Need motivation!!!!

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DesertRat

DesertRat

Leading edge boomer
Joined
Jan 22, 2005
Messages
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Location
Moses Lake, Washington
I'm stuck on my car build. Not the car's fault, I have everything I need to put it together except for a couple of things. Right now I have the dash out and need to make decisions on the gauge cluster and sound system. Stock gauges all work but I am thinking of some aftermarket ones but dont know what to do. Have the heaterbox out to check the core, it looks better than the replacement ones they sell today so I guess I will take it to the radiator shop for testing & repair as required. The radio is AM only and I am not a "hidden audio" kind of guy so i am debating sending it into a rebuilder for updating. The car needs very little body work, some taillight repair on the drivers side and the usual door dings, aside from that it's sand, seal, block, prime, block some more and squirt the color. I just can't seem to get started. I just need to pick a job and get on with it. I am thinking of doing paint & body first. A friend of mine who is a big Mopar guy is doing a 71 Challanger RT big block and has his ready for color. Well I just needed to vent a little. Any suggestions on the gauge issue would be appreciated.
DesertRat :thumleft:
 
DesertRat said:
I'm stuck on my car build. Not the car's fault, I have everything I need to put it together except for a couple of things. Right now I have the dash out and need to make decisions on the gauge cluster and sound system. Stock gauges all work but I am thinking of some aftermarket ones but dont know what to do. Have the heaterbox out to check the core, it looks better than the replacement ones they sell today so I guess I will take it to the radiator shop for testing & repair as required. The radio is AM only and I am not a "hidden audio" kind of guy so i am debating sending it into a rebuilder for updating. The car needs very little body work, some taillight repair on the drivers side and the usual door dings, aside from that it's sand, seal, block, prime, block some more and squirt the color. I just can't seem to get started. I just need to pick a job and get on with it. I am thinking of doing paint & body first. A friend of mine who is a big Mopar guy is doing a 71 Challanger RT big block and has his ready for color. Well I just needed to vent a little. Any suggestions on the gauge issue would be appreciated.
DesertRat :thumleft:
Click to expand...

Set you a goal and stick to it the best you can. My build took 4 years. Didn't
think I would ever get it done. I wanted to be ready for our yearly cruise in
here in Columbus. Got the 'Cuda done at midnight before the day of the show.

There's no better feeling than going for a drive after you have completed
your restoration. I'm 63 and every time I fire her up, I'm 18 again.

Keep up the great work and you'll get there!

Good luck,
Tony

When you get a view like this, it makes it all worthwhile.
 

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Hey Tony! I followed your build on the build thread, it was fascinating. I know i am just being whiney. The upside is I do literally have everything to put it back together. All small parts bead blasted & painted, engine bay & K frame sandblasted and painted and the engine machine work is done and all parts are on the shelf to put it together. I don't want to put the engine together until I have the car in color. I even sent the bumpers in for recondition & rechrome. I am going to pull the dent out of the taillight and start sanding & blocking the car first I think. BTW, I REALLY like your finished car.
DR8)8)
 
DesertRat said:
Hey Tony! I followed your build on the build thread, it was fascinating. I know i am just being whiney. The upside is I do literally have everything to put it back together. All small parts bead blasted & painted, engine bay & K frame sandblasted and painted and the engine machine work is done and all parts are on the shelf to put it together. I don't want to put the engine together until I have the car in color. I even sent the bumpers in for recondition & rechrome. I am going to pull the dent out of the taillight and start sanding & blocking the car first I think. BTW, I REALLY like your finished car.
DR8)8)
Click to expand...

Thanks DR!

Keep us posted on the restoration.
 
I found that when building my 66 Dart race car,I would hit a "down time"I,d center myself on a certain area of the car to work on.Once I started,I didn,t want to stop LOL.DesertRat,it sounds like you have everything there to keep you busy for awhile.Pick an area and jump in til it,s finished then move on to another area.Sometimes we need a little kick/push to get going.Good luck with the final stages.
 
Yep I am also 63 and you work alot slower than you used to. IMHO I would get bodywork done and get car in one piece running and driving. Then every winter you can focus on a smaller jobs like removing stock dash to upgrade. If I try to do it all in one bite you get too many balls in the air and you feel overwhelmed. Taking a bare shell to a running car is a huge job w/o custom dash. Am radio is easy put off for next winter but due to location of heater core do now.
 
Sounds like you have a good idea about getting the paint and body work done first.
That would give you some time to think about what you want to do with the gauge cluster.

I'm kind of in the same boat I've been skipping all over doing different things because it gets boring just wet sanding all the time. But I think I'll take pettybludarts advise and get back on track focusing on one area at a time.
 
Take it from another old fart.
Set a goal, finish it and move to the next one.
I have really not started on my duster yet because of the weather, but I am buying parts to put the whole "package together".

It took me 2.5 years to build my willys but every night I would go up to the garage and do something to it, no matter how small, but you feel like you are one part closer.
The willys was so bad I threw the body and frame away and started with just the running gears.
 
Thanks for the visit guys! It took me five years to build my 65 Comet so I am not a rookie. What I worry about now is actually finishing the car. I am very type A personality and the inactivity is bugging me which will move me off the mark. I will have to build a booth around the car to keep the sanding dust off the rest of my shop/garage but I have that already figured out. My job requirements for the next 5 months are a bit consuming but I think once I get moving it will be easy to get back into the groove. Hope to be posting some now photos on my build thread by the end of February.
Cheers everyone! Rat:thumleft:
 
Hard work will pay off, this started as a $200.00 come get it before I crush it.

1002141n.jpg
 
Here is a pic of motivation, this was all I could salvage off the willys.
Most people would have just parted it out.
I fixed it.


1000383n.jpg
 
Well done sireland67. That is one of the nicest jeep builds I have seen. Seems like a lot of them are chopped up some.
DR
 
Go to a mopar show or drive a buddies car, that will light a fire. I also know what you are going through, I'm about two years in on my resto and my goal is to take to the nats NEXT year.:banghead:
 
DesertRat said:
Well done sireland67. That is one of the nicest jeep builds I have seen. Seems like a lot of them are chopped up some.
DR
Click to expand...

Thanks man that means alot,
It is running original 134 flathead and drive train.
If you take the lift, tires, winch and roll bar out it is the same as a 1948 flat fender.
 
Some times I get the same way,,,,,,fresh out of motivation,,,,,and corner store is allllllllllll sold out. The other day I was absolutely not feeling motivated to work on my car, till I stopped at the gas station and could smell the exhaust from a Monte Carlo w/ its carb running rich.

I was all excited when I left the gas station. The smell of burning oil, unburned fuel, melting rubber etc. gets me all happy. Reminds me of great times at the race track.

Click the link and close your eyes for a couple of minutes.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc-fLY-a0Us&feature=related"]YouTube - 69' Road Runner Warming up exhaust sound[/ame]
 
The thing that gets me motivated a lot of the time is the smell of burning tires. It doesn't even have to be a car doing a burnout. Just smelling it after someone locks up their brakes or something like that. That smell ignites something in me that makes me go to the garage and start wrenching on the car somewhere.
 
ALLRIGHT MOPARBOY, GET OFF THAT COUCH AND GET IN THAT GARAGE NOW, OR I'M COMING DOWN THERE AND STRIP YOU OF RANK AND YOU'LL BE STUCK DOING THE WIFE'S HONEY-DO LIST UNTIL YOU'RE TOO OLD TO BEND DOWN AND SCRUB THE TOILET!!! NOW, MOVE IT...HUP ONE, HUP TWO....MOVE IT, MOVE IT....C'MON, GET THE LEAD OUT OR YOU'LL BE DRIVING A SUBARU UNTIL YOU'RE TOO OLD TO SEE THE ROAD FROM YOUR HIGH CHAIR, YA JACKWAGON!!!

There, hows that for motivation???LOL!!! I always wanted to use the term Jackwagon for something!!! Hope this helps, Geof
 
Motivation…… Let me tell you.

2 years ago one of my roller lifters started to fail so I pulled them all out. Then I thought it would be cool to have the factory AC back on.

I test fitted the AC (along with the stock carb and intake).

Here I am now……. Can't make up my mind on what direction I want to take the engine (stock or not).

I could simply order a new cam and lifter and be on the road but I really want to at least give the engine a fresh coat of paint and maybe look at the bearings.

So…… Yup a weekends worth of work has had the car parked in the garage for 2 years.
 
I find that i have to really push myself some days.....
Being on this site is an inspiration to me especially the members restorations section.
I do little bits as i can with work, the wife, money, and other obligations.
The weather can play a big part to me too, as i do everything outside. (or 99% of it)
It's still winter here, and i'm at a standstill, but i use the down time to plan my first and next move.
Don't be too hard on yourself!
It'll get done, just spend a few hours working on it here and there, when you have time and next thing you know, it snowballs and you get the inspiration and get a lot done.
Now get off the computer and go polish a bolt or two or hammer and sand for awhile!
 
If you can drive and restore a car at the same time it helps.
Your just loosing your focus in the motivation department.

Sometimes it happens right at the end of all your hard work and you just have to get a grip on things and make a plan.
If you can get the car to drive and finish it while driving it,all the time and hard work seems to make sense.
When taking a break from your restoration is needed, all you have to do is go for a spin or a cruise for energy.
 
Commando66 said:
Any progress on the Barracuda lately? I'm curious about your cam selection for the 273 also.
Click to expand...

Thanks for all the input. I am in fact getting ready to go on the car again. Commando66; I spent a lot of time and research on the cam issue. I landed on a Lunati Hydraulic that I liked the specs on and thought would match well with my stock adjustable rockers, Eddy performer/Holly induction and Egge 10.5:1 pistons. It is part #60401 with .454/.475 lift and 112 deg lobe separation. Matched Lunati lifters, dual springs, retainers and keepers. Not spectacular but should run to 5000/5500 rpm easily which is the limit of my induction setup. The only thing i haven't got bought for the car is the headers and that is strictly a $$$ thing as it has to be TCI or Dougs and a $700.00 bill + shipping is holding me back on that one.
I did bring my air compressor home from the snowmobile shop and I will start with the body work now. I have to cut out the inner taillight bracket to get the slidehammer to the only dent on the car. I have decided that will be my starting point, after which I will just keep sanding and priming/blocking on the car until it is ready for color. I have to decide on the gauge cluster issue, I will start reading the threads on aftermarket stuff and get those issues decided in the next month or so. I am leaning to all aftermarket gauges if I can find some that will fit the stock dash bezel. After that as they say, the hard part is done and it's just bolting the thing together. Meanwhile i come here every day and read about everyone else's builds to keep myself vicariously involved.
Cheers to all, Rat8)
 
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