Have you ever torn apart an all-original car to build what you wanted?

I’m old enough that I’ve as you say hacked up plenty of original cars Ford and Mopar.
I’ve also built, rebuilt for other people that have started with cars that were not as nice as they should have been in my opinion to make it in the shop.
After over forty years of this the thing I can’t emphasize enough is start with the best vehicle you can. Period, no exceptions!