As Australia continues to grow its minitruck community, the demand for custom work and parts is on the rise. What started off as a small underground community-that was everyone for themselves and all that could be done was any mod you could accomplish on your own in your shed-has grown into an industry. There are many shops up and down the East Coast of Australia, doing everything from suspension and paint to interior and stereo work. This has substantially increased the quality of rides built, and in the last few years, a few shops have made names for themselves. We got a chance to check out Adjustable Suspension Components (ASC), the Chop Shop, and Living Low Customs (LLC), which are all hard at work building some of the baddest rides down under. For more information, contact the companies listed.
The Chop Shop began as Australia's premier chopper builders, called the Chopper Shop. Featured on the Discovery Channel Biker Build Off, as well as a host of famous Chopper builds and magazine features, Laurie quickly became a master fabricator and started working on trucks and hot rods. Before long, he partnered with his old boss to start the Chop Shop as the automobile side of the business. After he was booked solid with plenty of business, Laurie was approached by some friends who wanted to open a parts retailer (ASC). So, before they all knew it, they had a full-service one-stop minitruckin' shop. You can book an installation, go next door to buy your kit, and choose all of the upgrades and extras you need. Having it all in one place is really handy. It also means together, with the Chop Shop and ASC, there isn't much that can't get built on-site.
Name: Chop Shop
Owner: Laurie Starling
Number of Employees: Three employees and growing. Laurie, Linden "Babyface," and helpers
First Featured Vehicle: '97 Chevy fullsize, and Laurie's under-construction Chopa
Event: Annual Chop Shop and ASC (NC and ST) Cruise, Meet and Open Day at the shop every year.
Website: www.myspace.com/chopshopaustralia
Talk about badass! | 
Yes, you can still get a chopper built at the Chop Shop. |
They do it all: muscle cars, hot-rods, minitrucks, you name it. | 
Laurie owns and operates the Chop Shop, and he still knows how to get dirty. |
(From left to right): Greeny from ASC, Laurie from the Chop Shop, and Ching from ASC. | 
Office decorations of some custom shops are as cool as they come. |