Ive been workin on projects and have completed a few cars 70 buick electra 225 conv 69 c-10chevy pu 63 chevy impala 62 ford galaxie (just completed) but now im getting ready to retire and im burnt out ive got retirement money and im thinking of buying a finished car.Am i alone in thinking like this? 2 YEARS AGO I BOUGHT A 54 MERC 2DR HT AND Had dreams of making a kustom but my 39 yr old daughter passed away and i lost interest.im looking for a completed car now.
Hot rodders are mostly guys and gals who like to tinker. Do you really expect to find a car you won't want to make your own? I doubt it. Maybe you're just going through a slump. Take some time away and after life settles down, then make your choice. Sorry for your loss.
I'd like to buy a driver, keep it a year or two and sell it. Have one spot in the stable as a rotator. Tinker on it a little along the way. Condolences on your loss.
I hear ya' Mikhett. I usually buy Rods that have the mechanical all done and are just needing the body and paint work done. (That's what I do) but I barely ever get them to paint after weeks of body work and blocking. I swapped a couple rolling, bare old Fords for a driving '41 Fordor, and I'm much happier. The problem starts when you do that, then start to make changes to it to make it your own, and then end up redoing the whole thing and you're right back where you started. Buy something as close to what you want, and live with it, and enjoy it. So sorry to hear about your loss, prayers sent your way.
As Fred said,,you have had a big blow with the loss of your daughter. I lost interest in my projects when I lost both my parents within 4 months of each other,,and started selling them off. Close the door of the shop,,heck buy something that turns you on,,believe me you will need a project,,sitting on the couch and watching TV or playing on the internet ain't gonna help you with the creative juices which obviously you have. Sorry about you daughter. HRP
i bought a car from a guy who was retired and tired of building shit and not feeling like he was getting it all done. So he bought a decent driver Rod, and drove the piss out of it. This gave him the energy and desire to work on another project, but still had a car to hop in and go for a drive. One of those "drives" took him on the HOT ROD Americruise. he's real happy it did it that way and will finish the other project whenever, without feeling bad about it.
That's horrible, Mik...Fred & HRP have the right idea, just slow down a little. For a short time. Prayers for you, I have daughters too. Mike
Prayers from the other Vail too. I too feel like I'm up to my chest in mud and trying to run. I have a few projects going and have a lifespan of 5/6 hours before the back is done. I laid stuff out to pressure wash Sunday in about 20 minutes. After I was done, it took 2 hours to stash it back in the garage and in the car. The lovely is workin now so I dont think I'll have to save for a fanbelt anymore. That'll help.
Tinkering and Complete rebuilds are two different animals.. yes I'd like to be able to just buy one and drive it!!! I'm with you!
2x Hotroddon. Buy a driver and drive it to every cruise-in and show you can find this summer. Look at what everyone else has been building. Maybe by winter you find another project that likes you... or another outlet for your creativity.
Instead of buying a completed car maybe find an unfinished project and bring it to a good builder to finish the way you want it. I know if I bought a finished car it would be taken apart and redone.
I'm with you mikhett. I'd love to buy a Nice completed car to drive and have fun with. Only thing, I'd want to know all about it, inside & out. Did that with my roadster. Had it one year and started making it a better driver. I was forced to. Motor crapped out and the ride sucked. Still throwing money into it. Can't convince the wife I'd be better off buying a cool old car or truck and make it my daily driver. Little or no depreciation. I am sorry about the loss of your daughter.
My wife gave me the option.. buy your dream car or build it. I'm building it, but thinking back I probably could have found something finished I liked just as well. But the fact that I can say I built it will be nice... especially if it turns out nice ;-)
I bought a 34 Chevy coupe 30 or 35 years ago. About 15 years ago I got a little more serious about it and started the build. After about 6 years we were tired of walking into car shows, so we bought a "driver" sedan (my avatar) to use while I worked on the coupe. That's about all it was. I've spent the last 9 years fixing up the sedan to suit my standards of utility and dependability. This year I finally have the coupe running and still have bad paint on the sedan. I'm convinced that 2 cars is one too many. Finished cars are never really finished. My 2¢ .bjb
I sold my Model A project last year, and brought my avatar. Spent 6 months tidyin and painting it how i wanted, and now i just drive it. Would have been another 5 years working on Model A, before driving it. Then i found that i missed workin on jalopies, so i brought a project. You may find when you retire, that you have the time and will to have another project. Go buy yourself a finished car, and see how you go. Im sorry for your loss.
I don't want to buy a completed car but would love to have one I can drive and fix up something with a really nice body decent & paint that runs ...yeah I know if I just saved my money instead of buying the projects I could have one...... yeah right
I purchased a '52 Chevy fleetline with sound running gear, 283, 350 tranny and a 10 bolt rear. Needed body work and paint, it's almost ready for paint. This is my last car build, just want to shine and drive it everywhere. My list is almost done: 1. finished the back yard 2. 95 % done on the '71 Corvette 3. 85 % done on the '52 Chevy Will take up making cruiser dash knobs to keep the creative juices flowing. CRUISER
Not exactly the same but I think I understand what you are saying. I am only 40 but have grown around antique cars my whole life. My dad was into them and had a body shop and always did his own cars. I followed suite starting at 16. Pursued a new challenges with every car that I bought because I wanted to continue to hone my skills. I always took pride in the fact that I had always built my cars over the years. Because of personal issues and life in the last couple of years I just don't have the interest anymore. I have 31 Desoto coupe project that I would love to do but I told a buddy the other day that if I had the money I would pay somebody to build it. He about fell over. I haven't done it all I just don't have that drive anymore to prove anything to anybody or myself, most likely because of my personal life. I really just want to get in something and enjoy it and not have the blood, sweat, emotion, etc in it. I just want to get in and drive. I guess what I am saying is I understand where you are probably coming from. I have not had the to deal with the difficulty that you have but personally think just buying something fun that you enjoy that is done may be really good for you now. Maybe your drive to build something will come back maybe it won't but I think you should go have some fun.
Mikett, I can relate. I was in the middle of a 29 roadster build when my wife's colon cancer came back with a vengeance. I spent close to a year living with her in several hospitals before she passed. 46 years. I didn't even look at the roadster. It wasn't the car's fault. Nonetheless, for some reason I was done with that car. Maybe I was using it as a scapegoat, whatever. Then my 47 came along, and it's been a joy since. I drive it and do little things to it one at a time. I guess what I'm trying to say is keep looking for a finished car, but don't close your mind to a car that you could drive and tinker on at the same time. You have to get up off the couch bud, you'll go crazy if you don't.
Look, never say never, I built my 36 twenty years ago, did some paid work for a few years, got tired of the b.s. from some of my customers and vowed to quit. I did, drove my 36 lots, moved to a small town and bought a project cause I retired and thought it might take me ten years of tinkering. Started last year, thought if I got the chassis done over the winter I'd be happy, and rekindled my passion, surprise to me, got the car nearly done, one more winter and my 28 chrysler three window will make noise, I've really enjoyed my shop time and I'm looking forward to the next one. Don't be thinking its over yet, give it a rest and come back to it when you're ready. Buy a car, use it, see what happens.
So sorry for your loss. I am retired and sometimes think I'm not gonna build any more but then I find another 40 and away I go. It keeps me occupied and my mind off other issues and I can manage about 6-7 hrs a day. If I decide to quit for a while, then I just let it sit til I feel better. But at 70 the current 40 under construction may be the last one-started in March and hope to have it done by August. Will just keep one around to drive and tinker with unless another good coupe turns up--then who knows-have lots of parts to use up or may just sell them all..
I lost my wife to cancer in 2009, we are both car people and now it seems I'm running on 4 instead of 8. I have always done my own cars but I did buy my '56 wagon and am giving it a shave & haircut to fit my ego I suppose. Keeps me active and at 73 ,it's important . I empathsize your loss my friend .
Sorry for your loss. My thought would be to find a car that your daughter would have liked (if she was into cars) Tinker with it doing things to it that maybe she would have liked then have her name pinstriped on the trunk lid. When people ask about it you get the chance to tell them about your great daughter. It would be a great way to honor her and get you back into it. Good luck on what ever way you go.
Have to have projects, just have a driver along with it. Learned this from my dad a long time ago. Projects and passion for them goes in spurts according to time and money. My condolences for your loss.
I am sorry for your loss, I am having a bit of a rough road now and know how you feel. Would love to pay someone to finish my car or just buy a complete car, however with NO BUCKS I do not have that option. If you can afford it buy a driver and a project for the garage. Even if you never finish it having a tinker project is good therapy.
I own a shop so I work on other people's stuff 50+ hrs/wk so I don't want nothing to do with big projects. I do not want to spend my evenings and weekends sweaty and greasy and bleeding. I burned myself completely out on my big build in 2010 and since then if a car needed anything more than little stuff I would get fed up and sell it, but I kept buying them because 1) I can't pass up a good deal and 2) I kept trying to psych myself up to get after it. After a handful of drive able cars that needed a bunch of stuff and a scratch build project that had all the pieces, I sold everything including my bike and bought a driver. Best decision I ever made. Drive, change oil, repeat. Sure, I could find all sorts of things to do to it, but that's not why I bought it so I don't. Now I feel like another project, but I know better.
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