Craig From Alaska

Thanks again for all the great advice and recommendations. I did get a quote to move the truck last week. At $6,200 just to get it to Alaska, I suspect I'll move it myself. At least it is presently resting in a fenced backyard. Still, frustrating while I wait.

Is there a "bible" for antique auto restoration that would be recommended reading, just to get a better feel for the whole process?

Wow! Thanks for all the terrific advice! Since I’m starting with no real knowledge about antique auto restoration, it’s all greatly appreciated. I did take the advice and called the auto museum in Fairbanks, and spoke with the guy there who has done their restorations and also has a flock of 38 antique cars at home. He made several excellent recommendations that were particularly helpful with his Alaska perspective. The consensus that I am getting is that the best thing to do is to get the truck to Alaska and into my garage. Once there, I can get any remaining mechanical issues resolved. It was recommended that I spend a summer driving it on nice days here while deciding how much restoration I am interested in. This seems like sage advice. I also get the impression from the collective group that I since I am pretty handy, I should not be too intimidated at the prospect of tackling the body work myself. If the truck is here at my house, I would also have the option to pick and choose when it came to which parts of the project I wish to tackle on my own, and which I might want to farm out. Does this sound like a reasonable plan? And am I ignoring anything real obvious?

Thank you for the replies. I'm about 500 miles from Fairbanks, but I like the idea contacting the director at Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum there. Our population in the state is small enough that the director would likely have good ideas about places even in this part of the state. Regular auto body work in Alaska tends to be a lot more expensive than the Lower 48, and I'm guessing the same would be true (or even more so) with antique autos. However, as you say, it sure would be nice to be able to check in on the progress of the truck. Right now, with the Canadian border closed, driving to Texas to get the truck and haul it back is not an option; but the pandemic won't last forever. Body work along the Texas-Mexico border has traditionally been inexpensive, so that option in the age of the internet is attractive as a way to move forward on this after a year-long delay because of Covid. As you say, I hope someone from Texas weighs in on recommended restoration shops around El Paso. Thanks for the reminder that I am likely to face a bunch of questions about additional work as more rust and corrosion reveals itself as the project continues. I do wish I knew generally how much to budget for this whole process, since this is the first time I've owned an antique.

I inherited my grandfather's 1950 Ford F1 this past year. It's in Texas and I live in Alaska. And the Canadian border remains closed because of Covid-19. As you can see from the photos, it needs some body work. I'm thinking that it would be a lot cheaper to get the work done in El paso, where the truck is, than here in Alaska. The truck doesn't need to be "like new", but it would be nice to clean it up enough so that it would be in good shape and could remain in the family in the future. I was thinking about getting the body work done in El Paso while waiting to be able to bring the truck to Alaska. Should a regular body shop be able to handle this (please see photos), or does it need to go to a specialized restoration shop? Any any recommendations for shops in El Paso would be appreciated. Thanks!