Archive for ‘Exclusive Content’

Time-Traveling Back To The Nineties… CHRNCLS Vlog 2021 #12

Time-Traveling Back To The Nineties… CHRNCLS Vlog 2021 #12

On this episode, I take you guys back on the road with me on three different photoshoots throughout Southern California for the ongoing project I’m working on for Meguiar’s. You guys got a short glimpse of the 80s-themed shoot I did for them with a E-AT Civic a few episodes back and the next one I’m shooting is dedicated to the 1990s. If you’re a Honda guy then the nineties will undoubtedly be your favorite era. That’s when Honda made the best cars and the import scene was still in its very exciting early infancy. Being that it was a shoot focused on that era, many tiny details had to be incorporated into the shoot that were plucked from that time and obviously, the cars themselves as well. In-between shoots, we also found some time to stop by Unit B to celebrate our good friend Kristian Wong’s birthday. This is a good one and I hope you get overwhelmed with that nineties feeling while watching!
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2AM Photos With Battlecraft…

2AM Photos With Battlecraft…

Being that our shops are so close to one another, Kristian tends to walk over here at random hours of the night to watch tv or shoot the shit. Earlier today, I asked him if the shop was clean cuz I wanted to test out some lighting equipment that I planned to use this weekend.

I hadn’t shot with strobes (battery powered remote flashes) in almost four years or more so I’m sure I’d completely forgotten how to use them. I don’t know what made me want to shoot with them since I feel it’s a bit dated in how it ‘polishes’ a photo but I wanted to try something different than what I’m used to these days. Anyways, he said the shop wasn’t super clean and the Civic was on jack stands but he could put wheels back on the car if I wanted to play with my camera and lighting. So around 2 am he comes by and helps me lug all that equipment over and we drink some White Claws. I snapped a couple photos and it made me realize I had no idea how to use strobes anymore. Long gone we’re the days when I used to haul this stuff around everywhere for magazine shoots.
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Cruising Through Osaka With Yanagi’s EG6 and Masashi’s S2000…

Cruising Through Osaka With Yanagi’s EG6 and Masashi’s S2000…

Typically around this time, the only visitors at Yasu’s shop in Osaka would be me. Wekfest Japan is usually happening during this period and I’d be over there getting ready to go to the show with him. Because of the global pandemic, and numbers still rising over in Japan, the border has been closed off to foreign visitors and I haven’t been able to return as I would usually. From what I saw online, like the rest of you, Wekfest Japan was a great event. There were less cars and the crowd was likely smaller than usual, but it was expected with the way things are going right now. With Yasu being so busy with work, not wanting to catch anything, and me not even being there, he decided it would be best if he just stayed behind this year…
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Can It Be Real?…

Can It Be Real?…

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any more real—it’s definitely still NOT real, lol. When I randomly came up with the idea to create a SNES game box a few days ago, I had no idea it’d be so well-received. I honestly thought people would think it’s kinda corny but maybe that’s exactly what we need right now. A little bit of nostalgia to remind us of our childhoods never hurts, I guess. So I took it a step further and created the intro for this imaginary Chronicles video game that must actually exist somewhere in an alternate dimension. I took some old photos I shot from the past, did some cool 16-bit-style stuff to it, added some assets I found from around the web and turned on the game for the first time, haha. I’m currently in the process of producing more game boxes for those who want to have one as a keepsake. It makes for a cool collectible/art-piece for the enthusiasts who support The Chronicles. Hope you like it!!…
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The Chronicles ‘Highway Attack Challenge’ in 16-Bit…

The Chronicles ‘Highway Attack Challenge’ in 16-Bit…

Anyone that knows me will tell you that I enjoy collecting things, especially if they are nostalgic and/or remind me of my childhood. I grew up in the ‘90s and a lot of my time was spent playing Super Nintendo. It was always so cool to go to the store and see new games come out and holding them in your hand after they were taken out from behind the display case. Just seeing all the boxes and the box art was so cool. Lately I’ve been trying to consistently be in a creative space so one day I decided to create something that had a mix of both my childhood and what I do as an adult now. I thought it’d be cool to imagine The Chronicles as an SNES Racing video game. It’s completely unrealistic because the eras don’t match-up, nor would a game ever have these types of features or graphics but the main thing I wanted to do was create the box art for this imaginary game.
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Brandon Kim’s S2000 CR Build Photos… Part 1…

Brandon Kim’s S2000 CR Build Photos… Part 1…

I haven’t done a build feature on this site in awhile, since we typically cover most of this type of stuff on the Vlogs these days, but I decided to capture some photos of Brandon Kim’s S2000 build so both you guys and Brandon can see detailed updates as Yuta moves forward with it. It just made sense to get photos to document everything because Brandon actually lives in Hawaii while his S2000 spends a majority of its time here in California. The car was shipped over via boat a few years and is a resident here at our shop. After Yuta Akaishi came back from Arizona after working at HKS USA for a year, the two of them decided to install an HKS GT2 Supercharger on the CR. Along with the install came a bunch of other stuff that eventually will make its way onto the car. It seems like new things are being added every day as Yuta continues to go through the car. Most of the info and technical aspects of this build-up will be detailed on future episodes of the Vlog but periodically, I’ll toss up some photos as well. Here are the first batch of photos that I captured recently at the very start of the build…
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John Tran’s S2000 From Club Racer Reunion Weekend…

John Tran’s S2000 From Club Racer Reunion Weekend…

After getting some photos of Jose Mejia’s FK8 CTR on the track, I noticed we had some sunlight left which allowed us to bring one more car onto the scenic Chuckwalla Valley Raceway. There were some pretty nice builds at the Club Racer Reunion event so I had plenty of cars to choose from, but I wanted a car that really ‘popped’ against the orange glow of the setting sun. I had already shot a white car with Jose’s FK8 so it seemed only fitting to add some color to this photo set. Throughout the day, one of the cars that immediately caught my eye was John Tran’s S2000. Like Jose’s Civic, it had also once been white but he recently had the entire car wrapped in a very vibrant red/orange vinyl. I normally am not a huge fan of vinyl-wrappped cars but I do appreciate them a great deal when they are done right. Sometimes the wrap can just look a little flat where you can tell its obviously not paint but John Tran’s S2000 looked fantastic. At a glance you couldn’t even really tell. Add to that a good collection of aero and a wheel/tire combo that helped the car sit just right. John pointed-out that his front splitter had been damaged from racing throughout the day which caused it to sag a bit. I told him it was okay because it is a race car after all and nobody expects it to be perfect. Some battle damage would actually add to the aesthetic of the car anyway and people wouldn’t be credible to say that it was just a ‘show car’ on the track merely for photos…
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Jose Mejia’s FK8 Civic Type R From Club Racer Reunion Weekend…

Jose Mejia’s FK8 Civic Type R From Club Racer Reunion Weekend…

Originally I had planned to just include this in the Club Racer Reunion Weekend coverage being that it was all shot on the same day at the same time but the more I thought about it, the more I felt that these photos should get their own separate post. I know many of you who have followed me through the years may be a bit surprised to see Jose’s FK8 CTR on my site because of his association, but I already let bygones be bygones so long ago that its hardly even an issue. For those who know what I’m talking about—it’s old news. I’m just here to enjoy cars. Even if there were an issue, it wouldn’t really be Jose’s fault because he wasn’t necessarily involved in any perceived ‘drama’ that had happened in the past…
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Updates on the TSX Summer Project Car…

Updates on the TSX Summer Project Car…

Some updated photos of the TSX summer project after the first initial test drive since it was put back together (kinda). No E-brake but it’ll go back in, ride height is set and just needs to be aligned, engine bay is most situated with the loudest intake ever, and the interior is basically what it’ll be until it is resprayed. Andrew, the owner of the TSX, recently picked up a lip kit for it and eventually a carbon fiber hood and trunk will find its way on here whenever it gets here. Also installed the new Hybrid Racing CL7/9 shifter unit thanks to Battlecraft. Yuta’s goal is to hit 2500lbs (1134kg) and we will have a better idea where the weight is at when the car is aligned…
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