I sure hope this don't come off as one of those stupid "I'm bored & wasting bandwidth" posts, but I'm looking for a little honest insight from some of my fellow car guys here. When is it time to stop working on a stalled project & move on to something new? I brought my Studebaker home in 2002 & have actually done almost nothing to it since, other than a few false starts & collecting (& later reselling) parts. I'm thinking I'm not as "into it" as I should be, otherwise it would be alot farther along by now. You'd think that after 8 yrs, even with almost no budget that I would have done something substantial to it to date. I like the truck, but it was never a bodystyle that I "searched out". I more or less stumbled onto it shortly after I lost a '56 Ford truck project to an unfortunate bulldozer incident. I guess the bottom line is- how do you know whether or not to move onto another project?<!-- google_ad_section_end -->
i think you know the answer to that question if your not into it see if you can find someone who is sell it and find something that you want to build
Ive been doing that with my 32 truck ,But Im gonna keep her .The option to walk away sometimes sounds tempting ,but as long as these old cars go up in price I dont care.I always wanted a roadster and that is the real reason the truck is sitting and also got truck and 69 firebird at the same time,I did the bird first ,I might sell it in the spring ,Im not sure yet......
From your post it sounds like you've answered your own question. It sounds like it's time to move on.
I think the first mistake a person can make when building a car, is settling for something other than what they wanted. If you want a '32 Ford Roadster, why settle for a '53 Chevy and then lose interest? Not only do you cheat yourself, but you cheat the guy who was looking for the Chevy. Maybe you can sell it and begin looking for what you REALLY want.
if its not causing you to grin when you go in the garage and your not interested in working on it its time to sell it and search for a project that makes you smile like being the captain of the football team under the bleaches with the best looking cheerleader in school who s parents own a junkyard
Yeah, like the other guys said.If its not exactly what you want,and there is no love for it,swap it or let it go and save up for something you have a passion for.
"I more or less stumbled onto it shortly after I lost a '56 Ford truck project to an unfortunate bulldozer incident." Curious minds must ask
If ya ain't into it anymore..send it down the road to someone you might get "excited' about it. I've had a front engine dragster (avitar pic <<<<) hanging in my garage rafter for 10 years. Always another project ahead of it.. Well,i finally dragged it down and am starting to Mock it up.. maybe you just need to see one like yours ,ALREADY done.. to get ya more enthuised. Your decisions,not ours. Rick =============================================
Make it go fast then if you don't like it you can sell it easier. Go out right now and get a ticket...
Shortened your post to answer... If you're not "feeling it" after 8 years,it'll never happen. Warning O/T cars discussed.... I sold a '68 Malibu Convertible in June of '09. I bought the car in '86,drove it 'til '92 then parked it to start working on it. 17 years later,it was in the same condition and I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. I do regret it,but for the amount I got for it and what I ended up with('86 Mustang GT 'vert 5.0 5spd 69k original miles...),I'm happy and have a running driving car.
Do you have or did you ever have a solid game plan for the build? If not, it prolly is best to move on to what you like better. I usually gave my finds about three to four months. And if I didn't lose sleep over them, or develop some kind of game plan after this amount of time it wasn't meant to be. Your truck has a good body style to it though, So it should, or will sell. Good luck... John
we do this hobby as fun so if you are not having fun you are doing it right. I know a lot of guys get the i cant sell it cause i will lose money or I just got to finish it because I started it. But I dont want to spend my "free time" doing somthing i dont want to. Sell it scrap it burn it just make sure you are having a good time. Life is to short
Probably the wisest words in this thread, Fred thank you for posting that up. You may very well be the next hot rod guru You burnt out because its not something that gets a hold of you. Sell it, save some more $$ if need be and you can, then go find something that grabs you and you feel it in your guts, Almost like the feeling you get when you see your wife/partner. You will never be happy settling for something that isn't quite what you wanted. Doc.
how long were you working on the 56 ford project prior to the "incident"? maybe its not the kind of vehicle, maybe you're just not a project guy... just get a driver and enjoy.. there will still be plenty of maintaining to do...
There's sooo many "unglamorous" things you can do when the budget is zero...banging dents, smoothing metal, cleaning parts/etc, etc...if you haven't done that yet in 8 years, you'll prbably not do anything with your next project...even if it's something you really like...just have to be honest with yourself. Personally, I've never bought anything I didn't like, but I fall into the category of getting it up and running, put it in primer (cause I can't paint for shit, and can't afford even a Maico job) and drive it, enjoy it, then sell it. Lucky for me though, I still have my first ride-'57 Chevy PU-that'll I'll keep forever, so when I start another project, it's like therapy...currently, I'm benn working on my '36 Ford PU...my budget money had ground to a halt, so i justgoout in theshop and tinker with it now and then...I've been "tinkering" for 4 years now...about the time my budget dried up...but I figure a few hours in the shop each week still saves me money over playing golf, which I used to do each weekend...but as money got tight, golf went away, and tinkering on the '36 has taken it's place. But be honest with yourself, do you have the drive to take anon-running project, and make it happen? If not, dump it,,,but something old, safe and running and enjoy it. Lot's more fun (usually) to tinker on a running vehicle, than a dead pile in the garage. Hey, not everyone needs to complete a show winner
You will put as much time and money into building somthing that you are not passionate about as you will buiding somthing that really gets you excited. I think the "does it make you grin when you look at it" test is a good one. Sell it and get into somthing that you can't stop thinking about.
i guess money haves a lot to do with it,ever car i have had i also though i wanting something better, but i still love to drive it to i sold it dont buy if you dont like it, you will never finsh it
A few suggestions. As said ,look for one of these done, if it sparks you up think about continuing. Since you have had it for a good amount of time and not much done you may want to move along to that roadster, but you may stall on any project. If you are not self-motivated get something driveable and play with that, at least you can move drivers. Get honest with yourself! I think from your post you should bail on the Stude and go after the dream. As was said, "Life is short", someone recently told me ,"We only think we have enough time".
OK, short story on the '56 Ford & the dozer: Ford was given to me by my father in law after I mentioned that I'd always wanted a '56 model. It was an F250 & needed a ground-up. It was out at his equipment yard in San Antonio. I was going to bring it down to the coast where I could tear into it as soon as I got my garage up. He rented the yard to a guy that bought trucks & machinery at auction & resold them for parts. Anyways, one of this guys idiots was moving some stuff around on the property w/ the machine & forgot the '56 was behind him. Yes, I was pissed. No, the guy didn't make it right w/ me. Moral of the story: move your junk to where you can keep an eye on it ASAP. I like the Stude OK, but I can not seem to stick with a plan. First idea was MII & tilt column. Then came the Pacer IFS idea. Then came the Chevy LUV chassis swap. Then came the 4X4 idea. Then back to the MII. Then back to the LUV. Then the gasser idea. Then the swap to an F350 dually chassis. Then back to the original chassis w/ a dropped front axle. My wife once joked that I needed to build several chassis for it & make identical body mounts on all the different styles so I could change it out every few months. I'm in my mid 30s, so I can't blame it on being young & stupid. I'm a pretty darn good mechanic- but I'm not much of a fabricator. I can do basic body work & single stage paint OK. I think one thing thats always worried me is ending up w/ a rat rod Stude- cobbled together, dangerous, & looks like hammered chit. I really appreciate all the comments.
Ive gottin into crap by being honest here before but here it goes. Why not just do as much of the basic stuff it needs to get it on the road. You dont know how much fun it is to just drive. In or a year or so you may be reinlightined.
Straight, simple and to the point. Many of us have been there before, some of us several times. There is bound to be someone who would be just nuts over that little truck and you just might get enough out of it to buy a major component for your dream rod.
Thats part of my current situation: After 8 yrs, I want to drive, not just play Mr Undecided. One option I'm considering is storing it in one of my buildings & getting a cheap near-driveable early '60s vehicle. I know I can get something along those lines running & cruise-able fairly quickly. But I hate to be that guy.... you know, "Nah, I don't wanna sell it. I'm gornuh fix it up someday".
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