Just wondering how some people do them so fast

[bull]

Restorations, that is. I understand that I'm not the fastest worker in the world, and that some guys do this type of work professionally or semi-professionally, but I just don't understand how a guy can restore a Charger in 6-8 months without A: doing a half-assed job, B: deep, deep pockets and C: a team of helpers. More than once I've seen guys start with a rusted out Charger exoskeleton, pass me and 20 other guys with their project and have the thing on the road less than a year later. It's baffling and, to be honest, a little frustrating. What am I missing?

[Marck]

I know what you mean...
In my case it's a combination of several things, job, finances, ability ( or lack there of ) and family.. Got a 3 year old and another due in 3 weeks..
One thing is for sure, having to save money up for every item drags out the process a lot..

But I still have one of the baddest cars on earth in my garage and that picks me up when I get irritated or depressed about not being able to drive it...

[68blue]

Good question, I think it comes down to time, experience, and money. A lot of my time was waiting on things that I can't do or won't because of my limited skills or lack of a place to do the job.

[J-440]

  Crap I have been working on mine for the last 12 years.  Granted I could have had it finished to bone stock about 9 years ago but the performance level would not be where it is gonna be at now.  I also have not put one penny on a credit card!!

[RallyeMike]

I restored my Rallye in about 1/2 year, and at the same time I spent every weekend April to October running a stock car with my pal at the same time.  It all comes down to making use of your time. Every weeknight would involve coming home and straight to the garage for 4-5 hours of work. It's amazing what you can do when you stop watching TV and leave the beer in the fridge.

On the other hand I have a car that I have been tinkering on for 21 years. It's all about priorities.

[skip68]

I would go with "B"   
Money is a big factor and time.   

[Tilar]

 Crap I have been working on mine for the last 12 years.  Granted I could have had it finished to bone stock about 9 years ago but the performance level would not be where it is gonna be at now.  I also have not put one penny on a credit card!!

While that doesn't make the job faster, to me that one is BIIGGGG. I bought my 68 in Texas in 1986 for $400 and actually had to pay it out. I didn't do anything at all to it till 1999 when I bought all my interior stuff; Seat covers, door panels, everything right down to the felt/whiskers that rub the windows on the door.

10 years later I started buying more things and between 1999 and now I've spent probably 13k+ on things that I know that I'm going to need to do this project. Bad thing on my part is I have a base Charger... 318 with a 3 on the tree. Fairly rare in it's own right and even though I have a 1968 318, I don't have the original drive train and it's not what I want... So I'll build it to what I would have bought back in 68 were I the one with the checkbook. Unless I happen to run across a decent R/T that I might be able to trade mine for, it will end up as an R/T clone with a nice amount of options.

[westcoastdodge]

took me 6 years to do mine,finances are the biggest issue £16000 total (including the car and getting it from ohio to the uk)but is driving now the car was a basket case when i got it

[twodko]

Hey Bull,
Our situations are all different so don't beat yourself up for what you perceive as your resto "taking forever" compared to others. Some have the time, $$$$, space, skills and equipment to finish a car most ricky tic. Others keep plugging away at their cars and, I suspect, many enjoy the process more than the end result especially if they already have a driver. For me and others who have been lucky enough to acquire a rustfree well taken care of driver, it doesn't take long to get it finished and on the road. There are also those situations, like mine, where it was imperative I get the car done while my spouse can still enjoy it.
I'm in awe of and applaud those folks here who are tackling basically a shell and creating
a better car than when it rolled off the factory lot. These people have voodoo going on IMO. Don't get frustrated Bull, your project will be finished when its supposed to be just the way you want it. The genuine offers of help and/or parts gratis or way cheap our membership extend to folks and actually walk the walk is what makes the group here extraordinary. You're good to go Bull............well except for the sheep thing -  that's just weird man! 

[Patronus]

Maybe they dont fu*#k around?

[BBKNARF]

12 years and counting, with 3 kids and a mortgage its tough.

[azfrench]

Dang.  I was hoping to do mine in about 6 mos.  But, then I see some of the quality of restorations and then I figure 6 years may not be bad.  I don't think Im going to bring it back to better than new condition but, I am going to make it what I want since it is only an XP29H car with A/C.  Why not.  Subframe rail connectors, disk brakes, rack and pinion power steering and all kind of upgrades. 


Rick.

[Rolling_Thunder]

6 years for mine - work, college, personal life, and a shoestring budget...        I could have built the car a lot faster if money was no issue...   

[HOTROD]

Money and I can't just leve my son alone he has downs and Cp. . I am building this car for us to in joy !!
4years for me.

[Richard Cranium]

Good question, I think it comes down to time, experience, and money. A lot of my time was waiting on things that I can't do or won't because of my limited skills or lack of a place to do the job.

Being able to afford the project is major, but determination is just as important. I restored cars when I was single when I had all the time in the world, and also when married and my kids were infants & my wife desperately needed my help. In the latter scenario, she allotted me limited time to play after work, which of course was never enough time, so I would just wake up an hour or so early each morning before work to get the job done.

[sixty8charger]

Having the money at the beginning!  That is what makes those 6-8 month builds.  I spent what chunk I had getting the car from WA to NC, then saved.. as I disassembled it, then got it on the rotiserre and did all that, now i have a coated up rolling body with holes in it as i save for the sheet metal.  With my ability and the help of others, I am pretty sure I could have had this car done, no problem in about 6 months.  If I had about 6k right now, I think I would get it done....   thats why i keep debating on selling my bike...  but when I think about it I go ride, and then I forget the idea.  put about 2k miles on it this month... I thought about it very little.

[1969chargerrtse]

Money, end of story.

[Charger-Bodie]

Money, end of story.

If you have the determination and skills withe the equipment to back it up it can be done. My Daytona took two years,but could have been done in 1 but I didn't want to miss my newborn sons first things ,so it took some different scheduling. I went to the shop EVERY Saturday for a long time at 3am so I could get a lot done with no-one bothering me and still be home by noon to spend time with him and the rest of the family. I very often took a nap in those afternoons right along with Seth( 2.5 years old now) It isn't all about money, but money sure works as a good excuse for some people. The way I look at it is by being able to do most of the work I can spend a little more on the parts.

My black 68 took 5 months and was rotis restored . I was at the shop 16 hour aday a lot of the time. I always joke that my wife and I almost had to be reintroduced after that one. I was one determaned tunnel vision guy during that build. And, I can promise you that it was not a rush job hack. It was done quickly and efficiently but notthing was rushed or halfa$$ed!

[70charginglizard]

Ive been working on mine for over 11 years now and that has been with teams of helped at times as well So I'm not sure Bull. Probably lots of money some of these other people have that slip them out so Quickly that what I'm thinking. I personally don't understand that either. I like to take my time at things and concentrate on quality. No hurries here.  

[six-tee-nine]

It depends, I bought my car in 2006 and sadly I havent done jack to it except for totally stripping it apart. Reason for that is raising kids, rebuilding our house, not having a decent shop to store it and so on and on.
So oficially I  havent started my restration yet. But in the past years I saved cash and alot of parts. All the needed sheet metal is available, as is everything to completely restore the interior. Full gasket set all the stuff to fully rebuild the front end are in storage as well.
That means when I get going somwhere early next year I' excpect to push trough the body section including new pain in less than a year. I hope to get around with the engine and the reassembly in another 18 months. Wich is IMO very fast for a workin joe like me. My last full restoration took 5 years but I was still in high school back then. I had waaaaay more time then but extreme shortage of cash. Now its kinda the other way around (not that I'm swimming in the money though now).....

[Back N Black]

Time and money, it took me 5 years to complete my Charger. Time is just as big a factor as money when you are doing 80% of the work yourself. I spent many hours in the garage cleaning, detailing and painting parts when there was no money in the Charger fund. So, for all you single guys with time and no money get cracking on the small projects that cost little money.

[knitz01]

No Heated garage live in Wisconsin only nice 4 mounths of the year, Job Major O.T. thru summer  . Family time 3 kids one due any day. I've made a comitment that when i'm off for a week with baby. the kids want to work on "The General" as my boy said. I told them as long as we stay out of moms hair...  Hope we can and she can handle the new one.... 

[71wrenchhead]

deployments
thats whats killer to me, sucks up all my time, literally ZERO chance of me working on my car from overseas
money isnt too much of an issue, but when i get home, spending time with the wife adn kid is what really matters
i guess if i was single it would be a different story

that, and lost parts, i order them while im gone, my wife tends to put them in places that she forgets exhist  which makes me   
plus, according to my little girl, she already fixed the car with nothing but a railroad spike and a flathead--so we went swimming   

[SFRT]

I did mine in a total of 18 months broken down like this:

1. before I bought the car I saved up a barrel of cash.
2. I rented a shop space and got my tools and supplies on order
3. I bought a POS overpriced car and parked it.
4. looked the car ove,did a huge amount of research, made a plan and bought a bunch of parts all at once
5. took the car apart, found disasters, bought the rest of the parts-yanked the motor-sent it out for shortblock re-do with parts in hand and a goal of what i wanted the engine shop to do.

this took 5 months.

6.told all my clients and my wife: "I wont be around for the next 4 months"

spent those 4 months putting in 10-12 hours a day on the car. solid, every day. tore it down, fixed everything I could with the exception of the rear quarters which I patched. reassembled the car completely,primered it.

total time: 9 months

drove it for a year

that entire year I saved up more cash, since the rear quarters, shitty glass and some other shit was bugging me. figured it would take me another year to save up enough dough,appease the wife etc.

then,luckily, some a-hole rear ended me and a I took advantage of a kind insurance appraiser to pad the estimate enough to fix the rest of the car correctly and paint it. even all new glass.

by this point I no longer had the work space so I struck a deal with a buddy who had a small body shop and we then spent 4 months
taking the whole car down to bare metal, replacing all the sheetmetal aft of the doors and fixing all the crap that was wrong, then painted the car. I went to his shop 3 days a week and did the grunt work.

time: 4 months.

so a total of 13 months off the road over 3 years. the car has been running fine for the last 16 months.


what made it possible was i was able to devote a lot of time to the project myself, and my contacts with really great local mechanic and bodyman who are friends and in my car club.

I also spent a huge amount of money. but i did it all cash.

no way could i do it like that again. it nearly killed me physically. next time around im either going to build something really stripped down with the focus on performance or I'm going to get a 'finished' car and tweak it a little.

but, It was alife long dream to 'build a car' so I did it.

[HANDM]

It took almost 12 years to get my wifes Charger back to her and on the road......9 of those years it just sat while I collected parts.
As others have said, kids, job and mortgage were mor important that the Charger / other Mopars any day.

Once the youngest got to be 9 he started showing serious interest in the cars and was constantly asking when we were gonna be able to drive them.... Needless to say, that lit a fire under my ass to get them ALL running and driving, plus add the fact that my daughter is ready to get her license soon and has stated plainly that she wants to drive the Challenger as her high school car.

[Troy]

The guys I see do them really fast do (almost) all their own work, have done other cars previously, have access to tools and equipment to make tough jobs simpler/better, and have the money to overcome the little "gotchas" that pop up in the middle (and normally put the rest of us "on hold" until we find a solution). I can't even count the amount of time I've wasted doing things in the wrong order or doing the same thing several times because I didn't know the right way to do them OR waiting for a "professional" to rebuild my parts. It's funny (in a way) to see professional restoration shops with seemingly unlimited budgets and a whole team of employees that can't manage to finish a car in less than 3-4 years when guys working in a cramped garage at home can come close to the same quality in 6-9 months. Then again, I think I can only name 3-4 guys on this site who fit that mold and that bar is way higher than most of us can achieve. The one major caveat is whether it's a real "restoration" (complete with NOS and date-coded original parts), a show quality - but not "correct" - car, or a nice "driver". Tracking down super-rare parts is a full-time job. As is impeccable paint preparation and paying attention to every minor detail. Guys with experience at any of these things can make it look easy but there's still a time penalty for doing things "right".

Troy

[UH60L]

I think it's a combination of things.  I took out a $20,000.00 loan from my Thrift Savings plan (investment plan) and figured that would finish most of my car.  Since I can't do bodywork, I had a shop do it, that cost me $24,000.00 (and change).

Used a credit card to pay for the engine build, and most of the body panels that were replaced (not included int he bodyshop charge above...).

Now I still need to finish the front grill & headlight support, put all the glass in (and chrome that goes with it), buy all the interior stuff, buy a radiator, have the driveshaft cleaned, balanced and painted, fix the rear brakes, have the body shop put the antenna hole in the new fender...that they forgot..., finish installing the new wire harness, buy tail light lenses, buy or create new headlight cover hoses, install the front bumper and front valance, break the engine in, and I'm sure i've missed a few things.  I still owe over $14,000.00 on that loan and that credit card is still nearly maxed out!

Oh, and I'm married, two teenage boys that are both doing sports in high school, mortgage, car payment, wife works at wal-mart, so she makes less than half what I make after 13 years of working there, and my job, without specifically saying it, requires me to work "one weekend a month and two weeks a year, or sometimes a year at a time overseas...", so I don't always have alot of time.

Money is a huge factor unless you can do most of the work yourself.  The other factor for me is a lack of mopar knowledge combined with very few people willing to help me.  I belong to a mopar car club.  There are several memebrs who are of similar age to myself, and they help each other regularly, be it free of for a fee, depending on the job.  Yet when I ask, they are always too busy, or state that "I don't really do that sort of stuff for other people", and then at the next meeting another memebr will tell me that the same individual helped them with the exact thing I asked them about, and wouldn't accept any money for it.

So, my car will take several more years, unless I win the lottery or a relative leaves me money or something.  I find some info on here and other mopar web sites, but have resolved that I am pretty much on my own.  I honestly thought I would be driving my car 6 months after dropping it off
at the body shop.  Within 2 weeks of gettingit back I had the engine and transmission installed.

I just hope I can get the car driveable before something bad happens to me.  I'd rather leave a driveable muscle car to my wife an kids and not just an endless project.

I guess the answer to the question is,in many cases, those people have alot of money, alot of time, and alot of friends (or at least people who owe them...).

[bull]

It isn't all about money, but money sure works as a good excuse for some people. The way I look at it is by being able to do most of the work I can spend a little more on the parts.

Well, money is a pretty good excuse in some cases. You make your living doing paint and body work but someone like me, if I want it to look half decent, has to pay someone to do that labor. And it took me quite a while to save up the $15k for body work and another $5k for paint. Even after working for, saving and dropping $20k it wasn't done right and so I'll be paying even more at some point. Body/paint is one area (probably the main area) where skill and know-how really overcomes a lot.

[randr]

Well i had to add my 

I own a small computer company, have employees, 3 kids oldest 24, 19 and 16. yes i am married. But i have 3 mopars also!

my latest project from start to finish was about 1 year and 3 months, did all myself after work and weekends. complete restoration! I think its nice! Honestly it comes down to time more than anything! i give 110% to any project and only do the work myself or it would never be finished! 1 year 3 months in my back shop missing dinner often missing breakfast! LOL
i cant imagine taking 2,3,4-6 10 years... life is short! get-er done! then you can ENJOY IT!

my wife and kids hated car until it was finished, now they understand why i was working on it every night. THEY enjoy it now. feels good!

[69bronzeT5]

You know Curtis, I'm very glad you started this topic because I've been thinking this exact question for a few weeks now and wanted to make a thread. I just couldn't figure out the exact wording I wanted to present my question with. I've also wondered how people just up and buy a restored car. I mean I've seen people just turn around and buy a $40,000 finished Charger and I can't even up and buy a $750 quarter panel for my Charger. I just don't get it. You are right, it is very frustrating when you see people restore their Charger in a year and I've had mine for 12 years and I'm still saving up just to get body and paint done. I noticed a lot of people mentioned time and how much they spent. I sure got the time.....just not the money to back it up....

[bill440rt]

The guys I see do them really fast do (almost) all their own work...

Time & money, money & time.

Troy, I almost have to disagree with that comment you posted. I think, for the most part, that most "average" car guys will take several years to complete a car. The "above average" car guys (the ones with body/paint & mechanical experience), can get a car done a little faster. Money is a factor based on income or personal lives (house, mortgage, family, etc). The ones that get completed in under a year are for the most part, IMHO, the rarity.

Took me 6 years to do my '69. The '70 took 5 years and another 1-1/2 years again on top of it. That was with me doing most of the work during any spare time I could scrounge up.

A lot of these "check book restorations" are the ones that get done the quickest. There was a fully restored '70 Road Runner at Carlisle this year, that was displayed in the Barn Finds exhibit the previous year. Yep, one year, voila', instant concours show car. The owner simply paid a well-known restorer to do the car. Done. There were lots of high-end cars there that were check book restos.

Don't get me wrong, that's not a bad thing if you have the funds to do it. Some people just don't have the means or skills to do certain things themselves. For me, I enjoy the challenges a restoration has to offer. And, I know it will be done the way I want it. I don't know how to do everything, but I do what I can. I KNOW that it will take longer, I don't have a shop with a dozen experienced techs. I'm just one schmuck working (mostly) alone in his garage. One guy blocking out a Charger takes forever. Put 2 or 3 guys on it and it gets done in a single afternoon.

Bull, don't feel bad if it's taking you longer than you would like. Keep chipping away. Don't stop or lose faith. It WILL be done someday for you to enjoy.

[Patronus]

Its good to have a twin brother too 

[morepower]

its mostly finances. If they got the $$$ they can afford to pay someone else to stuff, and only take care of the critical things. It also helps to not have a total basket case car.

[Troy]

But you only quoted part of what I wrote Bill!

While a high-end restoration shop *can* do a car in less than a year I hear a whole lot more stories where that isn't the case.

Troy

[stripedelete]

The guys I see do them really fast do (almost) all their own work, have done other cars previously, have access to tools and equipment to make tough jobs simpler/better, and have the money to overcome the little "gotchas" that pop up in the middle.

Add the aforementioned "determination",  which IMO (in these people) is better described as "laser focus" and "high energy", and you got the profile.






   

[Mike DC]

 
   
Fast, cheap, and good.  You can pick any two of them but you can't have all three at once. 


 

[XS29LA47V21]

The days of a nice driver numbers matching XS29V for $3200 and-or available good use parts are long gone.  If you farm more out, which I have done some, saves time for sure, but it is significantly more money.  Regardless it has gone financially way into the five figures to build a nice car separating some out of the hobby,  very sad really.  At this point, even with the economy it comes down to priority and balance with life's other needs-obligations .  One of my cars, I started setting parts aside and planning for almost ten years and waited to be financially committed to start it, because I knew I was farming out the paint and body and likely a long block and others specific stuff too like gauges and bolt on stuff.  I am sitting at 18months from start time and sheet metal is basically done with paint come soon, it would add undesired additional stress if I had in my head that I have to have it done by August 31...   I am juggling cars anyway, maybe that is why it is not that critical to me (I have to have one wife, I get to have more then one old cars )

[jaak]

Like everyone else says time and money.
I have owned my Charger for 12 years. I stripped it down 10 years ago, then it got put on hold. I really started working on it about 2 1/2-3 years ago. In the 7 or so years it was on hold, I bought parts when I had extra money, clean/repainted/etc. parts I was gonna re-use. When It came time for body/paint, I decided to tackle myself, because I could not afford the thou$ands it would cost for a shop to do it (I did have a little previous experience doing bodywork).
I bought a cheap welder to fix rusty areas,  then when I was through with the welder, I sold it to put the $$$ back into the car. Another thing I would suggest is a parts car. I gave 2500 for the car I used for parts. I used alot off the parts car, everywhere I needed to patch rust on my project, the parts car had the pieces I need, then the remains were parted out on eBay where I probably made 1500 of my 2500 back. Now my car is getting close, I like the interior and a few odds and ends. Thats why I got my 73 on eBay right now, Im ready to buy the rest of the stuff I need and try to finish this thing up.

Jason

[Charger_Dart]

An understanding wife goes a long ways. Mine happens to be very understanding when I am spending every morning and evening in the garage working on the car. My goal was to have a nice driver so many tasks went quicker then a full restoration, and cost less too.   

[sanders7981]

Wish mine was done as fast as some of those on T.V.!!!!  I dont have the cash, and hardly the time, to work on it as consistently as I'd like to.  I need ot take about a month of leave and do nothing but work on it... then I may have it complete, or atleast ready for the engine. 

[bull]

After reading many of the responses it sounds like having a detailed plan of attack, having a lot of money saved up beforehand and having some prior experience doing restorations makes things go a lot faster. I had none of those when I bought my 68.

[Brock Samson]

I'm sure you'r familier with my rebuild, but back when i did mine in '84-'99 i could buy two really nice parts cars for $500 a piece, today those cars would be worth at least ten times that... i often wondered what happened to the drivetrain and interior that was missing from mine when i found it... 
besides, a nut and bolt resto is gonna take one heck of a lot longer then a driveway restomod like mine.. i just stockpiled 440 parts as i went, but my car had to be a runner even if it was just a small block intill i upgraded in '99.. 

[472 R/T SE]

cudaken always used to say he could tell who was working on their cars by the time they spent on here.  So...I got to investigating. 

[Charger-Bodie]

Yeah but look whos right above bull in the time online catagory.

[aussiemuscle]

but I just don't understand how a guy can restore a Charger in 6-8 months

how do you feel about shows like desert car kings doing a complete resto in three weeks? (however half-asssed they might do it)?

[bull]

cudaken always used to say he could tell who was working on their cars by the time they spent on here.  So...I got to investigating.  

I almost never go on moparts, the 70 registry, the E-body or B-body sites, Hub Garage, etc. Meanwhile, many of the main guys you see here (including you) are posting on 4-5 other car sites and many are also on Facebook, Twitter, etc. Maybe I don't have much of an online life but 98% of it is spent here. The other 2% is on Facebook (but that place gets boring real quick).

Also, I can punch out responses and create topics quickly because as a former newspaper reporter I type very fast. I don't have to spend 20 minutes pecking 25 words out with two fingers.

[bull]

but I just don't understand how a guy can restore a Charger in 6-8 months

how do you feel about shows like desert car kings doing a complete resto in three weeks? (however half-asssed they might do it)?

Well, despite the quality of work (not good) they have the cash ready to go and lots of people with lots of experience working as a team.

[Old Moparz]

I don't do anything fast, so if I did restorations on cars for a living, I'd be broke.   

One thing a lot of us have in common is that we lack time or money, maybe even both. I hate to admit it, but if it helps anyone else, having lost focus on the initial project can slow things down drastically. My first goal was to turn the car into a convertible, but after finally finding my Charger, it was too nice to cut up. This led me to collect all the Daytona parts to build something else I wanted without cutting up a solid car.

Now I just hate projects & think I should just ride my bicycle more. 

[Cooter]

   
Fast, cheap, and good.  You can pick any two of them but you can't have all three at once. 


 

There it is right there.....
I got a buddy poor thing, he is such a perfectionist, he has painted his poor challenger a total of 5 times. Still isn't happy with it...
Every time I go see him to "Check on the progress", he's bitchin' bout something else he wants to "Get right" from before.
I don't sweat the little sh*t like perfect chrome on ALL aspects of the car. Sure, I don't win any trophies come car show day, but that's not what I'm there for in the first place. When you sweatr the details, you end up with more time in your car.
I do enough to make the car a nice driver quality car that looks good enough to be a "Restored" car to the many that come to see it. I also don't own just ONE car I have all my nuts in either. I have 5 cars that are not anywhere near the quality of some here. However, If you added up what I have tied up in all 5 cars combined, it doens't even come close to HALF what those cars here have invested either.
I'd rather have 5 cars in "Driver" quality, than ONE car in top show quality....

[472 R/T SE]

cudaken always used to say he could tell who was working on their cars by the time they spent on here.  So...I got to investigating.  

I almost never go on moparts, the 70 registry, the E-body or B-body sites, Hub Garage, etc. Meanwhile, many of the main guys you see here (including you) are posting on 4-5 other car sites and many are also on Facebook, Twitter, etc. Maybe I don't have much of an online life but 98% of it is spent here. The other 2% is on Facebook (but that place gets boring real quick).

Also, I can punch out responses and create topics quickly becuase as a former newspaper reporter I type very fast. I don't have to spend 20 minutes pecking 25 words out with two fingers.

Oh stop, you don't have to explain anything to me.  Just pitchin' you a little chit.   

I'm about to fall off the top 10 online @ the Registry.  I'll admit, I'm all over the place.  Chiefs forums, fantasy baseball, ebay.  As far as Mopes, it's here & the Registry right now.  Next week, it'll change.

[bull]

Oh stop, you don't have to explain anything to me.  Just pitchin' you a little chit.   

It's a point I've been wanting to make for a while anyway. You just happened to be the one who gave me the opportunity.

[67440chrg]

I guess mine is a little diffrent story and may not fit but I will tell a condensed version. In about 1986 I had a big block 1972 SE with a lot of potential it ran good but needed a complete front suspension rebuild. I stored it at a relatives property for a wile and some one stole it. It took me over 15 years to justify spending the money to get another Charger with kids,divorce and new family It had ben restored 20 years earlier so it is more of a refresh as i can and drive the hell out of it along the way.For me it would be money and responsibilities. 

[Khyron]

I don't have deap pockets, but I was very lucky to have started with a solid car, worked my ass off almost every night and on my days off, and had a good friend with a body shop :-)

[FrnkNsteen]

Well, I'm just getting started, and I'm just expecting it to take 3-4 years minimum, and the main reason is money. I figure it this way..... I know even by just adding up the big items, that it's going to cost enough that there's NO WAY I can afford to pay for them any quicker. I guess a person could take a loan to buy everything that will be needed, but I don't see me being willing to do that. Even if I could justify $400 every single month, that's only $4800 per year. At that rate it will still take me 3-4 years minimum to get everything needed.

So..... like someone on here suggested, I'll work on a little something every day, and when it gets done it gets done. I'm going to TRY to be patient and just keep trudging along! No need to get down on ourselves because we don't have a crew of 40 people all working on it at once to get it done in a week like some of the shows we all watch!!

[FastbackJon]

Imagine building a Charger from all clean perfect NOS parts in two days and getting all the factory markings correct, and doing it for under $3,000.

Sound impossible?

Well the factory did it back in the '60's thousands of times per day!

[1970Moparmann]

I was pretty fortunate when I did my 68 a few years ago, I had the money... Today, would be a different story.  I also had to call in a few people to assist.  This made things a lot faster also.   

It's hard to do a restoration in less than a year unless you dedicate all your free time towards it.   I did about 10% in the first year in a half and then 90% in 10 months.   Time allocation my friend.

[Richard Cranium]

The fastest time I restored a car was 8 months back in 1985-86. The car was a complete basket case when I bought it so time was saved on the disassembly. At the time, I was living at home & had no girlfriend , so all my spare time was devoted to the car as was my wallet. My current project will be done in less than a year, but I did farm out the bodywork. Everything else is being done by me.......and it is costing plenty.

[azfrench]

Now im nervous.  I plan on starting my car in Nov or Dec.  Hope to have it done in a few months.  Hopefully less than a year.  AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!


Rick

[elanmars]

I guess it depends how far you want to take it/how bad the car was to begin with.

I always get half-decent drivers with few issues and fix them as I drive them...couldn't stand to have a trailer queen or one that wasn't rolling, it's bad enough when it's down for maintenance for at least a week up to 3 weeks. torture!

[green69rt]

Restorations, that is. I understand that I'm not the fastest worker in the world, and that some guys do this type of work professionally or semi-professionally, but I just don't understand how a guy can restore a Charger in 6-8 months without A: doing a half-assed job, B: deep, deep pockets and C: a team of helpers. More than once I've seen guys start with a rusted out Charger exoskeleton, pass me and 20 other guys with their project and have the thing on the road less than a year later. It's baffling and, to be honest, a little frustrating. What am I missing?

I look at some of the rebuilds on this site and wonder - am I slow or just stupid, did I not know what I was doing, what do these people know that I don't??  Then I remember that this is a first for me (done engines, trans etc before but never body.)   Then I remember that my car was a real junker, more problems than I expected.  Also remember that instead of years think about hours spent.  I get to spend maybe 10 hours a week on my car, sometimes less.  Shops say a basic restoration will take about 1500 hours - (1500/(10 per week) is about three years.)  Then I figure in that I'm an amateur at a lot of things and some things get done twice.  So three years times two is six years.  Then add the difficulty of your particular job and we're talking about a 10 year job.  So stop fretting about time, enjoy the journey.  Somebody told me (when I was much younger)  enjoy the fact that you are building "YOUR" car, if we remember it or not we're all hot rodders at heart, take an old hulk and make it someting we're proud to drive.  

[Doright]

I restored my Rallye in about 1/2 year, and at the same time I spent every weekend April to October running a stock car with my pal at the same time.  It all comes down to making use of your time. Every weeknight would involve coming home and straight to the garage for 4-5 hours of work. It's amazing what you can do when you stop watching TV and leave the beer in the fridge.

On the other hand I have a car that I have been tinkering on for 21 years. It's all about priorities.

Some just dont get it they'd rather cry and whine in there Beer.
If your going to do this stuff ya Gotta shut off the dam Boob tube AND the dam PC and just get out there and do it!
You have to do something every day! or it it ain't ever going to get done!

Its not all about buying new parts, yes new parts are nice! but a coat of fresh paint covers up a multiple of sins or heck just cleaning something!
My point is its not just about money!

Who says a restoration has to have all new parts? why cant you just reuse what works clean it and paint it and replace JUST whats broken??
So many get caught up in all this Magazine BS (That's just some one else's dream) live your own.
Who says a restoration has to have new parts? whats wrong with good usable stuff or something that's repaired?


If your waiting for the day your going to be able to afford it you might as well sell it now!
Because you ain't never going to win the lottery or be able to afford all new this and that's like they show in the magazines its kiddy stuff smell the coffee! Those magazine cars all get new stuff from sponsors the parts were free so they'd put it in the magazine.

No excuses get off your ass and get to work! 

[Doright]

Well i had to add my 

I own a small computer company, have employees, 3 kids oldest 24, 19 and 16. yes i am married. But i have 3 mopars also!

my latest project from start to finish was about 1 year and 3 months, did all myself after work and weekends. complete restoration! I think its nice! Honestly it comes down to time more than anything! i give 110% to any project and only do the work myself or it would never be finished! 1 year 3 months in my back shop missing dinner often missing breakfast! LOL
i cant imagine taking 2,3,4-6 10 years... life is short! get-er done! then you can ENJOY IT!

my wife and kids hated car until it was finished, now they understand why i was working on it every night. THEY enjoy it now. feels good!

No one gets it till its done no one appreciates it like YOU either!
Congrats on finishing its a good feeling isn't it?
   

[Richard Cranium]

 I get to spend maybe 10 hours a week on my car, sometimes less.  

Slacker.   

[green69rt]

 I get to spend maybe 10 hours a week on my car, sometimes less.  

Slacker.   

But I REALLY enjoy those 10 hours!!!

[FrnkNsteen]

Some just dont get it they'd rather cry and whine in there Beer.
If your going to do this stuff ya Gotta shut off the dam Boob tube AND the dam PC and just get out there and do it!
You have to do something every day! or it it ain't ever going to get done!

Who says a restoration has to have all new parts? why cant you just reuse what works clean it and paint it and replace JUST whats broken??
So many get caught up in all this Magazine BS (That's just some one else's dream) live your own.
Who says a restoration has to have new parts? whats wrong with good usable stuff or something that's repaired?


If your waiting for the day your going to be able to afford it you might as well sell it now!
Because you ain't never going to win the lottery or be able to afford all new this and that's like they show in the magazines its kiddy stuff smell the coffee! Those magazine cars all get new stuff from sponsors the parts were free so they'd put it in the magazine.

No excuses get off your ass and get to work! 

Well DoRight.... That might be good advice for you, or others, but it's not real world for others. For some of us, it's not a matter of the Boob tube or the PC as you put it. Some of us have other responsibilities, and who was whining. All they were saying is that it takes them longer than others. For me, the TV and PC have little to do with my amount of time. I work full time, and have chosen to go back to school. So when I'm not working 45-50 hours a week, I'm studying for school, or doing what needs done around the home so the family doesn't suffer. I'm lucky to get away for 10 hours a week to do anything.

as for "buying all new, and why don't we fix what we have". Pretty easy to say if you're starting with a clean and complete car. Mine has been sitting for 20 years. The old parts are either mouse eaten, or are so sun rotted that they crumble in your hands! Since school is coming to an end soon, I have really started in onthe project, and have dropped over $5K into body parts for just the pieces that HAVE to be replaced!! On a fixed budget, that makes paint an expensive item!!

Bottom line.... I didn't see anyone "Whining" on here about how long it takes.... just admitting that it takes some people longer to get the work done. Some people have more time to spend with their cars, but it doesn't mean that they mean less to them than someone who has nothing else to do.

[gtx6970]

most places can go as fast at the customers ck'ing account will allow

I have my own pace. I work the schedule I want to still maintain  a life with my family and also keep up on parts sales.

I rarely bill/work more than 35 hours a week though

[The70RT]

For me it's been 5 years and am just over the hump.... I think. Yeah time and money, if mine wasn't a nut and bolt resto I could have been done. If I was to do it all over again It would probably be the same deal. I had my car for 30 years and yeah I want to get it done. I am always wheeling and dealing to make more $$$ to fund it. Making 15.00 an hour and a 1200 house payment doesn't help much either.

[six-tee-nine]

$15 an hour???  How do you stay alive? I have no idea how much difference there is in living life between the US and us Europeans (I mean average morgages and the cost of food and heating, clothing and so on) but I make almost $23 an hour and we dont have alot left in a month and my wife earns more per hour than i do.

[FrnkNsteen]

$15 an hour???  How do you stay alive? I have no idea how much difference there is in living life between the US and us Europeans (I mean average morgages and the cost of food and heating, clothing and so on) but I make almost $23 an hour and we dont have alot left in a month and my wife earns more per hour than i do.

Consider this then six-tee-nine..... I work for a medical device company in the Midwest area of the U.S. I am a technician in the new product development group, and have no complaints about what I make, not that it's a lot (slightly more than what you said you make) but our floor operators who build the product start out at $9 per hour, and the average home in this area is between 90K and 150K. Add in $4/gallon gas and rising food costs, and a lot of people don't have much, if anything, left at the end of the month. People keep calling us the "rich americans", but the truth is that the average person isn't nearly as "Rich" as everyone thinks we are. There is a HUGE gap between the average worker and the image that gets portrayed of Americans. Granted..... we all do MUCH better than some areas of the world, so I guess we don't have much to complain about!! Like was said before.... It's all about priorities and what you can afford.

[Troy]

$15 an hour???  How do you stay alive? I have no idea how much difference there is in living life between the US and us Europeans (I mean average morgages and the cost of food and heating, clothing and so on) but I make almost $23 an hour and we dont have alot left in a month and my wife earns more per hour than i do.

It's because we don't have 40%+ income taxes on every single person in the country and 17-20% VAT (compounded in certain instances) on everything bought or sold. Median salary is (I think) about $30k per year and the bottom 50% of wage earners pay NO income tax (which is why "taxing the rich" is so popular - because most people won't see a difference at all). Sales tax varies by state/municipality but it's not much more than 10% anywhere (typically 5-6% I'd imagine). Depending on where you are in this country, $15 per hour is a pretty decent wage - although I'm not sure I'd want to raise 3 kids on it!  My best job before finally going to college was $12 per hour and I was making almost double what a lot of my friends were. If you live on either coast or in the biggest cities (especially in NYC, San Fran, Chicago, etc.) you'll need to make a lot more money - primarily due to taxes and cost of living. Around here you can get a nice house on 3/4 acre with a 2 car garage for $130-200k. That makes buying a house cheaper than renting most 2 bedroom apartments. Not so elsewhere!

Troy

[Orange_Crush]

Restorations, that is. I understand that I'm not the fastest worker in the world, and that some guys do this type of work professionally or semi-professionally, but I just don't understand how a guy can restore a Charger in 6-8 months without A: doing a half-assed job, B: deep, deep pockets and C: a team of helpers. More than once I've seen guys start with a rusted out Charger exoskeleton, pass me and 20 other guys with their project and have the thing on the road less than a year later. It's baffling and, to be honest, a little frustrating. What am I missing?

I haven't read all the replies i the thread so I'll give you the short summary.

Wife, kids, financial obligations, lawns need to be mowed, walls need to be painted, etc.

Since I have owned my '70 I have done the following:

Bought and sold two houses
remodeled two kitchens, two bathrooms, and converted a back porch to a mud room/laundry room, kitchen expansion.
Laid tile on more square feet of floor space than I care to count
Started a manufacturing facility

That is all in addition to the wife and kid.

So, the '70 R/T that I have owned since 2003 is still just a bare shell tucked away in one of the buildings of the resto shop.

[Richard Cranium]

I haven't read all the replies i the thread so I'll give you the short summary.

Wife, kids, financial obligations, lawns need to be mowed, walls need to be painted, etc.

My kids are finally at the age to mow the lawn so I don't have to and when it comes to painting projects, I place my wife on a pedastal..............so she can paint the ceiling.   

[FrnkNsteen]

[

My kids are finally at the age to mow the lawn so I don't have to and when it comes to painting projects, I place my wife on a pedastal..............so she can paint the ceiling.   
[/quote]

WOW!! You are a Richard aren't you?!?!? 

[six-tee-nine]

$15 an hour???  How do you stay alive? I have no idea how much difference there is in living life between the US and us Europeans (I mean average morgages and the cost of food and heating, clothing and so on) but I make almost $23 an hour and we dont have alot left in a month and my wife earns more per hour than i do.

It's because we don't have 40%+ income taxes on every single person in the country and 17-20% VAT (compounded in certain instances) on everything bought or sold. Median salary is (I think) about $30k per year and the bottom 50% of wage earners pay NO income tax (which is why "taxing the rich" is so popular - because most people won't see a difference at all). Sales tax varies by state/municipality but it's not much more than 10% anywhere (typically 5-6% I'd imagine). Depending on where you are in this country, $15 per hour is a pretty decent wage - although I'm not sure I'd want to raise 3 kids on it!  My best job before finally going to college was $12 per hour and I was making almost double what a lot of my friends were. If you live on either coast or in the biggest cities (especially in NYC, San Fran, Chicago, etc.) you'll need to make a lot more money - primarily due to taxes and cost of living. Around here you can get a nice house on 3/4 acre with a 2 car garage for $130-200k. That makes buying a house cheaper than renting most 2 bedroom apartments. Not so elsewhere!

Troy

That makes alot of sence, I never looked at it that way and...... It seems like I make alot more an hour as most of you guys, but the government takes 45% of that on income taxes every month.
The house you mention Troy will cost me around here in Belgium up to $600k Real esate is horrible over here. Young couples almost need finanial help from their parents to be able to buy a house. Life itself is not cheap anymore either, we pay 21% VAT on every producht we buy and since Europe gave us the Euro in 2000, prices only went up because people werent used of the new currency but now 11 years later if you look back some things cost twice a what they did back then.....
And gas is 1.70 Euro/litre thats about $9/gallon No wonder we all (have) to drive small cars with a 2 liter diesel engine everything else will suck our wallet dry.....

[John_Kunkel]

On a similar note, a recent episode of Pawn Stars showed Rick looking at a totally disassembled '57 Chevy that was supposed to be his dad's birthday present 3 days hence, the builders (two) said "We'll get 'er done on time" and they did. But that's TV.

[The70RT]

On a similar note, a recent episode of Pawn Stars showed Rick looking at a totally disassembled '57 Chevy that was supposed to be his dad's birthday present 3 days hence, the builders (two) said "We'll get 'er done on time" and they did. But that's TV.

and $75,000 later