George Smolinski Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 1 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldcarfudd Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 How'd you get by so cheap? 2 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brass is Best Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 I have always been amazed how guys without cars know how much it costs to restore them. They also know it can be done cheaper when you tell them how much it really costs. 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Smolinski Posted February 16, 2022 Author Share Posted February 16, 2022 This cost list may be from the 1990’s. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Bond Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 You forgot to include the cost of adding on to your garage to do all the work and keep it in when finished. In my case, all I had to add was another shed to store all the parts in. Your results may differ! Terry 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SC38dls Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 With that cost you will get an inexperienced body & paint man like me! I did my own work after I crashed the 38. You definitely don’t want that type of work dave s 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
f.f.jones Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 Wow! What a generous and understanding wife...sorta reminds me of of my third wife...or was it the fourth ?? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 Reminds me of a story that I heard, Wife: "you spent HOW MUCH ON YOUR CAR?" HUSBAND, " YOU SOUND LIKE MY EX WIFE. WIFE, "I DIDEN'T KNOW YOU WERE MARRIED BEFORE." HUSBAND, "I WASEN'T"! 1 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
f.f.jones Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 That list has to be 30 to 40 years old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 A well known shop, still in biz, in 1971 or so advertised a shop labor rate of $11/hr. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8E45E Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 4 hours ago, f.f.jones said: Today, its called "Aging in Place". Both for you, and your car. Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trimacar Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 6 minutes ago, Restorer32 said: A well known shop, still in biz, in 1971 or so advertised a shop labor rate of $11/hr. Yes, but in 1971 if you were earning $300 to $400 a week you were very comfortable, not rich, but comfortable, and at the lower end that's less than $8 an hour. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 For a year '72-'73 I worked in a boiler shop X raying welds. I was a dues paying member of the Steel Worker's Union and was proud of the $4/hr I was making. We were all jealous of the workers in the local Caterpillar factory. Those lucky dudes and dudesses were pulling down nearly $8/hr but paid steep union dues. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SC38dls Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 Hell I use to work for free! That’s what owning my own business did for me more than once. It was still worth it as I didn’t have to answer to anyone but me and of course my customers. They paid to keep me working, I just didn’t get to take any of it home. dave s 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 35 minutes ago, SC38dls said: Hell I use to work for free! That’s what owning my own business did for me more than once. It was still worth it as I didn’t have to answer to anyone but me and of course my customers. They paid to keep me working, I just didn’t get to take any of it home. dave s People that have never worked for themselves or owned their own business don't understand the notion of working for free. My definition of an entrepreneur is someone willing to work 7 days a week for free or almost free. 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
28 Chrysler Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 Working for my Father In-law getting his business ready to sell cost me around $10/hr X 2 years. I would have been better off restoring a 65 Rambler 4 dr. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted February 17, 2022 Share Posted February 17, 2022 5 minutes ago, alsancle said: don't understand the notion of working for free I never knew I was going to open a nonprofit loan company when I opened my business. "We are a big company and we pay net 30. Your small company has to be able to handle our payment schedule" said the principal of an unnamed engineering company. 90-120 days is typical. One managed to get past 150. Deadbeats, the bunch of them. To the cars and wives, the only thing she knows is that I said "I wasn't going to buy anymore work". All I've said and that's the only thing she retained. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1937McBuick Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 My comment on the thread title...... "BUY A DRIVER"! My comment on working for free.... "farming".... if it was easy, everyone would want to do it. Boom and bust, "hoping" for an average. Very little control, price takers and payers, weather is a huge wild card. The vocation isn't for the faint of heart, or anyone who knows better! Some farmers pass on their farm to the kid that gave them the most trouble, a form of vengence or deferred discipline. Or child abuse if the kid was well behaved. ......back to regular scheduled programming. Restoration "Costs".....(doesn't pay). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrim65 Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 On 2/16/2022 at 9:31 PM, Brass is Best said: I have always been amazed how guys without cars know how much it costs to restore them. They also know it can be done cheaper when you tell them how much it really costs. This really hit a note with me as have quite a few friends look at me with disbelief if I tell truth , that I can cope with , but showed my 1960 mga to a chap a friend visited with, who expressed interest in seeing finished restoration as he said he was looking to buy . However actually inferred I was lying so as to substantiate my guess at value and then informed me he had seen a project for 2000 bucks and had found shop to restore for 5000 bucks !! Yea I thought perhaps in 1963. twaddle ! really annoyed me and told my friend don’t bring that man near me again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
31nash880 Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 Did a 87 jag as a driver. Worst thing I did was add up receipts. Add more each time driven since it sits alot. Needs exhaust now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8E45E Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 (edited) 21 hours ago, 28 Chrysler said: Working for my Father In-law getting his business ready to sell cost me around $10/hr X 2 years. I would have been better off restoring a 65 Rambler 4 dr. There is a fellow here who was restoring Isettas. He always said it cost just as much to restore an Isetta as it does a Camaro or a Mustang, and not to be deceived by its smaller size. A '65 Rambler would not be a bargain to restore either in relation to the popular (once) Big Three cadidates of the same age. Craig Edited February 18, 2022 by 8E45E (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandy Dave Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 22 hours ago, SC38dls said: Hell I use to work for free! That’s what owning my own business did for me more than once. It was still worth it as I didn’t have to answer to anyone but me and of course my customers. They paid to keep me working, I just didn’t get to take any of it home. dave s Done this most of my life and would not have it any other way. Not even if I was granted time to do it all over again. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
39BuickEight Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 (edited) My own free labor makes this list too high. Edited February 18, 2022 by 39BuickEight (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandy Dave Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 2 hours ago, 1937McBuick said: My comment on the thread title...... "BUY A DRIVER"! My comment on working for free.... "farming".... if it was easy, everyone would want to do it. Boom and bust, "hoping" for an average. Very little control, price takers and payers, weather is a huge wild card. The vocation isn't for the faint of heart, or anyone who knows better! Some farmers pass on their farm to the kid that gave them the most trouble, a form of vengence or deferred discipline. Or child abuse if the kid was well behaved. ......back to regular scheduled programming. Restoration "Costs".....(doesn't pay). I grew up on a farm. I learned pretty quickly that was not what I wanted to do. Glad that I worked for nothing rather than ending up in debt. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SC38dls Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 Dave were you the “most trouble kid” or” the well behaved kid” ? dave s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandy Dave Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 1 minute ago, SC38dls said: Dave were you the “most trouble kid” or” the well behaved kid” ? dave s Neither. Somewhere in between. Hated milking cows. Did like tractor work. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 9 minutes ago, Dandy Dave said: Neither. Somewhere in between. Hated milking cows. Did like tractor work. Sounds like a guy who tossed cow pies at the neighborhood kids! Highly entertaining when you hit a city kid! Then there is the classic game of flat cat.......don't think that one will fly today....... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 On 2/16/2022 at 4:45 PM, Terry Bond said: You forgot to include the cost of adding on to your garage to do all the work and keep it in when finished. In my case, all I had to add was another shed to store all the parts in. Your results may differ! Terry Project truck. under 10G. Project garage that needs more work than the truck to finish . Stopped counting at 100G 3 years ago before all the price increases with me doing all the labor. Now you took all the fun out of it. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimKB1MCV Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 2 hours ago, 1937McBuick said: My comment on the thread title...... "BUY A DRIVER"! My comment on working for free.... "farming".... if it was easy, everyone would want to do it. Boom and bust, "hoping" for an average. Very little control, price takers and payers, weather is a huge wild card. The vocation isn't for the faint of heart, or anyone who knows better! Some farmers pass on their farm to the kid that gave them the most trouble, a form of vengence or deferred discipline. Or child abuse if the kid was well behaved. ......back to regular scheduled programming. Restoration "Costs".....(doesn't pay). Same thing for commercial fishing with the very good chance of drowning or being maimed for life. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 How to turn $100,000.00, into $25,000.00 Restore a car/truck/what ever. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 (edited) 44 minutes ago, Dandy Dave said: Neither. Somewhere in between. Hated milking cows. Did like tractor work. That triggered an old memory. In my early years our plant operation combined computer systems for binary points and pneumatic control for analog points, $500 vs. $1500 per point at the time. I was pretty good at fitting 1/4" copper control lines. I took a subcontracting job piping controls in a large mechanical room at a major company for a small mechanical company who provided the laborers. One of the laborers was questioned about his experience by the in-house people. He said "I've bent copper lines for our tractor" he replied. The in-house guy said "You mean you're a farmer?" The laborer stood up straight and thrust out his chest "A truck farmer." he stated with great dignity. He wanted to be sure they new he was shoveling dirt! That was a one day job for me. And a lasting memory. Edited February 18, 2022 by 60FlatTop (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandy Dave Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 28 minutes ago, edinmass said: Sounds like a guy who tossed cow pies at the neighborhood kids! Highly entertaining when you hit a city kid! Then there is the classic game of flat cat.......don't think that one will fly today....... We called em sail cats here. After a good week or two of laying in the road in the hot sun and being flattened out by traffic and picked over by scavengers you just picked them up by the tail and flipped them like a frisbee out in the field. 🤪 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brass is Best Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 1 hour ago, Pilgrim65 said: This really hit a note with me as have quite a few friends look at me with disbelief if I tell truth , that I can cope with , but showed my 1960 mga to a chap a friend visited with, who expressed interest in seeing finished restoration as he said he was looking to buy . However actually inferred I was lying so as to substantiate my guess at value and then informed me he had seen a project for 2000 bucks and had found shop to restore for 5000 bucks !! Yea I thought perhaps in 1963. twaddle ! really annoyed me and told my friend don’t bring that man near me again That can be very frustrating. Several years ago a friend of mine brought the local high school principal over to my shop. This man makes $175,000 a year. It was in the paper when he took the job. He asked me how much it would cost to restore a 1937 Packard 120 Sedan that had belonged to his Grand Father. He told me he wanted frame off and perfection. I explained it would cost in excess of $100,000. I suggested that I get the car running, service it and make it road worthy. Then he could drive it and see if he liked it before getting involved in a full restoration. He informed my friend that I was out to lunch and trying to screw him. He shopped around the area until he found a body shop that told him they could restore the car for $20,000 all in. I bumped into the principal 3 years after I met him. He informed me that he wished he had listened to me. His car had been in the shop for 3 years the cost was over $130,000 and the interior was not in it. He wondered if I would be willing to take over the project and get it finished. I declined the offer. 7 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bhigdog Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 If cost/profit/loss is your primary concern you are in the wrong hobby..............Bob 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dibarlaw Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 Back in 2012 my get a back on the road "Driver Restoration" was quoted at around $10,000. I submitted a wish list and they said it should not be a problem. No repaint, no upholstery, no chroming and no new glass. Minimal body rust work, new wiring harness, water passage and cooling system clean out. Brake system re do and new fuel lines. Front end was to be rebuilt and they did install new kingpins. But lower control arm bushings remained shot. I had already had all the engine accessories re-built or restored. By the time the bills had gone over $20,000 we had to end the relationship. They also agreed to get it done for an upcoming National meet. Well, it was not ready as we reclaimed the car 3 months after the meet. I spent the rest of the year going thru many things not attended to or incorrectly done. My original to do list was about was about 1/2 done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 2 hours ago, Dandy Dave said: Neither. Somewhere in between. Hated milking cows. Did like tractor work. I have a buddy in California, who milks 12,000 cows on his farm..........think you had it hard? True story. He has great cars......and no time to use them. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 If you want a basis point for restoration costs. Chrome for a early 30’s CCCA car that is in average condition will run 125k. That’s 2021 numbers. Do a total Pebble frame off the low end is half a mile, on a difficult car, just under a mile. Do it slowly over a few years contracting it out yourself.......400k. It’s cheaper to pay the extra 500k. That’s reality in the concours world if you are competitive. Why do you think preservation and original cars are now in vogue? 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chistech Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 What is the average charge per hour these days for a restoration shop ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bhigdog Posted February 18, 2022 Share Posted February 18, 2022 (edited) 34 minutes ago, chistech said: What is the average charge per hour these days for a restoration shop ? I'd be more interested in what the charge break down would be for actual work time, research time, parts chasing time, and what percentage might be added on for the "What a pain in the ass this job is factor"...............Bob Edited February 18, 2022 by Bhigdog (see edit history) 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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