Quote:

The body shop that did my '69 car had over 670 hours in it but the thing is dead straight. Paint materials, depending on the color, will probably cost you over $2,000 which includes primers, bondo, sandpaper, tape, etc., etc. I think you'll be surprised at the final cost.

I would be happy to send you the 11 page breakdown of my parts and labor charges. Just PM me with your e-mail address.



Quote:


All that changes is the labor rate; we've all been saying that a proper resto will take 1000 hrs give or take and the part cost is the same no matter where you are.

Even if you charge yourself out at $20/hr and don't have to pay rent, insurance, taxes, upkeep, tool replacement, etc. etc. it is still going to break down something like this;

- parts & materials: $20,000

- farmed out component resto and specialty labor: $ 10,000

- 1000 hrs at $20/hr: 20,000

Total: $50,000

All I know is that I could have done ALL the labor by myself for free and I still would have spent more than your $35k budget. I would take the offer given above and take a look at a spreadsheet for a complete nut and bolt resto to make sure you haven't missed or underestimated significant items.

Do what you like, but I think you're making a big mistake and will be working for free. If we could all get quality resto work done where you live for 1/3rd the going rate, we'd all be doing that.

OTOH, if you don't have any bills to pay, maybe it's a good idea to do this one and then you'll know for sure one way or the other.


Dave




Dave is absolutely right about the costs..And I'll bet his prices are circa 2005-2010...

The parts and materials alone to take even a complete 40+ year old
mopar B or E body from rags to really sweet driver will cost you
upwards of 40K... Thats just parts and materials only...

If there is stuff you are not gonna do...
then yes, you can subtract from that.

Perhaps the biggest pitfall in restoration is this:
Once you have one part of the car looking all shiny new..
the old stuff really sticks out...

So you get stuck very quickly trying to make everything look new..
That is a very time-consuming and expensive proposition...

For example, what about all the chrome?
You think you can get that done for $500? Not a chance...
Nuts and bolts?
You gonna use those old bolts on your new freshly painted engine?
or are you buy shiny new ones? Easily $500 - $1000 just for nuts /bolts and hardware...
Wanna blast and refinish them yourself? You can try that..good luck!

What about shipping costs for new parts?
For the 100's of parts you absolutely have to replace
the shipping costs alone will add up to 100's of dollars if not
a thousand or more...

FWIW, let me implore you, Dave is not lying to you!

Having been there and done it myself I can honestly look in the
mirror and say this:

For the time, effort, and cost in most cases, if you want a restored car, the average person is way better off buying one already done as close as you can get to what you want, then going through the cost, hassle and aggrevation of doing one yourself or paying someone to do
one from scratch..

Obviously, for some people and some cars (R/T, superbee, gtx etc)
this doesn't apply... but for most people and situations I think it does.

Most are for sale for half of what it would cost to do one yourself.

For example: Once in a while, I see some really nice Chargers/Coronets/ etc. on ebay for 25-35K...
Having been there and done it, there is no way I could take a projct car and get it to that condition for that price..
Plus all the time and aggrevation...

In the end, anybody can work for free...
Heck, you can do easy desk work for $10.00 hour...
Why would you kill yourself on an old car for that?
Your lungs (from all the dust and overspray alone)
are worth alot more than that..