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A metal fabricator’s love of the Ford Bronco

How the lifelong love of the classic truck led to a new aftermarket fabrication business

2021 Ford Bronco

A love of the Ford Bronco led Nick Martin of North Carolina job shop Barnes MetalCrafters to not only chase a lifelong passion of owning different generations of the classic truck, but also to start a side business focused on fabricating aftermarket parts. Images: Nick Martin

Everyone remembers their first car. You probably had a pine tree air freshener or a pair of fuzzy dice so you could try to look or smell cool, or maybe even a loud stereo system to sound cool. Some people don’t realize it, but that may have been the beginning of what is called the “mod bug,” or the temptation to constantly modify your vehicle. I definitely had the bug, but I never had the money or motivation to do the things I wanted to do.

Maybe that is my personal flaw, as I do get discouraged and unmotivated quite easily. But one thing that has always sparked my interest or got my motor running is aftermarket auto parts and how they can change the look, feel, and functionality of vehicles.

My first vehicle was a 1990 Ford Bronco II. I lived right next to a national forest and the roads were quite muddy most of the year. I did some off-roading, or mudding, all the time in that little Bronco II. I almost became obsessed with the feeling of leaving the pavement, so much so that I had to have an older 1966- 77 Bronco. The thought of that body style was constantly in my brain. We ended up finding a 1967 Bronco from my dad’s friend. It was an old farm vehicle and I test drove it in a muddy field. Three on the tree and I loved it!

My dad and I made some upgrades to both of the vehicles. I learned a great deal about cars and trucks and ended up with a lot of knowledge that can’t be taken away. Making a vehicle better is very rewarding, especially if you don’t have to pay someone else to do it.

The first mesmerizing experience that will forever be etched in my brain came when I saw an ad for BF Goodrich tires. It showcased a classic Ford Bronco painted green in front of a green forest. I used to stare at the magazine cutout I had hanging on my wall, trying to visualize what could be done to my vehicle. Reading countless magazines helped me learn about all sorts of things I didn’t have access to locally. Little did I know that my 1967 Bronco and the 1990 Bronco II would be my gateway to a passion that wouldn’t come to fruition for another 15 years.

Fast-forward to 2012 when I purchased a new Ford F-150. One thing that bothered me was the big hole in the front bumper. Now that I had a much wider skill set than when I was in high school and access to very nice equipment, I knew I could make something for it. I made a bumper grille insert and decided to make a few extras. I put them on eBay and sold them within a week. I was floored! We had some extra material, so I decided to make five more this time. I got some powder-coated and the others I left with a No. 3 finish. I sold them all.

It dawned on me that I might be on to something here. I asked family and friends to throw around some names of a company that this could be called. Personally, I wanted “mountains” in the name. I used to live in the mountains, and then I went to work with my dad doing metal fabrication. I came up with Mountains2Metal (M2M). My dad, Tim, and I are both Martins, so I liked the idea and the synergy that Mountains2Metal could bring to Barnes MetalCrafters.

I began selling more of these parts for the F-150 and then had a request from a local customer, Downeast Offroad, to make one for the Chevy 2500. I was under a time crunch and had the bumper only for a couple days. I dropped everything I was doing and designed a set of brackets for this truck and a nice bumper grille insert. I took pictures, wrote instructions, and came up with a hardware bag. We had another product. I threw them on eBay and started selling them.

We decided to start a Mountains2Metal website and really struggled to do any business online. The growing pains were real, and we couldn’t sell products if we didn’t have them in stock. My co-workers looked at this product line as more of a personal thing than a company product. I had several talks with my dad about how hard it was to move these parts through the shop. We ended up talking with the employees and told them we needed to treat M2M like a customer.

A lot of people helped get Mountains2Metal off the ground. I used to take parts home and my wife helped package them, or I brought home several boxes of nuts, bolts, and washers so she could bag them up for me. There weren’t enough hours in the day.

 2021 Ford Broncoa and 1994 Range Rover

Nick Martin's 2021 Ford Bronco parked next to his 1994 Range Rover Classic.

Growing any company is difficult. There are so many things that fall between the cracks, and having people that will help keep all the balls juggled in the air is hard to keep a grasp on. I learned a lot about customers and how tricky or annoying that can be. I have to admit that all customers are not nice. That is a story for a different day. Trust me, I have a lot of them.

While I was building Mountains2Metal, I was also working on modifying a 1994 Range Rover Classic. I’ve always wanted a Land Rover, although my heart will always be in a Bronco. The Land Rover was a constant learning experience and battle. Over a few years, I changed out nearly all of the suspension, added bumpers and other off-road components, and even designed my own roof rack. I’ve taken it rock crawling in the Uwharrie National Forest several times and broken many things! Engine problems led to a blown head gasket and then another one within 1,000 miles. I decided to drop a 6.0 Chevy LS motor in it. Overkill? Yes, hell yes. It has a lot of work left to be done, but it will rise from the dead soon enough.

While I was doing all these modifications to the Land Rover, Ford began making the news with word about bringing back the Bronco. I really didn’t think Ford would do it, but I had hope. Several months went by and sure enough, it was gonna happen!

I read everything I could about the Bronco. At times it was too much. People on the forums were beating subjects to death. (I hope some of them never buy a Bronco.) One thing I knew for sure was that I was going to get one come hell or high water. I had to have it.

I began talking to my dad about this and he didn’t seem too thrilled. One conversation that stuck out was when I was telling him about the Bronco and the things that could be made of metal. He said to me, “Sounds like there is a lot of opportunity out there for someone.” I didn’t know what to think, so I kinda just walked away.

I tried not to let that bother me because I was going to get one and use that motivation to bring about some more business. Fast-forward to SEMA 2019. My dad and I took a trip out to Vegas to learn anything we could and try to spread our name out there a bit. Ford was trying to hype the Bronco and had a really cool booth setup that would make any Bronco enthusiast drool. I know I did. I asked about the new Bronco and all I could get was a smile. Ford kept the Bronco prototype so far under wraps that no one was going to know anything about it. At least I tried. The most I could get out of anyone was that it would not disappoint, and that statement would surely come true.

We left Vegas motivated and ready. No one would give us the time of day since we were so small and new. If anything, that just added a little fuel to the fire.

I actually saw a copy of a bracket I designed sitting on a table in a booth. Come to find out, in the near future, Mountains2Metal’s design was copied by at least a dozen Chinese knockoffs. How do I know? I added a very large radius to the bracket on one corner that serves no purpose but to help the customer distinguish which side of the vehicle to put the bracket on. Makes ya feel really good.

Now the waiting game started, and Ford pushed the release of the Bronco back several times. I was OK with that. I started to see spy shots of the Bronco their signature white and black wrapped vehicles rolling around Detroit. Although the camo version of the Bronco was a little different with a few adventure-seeking Easter eggs hidden.

When the day came for the Bronco’s release, I was super-excited and ready to reserve one as soon as I could. Ford did a great job of showcasing the Bronco right before the floodgates of orders opened. I was ready, and then the website crashed! I stayed up a few hours trying to lock in my order with no luck. I barely slept that night. When I refreshed my phone the next morning, it worked! I reserved a Bronco. About 15 minutes later, my dad reserved one too. The waiting game was on.

Family in a 2021 Ford Bronco

The Martin family in Nick's 2021 Ford Bronco

I developed lists of products we could make and, more important, what we had the ability to make. My dad started showing some excitement. To be honest, the Mountains2Metal side of the business was starting to struggle. With COVID-19 issues bottlenecking the supply chain and sales dropping, we were getting a little worried while the anxiety associated with the Bronco was increasing.

I had several talks with my dad about how we were the little guys and the larger guys probably had a Bronco sitting on the shop floor. I was getting worried about getting any of our products on the market because of how much later we would get our Broncos. He calmed me down by asking me if we had any products on the market right now, who was going to use them. I agreed.

Now the waiting is all over. My dad ended up getting his Bronco about four weeks before I did. We were both extremely happy. My wife and kids were happy as well. I left the lot with the top down, and that feature has proven to be my kids’ favorite. They always want to ride in the Bronco. They were so excited on day one that they almost got me in trouble. I told them that they needed to tighten up or they were going to have to ride with their mom. She heard me and said she couldn’t be used as punishment. The Bronco has magical disciplining powers.

As far as aftermarket products go, we tried to hit the ground running, and we did. With that came several hurdles of keeping work flowing through the shop. The worst feeling in the world was having to work on anything besides the Bronco. You gotta do what you gotta do, though.

We didn’t make it to the SEMA show this year. I knew this was going to be the year of the new Bronco, and it was. I kept up to speed on social media and saw some really cool products on all of the custom Bronco builds. One thing that excited me was not seeing products we have on our radar to build. The aftermarket world is going to attack this market like hungry wolves. Everyone was and is expecting it.

We have a few products set to release in the next couple of weeks. I have to take deep breaths when I say that so I can keep myself calm. The Bronco makes me excited. I stopped into the local Ford dealership to talk to the Bronco specialist, Jason Tomchesson, and he said he was surprised I haven't done anything to my Bronco yet. I told him I would rather make it than buy it. Right now, I have to. I have been waiting for years to do this. If it takes a little while longer, I will be OK with that.

Now I find myself in the same position I was when I was 16, nearly 25 years ago, like I was staring at the classic Bronco painted green with a fresh set of BF Goodrich tires. Except this time, I am staring at my own Bronco, trying to figure out what is next. I feel refreshed and ready like I was purified in the waters of Lake Minnetonka.

I recently found myself sitting in a fold-out chair and drinking a cold beer in the garage. I began staring at the Bronco. It was like “Intensities in 10 Cities” and meditation at the same time. It felt good.

About the Author
Barnes MetalCrafters

Nick Martin

2121 Industrial Park Drive SE

Wilson, NC, 27893

252-291-0925