Electrifying custom paint jobs shell out ‘pow’ factor

BRANSON MO NEWS:
By Susan Welte/Herald Staff Writer

At the 31st annual Ol’ Marais River Run car show last weekend, you couldn’t miss Bill McGaughey’s 1937 orange tangelo Chevrolet Coupe.
In the last year alone, the car has racked up 25 awards, including first place at World of Wheels in Kansas City, Missouri. Recognition has extended anywhere from Best Paint, Best Interior toBest in Show. At 2015’s River Run, 2,200 cars were on display, but McGaughey’s ‘37 Coupe was awarded as one of the Top 10 cars. The color is identical to his wife’s 1967 Chevy Nova, which inspired him to mimic it.
“Something about that Coupe just pops, it looks good,” McGaughey said. “The color just has a ‘pow!’ Plus, you don’t see too many Coupes.”
McCaughey has owned and operated Mr. Bill’s Body Shop in Freeman, Missouri, for 37 years.
“I’m kind of a motorhead,” McGaughey said. “I buy them, then recondition them, and then sell them…I stay pretty busy out there. A lot of times, seven days a week, I’m out here.”
The custom paint jobs are all completed by McGaughey.
“I’ve done a lot of classic cars from living out of my home, I have two big garages,” he said. “I’ve been doing that for over 35 years. I’ve done a lot of street rods, a lot of custom colors. I do all the flames, plus I do a lot of wholesale work, too, for dealers.”
Wholesale work, such as repairing bumpers or fenders for dealerships, is his “bread and butter,” he said.
“That way, money comes in every week,” McGaughey said. “But restoring cars, that may take me two to three months to do. It takes a long time to get your money back. You’ve gotta put out labor and different parts, …