Projects How to decide when to throw in the towel?

So I've had my project since September 2012 and was absolutely thrilled to have a 30-31 roadster in my garage. I started tearing into it in August 2013 and ended up bending a valve after emergency removal of a stud that snapped while I was putting a freshly machined head on. Well, there it sat with the bent valve and partially disassembled.

I've run into a situation of sorts where I don't have a way to transport parts for the car (can't haul the body to a sandblasting place as I have no trailer/truck), I don't have a welder nor do I know how to weld, I got tired of buying parts for the car and tired of not being able to do anything, and finally I have very little space it seems.

I have run out of motivation and now am working quite a bit (50-60HRS per week). Coming up, my schedule will be slightly better as I will have weekdays off on a rotating schedule (six on two off), so the places that actually can do work on my project will in fact be open when I have days off. Seems that companies that can do work that I need done are not open when I have the time to even get parts to them.

I feel like I'd rather buy a 46-53 Chevy or GMC pickup and just have something cool to drive around and be able to enjoy, rather than have something cool sitting in my garage that I don't work on, just gets stuff stacked on it and it essentially takes up the space that I could have a table saw or some other cool tool instead.

I am sure lots of you have faced this issue and somehow powered through the disappointment, lack of enthusiasm or just plain disinterest in your project. I am at an impasse now that I'd rather free up the funds for potentially branching out to a different hobby (woodworking) and having the space and sell off my car project and associated parts.

I'd appreciate any reflections from members who have dealt with the same dilemma and who may have advice on both sides of the coin. One of the only things preventing me from selling it off is that I may never get an opportunity in the future to have a project like this. I bought it with money I saved and I don't want to try to find one like it when I am buying a house or raising kids because I know and have heard how budgets for hobbies get so constricted.

For your information, here is a thread I made on the HAMB about the project when I first bought it:

My humble start:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/my-project-flatheads-workshop-and-me.580645/

Where I am now:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/1930-31-roadster-project-build.734758/

Thanks for looking.

 

Man, don't give up yet. It's only been a little more than 2 years. I've had my Model A sitting in the wings since 2002. The kids are off to college now so I'm finally getting into it this year.

Of course I did spring for a 63 Chevy pickup several years ago that has helped me a lot in the meantime. It's my parts runner/driver that is still pretty fun.

Be patient.

 

been there and done that. there was a time when i got rid of most of my shoebox stuff, which i'd accumulated over 20+ years, and i sure wish i'd held on to it. back then, there weren't patch panels available, i wasn't making much money and a guy let me drive his t-bucket, so i was SURE that was what i wanted. but, to cut to the chase, just stand back and think about that project--is it or isn't it what you want. is that new project just a temporary infatuation or what you really want. good luck!

 

Do you have an emotional attachment to the roadster? Is it really special, or would another 5-10 or 15 years down the road do the same for you? I've had mine since 1962 when I found the body, and really don't see it finished in my lifetime, I'm fine with that. This is a hobby, we are in it for fun. I had an early '55 Chevy pickup back in the 1970's as a daily driver, it was a good truck. if the pickup would give you more enjoyment, let the Roadster pay for it. Bob


http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/im-off-to-find-my-30-roadster-in-the-basement.831821/

 

I just sold mu driver and I've been collecting parts for 8 years for the current if that makes you feel better...

I don't expect to have ot o the road for at least a couple more years.


Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!

 

It's supposed to be fun. If it's not fun sell the car and move on.

 

I'd sell it right away (to me)! Hahaha!


Really I'd pull it apart and hide it under a bench..., find your driver..., and wait until your skills and tool collection get to a point where the Roadster can be assembled without the stress.

 

If it takes you five more years to finish the car, you will be the same age in the same five years if you sold it and moved on. Build it!

 

The real trick here is to do something (anything) every time you go to your shop/garage. Even if it's just moving something around or removing a bolt. DO something! It will slowly get done and doing that will add to your motivation

 

don't give up--just step back and regroup-hang in there-- we've all had our setbacks. I have done 13 40 Fords and everyone has it's issues. If was easy everyone would be doing it---latest one gave me fits but I just stepped back and took another run at it--finally done-took 8 1/2 months -usually takes 4-5 but I am retired. When I was working 60Hrs a week it took me about 1 1/2 yrs to build a car. Don't give up unless your interests have changed.

 

Try to do just a little each day if you can, or maybe something each weekend, something small, those things will pile up into a completed car in due time. Don't look at the whole project, just focus on a small part of it and do that as a project. Comparing yourself to the completed car will overwhelm you.

 

Take it from me , 18 years ago I dropped my Roadster off at a shop with payment inavance ,
Befor I had a shop to work out of , 18 yr later I had to pick the car up & Compleatly take the Car apart (what little half a-s that was done & down to sub rails that where bent in a break , 2 inch gap's in door Jam's with in 70 hrs I have the Car as a roller , and with about a nother 60 hrs
It will be a mover under it's own flathead power . I have been lucky to have learned a lot of fabrication , and all the shop had was a bare frame and body, I let this Person steal 18 yrs of my life and enjoyment of this car , NEVER AGAIN!!!
If you can buy your own tools , do so !! Try not to pay for any outside work ,
That way if your dissatisfied you will learn to do it again & better !


MAN DON'T GIVE UP !!!!!!

 

Jimmy 2 and the guys are right. Even if you do one thing a day or an hour a day, at the end of the week, that adds up to a full days work. Ask yourself this; What's it costing you to keep it now? probably nothing.It isn't like you're making payments on it. I was in a similar situation in 1977; First year I bought the car, I lost 7 months' worth of work time on it, didn't have a regular car to drive, just had gotten married, then following year, Blizzard of '78, more down time. Spent the first two years collecting parts the pevious owner had thrown out. Finally, on the road in '86, sounds long but time flies. I felt like throwing in the towel many times, but figured I really liked the car, and if I got rid of it, i'd have to build another and get aggravated twice! I kept it, and still drive it. By the way, My first car in 1966 was a 31 Model A cabriolet. Wish I kept it, would like to find another Model A roadster soon. Hang in there, things will come together at once, happens like that. a lot of guys would trade places with you.

 

You're very young and have a lot of time. Believe me, some of us have back burnered projects for decades due to other life obligations. I'll reply below in blue.

So I've had my project since September 2012 and was absolutely thrilled to have a 30-31 roadster in my garage. I started tearing into it in August 2013 and ended up bending a valve after emergency removal of a stud that snapped while I was putting a freshly machined head on. Well, there it sat with the bent valve and partially disassembled.
Hot Rod building isn't always easy.

I've run into a situation of sorts where I don't have a way to transport parts for the car (can't haul the body to a sandblasting place as I have no trailer/truck), I don't have a welder nor do I know how to weld, I got tired of buying parts for the car and tired of not being able to do anything, and finally I have very little space it seems.
Sorry for the tough love, but those are all just excuses to NOT work on the roadster.
Borrow a truck like you did to haul your projects home (Dad, Girlfriend). Your roadster could be hauled to a blaster in pieces (quarters, cowl, doors) in the back seat or trunk of your car. Sandblast or DA sand it in your driveway.
None of us were born knowing how to weld. While I'd hope you will eventually buy a torch and welder and learn to use them, you CAN build a traditional 30/31 roadster project with little or no welding. Hot Rodders did it for decades. They also accomplished their builds/body work w/o having to farm out their dirty work to a sandblaster.You have plenty of room. If you have room to set up a woodworking shop, you have room to build the car. Hot Rods have been built in driveways, carports, 1 car garages.

I have run out of motivation and now am working quite a bit (50-60HRS per week). Coming up, my schedule will be slightly better as I will have weekdays off on a rotating schedule (six on two off), so the places that actually can do work on my project will in fact be open when I have days off. Seems that companies that can do work that I need done are not open when I have the time to even get parts to them.

You're out of motivation because you're working a lot of o/t. The way to survive a lot of o/t is to treat yourself. Order some parts, send out a few things to be chromed and save money to buy parts with when you're back to a normal schedule.

I feel like I'd rather buy a 46-53 Chevy or GMC pickup and just have something cool to drive around and be able to enjoy, rather than have something cool sitting in my garage that I don't work on, just gets stuff stacked on it and it essentially takes up the space that I could have a table saw or some other cool tool instead.

You have car ADD. Jeep, RPU, Roadster, now maybe a driver pickup. Hey, it happens to the best of us. Focus, man, focus.
Like a pool table, the table saw will eventually "be in the way" and get things stacked on it too. That's why I sold mine along with the radial arm and jointer...

I am sure lots of you have faced this issue and somehow powered through the disappointment, lack of enthusiasm or just plain disinterest in your project. I am at an impasse now that I'd rather free up the funds for potentially branching out to a different hobby (woodworking) and having the space and sell off my car project and associated parts.
You can have more than one thing going on. Get a table saw and do woodworking too. Chances are you'll get halfway through a woodworking project and walk away from it. Woodworking can be rewarding, but unforgiving too.

I'd appreciate any reflections from members who have dealt with the same dilemma and who may have advice on both sides of the coin. One of the only things preventing me from selling it off is that I may never get an opportunity in the future to have a project like this. I bought it with money I saved and I don't want to try to find one like it when I am buying a house or raising kids because I know and have heard how budgets for hobbies get so constricted.
If you get too burnt on the roadster, sell it to someone that will build it. The other option is to take it apart and stack it in the rafters or a shed, however, my best advise would be to build it now, before family, kids and other commitments keep you broke and away from the garage.

 

Good advice ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 

When I first moved to this town, I had no place to work [had an apartment] and no truck to haul shit but I desperately wanted to build something. I found the local college would let me store my car there, outside if I was enrolled. I took a few "labs" which allowed me to keep the car, a really rusty 56 Pontiac with no engine, on their property.
I kept plugging away on it, buying an old pickup to haul parts and patched the body, primed it and even installed a used engine there. I was able to drive it to the exhaust shop and then home to my apartment where it sat in the parking lot while I finished it...eventually rented a house with a garage and then bought a house, selling the Pontiac for closing costs on that house. All that said, I've also sold off projects that were just too big for my living arrangements.
Take a break from the model A for a month and then decide if you want to continue on.

 

Hot rods ta hell has some good points , also on the ruck /trailer thing , rent it , daily rates are cheap for a u haul just make sure you get one to move all the stuff in one trip . I have done this in the past when I needed a trailer and didn't have one . and the upside is you do not have to look for room to store the trailer when done ( or yearly plates and insurance and maintance) , I know one guy who uses a HF trailer to do his parts fetching and tows it behind a small economy car ( O/t FWD impala ) he just watches the weight he hauls ,

as for the overtime issue , he brings up a great point , and thats what I did , no time to work on car , so I bought the parts with my OT money , it made sure the parts were bought and didn't effect my household budget . and the nice thing is when I did have time I had the part to install .

 

I got my Henry j when I was 12. I had no money, no skills. I have done what I could, when I could afford it, or could do it myself. Aside from farming out steering and suspension mounting, to a pro, for safety, I have built this car, my way,by myself for the most part. Never had anything more than a dirt driveway,or a concrete pad to work on . I have been all over the place emotionwise, but I love my dream. Do you want or love this car? I have had my car now 31 years. I hope to drive it ,or come close, by the end of this year.

 

A few years back I sold my coupe project and bought a complete running vehicle.....best move I ever made... I say sell it and buy a runner.

 

after looking at your build thread, what are your plans? to me it looks like you could have that thing running down the road with a banger for power in a matter of weeks.... All be it not finish painted...you just gotta bolt it together.... a few trips around the block might be the incentive you need!

Or sell it to me!

 

What the f@*#'s a "table saw"?

 

A Modern Finger Gillatean !!!!!

One more to add to this ,,
The HotRod will not leave you , Unless the Parken brake fail's
It will not Lie to you or Cheat on You or break your Hart, unless You put it on a Dyno ,
It will alway tell you what it likes & doesn't , because it will break ,
Last of all ,

But it will Kill you !!!

Put the dam Roaster together , Model A 's are like a model car kit ,
They almost Just need Glue

 

I bought my running project in 1998. It was far from road ready. The front hood was bungee corded and the car was painted baby poop yellow primer. Hood latch was fabricated and I drove it. Once the original seats were covered I drove it even more. Slowly improvements were made; but I kept driving it. I always made mechanical changes as I went. Cosmetics came second. My interior was finished last September. Stay with it for the longhaul. It's worth it.

 

My 35 Chevy took 5yrs, of that it sat for over 2yrs after I became single I ended up finally finishing it and it's been on the road for over 10yrs now. My 46 Olds has been the longest build in my life to date. So far over 6yrs on and off. It's been a huge financial outlay and the light at the end of the tunnel is getting closer now as I edge towards completion.

The biggest obstacles are time, finances and motivation to name a few. Life in general and employment seem to get in the way along with builds for others. I have a vision and commitment and will not capitulate and sell it as a project. You will get satisfaction from reaching small milestones along the way. Set small goals and work towards them. When completed move onto the next and so forth and so on. Don't look at the totality of the entire build, enjoy the experience along the way. Small steps!!

 

To each his own. In my opinion, there is no shame in coming to the conclusion that you would rather have a driveable vehicle NOW, that you can do small projects on to satisfy your creative urges. If either circumstances or personal preferences suggest you are not ready to do a full build at this time...so be it.

Either store, or sell, your current project, buy something suitable that fits your current situation and don't feel bad about it. As someone mentioned in a prior post, this supposed to be FUN.....not drudgery. Like any other interest group, you will have those who think you should have THEIR mindset about this, and encouragement is fine, but don't allow yourself to be 'pushed' into something that doesn't work for you.

Ray

 

Keep it and buy a beater shop truck. How else to haul parts?

 

I say keep it if it is really what you want. I face equal if not worse problems: parts are NOT available where I live, I have to pay a lot the get them here (outrageous shipment fees plus customs) and wait at least for 2 weeks till they arrive. My car is a driver, yeah, but just a couple of weeks ago a wheel cyl went bad. I already had the replacment parts in stock since I saw it coming, but I decided to go ahead and change the master cyl while I'm at it. So I'm waiting still for the part to arrive and payed 108€ for it (all expenses included that is)...
I'm allways on a budget so I follow the "Order of the low-buck custom". Maybe you should to, if thats what you want. I say this because of what you wrote. Get it running first, then bother with metal work and paint: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/the-order-of-the-low-buck-custom.858824/
But then again, its all up to you. It this what you want? If not move on.

 

This is good advice, and what helped me get my car going.

It took me years to get motivated to finish this thing. I kept building obstacles in my head as to how I would never get it driving.