I Am CRAFTSMAN – Dwayne Jacintho

Passion. Pride. Craftsmanship. These three words mean a lot to many people, but there are a few who take their craftsmanship and their passion for the automotive industry to build pride on a whole new level. These stories profile real automotive enthusiasts who have used CRAFTSMAN tools to create something special, or for someone special. If you are one of these amazing people, please contact me on Instagram @chrisduketv and share your story and photos with me so I can write about you next. Here is my first story.

I hear it time and time again that most people learn about how to work on vehicles from their father. I’m no exception, as I enjoy being able to teach my daughters how to do things themselves, whether it’s plumbing, home repair, computers, or automotive. It doesn’t matter. To teach my daughter how to change the brake pads of one wheel and then to sit back and watch her do the other three is not just incredibly rewarding to myself, but to her and the rest of my family as well. I see the value. I see the rewards. I feel the pride.

This is where my first “I am CRAFTSMAN” story begins.

Aloha. Welcome to the beautiful island of Maui, Hawaii. I’ve been there twice, as well as Kauai once and Oahu several times. I met a kind gentleman named Dwayne Jacintho this past March, but not during a visit to Hawaii… rather through social media. Instagram, of course. This is an amazing story unto itself, actually. The population of Maui is 144,444. Compare this to the state I live in, California. Its population is a stark contrast: 40 million. Dwayne wanted to bring more exposure to his mini hot rod project vehicle he was working on for his daughter. He turned to social media as a result. He wised up quickly to the fact that he could reach more people than a single island… more like a global online population of over 1 billion active users on Instagram. Somehow, we found each other. I loved what he was up to and wanted to share it to the world.

Dwayne has a beautiful 6 year old daughter named Victoria. She’s a cutie-pie, and just like her Dad, loves cars. He had the idea of building something special for his daughter… a 1934 Ford truck. At the time when he started this project, she was 4. Hardly an age for driving a classic Ford truck, let alone anytime in her years to come. So, he decided to downsize it. Significantly. He shrank it down to her size, while still maintaining its adult-sized specs. The body was shortened by approximately 20″, narrowed by 12″, and the main cab shortened by another 12″. The car itself is only 8′ long and 5’6″ wide. “The main portion of the body is knee high at best,” he told me.

Powered by a supercharged twin-cam Harley engine, this is no kiddie car by any stretch of the imagination. “It’s an extremely high end custom,” Dwayne said. It’s built so that a small adult and child can fit in it, which gives Victoria a lot of time to grow and drive this hot rod. “There is an auxiliary hand-operated hydraulic brake, and there is also a two step rev limiter,” he explained. “In order for it to exceed 1,200 RPM you have to put in a second key.” Sounds like a Hellcat’s red key vs. black key to me!

“I also have a shifter lock so it can’t go past first gear, limiting the top speed to about 15 MPH with the rev limiter on.” Beyond that, this “kiddie car” has been calculated to hit speeds 10 times that… to 150 MPH or more!

But this isn’t just a downsized hot rod Ford truck. Nope. Not at all. It’s custom in every sense of that word. While everything was built by the hands of Dwayne and his CRAFTSMAN tools (along with a lot of help from Victoria), he had some help from a local welding shop and others that were supportive and caring. For example, the front axle is a one-off billet aluminum design created by the TV show “Titan American Built” and has Victoria’s name machined right into it. Dwayne and his family were featured in an episode, and it’s a great story to watch (watch it here). Dwayne created the axle and Titan American brought it to life!

I know my passionate car guys and gals reading this want to know more specs about this ride. So let’s geek out for a moment, shall we?

• The chassis is polished 316 stainless
• Motor is a Harley Davidson 95 cube twin cam
• It has a Magna Supercharger set at 10 lbs of boost
• Weber 48mm IDA downdraft
• Two Fogger NOS system
• Dynatek ignition and a 2 step rev limiter
• Ron Francis wiring
• Dual Viair compressors
• One-off Dakota Digital cluster with multiple modules as well as fan controllers for 3 fans
• Air ride suspension with 5″ of travel
• CNC billet axle
• Hyper Racing suspension parts
• Borgeson Billet steering box
• Tilton oil pump running an auxiliary oil system
• Peterson fluid dry sump tank
• Fragola fuel and oil fittings with PTFE line
• Wheels are 10″ bead-locks. 4×10 front 13 wide by 10″ diameter rears
• Hoosier 19 diameter X 13 wide slicks
• CNC brake pedals and front and rear aux hand controlled brakes
• Headwinds headlights and billet tail lights
• Cone Engineering stainless exhaust

Dwayne admits, there are a few things missing from this list… but you get the idea. He and his family are extremely passionate about this vehicle. It’s a one of a kind hot rod that has received a one of a kind type of love.

As Dwayne also admits, in order to build something as special as this for his daughter Victoria, it takes a lot more than just craftsmanship, passion, and pride. It’s that love factor I just mentioned. Building an incredible machine such as this for his (now) 6 year old daughter is risky. It must be done right. There are no exceptions. It takes the right tools. Looking around his shop at his Maui home reveals his personal passion for a brand seen everywhere: CRAFTSMAN. Tools, tool boxes, work benches, the whole deal.

“I have been building cars for almost 30 years… since I graduated from high school,” Dwayne told me. “I am self-employed, doing excavation work. Our parents bought CRAFTSMAN tools and when I could afford to buy tools, it was always CRAFTSMAN. I can honestly say that as an excavation contractor who has done wild and crazy automotive builds, it’s always been CRAFTSMAN. I have always been passionate about my builds. My first full frame off build was when I was 21. It was a 1931 Ford Victoria. This is where Victoria got her name. She was named after the first street rod that I built. It sat on a TCI frame running a 1990 TPI (Tuned Port Injection) motor. The car had clear acrylic floors. It was built back in 1992 and was a real show stopper!”

At this point, Victoria’s ’34 Ford is about 75% complete. Dwayne is hoping to have it completed soon and perhaps find a sponsor to get it to Las Vegas to have it showcased as a featured vehicle at the SEMA Show.

“I am very passionate about what I am doing. I feel it is up to us as parents and the people in the industry to teach and educate our youth. If we don’t teach the younger generation, it will be forgotten over time. As technology moves forward, the basics of building and designing with your hands get less and less. Hopefully more will teach.”

Since I began chatting with Dwayne back in March of this year, he has sent me countless photos and updates. Mahalo! You can see them below in the photo gallery. Please check him out on Instagram @dwaynejacintho as he is constantly updating his feed with the latest photos of the Ford. I especially love all the cute photos of Victoria helping him out with it! I can’t wait to see where it ends up next, and hopefully meet him in Las Vegas at the SEMA Show this year. Maybe we can find an authentic Hawaiian plate lunch and sushi! If not, Maui here I come!

If you have an amazing CRAFTSMAN story to share, please contact me through Instagram @chrisduketv. In addition to the exposure of an article like this, you will also receive a special gift directly from CRAFTSMAN. I’d love to hear your story.