Projects Ever give up on the car and work on the Garage?

There isn't any mad money, and I have no motivation to work on the Roadster, I may finish the inside of the garage. I'm adding this thread to the others based on other older guys just loosing interest. Maybe loosing the "American Pickers" look and truning the garage into the 1920's carriage house/workshop isn't a bad idea. Sell off the crap, buy a sheetrock jack, finish the rock, paint it and hang the collectables on the walls. Found some neat stuff in the afternoon cleanup of one corner. Bob

 

Taking a break and doing something else is not a bad thing, there is more to life than non stop wrenching. At one point I took 3 years away from cars to remodel my house. Remodeling a garage sounds like a good project.

 

I'm not burnt out per say and I'm not that old but I have dropped working on the car to do some work on the garage. Mostly it's to fit other things in there so it involves building shelves and such but it's work on the garage none the less.

I need to redo the garage (floors, fill holes in drywall and paint as well as build some full length storage shelves above the garage doors) but that probably won't happen until next spring.

Sometimes it's nice to just enjoy cars without working on them I'd think.

 

Well I didn't give up on the project but I did stop and clean up the Debris Field from doing to many things at one time. My Roadster is my "spare time" project (that's a joke) and seems to be a magnet for everything I don't take the time to put away. I also seemed to loose track of where I was once I could get back on it. Last week I actually thought I had lost the tranny. So today after 6 hours of clean up time I unraveled that issue and now have much more peace of mind while looking at that Pile of A-Bone. Sheetrock,,,maybe another day. Give up,,,Never.
The Wizzard

 

I think most of us do. I will thrash on the car for a few weeks then have to take a break and find a small project for a week or two so I do get burnt out on the car.

 

I hope this getting old and getting tired of working on cars isn't contageous. I am 59 and currently working to finish a 40X64 shop specifically for building a street rod. I've done a couple of Mustangs and an early Bronco but now I have pruchased a 1953 hemi and am looking for something to put it in. It kind of scares me to hear people talking about getting tired of it. just sayin!

 

I first HAVE to clean the garage just to get to the cars to work on them. I hate that because that means all of the crap has top come out and it then has to go somewhere. My problem is (as most others' problem) that I think I am gonna get something (the crap) or keep "something for future use" which I rarely end up using because it keeps on gathering and there now is LESS room to work on the cars or use the crap I have gathered up to make the shop easier to work in!! I FINALLY decide to sell it or give it away and then I need the damn thing! I need a break.

 

First, I would have to have/build a garage. Then I could put the truck in it. Then I would loose motivation because it's inside a garage and I don't see it all the time because, right now it's sitting right outside my back door under a tarp giving me the ol' stinkeye, waiting.

 

I have to clean up once in a while to get reorganize for the part of the project just to mess it up again, When I start b*tching that I can't anything is about the time I know it is time to clean up

 

I spent over 2 years fighting the bank on an illegal foreclosure and finally got my house back in January, and now that the snow has melted I've been thrashing on the exterior of the house, the landscaping, deck, roof repairs, etc...after having procrastinated on my '68 Dodge D100 for months it seems like the more I work on the house and see the progress there the more I want to get back to working in the shop...lately I've been splitting my weekends into remodelling time and shop time...funny how working on something else will motivate you to work on what you've been putting off...

 

I'm in one of those situations where I have to stop wrenching and do a little work on the garage. My truck is 8' tall and the door opening is only about 7' high. If I want to roll the truck out I've got to make some changes. Oh yeah, it's a concrete block building so get out the masonry saw and the big hammer!

 

I remodel for a living. State licensed for 38 years ..... I don't want to come home and do the same crap, changing the oil in the dirt is not too bad. LOL

 

Now let me understand this - there is a car under there somewhere?


Selling off extra treasures is an excellent way to refill the project budget.

 

Two cars, the '12 T and my Dads old '31 Roadster. Found and sold some 289 gaskets (HAMB classified section really is great), the '23 T block that powered an ice cutter was under stuff on the bench and a SBF stock car engine is in the far corner. Other noteworthy findes were a barbed wire puller, the mummified oppossum, and a magazine clipping of a Ed Roth interview, along with some 1965 NYC Auto Show items. Stapled up some insulation and called it a day.

 

This is funny, I just got back to having the time for working on my 51 Merc. Before I did much of anything I start to clean up and throw away stuff. Part of it was getting familiar with where the parts are for this stage. I spent at least 10 hours today cleaning, and I am excited to work on the car and saw this thread!!
The other news was reading this thread on the HAMB http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=803000&highlight=mice about how sick, possibly die, if precautions are not taken when cleaning are area with a lot of mouse crap!!

 

37Kid.

Timely thread. I just recently finished painting two walls in my garage. I did the other two 4 years ago. The problem I encountered was establishing enough room after moving benches, drill press, parts washer, (it hasn't worked in seven years), roll-away, several flatheads, compressor, engine hoist, grinder, disc-belt sander, and mig with stand away from the wall for a staging area for the tools and material to fix holes, retexture and paint. ( that may be the longest sentence I have ever written) The bench is full of stuff, the floor is filled with the aforementioned parts and tools. So I had to move the wife's DD outside until I got it done. I still have not moved everything back, cause I am now in the midst of repainting the ceiling on my patio off of the living room. It is a three car garage the bay that my DD should be in has a deuce frame laying in it, the middle one has a '40 rear and torque tube, '29 body three more flatheads, trans, blower set up, jack stands, .... I can barely do an oil change in the garage, forget about a brake job. Wonder how I'll ever get back to the roadster. Good luck on yours.

Mike.

 

37Kid.

Timely thread. I just recently finished painting two walls in my garage. I did the other two 4 years ago. The problem I encountered was establishing enough room after moving benches, drill press, parts washer, (it hasn't worked in seven years), roll-away, several flatheads, compressor, engine hoist, grinder, disc-belt sander, and mig with stand away from the wall for a staging area for the tools and material to fix holes, retexture and paint. ( that may be the longest sentence I have ever written) The bench is full of stuff, the floor is filled with the aforementioned parts and tools. So I had to move the wife's DD outside until I got it done. I still have not moved everything back, cause I am now in the midst of repainting the ceiling on my patio off of the living room. It is a three car garage the bay that my DD should be in has a deuce frame laying in it, the middle one has a '40 rear and torque tube, '29 body three more flatheads, trans, blower set up, jack stands, .... I can barely do an oil change in the garage, forget about a brake job. Wonder how I'll ever get back to the roadster. Good luck on yours.

Mike.

 

I am with you on this. I haven't done anything of consequence on my 34 truck project in months.I usually just go out there, look around,rearrange and clean up stuff then say screw it, I'll do it later. Totally wasting my summer. Guess I should put in that extra garage door I have been putting off for years.
I think we all get tired of something over time. Thats why my old lady left.

 

I finished my new shop before I started filling it up and working on my projects.

I have been enjoying driving my cars but they all need some odds and ends done but I have turned my attention to my old unfinished garage lately that I built on to the house some 35 years ago and has become a catch all for junk.

Engine blocks,parts,kids toys & bicycles,and furniture,,it's dark and dirty.

I have spent some time trying to clean it up,haul some of the junk to the dump,,I plan on insulating,re-wiring it to code,sheet rock & paint the floor and add heat & air.

I plan on installing a couple of insulated garage doors,I already have high energy insulated windows,, and still be able to park a car there when I need to and finally set up the the old pool table that my dad bought back in 1966,,I guess make a usable space man cave/rec room. HRP

 

Only time I stop wrenching to work on the garage is if I can't find tools, and I'm tripping over the debris.

 

First home near thirty years ago I didn't have a garage and after changing the trans in a 64 caddy in the elements and general maintenance car work as needed if I didn't travel out my dad's shop. I decided to sell a nice 66 GTO project to build a shop. Wired, insulated and rocked in increments as I could afford it. After 16 years we moved and built new. I had the shop totally done painted and everything before I moved stuff in. Lots easier in the long run. Having a decent place to work even if funds are low still is a great refuge and inspiration to get something done. Take the break and the desire will come back.

 

This thread is exactly where I am right now.
I got the 47 running, lights working. I want to do the interior, but need to make the car more "rainproof" than it is now. That means all the window gaskets need to be replaced. That means the car needs to come inside to do that. That means my garage needs a redo.
Don't want to, but need to.
To make the garage viable, the cars are under covers on the driveway while I plumb in a new to me bigger, better compressor that I bought. While I'm at it, I'm doing little things in the garage to make it easier to work in.
What surprises me is the fact that something I thought was an evil necessity has become an enjoyable diversion. I'm actually enjoying the thought process of making the garage more user friendly.
I really think that occasionally we all need to take a step back from whatever drives us.
When we go back to our love/obsession, we look at it with new eyes and new enthusiasm.

 

Just did this very thing. Still no sheetrock, but everything has its place now.
I even cleaned out the rafters. Found stuff I forgot about. Hauled away the scrap metal and made a buck or two. Did you know stainless steel scrap is getting 50 cents a pound?
34 is still being worked, though slowly.

 

I went through cleaning my shop about two months ago, every week end 6 to 8 hours, one month. Organized parts in boxes and labeled them. Finally got my space back to work on the 32 which is great. I love my pole barn again, but I can't find a damn thing now. It's going to take a couple of months to remember where I put all my shit.

 

Yes, Today is the first day in about 13 months that I have touched my 57 chevy or my grandsons 38 chevy truck. Will be putting a new master cylinder on the 57.Have been working on a new pole barn with cement floor all this time so I can house more toys !!!! LOL

 

It's easier to enjoy doing quality work in good work space.

 

A change is as good as a rest.

 

I am just about to the end of a project (OT '68 chevy truck for the step son) and my garage is in desperate need of a cleaning and putting away tools and things. As soon as the truck rolls out of the shop I am excited for getting the shop clean and getting back to my coupe project. Its been over a year since I have worked on something for myself so I am glad I'm at the end of the road with the truck. A refresh of the garage will refresh my attitude and am looking forward to finishing my build.

 

I don't have nearly as much stuff as you, Bob, but I did a similar garage project earlier this year.

Mine was an unorganized and poorly layed-out space. I only have a one-car garage, so space is at a premium. After coming up with a plan, new cabinets, shelving, bench, toolbox, etc were sourced... all of which was gifted, traded, bought used. I completely cleaned it out and came up with a new, thought-out layout that actually works.

Having an organized, fairly clean, space made a HUGE difference in working on my car. It was so much easier to get out there and keep motivated to get things done. I hope the same can happen for you!


Malcolm

 

My garage is my biggest inhibitor. Bad foundation allows water in, sill plates rotting allowing the walls to slip off the foundation, swinging barn doors don't always open due to frost heaving, poor insulation so heating it costs tons of $$$, etc.... I'd be better off building all new, but that cuts into the car fund. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.


IE, get the garage right before anything else. Hindsight's 20/20, lol.

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