,” one of the most successful viral films in history, Mad Media produces premium content for all mediums. For more information go to www.madmedia.com

If you have been a off-road fan in the last 25 years, then you know who Rob MacCachren is.  If not let me tell you he is a legend, one that is still building on his already massive list of accomplishments.  Let’s start with the fact that he started racing off-road at age 16, and climbed his way up from racing a 1600 buggy (which he still races to this day!), to being the most prolific trophy truck driver on the planet.  Oh, and short course as well.  Wins stacked upon wins, championships on top of championships starting with The Mickey Thompson Series, then SODA, then CORR, now TORC and the Lucas Oil Off-Road Series where he carries the number one plate in Pro-2.  Rob MacCachren is the living embodiment of off-road racing.  Did I mention wins and championships in the desert as well?  SNORE, SCORE, BITD, NORA, HDRA, etc.  I personally witnessed Rob finish the 2009 Mint 400 6th overall in  a 1600 car!  Crazy right?  This guy should be one of the most celebrated drivers on the planet!  In 2007 he won three of the six SCORE races with the Rivera Team!  Talk about domination.  The unbelievable thing is the guy is humble and soft spoken. The Europeans can have Michael Schumacher, we have Rob MacCachren!

Here are a few questions I asked the champ last weekend while he was putting on a driving clinic winning both days at the Lucas Oil Off-Road Race in Surprise, AZ.

You had a rough start to your short course season.  Rounds 1-2 of LOORS didn’t really go your way.

We tried some pretty radical adjustments to the truck and it didn’t pan out.  Once things go wrong it’s hard to not get frustrated and make mistakes and that’s exactly what happened.  The competition in the Pro-2 field is serious, if you make mistakes you are done. We went back to our original set up and the truck was much better, it’s a constant battle trying to figure out how to make the truck better without compromising something.  I have a great crew and crew chief Jim Blackmore who have been with me a long time and have a ton of knowledge.

Your desert season is off to a great start. You overalled the Mastercraft SCORE San Felipe 250!

We really needed the win in San Felipe; it felt good.  We have a great JIMCO built trophy truck and a great team and great sponsors supporting us.  I just tired to drive smart.  San Felipe is brutal!  There is no rest; you just have to pace yourself.  I have broken there plenty of times.  We want to win everything this year including the championship.

You were leading the BITD Parker 425 for a while, are you going to race the rest of the Best in The Desert Series?

If it was up to me I would race everything!  SCORE, BITD, SNORE, LOORS, TORC, maybe even some Rally!  We will see what the sponsors want us to do.  I know Robbie Pierce wants us to race everything as well.

I heard you are going to race TORC as well.

Yeah, I was able to put a deal together with TRAXXAS and Dodge to race back there.  I am really stoked.  I love Crandon.  I just want to race against the best no matter where it is.  Crandon is a special place for me, I have so many friends, fans and memories there.

How did you get your start in off-road racing?

My dad raced, so I started with riding in the 1600 buggy with him.  Then we did a few races together and he retired and I got to take over as the primary driver.  He made me work on the buggy, which helped me learn the vehicle and become a better driver.  Then we bought a better single buggy and I started racing everything I could.  I got a shot to take over for Jack Johnson driving the single seat Barbary Coast Class 1 car that was fielded out of Valley Performance by Butch Dean.  I met Walker Evans there, which led to a ride with him in desert and eventually short course.  I have been lucky, a lot of people helped me along the way.

Rob MacCachren in the Barbary Coast Buggy

You have had a long and remarkable carrier.  What does that feel like?

It feels great.  I have been able to race with my heroes and friends.  Jack Johnson, Walker Evans, Larry Ragland, Roger Mears, Ivan Stewart, Rod Millen, Glen Harris, just to name a few.  I remember being told that I was going to get paid to race and I was like really?  You are going to pay me for this?  The weird thing is I still feel like a kind of a kid when I climb in to the truck. I do this to win.  I want to win every race and every championship.

You remember any remarkable moments?

Tons of them!  In short course I remember when I passed Rod Millen (who I looked up to) at Crandon and Nye Frank looks at me and goes, “Now you’re the guy!”  I thought that was a pretty cool moment.  In desert I have had tons.  This last Baja 500 Larry Ragland and I were banging doors just after Diablo Dry lakebed at over 100mph!  I was like “This is crazy”.  I can’t believe we were battling like that.  Larry didn’t want to give up an inch, it was nuts!

Rob MacCachren and the legendary FORD "Rough Riders".

What are your plans for the rest of your career in off-road racing?

I plan on racing for many years to come.  Larry Ragland is 60+ and he is still schooling most of the field, so I am going to race as long as I am competitive and even after that I will probably race, I just love this.  It’s what I do.  I am lucky I found something I am good at.  As long as it feels right I will keep doing it.

What would you tell young people getting into off-road racing?

Take your time moving up.  Start small and basic.  Volunteer for a team.  Learn from your mistakes and you will get better.  Have fun and do this because you love it!  You will have some of the best experiences and hardest challenges you can ever imagine.  You will meet some of the best people on the planet and go to some of the most beautiful places and see things that no one else get’s to experience.  Keep your eyes open and be ready for adventure!

Here is a little context for who Rob MacCachren is:

182+ career victories and 20 series championships between closed short course and open desert racing.

5 SCORE Baja 1000 victories

5 SCORE Baja 500 wins

3 consecutive short course Pro 2 Championships (2008, 2009 and 2010)

3 consecutive Borg-Warner trophies (1999, 2000, and 2001)

3 Governor’s Cup Championships

Heralded as the premier off-road driver after winning the longest distance (1296 miles point-to-point) SCORE Baja 1000 ever held in 2007

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Words: Matt Martelli of Mad Media

This weeks stop on the Race-Dezert.com shop tour is Freitas Offroad Motorsports. Thanks to Dan at Hostyle Racing we were able to setup a tour of the shop right before the team departed to the BITD Parker race to kick off their season. Freitas Motorsports is owned by the Father/Son team of Danny and Garrick Freitas. They have a class 1 Jimco Champion and a class 1400 prerunner truck. Their shop is located in Fresno, CA. The shop has been recently finished and is filled with only top of the line equipment. It is kept very VERY clean and you have the feeling you could eat off the shop floor!

Freitas Shop

Freitas Shop

When you walk in the office the first thing you notice is a huge painting on the wall with dogs driving the class 1 car! Also you cant but help notice the custom barber chair. I guess you never know when you might need a hair cut or shave!

Office

Custom Painting, Dogs Driving The Race Car

Barber Chair!

The next room you come to is the bathroom and this might be one of the cleanest bathrooms anywhere. It is even complete with a full size washer and dryer!

Bathroom

Full Size Washer And Dryer

Next down the wall is the machine shop area. Here you will find everything from mills, welders, benders, solvent tank, everything you could ever need. This area is kept so clean you would never know any work gets done here!

Machine Shop

Mill and Bender

Welders

Throughout the shop you will find multiple top of the line Snap-On tool boxes and even a brand new Snap-On BBQ, I bet you havent seen very many of those before!

Snap-On Tool Box

Custom Rug

Snap-On BBQ

The shop has enough room inside that each of the chase trucks and semi trailer can all fit inside so they dont have to be out in the elements.

Chase Truck Box Van

Chase Truck

Semi Trailer

Every part has a bin that is clearly labeled for easy access. This takes all the guess work out of finding parts and keeps everything very organized.

Part Bins Clearly Labeled

Very Organized

When they are not racing their class 1 car they have a 1400 Prerunner truck that will do various races throughout the year. This is also what they were racing before the class 1 car was acquired.

1400 Prerunner Truck

1400 Prerunner Truck

To complete the team they also have a RZR and a couple other toys.

You can catch the Freitas race team at these races this year:

BITD Silver State 300 April 30th
SCORE Baja 500 June 4th
BITD Vegas To Reno Aug. 19th
BITD Bluewater Challenge Oct. 15-16
BITD Transwest Henderson 250 Dec. 3rd

Be sure to check out the rest of the pictures of the amazing shop below. Thanks again to Freitas Motorsports for letting Race-Dezert.com stop by and take a tour of their shop!

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Race-Dezert.com is back out on the road once again and the latest stop on the shop tour is R&I Industries. They have been in business for over 35 years doing custom sheet metal fabrication and design. Craig Hall was able to take us on a tour of the shop and show us exactly whats going on behind the scenes there. Craig has worked in the metal fabrication industry for 15 years and has been building and designing offroad parts for many top teams and offroad companies today.

Craig is able to take a design that you have sketched on something as small as a napkin and turn it into a real life part. One of the tools available to help is this Romer 3-D scanning arm. It can scan anything in front of it and copy it exactly to a 3-D CAD Drawing.

Once a design is in the computer you can take it out into the shop to one of the many machines for any type of metal-cutting. This is the Laser which is used for both sheet metal and tube notching. The tube notching can be so precise that ones the design is done you can simply take the tubes as they come from R&I and simply assemble them and weld, very little to no finishing work is needed.

Some of you may recognize this part, Jimco is a customer of R&I and this is one of their trailing arm designs.

For some of the thicker materials a water jet machine is used. It can cut through pretty much anything you can fit on the table.

Some designs call for a pattern to be stamped into sheet metal. This machine the Strippit does just that. It can punch various shapes and designs at a time by using a rotating tooling system inside it.

R&I has designed and custom built several machines themselves for in-house use. Along with some very cool custom tool boxes.

Along the years they have designed several different type of header flanges and small tabs for the offroad/drag race world. Many are one-off designs.

One of the cool tools found at R&I is the robotic arm welder. It can weld 360 degrees around a part and makes a perfect weld every time.

Need a computer desk that you can roll around the shop and also adjust the height of? No problem R&I can build it!

The Lucas Oil Offroad Series has used trophies fabricated by R&I for the past couple years.

No job is to small for R&I and if you have a design that you are trying to finish up and turn into a real life production just contact R&I and see what they can do for you. Some of their past customers are the biggest names in the industry such as Jimco, Alumicraft, Camburg, Fusion Offroad, Penhall, Pro-AM, Robby Gordon, Racer, and many more!

You can contact R&I at 909-923-7747 or visit them on the web at www.rimetal.com

Thanks once again to R&I and Craig Hall for letting Race-Dezert.com stop by and take a tour of one of the biggest metal fabricators in southern CA!

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