My neighbor bought an old welding shop from the 30's and restored it to use as a shop to build his cars in now. I helped him build the 1966 L-79 Nova, and he has several other cars. This thread link is from the Garage Journal web site but it has created a lot of interest there so I thought some here might like to see it as well. Enjoy. http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=51567
Most excellent transformation. My only change would be to leave more of the "era" elements from the old building to give it character.
What a great job on the resto like the way he brought the gable roof out adds to the look not to change it to much. He spent a lot of time on this congrats on the finished shop, bet he found some cool stuff in the old shop looks awesome
I can appreciate the work that went into it, but I don't care for it. Too sterile, too store-bought. Too 'new' - what's the point of restoring an old building if the finished product is going to look like new construction? Again, not taking anything away from the time and effort that went into this, and I am glad that an old building was saved, but I would have approached the restoration a bit differently.
I agree with Caddy-O on the "era" elements, however I like what he did. A little history saved instead of being torn down.
That, has to be one of my new favorite garages on the www.garagejournal.com , and the tree through the steering wheel of the yard art is the crowning touch.
Found this on the local Craigslist today: http://milwaukee.craigslist.org/pts/1576261681.html I would grab this in a minute, I have the perfect spot for it but I don't think the other half of the family management team would go for it.
He found LOTS of NOS flathead Ford stuff, like pistons, rods and lots more. Like it says in his thread, the guy used to build go-karts there and there were probably 8-10 new frames that had never been finished along with the jig to build more. Some have mentioned it is too "new" but Tom doesn't do anything half ***. When I helped build the L-79 Nova I was scared to get anything dirty, so yes, sometimes it can be too new, but it's his shop. He has a big shed (probably 30x40) full of the stuff he saved from the restoration and has yet to go through it. I've been in the shed and it's pretty impressive. It's not for everyone, but still pretty cool.
LOL, I don't do anything 'half ***' either, and I still don't like it. Good for him if that's what he likes; to each his own. I will say it again, it certainly was a lot of work.
Excellent record of the shop restoration. He can be proud of the finished product. As far as it bein too sterile that's his perogative. If he can keep it looking like that I congratulate him. Frank
My Avatar is the inside of my Grandpa's garage from 1938 that was also a converted Blacksmith shop. Its the only picture we have of the inside of it. This restoratiion is very cool and your Lucky to still have it in your family. Michael
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