Projects Has anyone got tired of their project?

It took me 20 years to build a mid engine v-8 corvair. It would sit for years at a time. Finally finished it. Still glad I didn't give up.

 

Frikken car's ,drive me nut's !!!!

 

It's supposed to be fun.. If you have to many projects, get rid of them and concentrate on one.. Only attempt things that are within your mechanical and financial capabilities.. Make time for your family and you hobby.. I love working on these old cars but I don't let them run my life.. If my builds aren't as nice as the other guy, I don't care because I enjoy building them my way.. Enough talk, back to the model A in the garage because it's fun....

 

If you get too tired, just drive your OT daily driver to the next cruise-in. Park it three blocks away and carry your chair to the show. Then just walk around and look at other people's cars like the looser that normally look at yours and ask stupid questions. Trust me, you will get motivated again in about 10 minutes! LOL

 

Be realistic. What do completed Rods like your dream cost? It will cost you AT LEAST that much to build that Rod. Do the math. Spend the most money you can and buy the best starting point you can. Do you want to spend years working on a "project" in a garage 100% of the time with 0% driving? Or buy a running Rod and make changes to it over those years. That way you can at least get on the road and drive. Some guys just like to turn wrenches some don't. Some want a Rod to drive. Some want a Rod to work on. Don't be a cheap bastard it will bite you in the ass more than once. A Rod will cost money. Drivetrain, suspension, brakes and wiring are not places for the cheapest of the cheap ebay parts. If you need to buy parts twice how much are you really saving?

 

Lots of good replys here. I enjoy building them and driving them as well. Like the 36 Abone posted too. It is getting very costly to build one anymore but I still am not going to quit yet-hope to do a few more.

 

Flamedabone- yes it can! Lol. Seriously though, sometimes I hafta put my Packard in the corner and let it sulk. Mid 50's cars are big and take a lot of time. My li'l roadster was driving in a weekend and I can just keep pecking away at it.

 

I got an 8 year project that still hasn't turned a wheel!...I have to walk away for awhile occasionally to renew my disgust with non-hotrod stuff. Or, like this weekend, take a trip to enjoy other HAMBers [or hotrodders] projects. I'm gonna spend my weekend at 383 Deuce's debut of his deuce 3 window at a car show. Hell, I'm going to go as far as renting a room at a motel and spend the night there....get back just in time to watch the Datona 500 with another hot rodder buddy..a whole weekend of NOT working on [or even seeing] my 34 coupe project.
It'll still be there.

 

Yeah,i would probably would tell you yes lets trade then I would be back where I started.Glad your on the other side of the country.LOL

 

Shortened a beat up long box for my '60 a few months ago and haven't touched it since. Just burnt out, and money is tight for the build. I wanted it in primer and be able to drive it this summer but at this rate, it won't happen.

 

Last time I tore my '34 down to the frame to "improve" it (second time) it took me 25 years to get it back together. By then, I was retired and mid 60's. Didn't take long to realize that it wasn't the same as when I first built it. The thrill just wasn't there. Guess that's what getting old does to a guy.

 

As soon as I get it home.

 

Well, also an old guy, limited funds, get tired, get bored, hurt all over, sometimes leave the project in disgust. BUT, does it drive? DRIVE IT! Who cares what it looks like if it gives you pleasure, and as it does, you'll find yourself motivated to do more. If it don't run, get it running and......DRIVE IT!.

 

You may be tired of it, but I will tell you a hard truth, selling your project is where regret is born.

 

If that was my 34 and not running,i would sell my 40 pickup to get it running! Nice coupe! Droolllllll

 

I had sold my last hot rod about 15 years ago and went stock car racing. There are few other feelings that come close to being in the middle of a 20 car pack on Saturday night. I was a 1 man team and after 4 seasons of it I never wanted to turn a wrench again . Totally burned out .And I didn't. My son at 13 started showing an interest in old cars so for his 14th birthday he got a 1951 Chevy carcass. It is so cool to see the stoke in his eyes and every Sunday we go to the shop and work on his car. And uhhhhh along the way a 31 Sedan showed up and a 29 roadster and uhhhhhhh. Shit I got the bug again. And missed it more than I realized.

 

Some of my most vivid and cherished memories are from spending time in some old car with dad at the helm or holding a flashlight while he was under the hood. I guess that's why I was drawn back into the hobby over the last few years, even if I got burnt out.

Now that I've got a kid, this is motivation...


...and now that I've got another on the way, I have even more motivation to get my other projects done. Now I've got a pair of flashlight holders of my own.

I guess what I'm saying is, sometimes the best ways to get out of a hot rod funk, is to share it with someone.

 

Yep, this spring I'm going to be selling the hardtop, and looking for a convertible.

 

My dad wasn't into cars. I was rabid into cars in 60's 70's So Cal.
I have a 61 Galaxie, 57 Country Sedan, a few non-HAMB cars.
I shift from one to the other concentrating on the Galaxie. I WILL finish the Galaxie first.
The others all run and are registered. Just not finished.
Wire wheeling sucks.
Wire wheeling in 105 degrees sucks more.

 

Women and hot rods; can't live with them, can't live without them, but in 35 years I can honestly say that I haven't tired of my wife.
My three long-term projects; now that's another story.
Anyone in the market for a 66 Suburban hot rod project, startedt in 1990.
PM me if you have more money than brains.

 

Man, a '41 Plymouth is one of my favorite cars, bar none. If you get tired of that thing and you just want to focus on your pickup, let me know. It might be outside my budget but I would definitely be interested. I'd give that baby some love.

 

I have not tried to sell the car for a while because of the economy but would consider it if the offer was enough to get a car here on the hamb.Feel free to PM me if you want to make an offer. Thanks.

 

The most that I've ever had in a driver is 6k. I also had 2 other drivers that I had around 2,500 each in those. I had 3 cars to drive. '50 Buick, '60 Plymouth and a '61 Plymouth.

 

put For Sale & Wanted ads in Classifieds here

 

Too many projects can certainly burn a dude out. Solution; sell all but a few, then drive the living hell out of what's left. Driving pumps one up, while busting ass on them wears one out. They are cars, so DRIVE them, Squirrel !

 

Everybody is different.....for me.....it didnt take more than my first build to realize doing a rolling restoration fits my attention span. Or as other have said, have a ride you can cruise in while the other is under the knife

 

Not really, just hit a wall with physical injury that does limit me somewhat. Then the divorce drained available funds and its been on and off now for 10yrs now. I have everything for it but can't work at night in case I disturb the neighbours who are close to back shed. It's at the final chassis and body fabrication stage when lots of noise is generated. Being single and older there is always the housework, cooking, cleaning and ironing etc on top of 2hrs daily travel to and from work. I pick up some overtime on weekends that goes towards holidays. Heading to Canada this year, went to NZ (x2) , did a Pacific Ocean cruise. If I didn't have holidays I could fund the finishing of the car. No excuses for me, life just gets in the way.
I retire in 3yrs and will finish the car then and most likely start on another as time will be on my side then.

 

Here's what I do... Or did...
So restoring and customizing other people's passions for a living while your own sits at home getting your "spare time" makes a project get burnt out very quickly...
My solution is to find a car I know I can flip and make some coin on (usually something more modern that needs something fairly simple done to it). Get your frustrations and simplicitys out on that car, sell it and return with a fresh mind set and eagerness to your fun...
Currently my (burner car) is a Porsche 924 needing some simple wiring. Than back to the 62 C10 to build an entire custom harness.

 

I said goodbye just 6-1/2 hours ago to a big distraction, this last (2nd) fling lasted close to 10 years. Not burnt out out just not getting any other car projects done. As an older "fellow racer said "it's a horrible affliction". I began to realize within the last few years that I needed to seriously thin down the projects & large amount of parts accumulated for over 3 plus decades & focus on a select few or I'd wind up like many pals with so many unfinished projects it'd take 2 lifetimes to finish. Turned out to be a great idea. As a result our family's 5 generation 53 Chevy is looking like it's actually gonna get finished......... Hello my name is Flux & I too am addicted to shop time with old cars. I set my own pace & in the end will enjoy some seat time & then off to the next build. We'll now that that's been said , I can return to wasting my brain cells doing what I love, thinking about what I'm gonna do next chance I get to tinker in the shop. Flux

 

There is a long-time fabricator-builder-rodder in San Antonio who built a BBC-powered, mid-engined Corvair in the '60s, I believe. His name is Kit Carlyle, a long-time member of the GEAR GRINDERS.