Life's what happens when you're busy making plans or why my car will never be done

If you are having your first kid, you are still young. The car is fine where it is. When the time is right, you will get more done.

 

You can always finish it after you retire and haul your grandkids around in it.
That's where I'm at on the Model A I got with big plans when I was 15. You are right. Life does get in the way but there is nothing wrong with that. Just keep your priorities right and someday is soon enough.
It is nice to have a project when you hit an opening where you do have a little time to get back on it. Just let it fit in where you can and don't sweat it when it's just setting.

 

I looked through your build posts. You have a lot accomplished.
What project is ever done anyway? I say if you like it get it driving and use the car.
If your just burned out on it, then sell it. But keep the money seperate from the house money. Later on you'll find something else that lights your fire and you'll need the cash.
BTW, I did the 'big car for the family to ride in' also. In the 8 years I owned it we all were in it probably a half dozen times. What I'm trying to say is when it comes to hot rods don't worry about the family. Build the car that makes YOU happy.

 

Hey man I have a 3 year old daughter and twin 9 month old babies a full time job and a loving wife..My secret..Friday or Saturday nights I put the babys to bed around 9 pm. Then me and Ted(my trusty dog) make a bee line to the garage till about 2AM.
thats 260 hours roughly a year. Bet thats more then some guys who have the time to spend. I got my 49 Chevy on the road last year that way. Thats my secret. Oh that and lots of coffee, beer will make you want to nap on a creeper under a car that time of night. Good Luck and keep motivated, it will happen. YOU have to want it bad enough!

 

Don't give up.

I started on my Hudson when I was a single guy, and then got married, had a kid, got divorced, and life got in the way for a LONG time.

It took me 10 year from the time I purchased the car until the time I got it running.

Keep it on the back burner, life will slow down eventually and you'll be able to get to it. I did.

 

stick with it , iam the worse bout finishing.
and go mow your dad's yard next year for christ sakes.
good luck brother & i hope the young one is healthy

 

Well I guess I'm not alone reading some of these. Job, side work to pay for this affliction (addiction?), family care, family loses, 10hrs/week on the road just to and from work, regular home upkeep, wife's buisness, travel for work, shows for work, and now it's fuckin snowmobile season! No matter what I don't give up. I've had several offers for help that I've either not been able to take advantage of or didn't materialize. It will positively NOT stop me from attaining my goals. 1st on the list is the 61 bubbletop. I'm actually doing things to it again!! My biggest enemy is...ME!!!

That aside I actually was going to sell the truck at one point since my late Father's care was so overwhelming. I'm glad I decided to keep it. Someone approached me recently to buy the bubbletop so I threw out a number and they came to look. They wanted it but their final offer was so insulting it's not for sale at all. Their offer wasn't about the car it was what they offered me to do the body and paint for. That offer wouldn't have covered mat'ls. Now I'm even more motivated to get it done and let the quality be a silent bitch-slap to the uninformed jerkoff. Worse yet they approached me to buy it, unsolicited. Once that one's done the truck and the 41 Packard are front and center. When I get sick of one I'll work on the other. Add to all of this, I now have 3 woodgraining jobs on deck. Gotta do em. Times are tough, money's tight, opportunity knocks. I decided that the bottom line is that all of my cars are going to be worth the wait, worth the effort, and provide a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment that can't be measured by words or money.

 

good thread and good responses... for me it's just the motovation to get back out there. eventually it will happen for me...
good luck with yours and happy holidays....

 

Can't tell you how many projects I got half done and had to sell to support some thing or another, house, family, kids, whatever. But as storm king said ther just cars, don't ever let them get in the way of family, that is the most important thing you have. And you know what life happens, you plug away and, the house gets paid off, the kids get out of college, and you can build cars. And I am now having the time of my life building a 52 chev pick/up with my grandson, at 14 we have 2 years to get this thing done. hang in there.

 

Good advice!!! I would bet that your Dad doesn't want to sell the house and lose the shop either. Help him out a little with home maintenance and yard work in order to keep the space that you need to work on your project. After looking at your build thread, it would be a shame not to see this project thru. There is some light at the end of this tunnel, as a teacher you will have 3 months off each year. Now, time to get back to my extended project. Good Luck.

 

Similar situation. 1954 Chevy wagon, 2 1/2 year old, 1 year old and working 7 days a week. I'm not complaining at all about two healthy kids and a good job. It just doesn't leave much time for car stuff in the grand scheme of things. Over the course of about two months, I managed to get out to the shop about 5 nights a week and made enough progress that the wagon made it to the Hunnert Car Pileup this October. I want the same thing you do... a cool old wagon that I can load the family in and head out to a show or cruise, make an ice cream run, whatever. What helped me was to not overshoot my goals for the car. Instead of getting caught up in trying to do everything as nice as I could on the car, I decided it was more important to me to have this car on the road. It still had to be "right" and safe, just not perfect. My '36 Ford project will take forever because I want to do my best on it, but the wagon?, hell, let's go for a ride!

 

Dude dont give up, you got an awesome car there, like I saw someone else say if the car still has some cool factor in your mind then its just a matter of time.
When I first offered to my wife 1 side of the garage for her van for letting me get my motor back in my nova and driveable she went for it. I worked for about 8 months at night after the kids went to bed, some of it in the cold in an unheated garage. But I did it and when she finally got her spot in the garage her dad offered her that old International truck that she had been drooling over since he first bought it. Now I have two projects that will never be "finished" but I aint about to give up on either. Hang in there bro. Check out Stacy Davids Gears on the speed channel for some inspiration and maybe a good laugh!

 

I envy you guys that stuck to ONE car so long,The best thing I would recommend is stay focused on that car if thats what you really want,I searched for ever for a 59 camino,settled for other "deals "as they came along,finally found a decent 59,set it aside,and tried the ol,"Ill fix this other one up and sell it as step to completing the camino.,,,fast forward five or six years,about 15 stalled projects,the camino sitting,all the reasons to have the car in the first place,not that important anymore,and a daily feeling of being overwelmed.Not complaining,just sometimes wish I would have saved time and money,to find a car mostly done,or had the facilities and knowledge under my belt first to take on such a task,Still,no regrets,its been fun,and theres no better place to learn than the hamb or the garage...good luck,and enjoy the baby while they are still babies,time will start to move really fast now.

 

I'm glad I,m not alone! At 34, I'm the bread winner for my family of 7. Between kids 3&4, we decided to move 700 miles away and buy a project log home. My avatar truck has seen about 8 hours of work this year. I have coached the last 6 soccer seasons and stuff around the house breaks faster than I can keep up with it. All that said, I have an awesome family, a great job, and I love my life. I try to involve the kids as much as possible, but it never quite works out like I hope. I make the best of their time because I know It's short. Its getting more interesting now though, my oldest just turned 14 and some of her good friends are into old cars

Hang in here.

 

Like was said before just spend a little bit of time a day doing something to it even if it just a half hour.Thats what i do every morning after i drop my daughter off at school .I have a few hours before i go to work ,so im not taking away from my family time and my wifes at work anyway.Only day of the week that i dont touch it is on Sundays when there home all day.Another problem i have is i get burned out easily doing welding / sanding / body work so i will lay off of that a few days and do something else then go back to it.If you could just devote even a small amount of time to it a day ,it will get done.It has to because eventually you will run out of things to do to it .I work 6 days a week myself and alot of those are 12 hour days.Keep chipping away at it and it will get done ...

 

My dad has a 1940 International pick-up project that he's owned since 1983.It sat nearly 10 years from 1997-2007 with nothing being done to it. In the spring of 2007 I called him up and asked if he'd like to get going on it again, he said sure.Since then we've rebuilt the engine, trans, alternator, carb, built mounts, and installed everything, had multiple set backs with the engine and trans, but he's been driving it for over a year now, and really enjoying it! We've started on the body now, and are going to keep chipping away on it till it's done. By the way, he's 78 years old now.

 

You'd be surprised at how much you can get done just going out there 15 minutes a day - even if it's to pick up tools - keeps you "on track" and motivated. We all have "lulls" in projects that extend over time - you aren't alone. Just hang in there and keep going out there for that "15 minute a day therapy session" - you'll be glad you did!

 

The reality may not be as bad as you think.
If you can't do the 15 minutes a day gig, try and put one evening a week aside to do work on the car. Build all your routine around that, ant try and keep it sacrosanct - trade it off with another allocated night for your wife to do what she wants - you benefit from a bit of "me" time. When my kids were young, I tended to do work relatively late at night, but a couple of hours here and there can and will get progress made.
Not to mention the nights you are not working you can be planning the next job, ordering parts etc.
Don't despair - the car should take second place for a while - enjoy the experience of being a Dad - but there is no need to abandon the car completely.

Plus it is a family oriented car, so it's not being "selfish".

Mart.

EDIT:

Oh Yeah - there's always an alternative - if it's the time not the money that's a problem - why not mothball the Chevy and buy something neat that you can enjoy but does not need time invested - a running driving car. Run that for a couple of years, fix the Chevy up as and when you can and then sell the latecomer when the Chev finally hits the road.

When my second child was due I was in a similar situation - I had been working on a 56 Chevy Pickup - it was 90% done - In my case I sold it and used the money to buy an on the road '59 Galaxie.

Saved me the time in the garage and bagged us a neat car for days out.

Mart.

 

I know how you feel, I work a 60 hour week, i have a 2.5 year old lil girl and my wife is about to pop anytime with our 2nd baby, . . . . . . . . . . .my wife is cool as hell. Sometimes I will run outside for 10 mins just to move one thing or adjust something because i know ii will get me that much closer. . . . . . . I KNOW my car will never be finished and im ok with that, "the journey is the destination", . . . . . . . BUTTERBOY hit the nail on the head though, . . . . . night time is the most productive time. Write lists, prioritise things and all these small things will help when you have a few hours to get some real work accomplished

One thing im planning on doing when no.2 comes is getting Lula her own "car project" she can work on [ like a lil trike thing that she can play with using plastic wrenchs etc etc ], so we can give mom and the baby some time . . . . .while we do car shit.

Good luck man,
L

 

I get that way some times about the car described in my handle... but alas I keep holding on. plus the fact is that i got most of the parts for free, and its not getting any worse.. so what the hell.. if nothing else think about it.