The Round Six Podcast

The Round Six Podcast


Pillow Talk with Max Fish

August 03, 2018

MAX FISH DROPS IN ON THE PODCAST


Episode twenty-one swims far into the mind of Max Fish, renaissance man. Known far and wide for his engineering and design prowess in the world of air suspension design (heck, he's writing THE book on the subject), he's also an accomplished builder, painter and artist in his own right. Hosting one of the most entertaining feeds on social media, he's the kind of guy who can tickle your brain in the most fascinating of ways, and we spent an evening talking all manner of things.


THINGS COVERED IN THIS EPISODE:



  • Neil DeGrasse Tyson and the 2-link
  • Working as a "boutique-style" shop
  • The genesis of The Air Suspension Design book
    – Humble beginnings with a Street Source and "Ask Max"
    – His column in MiniTruckin' (ties to former guest Mike Alexander)
    – From notebook to complete book
  • Inspiration from a tattoo sketch book
  • Going from stock to "more stock"
    – A non-racing suspension book
    – Notes on where the book is at, completion-wise
  • Teaching the engineering of suspension design
  • Growing up as a "yard sale" of a kid
    – Dad had a long list of hobbies
    – Groomed to figure things out
  • Escape From Anza... to Hemet
  • On wanting to be a mechanic
  • The difference between "stocker" and "stalker" explained
  • Turning down a job on a race team to work at Target, and the reasons why
  • Owning a shop
    – Partnerships, going it alone
  • The joys of driving a slammed VW and living on a dirt road
    – The recurring theme of BMX to VW's and minis
  • Timeless design
    – Working to honor history, yet redefine it
  • Cadzilla as inspiration
  • Design by the eye
  • The importance of the eye over the tape measure
  • Growing up next to Dick Dean's shop
  • Friendship with Larry Watson
  • Baffling the paint experts
  • Getting into the arts
    – Painting as an escape from car overload
    – The Brewery in LA
    – Fine Art and Lowbrow
    – The joy of juxtaposing elements
    – Letting go and just creating for the sake of pushing the envelope
  • Drop spindle talk
  • The proliferation of the Pinto/Mustang II suspension
  • Grade-8 nails (left-hand thread, naturally)
  • The Dunning-Kruger effect and cognitive bias in 2-link people