Here is Larry's bio from his website:
Hi, I'm Larry, and I'm a classic bike, FREAK. I'm not only a painter, but an enthusiast, too. I live in Spokane, WA and for over 35 years I've been riding, racing, restoring, living and loving motorcycles. Making them beautiful, is just a bonus. Even though Japanese bikes are my forte'.. nothing is off limits. I'll gladly paint American, British, Italian, and European bikes with the same passion and quality. Contemporary paint jobs and repairs are also more than welcome.
I've won Best in Class with every bike I've ever shown over the course of three decades. My 1976 Honda CB550F Super Sport has been featured as an "American Flyer" in Cycle World Magazine. It was also part of Cycle World's display at their International Motorcycle show in Seattle, and, undoubtedly my proudest moment, placed in the prestigious Legend of the Motorcycle show at Half Moon Bay, south of San Francisco in 2008. Just being invited was a great honor, but to ride up to the podium was a dream come true. My 1979 Suzuki GS1000S was featured in issue #2 of Moto Retro Illustrated magazine. Editor, Mitch Boehm, likes it so much, that I'll do a clone for him, plus I recently finished a project bike for one of his writers, Dexter Ford. A 1982 Kawasaki GPz 550. Look for the final results in an upcoming issue. I'm really excited about the GS being featured in the December 2010 issue of Cycle World.
Lots of people can paint, but you can always expect a show-quality, concours paint job, so much of which is in the prep and the finish work. If just "good enough" is not in your vocabulary, and you want a bike that truly stands out in a crowd, then by all means, you need Meticulous Motorcycle Paint. Thanks for looking!
Check out the gallery on his website for some examples of his work. Also check these threads for more examples:
My '83 1100E
Chuck's Skunk
Bruce's Cooley
Larry's Cooley-all paint, no decals!
Now that we have established that he knows how to paint I'd like to comment on the rest of my paint experience. From my first phone conversation with Larry it was clear that he is 100% passionate about his work. Besides knowing how to paint he is very helpful with picking colors and schemes. He always had time to answer any questions I had and was willing to offer his opinions regarding any design thoughts I had. He was always available by both phone and email. He kept me posted on the progress of the project and sent pics as it progressed. Our conversations usually wandered outside of the realm of the paint job to classic bikes, superbike racing, and even dogs. (Larry is a dog lover and that alone says a lot about him to me).
So, besides being a supremely talented painter, Larry is also a fantastic guy. I truly enjoyed every minute spent dealing with him during my project. If I ever need any painting done he will be the first and only person I will contact. I look froward to the opportunity to work with him again. The satisfaction I got when I opened the box containing my body work was well worth every penny spent.
Thank you Larry!
Joe
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