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I have always seen the worst project cars promoted as a good candidate for a street rod or custom, basically saying "It's too far gone to restore or no one else would want it." If I was going to build a modified car I would start with and really good one. Some people can transform junk but it is an uphill battle to get to zero. I agree with maintaining the resale value, even on a stock car during restoration. Shiny sells. Always balance your investment between mechanical and pretty in case you have to bail out. Be careful about who you talk with. There is an automotive counter culture group out there that just chooses to be offensive. They condemn expensive high quality cars and promote some pretty crappy stuff in the name of creativity. They are quite easy to spot. You might see one at a car show holding a pocket tape measure up to a restored car windshield and telling his friends "Take about 3 or 4 inches out of here, har, har" and they had a steel tractor seat welded to the object d'art they drove in. Don't listen to them too much. You might get misled. That group seems to be dying out, not much rat rod popularity these days. Maybe their backs are giving out from the homemade seats. (Last one I saw had a gray pony tail, baggy shorts, and support hose). Yeah, and I was walking around looking like Archie Bunker. Seriously, post some pictures of the car. You are looking at $4,000 to $10,000 just to drive up to the corner for a gallon of milk, even with the cheap entry fee. Bernie

"Men" understand that.

Just curious; why do you want to do it and how much have you budgeted for the job? Bernie

and here I am considering a berm in the front yard just to slow the family down from putting all my stuff at the curb.

Back when I had my '56 Willys pickup the Willys Tech page asked if my plate edited out. I said "Jeez, no. People won't believe it's mine!" http://mvpimages.net/willys/show.htm Bernie

Remember Bullwinkle: "Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat." And the cover closed. Bernie

Wow, here I have just been making sure mine idled smooth and didn't stumble when I push the pedal. I don't have a tach in the Riviera but I notice it in my modern cars and once in a while they will nudge 3,000 RPM taking off from a light. Well, I still use a beam torque wrench, too. Bernie

A couple years ago some pictures of Putin on a horse (not a Ritz) showed up. He's about my age so I took a couple of my own Putin pics standing by my Packard and emailed them to my wife at work in the library. No sense of humor... she deleted them. Maybe I will use them if I sell the car, that Russia/Packard connection, you know. Bernie

A few years ago I bought a dirty car for resale. Sometimes I find a red or maroon car that will clean and buff nicely and help fund my habit. This car was REALLY dirty. It had a tan interior with dirt caked to every surface and hair matted into the right front carpet. I used a bristle nap brush for carpets and while I kept cleaning the long white hairs out, I just kept thinking to myself "I hope it's the dog's 'cause I saw the wife." Thinking of cute dogs and hair. Bernie

Some days you come home from work and all the automotive stuff looks easy. Bernie

I wish I had started saving pictures of Craigslist cars sunk in the ground. You look and think, just move it three feet! I guess it's never too late to start. Just thinking about that fat girl comment. What kind of vehicle would look appealing with a fat girl. I keep thinking corn. I was remembering a trip to Moline a few decades ago. We were sitting in a bar with a lighted 1960 Ford F-100 grille over it and talking with a local about where the action was. He said "Just stick an ear of corn in your pants, they won't be offended in any way they take it." Bernie

Not quite your good old boy. Subtitle- "Me gustaría que fuera un Dodge, Saltan mejor!" Bernie

My High School friend passed away about a month ago. He knew me better than anyone and thought of me as a mechanic. When he saw me put a car up for sale his first question - "What pissed you off about THAT car?" Since I still have the car I bought when I was 30.... and the one I bought when I was 50.... and some others, I guess he had some insight into my motivation. I do remember making a very generous offer at a dealer a few years ago. It was for a late model Jaguar around the time I bought my '94 Impala. The salesman replied "OH, Sir, we have more than that in the car." I was stunned, but not enough to ask if the wholesale buyer's position was open. He couldn't still be working there could he?? You mean to actually tell me a buyer for your dealership paid more than that offer for the car? Buddy, you are in trouble. I knew a couple of buyers who got drunk and came home with a Thames double decker bus, but even drunks have some level of awareness. I told him I'd be back in a year, but I wouldn't be interested if they have left it outside all year. I still see it in the back. The bonnet isn't closed right. it's outside. Maybe the auction floor planned it and he just pays the interest. Anyone interested in a nice '94 Impala? I'll deduct for the bad A/C clutch with the stripped Chinese tool in it. Mechanic owned. Bernie

I think it is a commercial genset and not a battery charger. If it has jumper type cables they may have been added by someone with just enough knowledge to be dangerous. Small gensets for 50 cycle output were pretty common for machine shops that imported European tools. Seems like I remember tripping over one at the top of the stairs on nearly every mezzanine. The chargers with the big rectifier tube were pretty common up through the 1960's. We had a couple in my Grandfather's shop. Bernie

Wow! 212 cubic inches. Who would have thought that would be the 2016-17 GM engine standard size. And broadcast as the power plant for the earthshaking new Cadillac XT5. 310 HP.... at.... ummm...5,000 RPM. I'd take the Hudson. I wouldn't want that 200 inch GM screaming under my feet for 100,000 miles. Probably would only use one head gasket, too. Bernie

My Wife told me I should think about selling my 1958 Austin-Healey Sprite that is rust free and been sitting disassembled in a barn since 1965. She was kinda pushy about the idea, but said if one one buys it I can keep it. I'm just hoping no one is going to take it away from me. They'd have that great iconic car that stands for everything cute in cars. I'll post an ad for a while so she can see I'm making an effort. I sure hope some stinker doesn't come along and grab it from me. Bernie

Those pre-flared lines from an auto parts store seem to be made of a alloy that corrodes at the frame rail attaching points. I have noticed that on a lot of cars flipped on their side in a junkyard. I like buying a 25' roll of steel tubing and making my own. The pre-flared are never quite the right length anyway. I remember a guy with an early Monte Carlo that was interested in me doing some work. He had a brake line on it with four loops to use up the extra. He told me the shop who put the line on said you couldn't cut them. He was glancing around like someone who just lit a candle in church without stuffing a dollar in the coin slot. You know, that taboo stuff. It takes about four flares to get proficient and it is a good skill. When I remake steel to rubber replacement vacuum lines I always do the first step of double flaring to make a bulge to hold the rubber on. It's just a fussy thing I do line spelling vacuum with two U's and making the overlap of my shoe laces match left and right. Bernie

Just thinking; if I had been sitting in prison for a number of years and found someone had stolen MY car, one letter with the address circled in red, starting "Dear Sir, upon arriving home from prison where, I, a convicted criminal, myself, spent years with thieves, cut throats, and murderers, discovered that you are now in possession of this car, and at the address highlighted on the envelope, I hope this letter finds you well.. I would like to discuss a couple of options...." Who needs to spend all that money on lawyers? Bernie

Those Hudsons are good drivers and reliable. The only real fault, and you will experience it soon after purchase, is those hood supports, both front or rear opening. They are right in the way for the simplest service you want to perform and fender covers keep falling off. It sounds like a small thing, but wait until you experience it. Bernie

Legal is legal, weighing good judgement is no longer an option. Hadn't you seen they took the Lady's scales? There is a chance of a similar occurrence if an army of occupation takes over the Great Lakes to gain the water rights, just for debt repayment security, you know.. Sometimes I ride along the Lake Ontario State Parkway thinking how close we really are to seeing tank tracks tearing up the landscape. There are only two major fresh water supplies left and only one has a proposed energy pipeline adjacent. Good infrastructure for water, as well. Someone from the opposing side snags a Z06 out of a garage in Buffalo and the cycle starts again. Bernie

I like the tree arrangement in post #4. When I first noticed the aging process in myself I had slipped off the edge of the driveway in winter, facing the tree with no traction. I put the come along around the tree to move the car ahead a little, running and in drive at an idle. I dropped it in drive, closed the door, and remembered the automatic door locks. Oh, Crap! There is sat, in drive, with one rear wheel sliding around slowly in the wet snow. So, what kind of relationship do you have with the code guy? Bernie

What do you have experience with? It was only about 20 years ago that I first drove a Model T Ford after knowing about them for the previous 30 years. It's a lot different getting behind the wheel. I can still remember the deep empathy I felt for those old timers who dragged one out of a hedgerow and spent ten years restoring it. After I learned to drive it I had to teach the owner, a new purchaser. I think he sold it a week later. If you are new to old cars keep an eye out for the advertisements on TV where the people made online hotel reservations. It can be a lot like that. Bernie

If tax was collected at each sale would state and federal governments be responsible for returning that portion of the sale with interest? They would appear to be accessories in the benefits of stolen goods. Ignorance of the theft would not be much of a defense. They sure like to get their mitts in for their cut on every sale. Bernie

While looking through those pictures, somehow, I remembered my cousin who was arrested for pointing a gun at the code enforcement officer. Bernie

One suggestion, work until late at night in the garage. And work alone to keep your focus on the brake job. That should stabilize the number of kids surrounding the house. Bernie