I'm into everything Cars, Architecture and Design. I was Born in 1972 in San Francisco. In 1986, I was into breaking, graffiti, and djing. I've worked for agencies for almost a decade, worked for big brands like Gap and most recently was the Global Digital Lead for Nike Sportswear. I founded Fatlace in 1999 and create things.

Transit »

Drift Car Buildup Part 3 – Relocating The Harness.
March 8, 2009 – 10:40 am | One Comment | submitted by mark fatlace

One thing to consider when you’re building a drift car is your stance. There’s a huge price to pay when driving and drifting low with 18″ wheels in a S14. The wiring harness. It’s the one thing that you wont know is deteriorating until it’s too late. Running 18’s up front will eat away at the harness and next thing you know, the electricals in the car go haywire. Here’s a few steps to going at this the right way.

Daniel, who works at Fatlace, and is an avid drifter did the rewire for me a few years ago. I noticed it when I couldnt pop the hood one day and found out it was happening.

Here’s the steps.
-take dash apart
-unplug everything
-stuff it through the hole that the wire passes through from the fenders
-route it back to the front of the car
-pass it through the engine bay
-stuff it back into the hole (you’re gonna have to make the hole bigger, use tin snips or a vise grip)
-route it back to the dash board and plug everything back
-put dash back together
-use some sort of caulk or build a cover for that hole where the harness passes through
-since the harness is only so short, you will have to lay the harness on top of your driver side strut mount (don’t worry cause the hood wont crush it).

Don’t worry, it looks crazier than it is. Just remember to put all the screws in a box.

Tore up, just a bit but salvageable.

Pulling it through the engine bay.


Transit »

How To Build A Drift Car? Part 1 & 2
March 7, 2009 – 7:49 pm | 4 Comments | submitted by mark fatlace

So the next few post are going to be about how to build a drift car the right way without having to go back to the drawing board and restarting your build. Building something fast is cool if you have the money but even if you do have the money, alot of times, parts arent in. So, here’s a few tips on building something and without having to look back and say, dammmmm, I wasted alot of money.

Lesson 1. You will be spending 4x more than you think you will be on a build. You’ll think you want to go cheap but really, don’t do it. You’ll have your subconscious talking to you while you’re driving down the road about to clutch kick. This is where you should be concentrating and not thinking of why you bought that generic tie rod off ebay to save 50 bucks.

Step 1. Buy a car. Something RWD. Something Clean. Something you will be proud of.

In this case, we’ll be using my build since it’s a drift car I documented from Day 1. Here is a 1995 Nissan 240 / S14 is the code. I bought it for 5000 bucks in 2004. No dings, 5 speed, Leather seats, super clean.

Step 2. Lower it. Here you can see nothing has changed, It’s the same car but with a better stance. Of all the 25 cars I’ve fixed up, my step 2 was always suspension. I picked up a set of HKS Hipermax 30way adjustables because at the time, there was no comparison. It was the best and I got a great deal on them.

As far as camber adjustment, lets just say It’s maxed out, old school drift style.

Next up: Wire Tuck, 5 Lug, & Exhaust


Design »

KCDC' Tribute to 90’s Skate
March 7, 2009 – 6:10 pm | Comments Off | submitted by mark fatlace

Jessica’s got a cool post on skateshop KCDC’s tribute to 90’s Skate. Pretty cool to have grown up with a bunch of guys that are now owners of the better skate companies out there.

kcdc13


Transit »

Japanese Art Trucks
March 6, 2009 – 10:56 pm | 2 Comments | submitted by mark fatlace

I will do one of these one day.


News »

Kwame X Master Ace X D-Nice
March 6, 2009 – 1:04 am | One Comment | submitted by mark fatlace

I clicked to see what d-nice was up to after seeing Omar’s post on The Homeless MC and noticed Kwame was featured as well. This man single handedly moved a nation with his trademark Polka Dots. I remember Hilltop Mall was full of people wearing Polka Dots from head to toe. I, in fact, had some Polka Dot socks to match my baggy ass button up. In this edition of True Hip-Hop Stories, Kwame discusses the making of his hit recording “The Rhythm.”

Master Ace was another big inspiration while growing up. His beats hit hard and was one of the records you would save to get the party really jumping. In this edition of True Hip-Hop Stories, Masta Ace discusses his role in creating the classic Juice Crew recording “The Symphony”.


News »

Laika Studios, AJ5XAF1’s & The Blazers
March 4, 2009 – 11:18 pm | Comments Off | submitted by mark fatlace

We had a chance to visit the Laika Studios and since photos weren’t allowed, here’s the door. :) If you’ve seen the movie Coraline, Laika Studios created it using stop motion, 3d and a whole bunch of other effects. The place was amazing and the work they do is outstanding. I’m excited to see what, if any, work comes out. From what Heppler says, “that wasn’t even the dope location”, which means their Hillsboro location is 3xDope.

We headed to the Blazers game after meeting with the Laika folks. The game again, was amazing. They won and we were handed a Free Chalupa coupon. Bruce and the Guys were checking out the Blazer Girls.

Check out this AF1 X Jordan 5 Colab.