Well it only took 20 years........

[Robert J.]

I started this project in 1989 and it was only going to take 6 months....The tires, rims and hubcaps should be ready next week. It's taking forever to mask off the indentations in the hubcaps Hope the Pic's show up
Bob

[Kurt B.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

I thought it would take me a year to restore my 68.
It ended up taking 10 long years.
Your car looks good so it was worth the time it took.
Kurt

[John D.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

robert

It looks great...congratulations !!!!

[Jim T.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

Nice car, like the wheels on it in your pictures.

[Michael L.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

Had mine since '79. When I bought it is was a dragster with a 454 and a 4 speed. I turned it into a street rod with a 350 and auto trans. It went into hibernation in the mid 1980s, I started a frame off in 2005 and finished this year... Glad to see your car looking so nice! Labor of love.

[Roy B.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

Looks great come over to my house when your down this way.

[Robert J.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

Thanks for the response guy's. It's amazing the last time I drove that car was in 1961. I was a skinny 17 year old and it belonged to a friend of my older brother. It's a little tighter to get into now.......

Roy I'll be down that way in a few weeks. The front end needs to be aligned and a few more adjustments made....Bob

[Chris E.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

Bob, really nice. I like it a LOT! Congrats on getting to the "finish line". I'm still coming around turn 4 at this point.

[Tom P.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

20yrs--------------------------Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Here is an example of a SERIOUS restoration!
We expect it to achieve Top Flight first time out!















We've been working on this one for 12yrs, plus, it sat for about 7yrs before we acquired it.












This is what it looked like before we acquired it (looks are deceiving, it was NOT flyable).


Here it it today.




And this will be the finished version (projected about 2 more yrs). A little photo shopping with an exact model.


And this is the first startup and 6hr run of our first overhauled engine (Pratt & Whitney R2800, that's 2,800 cubic inches, 18 cylinders!).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-_9QvKaG64

[Robert J.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

It's a work of art.......I was working on the flight line over in the Azore Islands when a guy brought one through on his way to Europe. I got to see it up close. They are nice.

[Dennis A.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

Bob...
Looks like a lot of love and fun....great looking car, now you can look forward to another twenty years building another one...

[Robert J.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

Thanks; I did the Corvette, before that I restored a 58 Chris Craft. If I had my way I'd build 2 place aircraft but I can't afford the divorce.........Bob

[Tom P.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

Thanks; I did the Corvette, before that I restored a 58 Chris Craft. If I had my way I'd build 2 place aircraft but I can't afford the divorce.........Bob

I still have the 56 because I chose the divorce! And have ZERO regrets!

Oh ya, I still have the jet boat, 68 Chevelle, 70 Chevelle conv, 51 Chevy, 455 Cutlass, a house with a 6car garage for most everything-------------------------and she ain't got JACK! And in a couple of years, I'll be flying a WWII bomber. And a wife of 25yrs that puts up with all of it!
Yep, the divorce was the better choice!

[Robert J.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

You should write a book on how to get away with it. It would be a best seller....Bob

[Wayne B.]

Re: Well it only took 20 years........

"and it was only going to take 6 months"

And the roar of laughter went up! They always take longer than you think but sometimes I wonder if we don't procrastinate at times on purpose. Like anything creative you walk through it a thousand times in your mind before it's done, and feel that feeling of satisfaction a thousand times. "It's mine, it's all mine, it's special and no one else understands nor do I care".

Now honestly, other than family, is there anything that brought a smile to your face and a warm feeling like walking by that car, at any stage, over the last twenty years?