Do you ever fall "out of love" with your ride during the build?

I am sick of my 47. Just want it finished. Ready for another project though.

 

I'm in one of those funks right now. stopped work on my '34 and picked my '51 I'm so close on the '51 i can taste it - but just loose motivation once in awhile. plane on gettin back to in a week or so (hopefully)

 

I have a long list of things to shine up, swap or replace on the '63 Dodge...but the only things that ever get done are replacing the parts she decides she doesn't want anymore and she won't let me drive her until she gets her way...I even named her parts car with a guy's name, since that ornery bitch is gonna strip him of everything he has...I love my car, and it will get fixed up and painted eventually, but sometimes she drives me batty...

 

Yeah, a 1966 Mustang. I only got as far as dismantling it for a resto. A year later I sold the heap to my soon to be x-brother in-law. That was a good year... I got rid of two nuisances.

 

I generally have a old car " DRIVER " to use and enjoy while the current project is going together. Currently I have a pair of DEUCE drivers so working on my current project has not burned me out. I just play with the new project a little at a time. It is a HOBBY ... and not a job. I really enjoy the " parts chasing " involved in a project. My wife said that they will most likely put " Parts Chaser # 1 " on my gravestone. I really enjoy the hunt and the chase. About all my projects need parts ... so I do not " get out of love " with the project.

I do hate the inflation of the cost ... of the cool parts and I really didlike seeing good parts/cars wasting away in the weather ... while the owner says I am going to use/fix that SOMEDAY ... but it all goes with the hobby.

.

 

Yes. I'm jonesin' for a pre-war roadster or a 3-window coupe.

dka

 

i do on every project but i just take a few days off that one and go to another till i get bored there

poorman

 

My car is a 1957 Peugeot 403, not the most HAMB friendly car ever but what ever. It had a rebuilt engine and brakes but a pretty rough body and interior. I thought, "great, the mechanics are good all I have to do it the body" so I bought it (I love Peugeots). A few months later I was on my way back from a classic car show when she started to fell like she was missing, so I pulled over to the side of the high way, the engine had stopped, wouldn't turn over with the starter so I pulled the crank handle out of the boot, couldn't turn it, seized. Fuck. So it had over heated, the temperature gauge doesn't work coz there's a plug in the head where the sender is meant to be that I couldn't get out. No idea why it over heated, I wasn't pushing her hard and it was a cool day.

Anyways, now I have to rebuild her engine, of course, being old, rare and French parts are impossible to get and cost a fortune. Also, being French, it's a bitch to work on. There goes a few grand .

I still love the car, it's just frustrating, why can't my cars just be reliable and not break in the most inconvenient ways? I've never had a car that was just simply reliable, I always seem to be working on them. Right now I have 5 cars, none of them run and drive , all but one of them did when I got them too.

Now I don't feel like working on them because their so damn difficult to work on, parts impossible to get and it's all just far too depressing.

This sucks

Thanks

Hayden

 

I've always been a finisher to the end of every project, it's when it's finished and everyone says, "oh what a cool ride" that I want to move on down the road. I think, I've found the reason why moving on fells so good. I'm back to a car like in high school a '52 Chevy fleetline where I should have gone a long time ago. The fleetline fells so good.

CRUISER

 

You are all so right!
The long lasting projects can "kill" the feel for your car. Sure I've had periods like that too, but what I do to, can I say, minimize that I never try not to take on to big of a task at a time. I've had my baby for 15 years now and there have never been a summer I haven't been able to enjoy my ride. On top of all that, I'm so lucky that I have my wife right there in the garage with me and we're working great as a team!

Klaus

 

We have a saying in software development.

The first 90% takes 90% of the time, the last 10% takes another 90%

 

I don't have 180% time though. I get what you mean though.

Hayden

 

That hits it, right on the head.
Im at that point and it sure feels like its crawling, I try to do something no matter how small each week or atleast 2 times a week..but dam

 

I guess I'm like CRUISER I finished my woodie after all most 9 years, it has never taken more than a year to build a car before, and it gets the wow factor from people and awards but something is missing I'm thinking of selling it, I've got my 36 roadster that is a blast to drive but I guess the woodie is to much like a family car get in hit the electric windows turn on the tunes the air, where the roadster is my 4 wheeled Harley...............

 

Every time I build a car/truck, I hate them until they are done.

 

you are dead on!!! i always wondered why i think more ab my cars that need a full restoration rather than enjoy my cruisers!

 

Thats why i have multiple toys being built at the same time,get tired or bored i put it aside and work on something else,only problem is i never seem to get one done or have the $ to finish one,but i am down to only 13 old cars/trucks now

 

UPDATE on how I've been feeling about it. I decided that I *really* want to do a Model A build (original, I know) and looking for parts just makes me that more down on the 50. Not to mention that something went wrong with my intake gasket and a lifter...so OPEN it goes, got new lifters and rods in, getting all the milkshake out...etc etc.

I realize it's likely a "grass is greener" scenario, but I think I've figured out that I got the 50 because it was there, not because I really liked it THAT way. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the entire process up to this point, and I *do* like the car...it's just not the one I want to settle down with. I really think that if I had a garage and could afford another build, I'd be more apt to keep it as a driver while I work on gathering parts for an A build, but those parts are just so g*ddamned expensive......thousands of dollars for piles of oxidation! *sigh*

I'm just disatis-f*cking-fied with everything at the moment. Got some interest from a few folks in buying it, part of me thinks it might be worth it to just not have it sitting here gathering my ire.

 

Often when a project seems to be really fighting me, I will either step away and come back at a time when I have cooled off, or get super motivated that I stronger and smarter than the car and focus my energy.

I've done both with my 57, and I'm glad we've worked through our issues. I'm having a real good time with it now

 

I tell people that it's like eating an elephant. You do it one bite at a time. Sometimes, you get a belly full and just aren't hungry. Walk away, take a break, go to a car show, or do whatever you need to do to distract yourself for a short while. Going to a car show usually gets me juiced up again.

Remember this - It is a journey, not a race. Enjoy the trip and take a break when you need one. As someone already said, it is hard work, it's not easy and at times it can seem overwhelming. Just keep doing one more thing and eventually, you'll get there.

 

Yep a 1940 Chevy coupe, sold it.

 

Right now.

 

I think we all get burnt out at some point. I was told by someone older-
Pennies make dimes. With that,I at least try to tackle something each day.I won't have to worry about it tommorow,and check it off my list. It's still a bitch having a whole car blown apart with shit everywhere,but seeing all the check marks on the list kinda helps(not really) even if it's a half hour,it all adds up.

 

I always need to have a car that is at the "useable" stage when doing other projects. From there I can go in and out of interest with anything and not feel that it is wasting my time. One thing to keep you interested it to think about buying a done car. Then go looking at done cars on the internet. Then look at how many done cars are done exactly the way you want yours done. Unless your dream is a bright yellow plastic 32 with a crate motor in it there is little chance that any car you find will really float your boat.

I get just as out of love with my "done" 73 Firebird race car. I have owned it for 16 years now and have redone it about every 5 years over that time. I try and reinvent the car with each redo.I look at it like I have way too much tied up in it to sell it and cant bring myself to part with the car I have been working on for over 2 decades(I worked on it for the 3 owners before me). I stop short of taking a sawzall to the frame and tubbing it because you cant undo that kind of damage. I did that to my 73 Camaro years ago and regretted it and have the unfinished carcass that I have been hoarding for 22 years now.

Step away, maybe clean and reorganize your parts,Work on some small projects on the car that you didnt have planned just yet. Doing major work on the body shell can really wear you down. Get some of the other details done. Is the engine built and detailed yet? How about all the rest of the running gear? Are the seats and other interior parts done? Nothing makes you want to get that rusty old lump of sheet metal done in a hurry like knowing that getting it done is the only thing standing between you and cruising. In the mean time you get the feel good feeling of finishing all the little projects.
Good luck.

 

One bolt, one hour, one day, one thought all equal one apiece. Everything is it's own project. From cleaning threads to air in the tires. Do every one thing to the best of your ability and focus. You'll be amazed at the projects finished at this rate. I know it sucks to see your buddies and enemies all cruising around. But It's worth the wait to finish one 100% and have it be yours. If you keep not finishing things it'll never get done and is just a huge waste of time and money. You might as well sell it now if you don't want it or aren't that into it. Most tinkerer's are great people to buy projects from 'cause they are cheaper and they just want them out of the way.

Pull out a naked picture of it when you first brought it home, that'll let you see progress and get you reminded of your first date.

Keep going it's well worth it!

Tim

 

I did briefly while moving my project car when I moved house. The tow rope snapped on a steep driveway and the car ran over my father.
Honest!
Kinda lost interest in the car after that.

Doc.

 

All the time man, thats why I get it runin first. That way when I'm feelin down on it I just fire it up and rip it down the block.. Bingo I'm back into it.

 

There many times during the build that I wish I never started.The only thing you can do is suck it up and get the hell back to work. Whining about it wont get it on the road.

 

Rockable has it right when he says , "EAT YOUR ELEPHANT ONE BIT AT A TIME".I also have suffered from hot Rod Burnout. But I was determined that I would not end up like my Dad who pased on with Four projects unfinished. I finish the 1950 F1 he gave me after 10 years of pretty hard work. If you do all the work your self you can be real proud of it but you will also have no one to blame when thing don't turn out good. You have to Love your rod. Just keep at it.

 

I have a ton of projects; 4 jeeps from '45 to '97 one ton, a few muscle cars, a couple bikes some random engine and drivetrain build plans and this 1929 A. With so many things going it's money that dictates what gets worked on. But even with no money, the shear mass of parts I've collected can always have me doing something. When this A was first found and bought, the plan was for a slammed and chopped cartoon BAMF flathead powered rod. I was hesitant about cutting up such a cherry ride from the get go but that's what my dad wanted. After stalling for about 5 years it seems my desire has changed along with what my father and I think is really cool. I went from this



To this. I've recently fallen for this project after a friend came out and inspired me. I'm even thinking of running the hood and fenders. How things change