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Is It Economically Viable To Restore A Classic Vehicle Yourself?
Thursday 08 September 2016The effort, time and amount of work that goes into restoring a classic car is often underrated. While most people often refer to classic car restorations as a pastime, an accurate description would be an involving project, and not a simple one tat that, as there is plenty of skills involved in addition to resources and time. Restoring a classic car at home is quite possible; however, unless you have a considerable amount of experience or are a professional car restorer, this is not advisable. It is recommended utilizing a professional classic car restoration service as the technicians there have the skills, experience and tools to do a perfect job. Here are some things you might want to consider before commencing a classic car restoration undertaking yourself:
Do you have the skills?
The main reason why many classic car restoration projects at home fail is that most owners do not have the skills, experience and tools to do a perfect job. They are so keen on the idea of the project that they forget or over estimate their own abilities and skills. Restoring cars, whether modern or classic, require the expertise and skills of a professional. In most cases, home restoration projects result in hiring experts to fix mistakes that have been made. This ends up being more costly than paying a professional to do the job in the first place.
Respraying
This is a job that can be attempted at home, but by an experienced person. The main reason for this is that it can be a tricky undertaking, and poor paintwork end up spoiling the appearance of the car. The finish of the paintwork largely depends on how well the surface underneath has been prepared. This means that an unprofessional restore with small faults can easily result in a bad paint job. Here are some things that can cause issues with the paintwork:
• Poor paint quality • Poorly cleaned mixing area • Badly maintained painting equipment • Wrong working temperature, either too cold or too hot • Dust particles getting caught in the spray stream • Poor preparation
Time
Do you have enough time to undertake the project? Car restoration undertakings often take much longer than what most people expect. Even for retired technicians, this sort of project can take a considerable amount of time. A lot of people begin the project enthusiastically but find themselves less than dedicated later on having encountered multiple issues. If you want to have the job done as quickly and expertly as possible, it might be sensible to use professional car restorers.
Safety
Most classic car owners do not have the right safety equipment that is required for restoration undertakings. Not only this, even a garage workshop can be a risky place for the inexperienced and untrained car owners. The skin must be protected from abrasion, chemicals and heat. Eyes also need to be protected when performing any kind of restoration work. All of these basic safety precautions come at an extra cost.
Cost
Unexpected costs are unavoidable when it comes to classic car restorations. This means you might wind up spending considerably more than what you had bargained for. For instance, tools you didn’t expert might have to be brought in, and then utilized only once. Purchasing the car restoration supplies also add to the overall costs. Depending on the type of a car you are hoping to restore and the level of restoration you want, costs will vary considerably.