Be safe: DO wear safety glasses when you're lying on your back under the car and pounding on a rusty floorboard. Those little rust flakes will fall into your eyes. DON'T wear a flammable cotton jacket when you're doing a good amount of grinding. You will catch on fire (and ruin the jacket that you love).
Before you do anything make a list! Start with what you would like your rod to be, then outline all the various things you'll need in the way of parts. Lay out the various engine, tranny, and rearend, plus type of suspension you want at both ends. Once you've got an outline, then start a budget and make it realistic. Have a fellow rodder look over your list to see if you've forgotten anything if this is your first build. After all this you can decide if you really want to proceed. Don't set a time frame to finish! I guarantee you'll rarely keep it, as life happens and other things can change the best of schedules.
If all your friends, relatives, aquaintances, church members, rotary club members, bowling league players, drinking buddyies, trekkies, swingers, and coupon clubbers are always asking you to fix their shit, you may be dum enough to try and build a hot rod.
Keep your garage door closed or you'll never get any work done because of all the "sidewalk superintendents."
When you take some thing thing apart label it so when it comes time to put it back together you know what it was/where it went.
if your female...don't get pregnant. (1) you can't fit under the car and (2) your husband won't want you under there anyway.
The Jalopy Journal
