Dave Shuten's New BubbleTop AstroSLed

Two weekend ago I attended the Grand Rapids Autorama mainly to take some photos of Dave Shuten's new bubbletop that I could actually post. It was the debute of his car.

For those that have seen the lastest MadFab DVD his name and car will of course sound familiar. Some might remember the name from last year when he did the Mysterion clone.

The AstroSled had a large crowd around it all day Sunday when I was there compared to the other 20 x 20 displays, some of which had NO admirers when I was taking mental notes of the show. Yet when it came time for awards Dave did not take home even one. Because Dave didn't start the car he was ineligible for any recognition.

To say he was bummed out is an understatement. Dave told me that the powers that be begged him to bring the car to the show and that he would have three shows to start the car, not that it had to start at the first show. He had no fluids in the car at all. He really didn't want to attend the GR event because of the Starbid show the very next weekend and having to take time off work etc BUT he did bring it there and got screwed by ISCA. Dave told me that the Hand Built Custom Award went to a first generatio Camaro

Dave is a great guy and desires to be treated better then this. He is one of the most talented guys I know. To create this, and the Mysterion, out of NOTHING is truely amazing. He built an AWESOME car that no doubt will go down in hot rod history. The Rod and Custom feature photos have already been shot so it probley won't be long before you see a full feature with all the details in the mag.

Anyway, I saw on the other Starbird post that there was some interest in Dave new bubbletop so I thought I'd post some of the photos that I took of it at the Grand Rapids Autorama for your viewing pleasure.























I don't know how he's faired at the Starbird Show yet. He said he'd call tonight. I'll update when he does.

 

In my world, everything is compared to the Beatnik Bandit.....this car rocks!!!

 

im completly blown away. . . to say this car represents something "lost" for a few (decades? lol) years is an understatement.

thanks for posting Denise

 

did he start with a roth repop body that are now available.?? I see some resemblance.. incredible ride

 

Nope, stickly from scratch....chicken wire, 2 x 4's,vermeculight or whatever that stuff is, then fibergl***. He explains the whole process, with video on the MadFabDVD.

 

No offense to the hard work that went into the Camaro (have yet to see it), but COME-ON fella's. Here is a car that is completely hand built, vs. a Camaro that someone at GM penned in the first place.
I remember going to the Cleveland Auto-Rama as a youngster, I bet dollars to donuts that a ****load of those cars never ran. Especially the Zingers! They didn't want to dis-color the chrome!!
Anyway, my hat goes off to this cat and his keen sense of style.
JT

 

Absolutly amazing, beautiful car. Thanks for the pics!

 

I find it difficult to believe that he didn't receive any awards.I had the privilege of striping the body on that car and I can tell you right now there is not one wave in the body.Dave said he spent three WEEKS blocking it out and it shows. I wonder if he will think twice before putting it in the Detroit Autorama.But as long as I have been attending shows(the 50's)it has usually been politics that determines who wins and who comes in,"first runner-up". A sad day indeed.

 

Brings back fond memories. Always loved the Roth,bubble-top cars.

 

I agree i saw the show rod on sunday and i just stood and looked .
i dont care if it runs or not it keeps the (roth) style alive.last year i couldnt wait to see all the roth cars at detroit autorama.hot rods are cool and i thank my dad every day fore getting me hooked on cars.

 

When I talked to him last Monday he was still pretty upset about the whole deal and was really having second doubts about all the Autoramas. Lets hope he's cooled down abit and will think with a clear head about how he wants to proceed with the rest of the show season.

The car certainly deserved Best in Show at the GR Autorama. I mean, you were there, don't you agree? Nothing there even came close to being as nice. And I know the rules about the car having to start, move forward, backward etc, BUT if he was told differently because they wanted the car there, well that was just wrong.

I really don't want this post to be about the ISCA, and I had my doubts about even mentioning that part, BUT I was sure someone would ask about the "awards" portion so I just thought I'd tell Dave's version.

Ray, you did an awesome job on the striping and should be very proud of the part you had to play in his cars build.

 

An absolute tour-de-force by Shuten... it captures Roth at his height of his powers. In my opinion, the finest show car of the past 40 years, and people will still be talking about 40 years from now.

The fact that he didn't get an award is downright criminal.

 

Your right, and I know for a fact Dave built this car to drive, unlike mysterion and some of the other Rother cars (not to take away from those). That is the ****ty part, that car WILL run and WILL drive!
Congratulations Dave on setting a new bar in custom car design, this car is amazing, and from seeing it in person when the chicken wire was exposed to now, all I gotta say is PLEASE bring it to Detroit!

 

That is gorgeous..love the style..car show politics aside,I think the HAMB knows and appreciates what he's built..thanks for posting the pics

 

Great to see the final product. I love this kinda stuff & I was intrigued when I saw the build on MFS 4.

Absolutely ****ing stunning.

 

That thing may be detailed... but it's ugly.
Sam.

 

Damn... just damn.

Only decent thing I've ever made outta chicken wire and 2x4's was a chicken coop... and they wouldn't even go in it.

That's amazing.

 

I'm upset, too! No car even came close for Best of Show at GR. I sure hope he did better at Starbird's show, where he probably wishes he would have debuted it!

 

politics ****.....

 

Way to go Dave, it is Rothulous!!!

 

Awsome car, hats off, love the bubble tops

 

I love everything about that car. Absolutely stunning. On a brighter note, Dave's striping on the Lander just won the Von Hot Rod award for best traditional pinstriping at the WOW show. I wonder if one of the other compe***ors who was competing for national points complained about the car not starting. I agree it's not fair, but that may have played a role in the decision process.

Doc.

 

Denise, I know what I'm about to say will rattle some chanins, but I was a part of that political ISRA rat race in the late 60's and through the 70's. That's exactly why I would never put my rod in another indoor show. BUT...even though this is an obsolutely killer piece, in my opinion, if it don't run and move under it's own power it is nothing more than a statute. He had to have known that going in.

 

I don't know Dave nor had even heard of him, but this car is a treat to study how the lines flow, and the workmanship appears top flight. I hope he brings it to Detroit, it's not all about torphies, the feedback from the spectators I think is more important than what a few judges may think. He has captured the spirit of Roth. Congratulations Dave.

 

it's pretty, but I have to agree with ****ster

 

I too thought the bubble top was very cool. The Camaro that beat it had one major thing going for it...nearly glowing green paint. The paint was awesome, but it certainly was not a totally hand built piece. How cool would it be if he had waited for Detroit and went for the Ridler?

Definitely my favorite at the GR show if it ran or not.

 

Go back to Denises original post,4th paragraph,2nd sentance.They wanted the car there,running or not, and said he had 3 shows to start it. That part of the story tells me he should have gotten some form of recognition. Maybe not the best in cl*** trophy, but some kind of special "Thanks for bringing FOR US"trophy. I feel if you ask someone SPECIFICALLY to bring something like this to your table,you should thank them.
R.R.

 

Thanks for noticing this point sweetie, exactly what Dave and I were discussing. He did/does know the rules but was told something differently, obviously just to get his car to the show. He said he feels "violated".

 

I am not that familiar with ISCA rules,but if they had implemented a,"must run"policy,it must have occured fairly recently.I know an ISCA participant who had several winning cars featured in the 60's and 70's and as far as I know,none of them were in a running status.In fact one of them sported an engine that was originally in a car he built in the 50's and it had no internals whatsoever..

Not trying to start a ******* contest here;only stating what I know from personal experience.

As was stated before,apparently someone wanted Dave's car there and if it was supposed to be "for display only" then that point should have been made clear. It sounds like the old used car salesman's credo:"Promise them the moon but give them a flashlight".