Projects How do you fund your project cars?

I recently retired so I'm frugal with my long and short term budgeting. I'm single with no financial commitments to burden me apart from day to day and regular bills / utilities etc. Not a big drinker and not a gambler so I'm in front. I did the majority of work on my projects whilst fully employed however in saying that I've only the trim and electrical left to do now. I'll do most of the work and only outsource what I'm unable to do, having previously purchased all the upholstery and wiring harness etc. All the little things are a PITA despite budget contingencies in advance. Cash is king, no borrowing of any funds!

 

I build everything cash. I have been known to hustle to pay for my habit. I am not sure that where the money comes from is important. What is important is that I do not owe the bank.

 

Funds? You mean some of you have money??? Geez i could build a car so fast if i actually had a cpl nickels to rub together

 

Overtime

 

Cheaply, doing as much work myself.

 

some more fund it eye candy

 

I also keep an eye on craigslist, facebook marketplace, and offer up. Occasionally find a deal, I bought my bench seat
for my truck completely recovered for $100, and a 99 350 for $40. You probably will not find it when you need it, but
if flexible you can make out ok, even on a retired mans budget.

 

No kids, no vices, no mortgage and I married a woman that is a frugal saver. I also learned years ago when buying cars and parts form a motivated seller to ask what else he has for sale. Bought many a trailer load and sold the surplus to fund projects. Never walk away from a great deal because you don't need it. Buy it, flip it, and use the surplus cash to fund what you want.

 

Local car .. funding it under the assumption that I have a buyer for my chopped Chrysler. Buick registered in present owners name..Lots of work done , new glass installed, stripped and in primer..if i get it , original running engine and trans might be for sale...

 

Single, no kids and working alot. So once the bills are paid pretty much anything left over goes to the cars and car stuff. Also my grandfather and I pretty much pool our stuff together. Like with the current 33 pickup project, I have been buying stuff for my 33, mainly lots of chrome stuff, and pulling off my painted pieces to put on the other truck, since my 33 is the keeper. Then the plan is to find something else to build once this pickup is gone.

 

With money I should probably be saving. But the wife and I make decent money, and we have no kids. My 55 would be way nicer if I didn't have other expensive hobbies.....

 

It's called WORK!

 

A couple of side gigs. Some even kind of H.A.M.B. friendly.


I also do a little fab work making repair parts for Conex trailers and I cover vacations at a machine shop as "counter intelligence". Pays for my "hobby". My wife works a couple more years, keeps the shop lights on. Mike

 

Right here, joined a labor union and stack that OT money for fun.

 

It used to be somewhat easy to make money flipping things. You use to be able to afford to ship things. You used to be able to buy things not priced by people first checking eBay.

Not so much any more. I got my engine and transmission but flipping and buying a parts car. I took what I needed and sold the rest for more than I originally paid for the car.

It took me quite a few years to do my car but I don't have all that much hourly wage money into it.

 

Kids inheritance

 

Like a lot of the boys have said, do as much of the work myself as possible. buy and sell some used equipment on the side with my company when I need to build up extra cash for the expensive parts. I funded the whole coupe build that way as I told my wife no "day to day" money would be used in the build. Now with my current 56 build I'm doing the same thing. I did splurge on the Roadster Shop frame so for that bigger ticket I used some inheritance money. Life's short, can't take it with you. Make sure the bills are paid and then otherwise have fun!

 

Go to industrial / farm/school/estate auctions and buy some of the less desirable things. Auctions have personalities. If everything is going high.........leave. If everything is going cheaply then get some good stuff. Parse whatever you can use and sell the rest on Facebook for a profit. Sometimes you get really good buys, sometimes you don't. Machinery, machinery accessories, tooling, inspection gages, beams etc usually sell for a good profit. Hand tools usually don't. I've bought a lot of shop made things and disassembled them for use on other things for my shop.
You have to get a stash of money so you can act quickly when good buys appear.
Buy a complete truck on Facebook and part it out. Get something like a mid 90s Chevy for $500.
Make the right buy and you can easily double or triple your money. Beats workin..........

Let me explain about buying "less desirable" things at auctions. Don't buy stuff no one wants per se, but the higher dollar buyers want the stuff they can make big profits on. Then there the old guys who have money to spend and figure since they can't take it with them, they ARE GOING TO BUY THAT THING. Then there are the things that for some unknown reason there doesn't seem to be much interest in. Some auctions those same/similar things have lots of interest. Lots of times the object of your bidding isn't something you want as a whole, but it has components that are very expensive or useful. Others don't want to bother transporting them...or whatever. Expensive casters on a useless table, the steel used to make some shop fixture, cabinets (not file cabinets)bins full of bolts. You just have to use your imagination when buying stuff. Its fun buying something and then using the parts to build something you really want in your shop.

 

Sweeping chimneys.

 

There are good deals out there...keep looking in your spare time and be willing to get up and go at short notice and viola...

 

Back alley craps games.

 

Checks and PayPal mostly.

 

One of the things I do to fund my hobby!!

 

Live cheap, work overtime, sell off extra parts

 

In the last year old books have become a specialty to me, one house clean out and two estate sale libraries. They want an empty house at the end of the sale. I'll cherry pick the good stuff on the first day and tell them I'll be back 2-3 hours from the end of the last day with an offer on what remains, they never say no, pay them and start loading.

 

Drive the crap out of your current ride while planning the next. The sell the old one to fund the new one.

 

Lately, I have been questioning whether I will need that retirement money. Heck, I might not even make it that far.

 

Bought two projects from the same guy, built one into an assembled pickup ,it was stacked like a deck of cards when we found the maroon one. Sold that so the made the one now blue essentially free . Sold that for good money. Onto another project. Of course had a lot of help from good buddies, who in turn i have helped.

 

Selling crack to kids. Im a nice crack dealer, “hey kids, wanna buy some crack”? Seriously though, work 40 hours a week to pat bills and 40 more to fund car parts.

 

I just sold a kidney to fund filling up my gas tank.....does that count?