I need to vent....... I have been working on a 54 chevy for a few years now. Bought the car stock. 2 door bel air. I chopped it, full air ride. Machined all the components for the 4 link rear from scratch. Did most of the work in the 1st year i had the car. Then i got to the point where it was ready for body work. From that point it has been nothing but hell! To find somebody to do work has been awfull. I replaced all panels that were rusted out. I'm going to paint the car myself so all i needed was somebody to sand it out. I thought it would be simple, someone does the work, i pay them cash. SHOP 1: The car sat at a shop for 1.5 yrs. Its about 1/3 done but no single panel is actually done. Apparently insurance jobs are more important than crispy benjamins. I pulled it. SHOP 2: I took the car to another shop. Guy was real eager to work. Younger cat who rented a garage and did bodywork out of it. Apparently when my car came in, the dude's landlord raised his rent $1000/ month. I guess the landlord wanted in on my money too. I pulled it. Now the car is sitting back in my shop am i'm feeling totally defeated. There is nothing worst than having the money budgeted for this part of the build and not being able to get it done. I REALLY don't want to sant it out myself. This is money well spent in my book! Sideshow Joe
I think you will find that a lot of bodyshops don't really want to do that kind of work. There is so much more money to be made doing straight collision work, and it is also somewhat easier because for the most part it becomes a matter of replacing parts. I worked at a bodyshop and the owner had a strict policy that he only took in collision work and would not do a paint job or other "restoration" type work for any amount of money. We have had a problem finding shops here to want to simply prep and paint a car too, but usually they will take it on the basis that they will assign the work to one of their techs while he has some downtime between jobs. We also have to sign off that the shop will not be responsible if any problems surface later on because the shop has no control over work we did before they got it in their control. The days of finding shops willing to take in our project cars is kind of going away, unfortunately, but from a business standpoint I can understand why they do what they do. Don
Sanding, you can't sand a car? Sorry I don't understand the problem. Wiring sure, but not sanding. Bob
SO, If you sanded 2 hours a week for the last two years. 52weeks X 2=104weeks X 2= 208 hours . You would have been done by , oh, last year.
Like Don says It's hard to find anyone to "Sand and bodywork???" I do bodywork and when I have someone that tells me they have all the panels replaced and just want some sanding it ussually is a fuck story to straighten and fix all the mistakes and then guarantee the paint not knowing what's under all the repairs.They also want it done cheap. Don't want anymore of those. Get a book on bodywork and get'r Done yourself.Lots of help here on HAMB too. Gerry
You're gonna have to sand it yourself, you're asking a shop to do the shit work without getting the gravy - paint job and cash that goes with it. I've worked in body shops as a teen, basically sanding bitch and go fetch it guy. Paint and body guys, who do it for a living, typically want to do it from start to finish. They're not a particularly friendly or sympathetic bunch either, theres 1 way, their way, otherwise fuck off.
Do it yourself, $ 800.00 in materials and elbow grease, if it doesn't turn out right do it again. Just remember the final finish is 100% dependent on the preparation.
Is it your back ? not sure of the issue. but its true most shops dont want that end of the car theres not alot of cash and the work can be long and boreing. time after time. spray the high build and go to work my friend
Body men are in a world of their own! They are indeed "artists", having dealt with a bunch of them during my dealership parts counter-man days, they can be HARD to deal with. Good luck, maybe you can find someone who works out of his garage. Don't be surprised if he doesn't tear everything out you did and start over!
everybody hates it....thats why its hard to find someone to do it that you can trust to finish it. Just do it yourself. Its a pain....but when its painted you forget about all the hard work.
let's see pictures. unless it is a total mess you should keep looking for someone to do it. [without seeing it] i would start by having it media blasted to bare metal and then start the metal finishing.
I have a small P&B shop, and I wouldnt want anything to do with that unless I had absolutely nothing to do. I am thankful that is rarely the case. I do applaud your patience with the first shop. Almost every time I have taken in "busy work" {stuff to do when there isnt priority work}, folks end up wanting their busy work to become priority work shortly after dropping it off. But, they still want that busy work price... These days, I rarely take in busy work, and only for clients who I depend on for priority work.
I don't understand, you can put a finish on, but you can't do body work???? Just do it yourself! How can you trust somene else doing the underlying work that can potentially make your top work look like crap. I can say this after 30 years in the P&B work business. Fenderless
(Quote)SHOP 2: I took the car to another shop. Guy was real eager to work. Younger cat who rented a garage and did bodywork out of it. Apparently when my car came in, the dude's landlord raised his rent $1000/ month. I guess the landlord wanted in on my money too. I pulled it. Sideshow Joe[/QUOTE] Maybe this guy would come to your shop and get you started or give you a hand?
have you ever done work behind someone elses?? how 'bout having to finish up someones mess? are you a painter ? in 2 years u could have had it done...if looking to save money bodywork not the place to do it ... if you want right take it to a good restoration shop &let them finish it...most shops myself included have a reputation to uphold...when you do top notch work &charge for it you can't step back &do bs work for next to nothing ....
From a body mans point of view,I would want to do the car from start to finish, in doing this I would know what the foundation work thru the shine of paint, in doing it this way I'm resposable for the finished product and my name and reputation. I would pass on the situation you present my 2 cents
Check with the local voc or tech school body shop program, maybe you can find some energetic young auto body students to sand the car in your shop under your supervision.
When you say "sanding" do you mean sanding all the bondo smooth and re-primering and painting?If so, than that word is the most understated word that I have ever read on this site.<o></o> <o></o> What you are asking is for him to grind down all the amateur applied bondo on the car and re-do it, re-do metal high points. fill-prime, block-sand, seal, spray a color guide coat, re-block, re-seal spray color, color sand and buff.<o></o> <o></o> If you think that that is a run on sentence, try doing the actual work! <o></o>
THANK YOU! That is why I'll never run wires, and if I hire the work out it will be the DEAD LAST part of the build. Bob
If you absolutely do not want to sand bondo, talk to some of the body shops and at least see if you can get them to do the body work and maybe put it in primer, if all you want to do is paint it. Like some of the responses, most body shops want the whole job and not just having to do the shit work. A lot of guys are metal fab wizards but cannot lay down bondo and do finish work if their life depended on it, this may be the case? I have seen a lot of guys attempt to do body work for the first time without a clue and it would have been best to have someone else do it!
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