Jonesboro, AR — (JonesboroRightNow.com) — July 2, 2025 — A City of Jonesboro Code Enforcement employee by day, 50-year-old Blake Nichols runs his own business on the side: making 1/64 size model cars of Jonesboro vehicles.
Nichols makes model cars of various government and company vehicles, including local law enforcement, EMS, Lowe’s, and City of Jonesboro vehicles. All cars are made in a room in his home, where he keeps all his tools, paint, stickers with different Jonesboro agency logos, and a miniature city whose streets are bustling with his model vehicles.
Nichols began making model cars after he tore his ACL in 2016. As a result of the injury, he was off work for a few months and saw people on social media collecting toy cars like Hot Wheels and Matchbox. He made a few vehicles during this time, but the idea of putting a Jonesboro twist on his work didn’t happen until he attended Citizen Police Academy (CPA) in 2019.
“During CPA class, I thought ‘Man, I could make little JPD cars,'” Nichols said. “I really started making them for myself at first.”
After he made a few cars, he started by giving them away to some Jonesboro police officers. Nichols still gives away free cars at Jonesboro D.A.R.E. events, CPA graduations and other city events.
However, his wife, Melissa Perrin-Nichols, encouraged him to begin selling the cars. He said he sold his first one to JPD chaplain Don Blackmore at a “really good deal because he was my first-ever customer.” From there, the business, called Nichols & Dimes 1/64 Customs, grew.
“I started out with police cars, then I kind of branched out to do CWL (City Water Light) and I’ve done some little Hytrol vans, and I’ve tried to do different stuff besides the JPD cars to reach out to people,” Nichols said.
Making a model car takes about two days, Nichols said, with the bulk of that time spent waiting for paint to dry. Old paint on the base toy cars must first be stripped before it is repainted with the vehicle’s actual color. From there, stickers with the agency’s logo are cut and stuck on the car, completing a model Jonesboro vehicle.
He can be a perfectionist about his model cars, Nichols said, often redoing paint jobs and making sure little details like rearview mirrors match their real-life counterparts. He gets the bases for the cars at different toy resale websites.
Nichols said while the business helps fund his model car collecting hobby, he also uses it to spread the word of God. His business logo, which his wife made, features the cross and he often posts religious messages on his business’s Facebook page.
“I’m a Christian guy, so I really try to put that in with my stuff. It’s really the basis of everything,” Nichols said. “Without God giving me these talents, I couldn’t do it, so it’s really a big part of my little business I put in.”
One of the biggest things since starting this business was noticing how it has inspired members of the Jonesboro community, which he said he realized while selling his cars at a JPD car show a few years ago.
“I had this mom and dad and this little boy that came up. He came and he saw my cars and he really liked them. The next year I did the car show; he came up to me and the parents were like ‘You inspired him to make little cars,'” Nichols said. “That just kind of gives me chills ’cause I gave someone a talent. They saw my talent and they’re like ‘Well, I can do stuff like this.'”
To contact Nichols, email him at nicholsanddimescustoms@gmail.com or through his business’s Facebook page, Nichols & Dimes 1/64 Customs.
