Advice – “Someday I’m Going to Restore a Classic. A Dream Come True.”

By Robert A Bonsack

The dream of owning and restoring a classic auto is shared by many of us. Transforming that dream into reality can be filled with excitement, (some frustration) satisfaction, and success, or it can be a disaster. The difference often is how you go about planning, selecting, and carrying out your project

The purpose of this article is to share the experience of one dreamer (an amateur) who has completed several restoration projects and is still dreaming about the next one. Earlier projects involve vintage Fords; the current effort almost complete, is a 1956 Jaguar XK140 fixed head coupe. Based on these experiences, I will discuss the selection of your project planning to make your dream come true, how to get started and some lessons learned.

SELECTING YOUR PROJECT

Selecting your dream car has to go well beyond- ‘Gee, I always wanted one of those.’ True, long time love affairs have a lot to do with it but remember before you pick your car, you have an infinite choice of what you can bring home. Once you have it in the garage, you’re committed!

Here are some of the things you should consider before making the final choice:

What is Your Objective? Do you want a concours car to show? Do you want a fun car to drive around on weekends and in parades? Do you want to fix up, resell, and make a few bucks? Your objective will help focus on what to buy and how much you should spend.

Know Your Limitations: If you have a lot of skill and a lot of time, a basket case may be for you. If you are primarily a mechanic, maybe body and upholstery work will have to be farmed out, or you may want to buy a car that is cosmetically okay but needs mechanical attention. The author’s Jag needed mostly body and interior work, little mechanical, and he used about 500 hours over 1 1/4 years to complete the job. That’s about 2 weekends per month. Are you ready to give up some other things to do this? Your tool inventory and available funds are obvious considerations.

Read – Read – Read And listen, listen, listen: A lot has been written about auto restoration and anyone involved in classic cars loves to talk about it. You can learn a great deal from those who have gone before you; seek them out read, listen, and then form your own opinion as to what suits you best. Your final decision will come when you actually start looking and find the car that fits your dream- and your realities!

Select Your Car: This is one of the most exciting steps in your project- equal only to rolling your restored classic out of the garage for neighbors and friends to view your dream-come-true. Think about resale value- some models are much more popular than others; sometimes a year either way in age can double the value. Are parts readily available? Does the condition of the car match your skills, pocket book, and time budget?

If you’ve done your homework (and keep your head) when the right car comes along, you’ll know it. Go for it!

PLANNING YOUR PROJECT

The magic day has arrived! Your not-so-shiny dream is ready for rebirth. A love/hate affair is about to begin. Take time to do some more detail planning to assure you get started on the right foot Frustrations can come easily. See if you can outsmart them.

Read- Read – Read: Reread some of the material you’ve collected Get an owners’ manual, restoration books, parts lists, for the car you’ve purchased. Revisit some of the helpful folks you’ve met along the way.

Take An Inventory: Get acquainted with your car. Crawl in and under it take loose stuff out of the trunk, glove box, and from behind seats. Chip away some rust and scrape off some paint to reveal the secrets underneath. Start making lists and notes of what you discover about parts missing, things that don’t work, things that do work, non-original parts that should be replaced, and anything else you can think of.

Develop A Plan: Based on the condition of the car, decide on how you are going to tackle the job. Break the work down into major tasks and set up the sequence of work. Plan your work space, storage space for spare parts and disassembled pieces, and how the family car will fit in around it if necessary. Start making lists of tools and equipment needed and when you’ll need them. Set up an overall schedule, at least for the first few weeks or months. Set up a record keeping system to record costs, collect parts catalogs, important information on contacts, resources, and a diary, if you’re so inclined

Now its time to get your hands dirty. Let’s get started!

GETTING STARTED- FINALLY

With wrench, hammer, and WD-40 in hand you are about to dive in. Here are some thoughts to help you get off to a good start and avoid frustrations later.

Record Your Work: In addition to the pleasure and self-satisfaction of before and after photographs, a camera is invaluable to record how something looks before you take it apart. Take photos of complex or difficult areas so you can remember several months later how that thing went together. If a camera isn’t good enough (like with wiring) draw a diagram and file it for use during reassembly.

Brown Bag It: Keeping track of small parts, nuts and bolts, is critical if you want to avoid confusion and mistakes during reassembly. Go to your local hardware store and get a bundle of the smallest brown bags they use for bagging their merchandise. When you take something apart- like removing the left rear fender-put the bolts and washers in a small bag, label it with a felt tip marker (‘Left Rear Fender Bolts’) and note anything you need to remember (‘2 missing’). Staple it and store the labeled bags in a cardboard box and set aside for re-assembly time.

Dis-assembly Hints: In addition to bagging your parts, don’t rely on your memory for re-assembly. If there are more than one hole into which a bolt could go, like on the head liner bows in the Jaguar, use a large felt tip marker to circle the holes through which the screws go. If if s a hole in the dash or fire wall, circle the hole and mark what goes through it- wires, tubing, choke cables, etc If you’re going to paint over the area, you may need a diagram instead. Continue making notes to yourself as you dis-assemble so you won’t forget things later- ‘part A goes on top of part B’-‘Door hinge shims have slots facing inward- ‘Hold spring on left air vent needs replacing’- etc.

LESSONS FROM EXPERIENCE

These are some of the things learned from having been through projects like yours before, the things that can help assure your dream will become reality, and you’ll have fun doing it.

Don’t be impatient: A good restoration takes a lot of time, particularly when you’re doing it at night and on weekends. Pick a task- like remove, clean, and inspect all chrome parts- and stick with it until it’s done. Don’t jump around. You’ll forget things and waste a lot of time. By the way, when sending parts out for re-chrome, be sure to list them and have your supplier verify the list to be sure you get back everything you sent out

Check out your outside service resources before you give them work to do for you. If he’s a body man, look at some of his work on other classic cars to be sure he’s good. Get some references and talk to them. If you have an auto museum nearby, find out who does their work. Check prices too. Rates of $35 to $45 per hour are not uncommon. The more ‘shopping’ you do, the better off you’ll be. I took my wire wheels to a paint stripper before taking them to an alignment shop, only to find out the alignment shop would have stripped them for me as part of their service. I paid for it twice. If you are going to take parts to a stripper to clean off old paint and rust be sure you know whether the parts are aluminum or steel. My rear fenders came back with the brass edge strip loose because the aluminum rivets disintegrated in the stripping tank.

Choosing paint and colors is a major  decision. This largely depends on how authentic and original you want to be, and who is going to do the painting. Books on your car usually provide this information, at least for the more popular cars. To paint enamel, you need a spray booth. You can do lacquer in your garage and it’s much more forgiving if you make a mistake. The key to success in painting is preparation. Good body work, judicious use of bondo or lead, and lots of primer and sanding are key. If the primer isn’t perfectly smooth, the finish won’t be either. If you’re going for show points, bondo is a no-no; use lead. If you’re going to paint the car yourself, be sure your compressor develops at least40 P.S.I, pressure, and that you have a high quality gun- and use a lot of thinner to keep it clean.

If your car has wood parts- structural members, interior trim, or dash parts-chances are that screw holes will be worn out Drill these holes out plug them with dowels of the right diameter, and drill new holes. If new veneers are needed, Constantine’s, in the Bronx, New York, has an excellent assortment available at reasonable prices. Be sure to use good quality veneering glue and match grain patterns correctly.

Classic car restoration is fun, rewarding- and can be a dream come true. Before you commit yourself do some research, set your goals, plan the project and then go for it! Good luck- and enjoy!

Thanks to Robert A Bonsack of Costa Mesa, California for some sound advice. A $25.00 Moss Gift Certificate is on the way to help on his next ‘Dream’.