well, it's rainy season here in san diego. my poor car leaks through the windshield and the hatch, and plus i don't have any wipers! anyway, that's not the point of this thread. my fiancee told me that i should get the rust on my car taken care of since it's only going to get worse. so i'm like "ok!"

wel, turns out it's going to be a little more intensive than i had thought. first place i go to quotes me $10,000 (US) to take care of the rust, misc pieces, and paint to the original white. $10K!!!! ouch...

well, i decided to go to my mechanic friend to see what he thinks. he sends me over to this place where the guy has been into z's for 20yrs or so... he owns a body shop and he quotes me $1000 for the body work, no paint. oh, and no bondo, all sheetmetal. he said another $2000 for the paint.... what do you guys think? is $10K too much or what? i know if anything i'm going with the second guy, since that's all i can afford... anyway, if there's anyone in the san diego area that wants to let me know about a good place (or someone that wants to do it for me for a good price ) let me know!

sorry for the long arse post...

I think the first place quoted you 10k because they are actually going to do more work. Disassemble and strip, then do the required sheet metal, and paint. Then reassemble. They might also have included rebuilding or re-chroming some of the body parts. ??????

Your friends quote for 3k would be pretty high if the only thing he did was weld in patches over the rust, mask off all the lights, moldings, etc.. then paint around everything. ?????

Either way, find out what they are going to do exactly. Do it once and do it right. I guarantee you if you get the Earl Sheib (sp) special you will be paying all that money again in 2-3 years.

Don't get in a hurry. Talk to more people, and if you have the room you can do a lot of the prep work yourself.

the first one was just for body panels... rust, minor dents, a new hood, etc. etc.

the second place was cut & weld, fabricate (same as first), and prime... similar stuff.... i know the second one isn't going to do everything, but i don't have $10K to spend. $^!#, i don't have $3K to spend, my fiancee is paying for it! i's gotsa pay her back, but i'm broke right now... anyway, i know that i'll get professional quality work done at the first place (they do a lot of cars for mags and shows), but i'm not looking for that. i just don't want my car to be all FeO2'ed up....

p.s. - i don't have the room or proper tools to do a lot of prep work, let alone time.... but maybe i could start figuring what i can do. the thing is: since it is rainy season right now, i don't want to leave my bare arse.... i mean metal open to the rain and cause more rust! AHHH! anyway, thanks for the ideas..

I really want to try and give you some good advice, E. I can't see the car to give you an estimate, but the difference between your two bids is too wide for me to believe either one of them.

Check out Princess 27. I'll have $10,000 in the body before she is green again. I have well over $2300 in just new metal at this point. Haven't even started cutting and welding yet.

I have a feeling 27 will be the benchmark for just about EVERY rust story, for years to come!!! Never stops inspiring me...

So far, I have most of the sheet metal I am going to need. Still looking for a driver's fender.

I have a feeling 27 will be the benchmark for just about EVERY rust story, for years to come!!! Never stops inspiring me...

That is so true Alfa. Chris has more guts than most of us to take on such a job. "From Rust to a Ruby" that's the title of the widescreen version of the Hollywood hit about how to restore a Z. The car is truly a diamond in the rough.

Vicky

And hopefully they'll both look something like this when they're done. :classic:

Chris,

The picture of 27 is that in your back yard? I love the view. I want a view like that. :classic: Expect new neighbors, I'm moving.

That is what we are calling Z Mecca in Tampa. http://www.suncoastzcarclub.homestead.com/clubcarz_jimfrederick.html

You should have seen that scene after the hurricanes! Princess 27 stopped here first so that I could raid Jim's spare parts. We have a lot of club parties here. It's a great place and Jim has a kick butt collection of Zs.

Nice model, Stephen

... We have a lot of club parties here. It's a great place and Jim has a kick butt collection of Zs.

I can second that! Z party central a mucho, mucho Z cars! :classic:

Vicky

Nice model, Stephen

Not really. Its a Road Signature. My wife bought it for me at Big Lots for ten bucks! The detail isn't even as good as the Sun Star model (the one's who make a Black 72 Z!) and nowhere near a Kyosho which are 5 to 6 time as expensive. But it's cool because it looks kind of like a 26th or 27th 'mini-me.'