I am Kevin Masson, owner of Kingdom Metal Works
In 1975, I started working at CP AutoKraft in the United Kingdom under Brian Angliss working with Dick Ansell, Charlie Norman, Jack Payne and Jim Rickets who were masters of metal shaping from Rolls Royce, AC Cars and Panther Cars.
Brian changed the company name to AC Cars where we were working at Brooklands Race Track in Weybridge Surrey England. There I completed an 8-year apprenticeship
under these masters. I learned the skills of aluminium body panel shaping using original wooden bucks of AC Cars. Part of my training included shaping and gas-welding aluminum panels to make AC Cobra bodies. I also had the opportunity to learn brass work for windshields from Billy Tieder. Chassis building was a part of my schooling which included building the new chassis for light weight 427’s and Mach 4 Cobras which I enjoyed because it involved a lot of difficult tube bending and suspension set-up.
On completing my apprenticeship in 1983, I decided to move to the United States and work for a company based in Torrance California with Mike McClusky owner of McClusky Limited. From his workshop I was able to continue my car restoration skills on AC Cobra’s which extended to restoring a 250 GTO Ferrari as well as a 1964 Le Mans Ferrari. During that time, Mike had me work with Carrol Shelby on some of the early Cobra continuation cars. Mike decided to build Daytona Cobras as continuation cars. Therefore I developed the buck making, panel forming and chassis building that is still being used today.
On leaving Mike’s I took on the job working with Craig Breedlove on the New Land Speed Record Car, under the company name, Spirit of America . Shaping panels for the car parachute system. My next project was working for Boyd Coddington. He took me on to complete the aluminum panels for the Alumacoup Car which included panel making, hood, door and trunk hinge mechanisms. After that project, I worked at Vector in Wilmington, Ca. where I worked in the fabrication tooling division producing weld gigs, fixtures and production parts for the Vector W8. I enjoyed developing complex projects which included tooling design prints without engineering support.
My next project was working with Ed Whittle, a dragster builder, building aluminum panels for a mid-sized drag car. On completion of the panels, I began a 15 year employment at Sports Car Classics in Torrance California with Garret Hanes restoring original Cobra’s, a one-off Ferrari 500 America and numerous other high end cars.
In 2012 I began working with Steve Hogue Enterprises in Torrance Ca. doing complete rebuilds of 356 Porsche’s, a 911 R race car, a 1955 Jaguar drop head, 2 original AC Cobra’s, a 1947 show winner Lancia and a RS 61 Porsche chassis with bodywork being constructed. One of my most enjoyable projects was working on an Iso Grifo creating jig work to produce nose body panels for the 1970-71 Grifo. Extending my skills by working on the English Wheel and Power Hammer. Part of my work there is extensive work on Hot Rods, customizing a 1941 Cadillac and numerous other projects.
In January 2017 I opened Kingdom Metal Works in Kentucky in a 40×30 shop complete with metal working tools i.e.: an Excel wheeling machine, Mittler Bros Bench Top English wheel, Baileigh PH28-A pneumatic power hammer, planishing hammer, shrinker/stretcher, bead roll, metal brake, metal shear, sheet roll, and car lift. I have an extensive collection of hand tools for metal shaping including various hammers, dollies, and other hand-made tools in an air-conditioned and heated environment. I specialize in one on one private metal shaping/welding training workshops that offer unique metal shaping techniques here at our shop. I can also travel to your workshop to help train your crew for customized training sessions using your machinery and the projects in your shop.