1973 economy restoration

[240zis4me]

Jmark I like the work on the car do you have any before pictures. Im not sure if it going to help soymilk, but it will help me to decided how much work and money i want to spend on my car.

Solmilk i took out my Z today and while i was driving through El Monte(LA area) i saw so many body shops it was crazy. So i think you should be able to find a good price. There going to compete for your business.

[jmark]

240zis4me,

Just check out my gallery here. There are some before & during pics.

[240zis4me]

I saw before and after it helped a lot thanks.

[hls30.com]

Professionals use the words "economy" and "restoration" in a single sentance in only one way, and that is to say that economy and restoration do not belong in the same sentance. If the car is going to be sold, most knowledgeable buyers would rather have the car as is than have a cheep coat of paint hiding the care the owner has taken of the car. A cheep paint job is always done to hide something-and most people know that.

If you go the school route, talk to the teacher and the kids, the more they "buy in" to the project, the better the outcome will be.

Will

[soymilk]

Thanks to all for the help. Jmark your car looks great. HLS I understand what your saying.

There is no free lunch. But that is the problem with loving these cars. I will not paint it myself. I dont plan to sell the car. I want a good paint job. What constitutes good? Go to www.autobody101.com and try to find out. :cross-eye . When you pay $1500 for the car and then shell out another 3500, that's not lunch money. But in los angeles there isnt much between the 1 days and custom work? Using good paint (ppg,glassurit, spies...) and good prep work, whats the difference between a good paint job and a awesome paint job? I pay 3500 and the next guy pays 7500, what is an average joe like me going to see thats makes the difference. Granted I'm not going to pay 7500 anyway, but never the less I'm still curious. ( I did pay $5000.00 for a paint job on my old 72 240z back in my younger days). I remember a friend of mine saying that some of the show car paint jobs cost >$10,000. For custom yes, but for a regular solid color, I dont get it. Maybe its as simple as good prep (so many hours) versus awesome prep ( many more hours)?

I guess I could keep shopping around, but what am I looking for? A clean shop, satsified customers, a owner that cares about my z car, a shop that has done z cars before... I figure one of the greatest uses of a site like this could be customer feedback on the work people have had done on their cars. Think of the possibilities :lick:

Example:

Click on customer/consumer reviews > Click on auto body repair > Click on the state/city you live in > browse customer reviews for the body work done by shops/individuals in your area with a simple rating 1-5. No need to search every post with body shop in it. I guess I'm spoiled from the audio review sites I search from time to time.

Thanks for the advice and help. You guys are great. I'll keep everyone posted.

[Bambikiller240]

You might want to ask Dennis at Classic Datsun Motorsports for his recommendation of a body shop, or ask for recommendations from a local car club.

The difference in "restoraton" body work and what you get at a body shop that does regular (i.e. insurance or standard) body work is in all the execution of all steps of the job. Prep, Application, and Finish work.

[soymilk]

Carl,

Great suggestion. Since I'm so tied up with family matters all the time, I rarely have a chance to go to car meetings. I'll try emailing Dennis and the local clubs.

thank you,

[Trys_Hard]

I'm in the same boat as soymilk. I am ready to paint my 75 280Z. I don't want to sell the car, I do want a nice paint job. I also want to drive the car as a shared daily driver along with my 81 280ZX, with the 280Z getting the lions share because well its just a more fun car, just not as comfortable.

So I anguish over spending 4-5K on a paint job and stress over every chip or ding. Or I can pay 2K get a nice 2 stage paint job with quality paint and decent prep and not get all stressed out when there is a dump truck full of dirt and rocks on the freeway ahead of me, which happens a lot here in LA.

Good Prep, a clean shop, and good craftsmen are critical, but so was price.

So I decided that I would go with a Maico, 1 Day type of place but I would investigate all the ones in the area and find out which ones were the best.

I found two places which I have seen their work, and it is good. You have to look hard to find flaws but they are there but hard to find. I am going with the 1day in Glendale. For about 2K I am getting a 2 stage paint job with some minor body work and rust repair. I have only a couple of dings to fix and some rust on the cowl. I seen several Z's painted there and they look good. Even some that were painted a few years ago. So that another alternative for you. One other thing, they said they would need the car for a week. I admit they won't take the car to the metal, but if it looks good and lasts and your not afraid to drive the car every day, that good enough for me.

Whats good enough for others can be different. I have posted some before pics. I about three weeks I can post some after pics.

[Ed]

I'm sorry, I read the title to this post and said "That's an Oxymoron". But either way, to each his own.

My motto; Pay cheap, pay twice.

You said you had no intentions of ever selling the car. Wouldn't you want a paint that will last that long.