looking for restoration shop in New Jersey

[Guest chas306]

Hi I am looking for a good restoration shop in New Jersey for my Olds 442 convertible 1971 . Does any one know of one ? I am not looking for a 100 point resto but a good driver quality one.

Edited April 23, 2013 by chas306 (see edit history)

[GARY F]

i think there is one in Hiburnia (not sure about spelling) but he ads in hemmings.

[Restorer32]

Ah yes, the bane of restoration shop owners "I just want a good driver quality restoration". What does that mean exactly? You want chrome with scratches? Paint with runs? Upholstery that almost but not quite fits? Not ragging on you it's just that in my experience everyone says they want a "driver quality" restoration when what they really want is perfection at a lesser price. When confronted with that request I always respond "Fine, please make a list of the things you want us to leave undone or not bother doing to the best of our abilities". Are you willing to sign an affidavit stating that you will never ever enter the vehicle in a show? Do you also promise to tell everyone who asks "Bob's Resto shop did the work but I only contracted for a "driver quality" job"? Better to take the job to a shop whose BEST work is "driver quality" than to ask a show restoration shop to dumb down their work. All that being said, we have done more than one "driver quality" restoration but it sure can be frustrating. Thanks for the opportunity to vent!

[rocketraider]

One mind tells me I should lock the thread, but Restorer's comments ring so true to anyone involved in craftsman-type restoration work I think I'll let it stay up a while.

[Restorer32]

Honestly, I meant no offense to anyone.

[rocketraider]

None taken:cool:. But I know how people get over what they expect vs what they're willing to pay, and a lot of folks have different visions of what constitutes a "driver-quality" restoration. They also have little idea of the work involved in a true restoration vs something you can take out on Saturday night and enjoy. That's especially true for a vehicle that has little or no reproduction support and you have to dig for parts or worse, make them from scratch. That's where the craftsman-level restoration work comes in.

I linked a friend to the Australian guy's Model T video up in AACA General. He, like me, likes 60s GM big cars, and they are some of those cars that there isn't much reproduction available and NOS has all but dried up. His comment was maybe we should leave our big Oldsmobiles and Pontiacs behind and go for something like the T, that enjoys immense club and parts support. His caveat was that then the thrill of the parts hunt would be gone. He's also into old steam, so he'd be more comfortable with a T than I would. He'd enjoy a Stanley or a White.

I hope the OP can find a shop who will understand what he wants and that he communicates it well, and also that he understands restoration work has to be billed as time and materials. And that sometimes time and materials take more than either the owner or craftsman anticipated. With a 70s GM A-body in the Northeast, that's a given- there will be rust in places that it makes no sense for rust to be.

To Chas306- there's a lot of Oldsmobile guys in New Jersey, so someone is bound to either know a good shop who can do what you want or possibly do it themselves.

Edited April 27, 2013 by rocketraider (see edit history)

[alsancle]

I have a few different friends who are restorers. The consensus is if they could do it again they would be parts suppliers. Restorations are mathematically bad before they start. Being the guy doing the work is a no win proposition, even for the best ones.

[trimacar]

I worked at a restoration shop, and the issue of "driver quality" restorations popped up now and again. It seemed that what it really meant was if the frame had some rust pits, just paint over them after blasting and priming. A 100 point (or 400 point, depending on club) restoration meant all the pits were filled.

The rest of the work "showed" and thus had to be to the same high standard as the 100 point. The cost difference was minor....and then you had a car that the owner had still spent a fortune on, and wondered why it had points taken off at shows.

And, invariably to point made in previous posts, the owner would want to show the car. Even if they start out saying no, by the time they have seventy-eleven thousand dollars in it, you'll be darn sure they want to show it off......

On upholstery, it's easy for me...I just say I'm going to do the best job that I'm capable of doing, and the price is the price. I do excellent work, but I've seen people who do better....although at much, much higher prices. I once priced an early large touring car for the owner, I won't mention the make because there are so few of them someone would know the car. My price was about one-third of the other quote on the work, but the other guy had a history of perfect work....and I've seen a couple of his cars, I'm picky, and believe me, it's perfect....so the owner willingly spent three times the money to have it perfect. There may be a fine line between excellent and perfect, but it's there...........

Now, there is such a thing as a "driver quality" owner restored car, but to expect less than perfect work from a restoration shop is not reasonable nor cost effective....