Nope, not one of those ridiculous "WIW?" threads here. People often wonder "damn, how much should I spend on my project?" Well, fear not, for here is THE answer to that very burning question... Iron-clad formula for "What I can spend on my project?": First, figure up what you are willing to spend on this car. Keep this figure in mind, because this is the number you will need to keep the ol' lady happy, assuming you are married or have some bizarre living arrangement that means another party feels a need to know what's going on! Second, multiply that by at least three, because that damn thing called "reality" will set in quickly. Third, figure out what amount will actually make your head explode. Subtract ONE dollar from that. Cleaning up head explosions is expensive in its own right, and requires specialists. Now, you have an amount of what it should cost to actually do the car. Your figures may vary.
Im missing one arm and leg already .I hope my head don't explode .What's a shame is the price of consumables .Kero use to be 1.00 .Burn a gallon an hour.Out in garage 7 to 8 hours a day doing body work at 80 degrees in the winter .Now heat garage put bodyfiller coat on .Come inside , Hang out on the Hamb 15-20 minutes ,Go back out and sand ,Turn heater back on ,Spread a coat and keep repeating the same process .Body work is going slow ,Im not rushing it though .Im married and I don't tell the wife what Im spending ,She gets 90 percent and I get 10 .I keep the money from the car parts I sell .Then after that Theres a budget ,Which isn't much ,But it works for us .
Here's my plan for my next project...Keep only the receipts that you'll need to legally register & tag the finished car...After you've installed a part & can't return it,throw away the receipts.... and NEVER EVER add them up...It only reinforces the madness.... Just build the car to satisfy yourself & enjoy the experience...It will ALWAYS cost more than planned...Trust me.. Stan
They said the end of the world is 2012, I just hope I get my f$ckin car on the road before that day comes....All I'm missing is $$$$$$$$$$
also calcuate buying the same part over and over again (hopefully slightly better than the one you are replacing)
My formula is find something I like for starters and try to keep it under a grand. That rules out most cookie cutter cars right there. Next look through my stash for the exact right parts to make it go from project to driving, if they don't happen to be laying in some closet or on some shelf then spend time looking for them at the exact right price. Third is the very hardest part and that is waiting for the exact right part to be the exact right price because there is never everything that you need in the parts stash, and everything that is perfect is over priced. That brings us back to the first part of my formula. No one cares how much I spend on a project except me. The wife would let me go to barret jackson and spend way more than I am worth. But I on the otherhand am a cheap bastard. Probably why I'll never own a couple of the cars on my bucket list. Of course Patrick's formula works too. Probably a more viable option for most of the fellas on this board.
Do NOT let your wife or girlfriend keep the receipts on anything. Once you finish and they tell you how much you have spent, you will probably have grey matter and blood somewhere!!
Post no.1 has it pretty close. However.....................always be prepared to increase this figure (in increments of $1000) any time after the halfway point in the project. Frank
The Jalopy Journal
