“Vegas Rat Rods” was Discovery Channel’s reality television series, featuring Steve Darnell and his crew from the Las Vegas-based custom auto shop, WelderUp, as they created some of the baddest Mad Max-style works of art out of old, dilapidated automobiles. The show premiered on 17 April 2014, and its fifth season was said to be scheduled for airing in the summer of 2020, but it didn’t push through. Many are wondering what happened, why it was canceled.

Meet the owner of WelderUp

Steve Darnell hailed from Montana; at the age of seven he learned how to drive a stick at his uncle’s ranch, as the workers would be at the back of a truck along with the hays to feed the cows. When he visited his grandfather in Utah, the old man would bring Steve along and sit him on his lap, letting him drive the truck. His father was said to be an ironworker who later established his own steel company called Economy Steel in Las Vegas.

Jim was a hard sell. https://t.co/eETWAWXh81

— Vegas Rat Rods (@VegasRatRods) July 7, 2017

Every summer, Steve would be at his father’s shop, and it was like being in school, as he learned from him and developed many skills through the years, including operating a forklift and other equipment, as well as fixing anything that was broken.

His first car was a 1973 orange Datsun; he mowed lawns to save enough money to buy a Redline bicycle that only had a frame and a rear wheel for $80. After he restored and customized it, he sold it for $300, and used the money to purchase the Datsun from a guy’s backyard. It had problems so he went to a junkyard whose owner gave him the parts he needed, knowing he was broke. Once it was fixed, he said he drove it every single day during his freshman year in high school, even without a license, and no matter how difficult it was as it had no power steering. He said there was nothing quite like being young and independent, of having the freedom to buy his own vehicle with his hard-earned money.

He made serious money out of fixing motorcycles and dirt bikes, as well as building and selling bicycles and go-karts. It was said that his first client was his wrestling coach in high school, who asked him to build a bike that he would give to his daughter at Christmas. Steve built one and it was said that it was passed down to the daughter’s own kids. Before he graduated from high school, he was buying, fixing and selling cars.

He worked for his father until 2001 or 2002 when he was ready to start his own business which he called WelderUp and offered services from welding farm equipment to manufacturing tractor parts. Before he knew it, he was also building rat rods at night for fun.

“Vegas Rat Rods”

How did it start?

It was six years later when he converted a 1928 Dodge into what he called the D-Rod, a six-cylinder twin turbo-charged diesel rod with over 700 horsepower.

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Steve described it as edgy and radical-looking, that when it came out in 2009, it grabbed people’s attention. The church was having a car show in its parking lot and informed him that he could do a burnout, which he did, captured on camera and uploaded onto YouTube. It went viral, accumulated millions of views in no time, and was even featured in Hot Rod Magazine.

Steve and his team later gave the D-Rod a badass makeover, adding more torque and turbo, and then re-named it The Destroyer in honor of his late grandfather, a World War II veteran who served aboard a destroyer, and engaged in nine battles. Back then, not many people understood what Staev was doing, and saw him as a mad scientist who bastardized those classic cars. Fortunately, there were those who appreciated not just hot rods but also rat rods, as the latter might look worn down or rusty in some and downright weird in others depending on the creativity of the makers, but they were made well.

A Canadian production company called Proper Television produced the reality TV series “Vegas Rat Rods,” and it ran for three seasons on Discovery Channel; the fourth season was produced by Discovery Studios. Steve’s vision and imagination went into the creation of one-of-a-kind rat rods with the help of his team: mechanic Merlon Johnson, welder/fabricator Justin Kramer, welder/fabricator/artist Travis Deeter, and artisan Barber Dave. Chase and Kash Darnell are Steve’s sons and they worked alongside the crew as mechanics, welders and fabricators, helping and at the same time mastering skills.

According to Steve, what sets them apart from other reality shows about cars is that they ‘don’t do drama, don’t do fake, and don’t do shiny and pretty.’ The premise of the show was that they search the ‘badlands for old bones and ghosts from the past’ and then breathe new life into them.

Initially, it was only aired on Discovery Channel Canada. but later when it became a hit, it was shown in the US. Steve was hoping that the show would inspire fathers and their kids to build their own rat rods and bond over them.

Vegas Rat Rods Famous Builds

The Joker Mobile

A client named Nick owned a Batmobile, and so he wanted to commission Steve’s team to build a Joker Mobile – it cost $75,000. Steve went in search of the perfect vehicle, and he found it somewhere in the desert near what used to be an 1860 pony express outpost. The owner sold him a 1930-31 Ford Model A Coupe for a couple of hundred dollars, with the trunk lid for free. Although the floor had rotted out, it was still considered a good find, as both doors were still there and the sheet metal on the outside was in good shape.

Vegas Rat Rods

Steve wanted it to be a badass villain car, something that looked evil. They chopped seven inches off of it, stretched the front axle to make it wider, and installed a big block chevy engine. They also put airbag suspension, roll cage, 44-inch rear tires, and gauges from a World War II aircraft. They then sprayed layers of teal green, pearl lime green, and candy emerald green to make it look nasty; his team finished it in three weeks.

Veteran Bike for Charity

The American Patriot Fest is held annually to pay tribute to troops both past and present as well as to raise funds for military-related charities. One of the organizers came to the WelderUp shop to ask Steve to build something that would represent the veterans, which they could raffle off to raise as much as $30,000.

They didn’t have a budget for it, so Steve said he would provide free labor and would then just ask around town for donations for the parts needed. Steve along with his sons went to Whiskey’s auto distillery as he and the owner used to share a shop for a couple of years with Steve always building something junky and the other guy something shiny. Whiskey donated a 1943 Harley flathead motor. The next place he visited was O School Choppers, with his old buddy, Adam, donating the rest of the bike parts.

Steve’s team assembled it, and had someone put laser engravings on some of the parts including names of vets on dog tags on the fork. He also asked Dave to put etchings on the frame and gas tank, making it look like a knife was used to carve onto it. To give the bike more personality, Steve made notches on top of the cylinder heads to represent the number of days his grandfather served during the war.

He described the bike as something that had a brutal war feel to it, making it seem like it had been through hell and back. After two weeks, it was revealed at the Harley-Davidson in Henderson, Nevada, and they had a big run to generate interest.

The Haunted Rod

Dorinda, a friend of Steve since they were young, came to the shop as she wanted something really creepy for a rat rod; she was into classic cars, ghost towns, and the paranormal. They agreed on an $83,000 price tag, with the car done in four weeks. Steve along with Merlon went as far as Victorville, California to get one that was said to be haunted. According to the owner named Joe, the 1955 Chevy came from the serial killer Charles Manson’s ranch in Death Valley. Anything associated with Charles such as a car that he might have driven was certain to have some ‘bad juju’ going on according to Steve. It was sold for $5,500.

Vegas Rat Rods

The car door opened then closed on its own as they were leaving the barn, and Steve had a thought that something might have jumped in, not to be left behind. He jokingly said that if it was a bad spirit, then he would just make it his buddy.

His team put in a brand new chassis, airbag suspension, 2015 Cadillac CTS-V motor, and all the modern upgrades such as air condition, power steering, and stereo. They painted it black, making it look like it was burnt, or that it came from hell. However, they encountered a lot of problems putting everything together, and it had computer issues as well. They were unable to finish it on time, but the client was satisfied with the result.

The Rose Rod

The General Manager of the shop named Joe, who was like a brother to Steve, has a two-year-old son who was diagnosed with cancer.

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When the WelderUp team learned about it, they converted a 1930 Ford Model A Sedan into a rod that looked like it had cancer at the front, and it spread until it reached the back where the car appeared brand new. The metal roses incorporated on it that were black and seemed lifeless got redder and healthier too. He was hoping that nobody would be offended by the car that his team built. It was just their way of expressing how they felt about what the boy was going through as he battled the disease. They wanted a car that would give hope and inspiration to those in the same situation.

The car was on display in the shop’s showroom and people loved it, even throwing money into it. Steve decided he’d put the money collected to good use by setting up a college fund for Joe’s son.

Interesting facts and rumors

A Batmobile was displayed at the WelderUp showroom.

New episodes of Vegas Rat Rods July 25th 10/9c US air date #vegasratrods @VonDeeter @barberdave13 @KramerWelderup pic.twitter.com/PhFCrG49Wp

— Welder Up (@WelderUpVegas) July 19, 2016

It was one of the 30 moulds of the original model made by the famous Hollywood customizer George Harris, whom Steve considered as the one of the forefathers of rat rods. The original Batmobile was a concept car and only one was made. It was sold for a dollar to George who took it back to his shop and transformed the Ford Lincoln Futura into a Batmobile in three weeks with the help of Bill Cushenberry for the 1966-1968 live-action TV show. Those who were familiar with Adam West as Batman would recognize this car.

Kelly Knievel, son of the American daredevil stunt performer Evel Knievel, asked his friend Steve to restore his father’s Formula One Dragster built in 1975, the only one of its kind, for the museum. Evel was known for his successful ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps, such as over 19 cars (125 feet) with his Harley-Davidson XR-750 in 1971 but he also used to pop a wheelie with the dragster in shows.

Steve said that Evel was his childhood hero for being the coolest guy out there. Kelly wanted to keep it as original as possible, so Steve and his team only fixed the engine, put in a new camshaft, parachutes, and mags, and then re-did the seat. When it was finished, Steve drove it and the front end popped up just like it did back in the day.

Steve produced the music video of the heavy metal band Five Finger Death Punch, as they did a cover of the 1964 classic “House of the Rising Sun,” by The Animals. It was set in a dystopian future similar to the Mel Gibson movie “Mad Max,” and the WelderUp team provided the vehicles that were used. It was said that even the sets and costume designs were created by the team. Steve had a cameo role as a gambler. The MV was released in 2014 and has amassed around 130 million views.

It was said that “Vegas Rat Rods” had to have a Canadian as one of its cast members, as it was produced by a Canadian company. As such, Grant Schwartz, Twiggy Tallant and Cheyenne Ruether were included in the show at one time or another.

Why was the show canceled?

The first time “Vegas Rat Rods” was rumored to have been canceled was after season three, as there was a delay in the airing of the next season. However, it happened due to a change in the production company handling the show. Discovery Studios produced season four, and Steve said that it was the best that they’d done, as they had become a lot freer.

The last show was aired in the latter part of 2018, and its loyal viewers were wondering why it was canceled. Having low ratings was the usual cause why TV shows were not renewed, but if that was the case, many believed that Discovery wouldn’t be interested in producing its fourth season. However, there were those who countered that the network didn’t foresee that not having one of the fan-favorites, Cheyenne, on the show, affected its ratings. Some thought production was only halted due to the restrictions brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, and that it would soon resume once everything was back to normal. Another theory that fans had was that Steve asked for a higher fee, or that he wanted to venture into other TV projects. With no official explanation, its fans continued to speculate.

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Meanwhile, people who were missing the show would be glad to know that Steve was still creating rat rods in a new video series called “WelderUp Make It Run Again.” He was joined by his mechanic Merlon as they scour for old, decommissioned vehicles, and bring them back to life. They repaired and modified the vehicles, and the process was broadcast live through their social media. They also created an auction page, as they let the viewers bid on it. WelderUp has its own YouTube channel with over 160,000 subscribers, and its videos have garnered nearly 14 million views.

The WelderUp offered self-guided tours of the showroom, where some of his rat rods were on display. Steve was also known for giving private tours to groups of people, as he explained about the cars and answered their questions. He was grateful to those who watched the show, and was willing to set aside some time for those who really wanted to know him and what went on at the shop. Those wanting to purchase their merchandise such as sweatshirts, t-shirts, cups, and welder 101 metal kit could also visit their store.

So it would appear that “Vegas Rat Rods” has indeed come to an end, or has it….?

The reality-television show “Iron Resurrection,” gave Shorty Ponce a platform to show his skills as a mechanic and a painter. The weekly TV show which premiered in April 2016 was part of the automotive series offered by Discovery Channel’s Motor Trend TV network.  For three seasons, viewers watched him and the Martin Bros Customs team bring back to life dilapidated, near-death vehicles of all sizes and types. The show went on a one-year hiatus in 2019, and when it was back on TV for a fourth season in 2020, fans were surprised that Shorty was no longer included in the cast.

Shorty Ponce before “Iron Resurrection”

There weren’t many specific details about Shorty’s growing-up years as he rarely talked about them. He was born Javier Ponce on 26 July 1964 in Mexico, and his family migrated to the US when he was four years old, seeking the American dream.

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Almost didn’t finish high school

He quit school when he was in seventh grade, because he found a job – his parents didn’t have a problem with that and were quite happy for him, as it was an achievement back in Mexico that a young kid would know more about responsibility early in life. The parish priest, who was close to the family because Shorty spent many years as an altar boy, came for a visit, and the young Shorty was quite excited to inform him about his good news. However, the priest was annoyed, and talked to his parents, telling them that they were no longer in Mexico, and needed to change their mindset.

The next day Shorty was back in school, but feeling bad about it until the school celebrated Career Week. He saw a brochure about an automotive school with a photo of a young kid looking under the hood of a car; he inquired about it and was told that high school graduates could have the opportunity to study in the automotive program; this was the main reason he finished high school, saying that the priest and the brochure changed his life.

Quit a good-paying job to open his own shop

He worked for a huge corporation for several years, and when he was 30 years old promised himself that he would start his own business by the time he was 33. Over the time he spent working for a company, he saw other skilled and loyal colleagues being replaced in their jobs when the younger generation went gunning for their positions. Shorty didn’t want to be in a situation like that, so made concrete plans to achieve a more solid future.

In 1997, a year after he left a well-paying job, he was struggling to make ends meet, especially since his wife was still in school at that time. While he was able to accumulate tools when he was still working for other people, it was still quite hard for him to pay the bills along with the expense of building his own business from scratch. He opened a company called Elite Autoworks Inc. while doing business as DBA Shorty Custom Paint. For a year or so, there were times when he questioned his decision because he was under a lot of stress, but at the same time felt good about the idea of not working for anybody else.

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To make new clients come to him, he slashed his service fee almost in half, which was harder in those days because business practice was that a quote would be given for the whole job, and many times it would turn out to be tedious and lengthy; now everything’s easier, as work would be billed by the hour.

Fortunately, there were some guys from a huge dealership Shorty previously worked for who approached him with an offer he couldn’t refuse. They sent him most of the work he did when he was still with them, and that was between 40 to 50 cars in a month, saying later that it was what basically helped him to pay for his shop and upgrade his standard of living. He also made sure to accept lengthy jobs on the side, such as restoration projects that would last six months to a year, depending on the client’s payment scheme, just to remain competitive and on top of the game.

In 2013, he slowly started to veer away from doing collision work, and focused more on customization.

Shorty's paint jobs are off the charts. ? pic.twitter.com/mnMuq7Y4Nl

— MotorTrend Entertainment (@MotorTrendEnt) October 14, 2018

By the time he was approached by Martin Bros Customs to do the TV show with them, he was more than ready for it, although he needed to talk to some of his clients first, since he could no longer work on the restoration projects as much as he used to. However, his clients assured him that they would wait for him to finish the job, even if it took longer than they initially agreed upon.

“Iron Resurrection,” the reality-TV show

The automotive-themed reality-TV series, “Iron Resurrection,” chronicled the significant transactions in the auto restoration and customization shop called Martin Bros Customs. They specialized in taking in those vehicles which seemed to be beyond repair, and turned them into something that could run again in the streets. The owner of the shop, Joe Martin, was also a master fabricator and mechanic; his wife Amanda along with Jayson “Shag” Arrington hunted all the barnyards and garages for the right vehicles to work on, and for those rare parts to complete a project.

The other main crew members were welder and mechanic Michael “Mike” Zabonic, and fabricator and paint specialist Shorty or Short Dawg.

Initially, some viewers thought that the premise of the show was similar to MTV’s “Pimp My Ride,” but after watching some episodes, they realized that it was far superior to that other show. The big difference was that in “Iron Resurrection,” the Martin Bros crew focused on working not only on the exterior of each car, but also spent the same amount of time under the hood, ensuring that the vehicle not only looked great, but its engine, brakes, suspension and all-important parts were in excellent working condition. It made its television debut in April 2016. and became one of the favorite TV shows aired on the Motor Trend streaming network.

A background on Martin Bros Customs

The automotive restoration and customization shop called Martin Bros Customs, located in the Texas Hill Country, was created when Joe Martin along with his brother Jason started working on motorcycles. It didn’t take long for them to hire extra people, as there were more jobs to take on as motorcycles were numerous.

Then in the fall of 2008, the US economy tanked with borrowers defaulting on mortgages that eventually caused havoc in financial markets, leading to the global great financial crisis, and recession. The shop downsized and a lot of employees were let go. Some of his friends came to lend a hand, and gave their services for free just so they could stay afloat until the economy stablised.

His three-year journey with “Iron Resurrection”

Joe Martin and his crew’s mantra each episode was that ‘they hunt the rusted wrecks, knock out the ugly, put in the cool, and turn those buckets of rust into street art.’

Shorty’s first episode with the show’s first build

Shorty’s appeared on the show from the first episode, entitled “Texas Two-Step”, featuring a restoration project on a 1962 Chevrolet C10 Shortbox Fleetside. The pickup truck was fully disassembled up to its naked frame, as it needed a lot of work to make it run again and look good at the same time. The cab was given a new 350 4bbl V8 paired with a fresh TH350 3-speed automatic transmission, tilt steering column, and power front disc brakes with custom air ride, along with a stunning interior including well-crafted custom seats.

Shorty

Following a sketch design drawn by Joe Martin, Shorty did his magic by sandblasting it meticulously, and then sprayed it efficiently with a two-tone House of Kolor paint from front to back.

The 1970 Chevy truck perfect black paint job

During the “Grim Reaper” episode in the second season of “Iron Resurrection,” Shorty was given the daunting task of painting black the cab of a 1970 Chevy truck. Shorty said that painting a vehicle in black especially the large panels was even more difficult, as every flaw in the bodywork would show, such as imperfect filler, dents, or waviness. He couldn’t stress it enough that when one chose the color black, one had to do whatever it takes to make it perfect, because it could make or break a painter’s reputation. The time and effort spent would be doubled as compared to a regular color paint job, as everything had to be done meticulously. However, Joe wasn’t worried because Shorty had tons of experience, and he did an impressive black paint job on the truck cab; the client was delighted with the result.

Never had a problem with the owner or any other crew member

Other automotive-themed reality-TV shows relied on scripted drama or staged scenarios with all the swearing, punching and yelling matches to gain higher TV ratings, but “Iron Resurrection” was quite different. The show became a favorite of gearheads, without having to resort to any gimmickry. Shorty said that he was lucky to be included in a show with good-natured people who possessed a great sense of humor, along with a calm and talented boss. They didn’t always have a perfect working day in the shop, but never experienced people shouting angrily at each other when a problem occurred. They butted heads when their opinions about how to go about rebuilding the vehicle clashed, but they always agreed to disagree. The viewers and TV insiders noticed how different the culture inside the Martin Bros Customs shop was compared to garages featured in other shows. Joe said that he always tried his best to keep his cool, even when he was frustrated, and it was a conscious effort on his part never to show any major negative reaction if things went wrong in the show. He was pretty much aware that the TV crew would automatically be on him, and he didn’t want the focus to veer away from the rebuilding process.

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Shorty created magic in an 82-year relic, a 1935 Chevy Master

In 2017, when a client dropped a 1935 Chevrolet Master with Suicide Doors in the shop, all crew members including Shorty were excited and impressed, saying that he rarely had the chance to work on cars that were made of wood and metal. Even Joe was transfixed with the rare beauty, since it was the first time that his shop had worked on that type of car – they called it the mafia-like gangster car. Shorty was fascinated that the doors were made with a system very similar to today’s screen doors; it posed a challenge for him, but he didn’t back down from it, saying that it was a learning experience for him. When it was time to paint the vintage car, Shorty got the right mix of color, that was quite close to the hue from a photo that the client provided. He initially sprayed the car in black so that they would use less paint of the final color, and would help to make the shiny root beer color pop out. When it was finished, Shorty said that if he had a tail, it would be wagging as the finished product looked phenomenal.

Iron Resurrection

The real reason Shorty quit “Iron Resurrection”

Everything was going great for the TV show, and so when the fourth season came out, many fans were disappointed that Shorty didn’t make a single appearance. At first there was no official explanation as to why, so there was a lot of speculations, as nothing seemed out of place during the airing of the third season, and even during their interviews at several car conventions and tradeshows that the crew attended in 2018, such as the annual Specialty Equipment Market Association or SEMA. “Iron Resurrection” had a high reputation for not having any personal drama, so people continued to wonder what happened between Shorty and the Martin Bros Customs owner.

Both Shorty and the producers of the TV show eventually addressed the many speculations about it, when fans kept on asking through several social media platforms. Apparently, Shorty felt he that needed to set his priorities right, most especially since he became a new grandfather at that time. His home along with his own shop was located in Austin, about a three-hour ride from the Martin Bros Customs headquarters where they filmed the episodes for the show.

He had to choose whatever was best for his family, and while he was heartbroken that he couldn’t continue to work with Joe and the rest of the crew, as he treated them as family, he said that it was time to be with his immediate family. For those fans who had been asking if he’s still friends with Joe as they had a good relationship onscreen, they wouldn’t be disappointed, as they continued to communicate. Joe perfectly understood Shorty’s situation and wished him luck.

Where is Shorty and what was he busy with after “Iron Resurrection”

Shorty opened his own shop once again, and started to accept clients; fans had been shocked that he closed down his business when he joined the TV show in 2016. His wife revealed that he was hands-on with everything that had to do with the shop, so if he wasn’t around, the shop would be closed. Shorty said he would be beside himself if he didn’t know what was happening, how the workers were faring without his supervision, because he was wired that way, but he could only work on his long-term car restoration projects during the months he wasn’t filming.

A year after he left “Iron Resurrection,” he was seen attending car trade shows, including the 2019 SEMA where a 1959 Chevrolet Impala was on display, a car rebuilt in his own shop,. It was painted in a seafoam green color, but Shorty tweaked it and called it Matte Green Shorty Special.

He’s now busy with his thriving auto shop, and can be seen participating in several car shows in the country, but mostly around Texas, and fans can access his merchandise from his website. Shorty never thought that he’d acquire a following when he became part of the reality-TV show, and has been overwhelmed by the continued support and love he received, even if he was no longer part of it.

Wanting to give back to the community that made him successful, he would now and then donate things that he worked on at his shop to be auctioned off so that the proceeds can help people in need of assistance, particularly during this pandemic. Then, fans will know that that’s Shorty!