Folks Of Interest How many of you are true garage builders ?

I work a day job managing a warehouse, but I built my roadster pretty much soup to nuts at home in the garage, although my buddy carted it to his house and we painted it in his garage. Still nothing farmed out...

 

That body floating is creep in an exorcist kind of way

 

I had others build both of my last garages. I wanted to spend my time and efforts on cars instead of building a garage...

 

You know what was worse? The body and engine hoist laying on their sides trying to roll it back off the frame the first time I pulled the car apart.

I got that hoist and it works great, rigged and body off in like 10 minutes, a clean, straight lift that one man can do.

Cliff Ramsdell

 

I just buy other peoples cars then come here and tell everyone how talented I am and I built the whole thing myself.

 

The first shop I owned . My teenage sons & I built. 20x28 and tall enough to get a cab over semi in and raise the cab. Its a pole shed. We even cut the cedar poles on our land. bought a load of dirty SB2 gravel and hauled it myself. spread that out on the dirt floor spread 2 yards of clean sand on it and spread 10 sacks of Portland cement. Tilled that dry mix with a garden tiller. added water and tilled it again. finished it. cost $112 to pour the floor. tore down a house for the lumber and tin and traded a flat bed truck bed for some 14 ft cypress 2x8's for rafters. And made my living in that shed for a few years. Still have it. use it for a hay barn now. And I never hire anything if I cant fix it I junk it. I even built my own outside wood furnace. build my own engines and trans. If I had a boring bar I wouldn't use a machine shop. Ive even pulled my own teeth. and once my boys and I set and splinted my broken arm. We grow a lot of our food. kill and process livestock we grow ourselves. Hunt for a portion of our meat. I am studying on how to generate our own electricity. Im thinking a combo of wind and solar could work. Not that I can do stuff cheeper , better or easier than pay someone else. It about being Self Reliant. A Self Reliant person who has Know How never has to wait on the time & pleasure of others to get things done. My neighbor had a electrical fire. smoke coning out around the fuse box. They didn't call the fire dept or 911 they called Me. I went and pulled the meter and had the fire out before the fire dept got there. Know How is the best tool you can own.

 

Have built many cars in our garage. Do it all except paint and uph. Have done maybe 14-15 40's here and a few trifives. Always wanted a place with a shop but at 76 it makes no sense.
To sell and relocate wouldn't be cost effective at this point-a new place would be in the $7-800 range, new tax base etc-no thanks. It's not the easiest way but it works.
Buy a project-go to my friends place 150 miles away-take body off frame-bring chassis home-take to friends and sandblast and paint then home and build chassis complete-then back to painters house-set body on frame and stash fenders, hood etc in the house and finish build-wife has no issue with painted parts in the house.

 

I am now retired from my 9-5 job but worked in the evenings and weekends on my projects for years. I do everything but paint, upholstery and machine work myself. I don't trust anyone else to work on my old cars.

I was fortunate to earn a comfortable living and save up enough for a comfortable retirement. As I planned for it, I built myself a 2700 sf shop that now keeps me entertained on an almost daily basis. After asking about my cars and shop, a friend once said to me, "You have an expensive hobby!" I said, "Yeah, but I don't have an oceanfront vacation beach house!" That shut him up.

 

How bout a former pro builder goofing off at home?

 

Your second pic shows a very unusual rotisserie. But are they supposed to rotate vertically rather than horizontally? LOL

 

Yep, if I didn’t I couldn’t afford it. Not a complaint at all but three kids, a mortgage with a stay at home mom in California stretches things.

 

Bought a house with a 1800 sqft shop and 10" concrete floor, ex took off and I began raising 3 kids on my own (6,8,10).

Worked all day doing frame and suspension, went home at night and my projects went bye bye as I began working on other people's projects to help me afford the kids (no outside help) 5 til midnight every night, 10 to 10 Saturday, 12 to 6 Sunday did this for over 9 yrs.

Finally 2 yrs ago I had one off to college, another moved south and got married, left with one and I bought the 31 Tudor for me so I've only had the last couple yrs to work on my toy, money still tight but I had me time. I don't do much anymore for anyone so I guess I'd call myself a non professional building cars.

I do everything myself, engine, fab, frame, electric, paint, body etc minus only upholstery.

 

The one thing I have to say is that I'm very impressed with all the home built cars and trucks I've seen. Most are not perfect but very very close. To tell the truth I'd rather see a home built rather than a pro built any day of the week.

 

I pretty much just read on the internet about others doing all their own work. My shop looks abandoned inside, cobwebs everywhere!

 

I'm a true garage procrastinator. I do it myself, eventually if I don't die first.

 

At 71yrs. Old, been retired and disabled since age 55. I do everything but upholstery and machine work. I have said in previous posts, I can weld a little bit, fab a little, body work a little bit,paint pretty decent,build engines pretty good, all in a 2 car garage in a HOA. Any of it to the quality I expect of myself, probably not.

 

I consider myself a garage builder. I can and have painted, but farm out final exterior paint for best results. Bodywork, engines, transmissions, diffs, upholstery, electrical, suspension, chassis, light fab work, welding, glass, all done at home in my garage. Time spent in the shop is my escape from the stress of everyday life and few things compare to the satisfaction that comes from building something with these 2 hands...

 

For 28 years now I work as a professional Mortgage Banker by day, a 10.3 golfer on the weekends and a car builder with most of the in-between hours. I don't hire out car repair and I don't give golf lessons but if you need a home loan in CA, OR or WA, let me know (it's how I afford my expensive habits mentioned herein).
The proceeding message was not a formal solicitation and not intended to be compliant with local, state and federal rules and regulations. Originator licensed in California, Oregon and Washington, NMLS number 188558. GHIN average is up to date and includes rounds both sober and otherwise, emergency nines are not included in average.

 

I'm a professional mechanic for a living , so I've always done all my own mechanical work . In 1988 i built my own 30x40 shop , did every thing but concrete work including wiring . After i had a decent shop I started doing body work on my projects, I'm sill not great , but I get it as good as I can . I have done some paint work on my projects , but am not good enough to be satisfied with it so I have a friend do that .

 

Don’t judge me

 

In the 1950s at home ,I had a roomy back yard an soft weeds ,LOL,a luxury was if Dad let me use the carport for a day,that's how I built my first hot rod,did "all" by my self ,but not the seats. And a little later did my first custom in 1960. After Jr College,got myself a house an wife ,one car garage an fair size back yard,built some race cars there too on rear patio. When working as Design engineer for Mead Corp. A few years of that,and rented a shop with 3 bays to have after work/night an weekend fun with a race buddy.That turned into my speed shop"Competition Technology" an started making some $ from others that needed help{ after 6 years of being designer for Mead,I left an opened my night time hobby shop full time.{so pro builder by then,I guess} Up tell 20 years ago,I was still doing everything but seats my self. The great old guy that I always had do interiors,passed away. RIP Newt.
After I had retired,but a few years later, I started refreshing my high school hot rod again.
Decided too give a try at my own interior a go,after all I had seen Newt replaced it 3 times,first time being 1959.
So now I can say,yes I do it all,learning was fun even in my 70s.
But a little helping hand from buddy's is always great an always was! I'm not ever going to be as good as Newt was,but he'd likely smile at lest.

 

I get the smaller half of a two car, have to farm out machine work, but do whatever planning, fabrication, blasting, painting and assembly (not necessarily in that order). Move the wife's car when I need room. Hoping to do another '29 project, but since it will have a wood body from the A pillar back, I think I can get most work done before I need a frame. Might be a bit cramped, but .....

 

I was always a cheap prick, I used to do everything including paint. The last car I sent out the short block, really only a few bucks to have it assembled the right way, plus it freed me up to do a bunch of other things I needed to do. I had someone set my side glass in for me, he came to the house and did my windshield too. The interior is coming up one of these days or years. I lack the space and the equipment to do it. That will be sent out. I do most of my own welding, anything critical I consult my mobile welder, tack it up and let him finish it. Spreads some $$ around at the same time.

 

Tom Waits:
“The large print giveth and the small print taketh away.”

 

Like many others, I get a lot of satisfaction from doing everything I can on a build. I built my avatar over a few years working nights and weekends. I farm out major machine work, that's about it.

 

To me, the fun is the build. My wife says I have been in one perpetual build since we met 30+ years ago.

 

I am a true slow garage builder. I don't sew or paint. I am getting sick of laying on the ground a lift is my next move. The trouble isn't buying the lift its head room.

 

No "real" paint, no upholstery, most everything else.
Some tools I don't have, I hit up a local shop or friend that has what I need, but still do most everything myself.
I did have to have a shop narrow my axle assembly, so I guess that counts as needing an outside "pro shop.."!

Mike

 

I'm 59 and when I was a teenager my Dad called building something be it a building on the farm, a dog lot, or an old car and do it when you can't afford to pay someone it's called "Poor man payments". I still do it that way and very proud of it, Thanks Dad.