Thread: Help me start

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I agree mostly with everything said. I think the first question you have to ask yourself is what do you really want. And I don't necessarly mean car or truck wise. Is it the pot of gold you seek, or is it the journey? Let me explain, most of us like working on car's (duh). But some love the planning, the design, hunting parts, the actual fabrication. Some do some or all of this because we think it might be cheaper, or you spent it over a period of time as apposed to shelling it out in one lump sum for the finished product. I just finished one, not a high buck deal at all, and now I am kinda lost. I love driving it around, but no big plans. No major fabrication. No parts to hunt. And I kinda miss looking forward to seeing my UPS guy, who I have gotten to know fairly well over the last couple of years, stoping in front of the house and bringing me all those goodies. But then thats why some guys have more projects than they will ever be able to finish. It ain't the car, it's the project. With that said, if its the project figure out how much project you want, a little or a lot? Then apply all the previous suggestions into the mix. They were all very right on. And Good Luck, and of course keep us posted.

I think I'll go cut somthing up.............

No question that Jim Robinson is correct that sometimes the advice we give seems to direct someone away from building a car, when we should be encouraging them to do it instead. I often feel like a wet blanket when I tell someone something like "buy one that is already done or almost done." And, I do feel bad about that sometimes too, because I know how it feels to want to build something and the advice being offered is contrary to that.

But the truth is, not all hot rodders are builders. Jim certainly has the unique skills to take one from start to finish, and he accomplishes it at a very reasonable amount of outlay. I've seen Jim's coupe and it is an amazing creation, not just because of the low outlay, but just the way it is engineered. Lots of guys on here share that talent and dedication. However, for every 15 cars that are started, I bet 10 never see the road under the first builder. So many guys start out with this wide eyed enthusiasm and after a lot of time, work, and money is spent they find rod building looks good on paper but is a LOT more demanding than they ever thought. So they bail out and sell it at a loss.

H***, there are times I walk away from a car for months at a time because it gets to me. When I was building my 27 I would get almost physically ill when I would write another check. I'm even tired of dumping money and time into my current projects, at some point you see all the Summit, Speedway, etc invoices piling up and you wonder if it will ever end.

So, my advice is really meant to let the guy look in the mirror and accurately assess his ability to complete a ground up project. It takes a dedicated space to do it, time you can spend (years probably), a good assortment of tools and equipment (and not just hand tools, but welders, grinders, saws, etc.), a fair amount of engineering skill (not just book engineering, but a good basic understanding of what works with what on these cars), and finally, a good amount of disposable funds.

But since some of us enjoy the build as much as the finished product, if you are in that group, go for it.

Don

I feel kind of bad posting my earlier message. I guess what I should have focused on is the importance of deciding in advance what you want, making a detailed plan of attack including what parts are going to be new and what you are going to get from a donor, and then sticking to the plan. My problem was that as I looked at completed cars I always found things that I did not like, and too often they were basic things that would be costly to rework. More and more I got to the point that I decided the only way to get what I wanted was to build, but I elected to start with at roller package. That decision alone costs a bunch, and if you have the tools and knowledge to start with bare frame rails you can save some bucks. The thing that has me over my budget is not sticking to a plan, and in fact not having a detailed plan and detailed budget. It is so easy to go from donor driveline to considering crate engines, and then if you're going to go new, why not custom?? Bottom line, I am having a ball working on my build, and once it is done I'm going to have a bigger ball playing with it and going to cruises, etc. I'm just feeling a bit silly for all of the times I looked at nice cars with asking prices of $35k, $45k, $XXk and saying I could build it for much, much less. Maybe, but I'm in too much of a hurry, and I buy too much stuff from Summit, Speedway, Jegs, etc and yes, I'm on a first name basis with the UPS guy!!

I see all the different perspectives you guys are throwing out and undersand them very well. I've spent 30 years with musclecars and 24 years as a mechanical engineer in so-cal aerospace. That said, I understand very well the importance of planning and scoping the project in detail before jumping in.

The benefit (HUGE) I'm getting from reading you folks is that you're all reminding me of the options and considerations I need to step through carefully - keeping them in my frontal lobe, ya know?. Reminding me to use my skills and experience before my rosey glasses!

What I'm looking for, since his is a first "rod" project, is a weekend driver - not a big dollar show car. Maybe after I retire, I'll do one of those but for now, I want to get my feet wet in the $10k/$15k category with something I can drive almost daily. Primer or hot rod black is fine with me!

Originally Posted by runway1

I'm a long time hot rodder of muscle cars. 30's rods are completely different but I want to get into a build.

Given that; I'm a mechanical engineer, father, husband - like most if you, and require planning budget, etc...you get the picture. What would you suggest as my first "custom" rod?

You gotta figure out what you are willing to spend, what you can do yourself, tools you'll need to buy (welder, plasma cutter, body tools, etc) all that kind of stuff, and a timeframe that you would like to have it completed in. high quality and fast = expensive, cheap and fast = low quality, high quality and cheap = not fast. Everyone else has given some good input as well, once you decide on a direction, i am sure everyone can help you figure out the best and most economical way to attain that desire.

Personally i would suggest a Rat Rod to test your skills, and you can do those pretty low budget if you want. After that you can decide how much you like the work and move onto something bigger and better! If you want a fast, show quality, daily driver... Prepare to take out another mortgage... haha.

Now that you've had enough advice and opinions to confuse all five senses, you have to decide whether to proceed and, if so, with what kind of car. There are "rollers" available (commercially made frame/ body combinations) that have some of the difficult fabrication already done, but they can be pricey. There are also some very nice reproduction bodies available - they, too, can be pricey. Anything for 1932, '33, or '34 Fords will be about 2 to 10 times the price of anything else, depending on whether it's repro or original (the principal of supply & demand).

When I start a project, I usually find a body first and then proceed from there. I am a school teacher and have never had big chunks of money to spend at one time. Bodies that cost 5 to 12 thousand dollars are out of my reach; $500 to $1,000 is difficult enough for me to come up with in one lump, so that limits what I can build. No matter, lack of expendable funds has forced me to become a multi-faceted builder and I have occasionally bartered chassis fabrication or bodywork for needed materials/ parts. For my coupe I stumbled across a body for $500! It was a "rag", but had a decent pair of doors and included a couple of necessary patch panels. For my roadster, I bought a brand new fiberglass T-bucket body for $640. In both cases, I fabricated the frame, radius rods, and all brackets myself. The pic below is my first hotrod; I was so broke back then (1970's) that I built the chassis AND the body!

If you want to take a look at what's involved in a build, take a look at my roadster thread: http://www.clubhotrod.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30400 Another good one is Don's (Itoldyouso) roadster build: "Project 3K is underway".

Now the decision is up to you...

I always have an opinion although sometimes not a popular one. I say because you are an experienced muscle car builder and you are a mechanical engineer, build the car you have always wanted. Most want a 32-34 Ford. But regardless, I think you would really enjoy building it ground up. Heck, these days, most all of the engineering is done for you. Little or no welding needed. It's going to cost more, but you will not have to put up with someone elses crappy workmanship. Plus you can build it your way and have that satisfaction as well. I dont count dollars on my cars. I enjoy the build process. So counting what life deals me, if it takes 6months or 6 years, i am enjoying my car built by me for me. Go for it, you'll enjoy it.