It was the early 1970s and I became aware of the custom car and hot rod scene from such magazines as Custom Car. I was immediately drawn to the wild colours, graphics and especially the airbrushed murals.

After leaving school I went to Dundee Art College where I got my hands on an airbrush for the first time and took to it like a duck to water. In 1981, after 4 happy years, I achieved a Bachelor Of Art degree in Graphic Design.

After leaving Art College, my airbrushing was just a hobby, with me working at various jobs through the week to make a wage and painting murals, graphics and lettering, for friends, at weekends and evenings for pocket money.

In 1986 I grabbed the bull by the horns and started my own business with the aid of a grant through the Enterprise Allowance Scheme. For many years I travelled to customers premises and worked in a variety of garages and sheds, some of which were badly lit and freezing cold.

I had a few different vehicles to do my travelling, one of which is still spoken about today…a Mk2 Escort van, mildly customised and painted in the traditional hot rod scheme of black and flames.