The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Panels 'N Burbs How much...

Ive spent darn near 3 grand on my 54.5 3100 carryall...and it still doesnt look any better. Its depressing, I know I have alot more work to do....ALOT. But how much has everyone else invested into thier pride and joy?

i wanna know how broke I really will end up.

I've got a lot more than you in my '55 1st Suburban, and it still carries the patina it had when I bought 6 years ago, and the rust is worse if anything.

Some of that is a little deceptive because some of the money has been spent on parts that are not installed, but some of it just reflects what mine needed when I got it.

I'm now considering a change in direction that will toss a fair amount of the work I've done on it, so its going to get more expensive before its anywhere near done...

For me this is all about the fun and satisfaction, the money is the cost of the entertainment.

Watts: I have a 37 I did over a 5 year period. I have NEVER added it up although I have and "idea".

Now for my panel. Just TODAY I bolted the engine and tranny onto the chassis and the worst is yet to come...meaning body work.
So far I estimate I have just under $4000 in it. Now bear in mind during this time I have purchased and have in my attic, NEW radiator, bumper, door handles, weather strippings for all doors, windshields, gaskets,glove box, hood emblem, restored guages with one new guage and new speedo head in speedometer,ordered lot of new rubber bumpers,both new floor pans, outer driver side cowl panel and inner cowl panel. purchased two used but nice front doors. I've changed the torque tube to a 56 pumpkin,all new brakes and lines, purchased a set of 15" 6 lug wheels, sent $75 for sand to blast chassis but not counting the $225 pressurized blaster, bought a nice used remanufactured engine with 15,000 miles. Also a new 600 cfm carburetor that cost me $280.
I bartered for a lot of things. A 350 tranny that I just put a new filter and pan gasket, bartered on a grille, "begged" a fellow bolter out of some additional parts,bartered for some brake drums,new type motor mounts, bartered for a rear cross- member,bartered to get my inner to outer cowl panel repaired, and a "few" other pieces AND I'm still looking for some more like running boards.

Now, I have not paid one dime for any labor but the worst is yet to come. I cannot do body work and my body is in sad shape. I've got my son to help strip most of one side so far but much actual body work is to be done. I'm figuring around $6000 to complete the body work and paint. I have had the front fenders blasted by someone else but I have done the rest...after paying $50 ech to get the front ones blasted and treated I figured I can do it!

Spent lots of dollars on paint, cleaner, media for my cabinet blaster, grease and oil.

OH MY GOSH: after typing all this I may have a lot more in it than I thought. I have given my wife all the receipts and ask her to put them in a spread sheet with where the stuff came from, the part # and how much it cost. I may be in divorce court soon.
So, watt, does This answer our question????? I figure around $15,000 by the time I'm finished in actual cash. I've already been working/piddling on this thing for two years and figure maybe two more.

I have taken advantage of swapping a lot of stuff but I have also taken advantage of JimCarters discount sales to Stovebolters. Last December he offered a 25% discount, and this past April he offered a 15% discount and if you contribute to the Stovebolt you can get a 10% discount all the time. I have saved several dollars using the discounts and just put the stuff in storage. The "rubber stuff" I keep in the house where its a little climate controlled

It will still depend on what YOU want to do but it also depends on the condition of the vehicle you are working on. Like 2many2count says....buy good metal ect and in the long run you'll come out a head. Sorry for the looong response but he asked for it!!!!

Edit: I forgot about the new e-brake cable, new water pump, new starter, and new fuel pump,new plugs.....and the list goes on!

What was that old saying about price......If you have to ask you can't afford it....just kidding.. you have to decide how much it is worth to you and don't expect to make any profit from selling it unless you do all your own work. And even then its not a sure thing...

I would hate to have to add everything up. I found some good items at the flea market yesterday. That makes me feel good, but you always seem to need another part. I don't have to worry too much about the cost of everything, otherwise I would have a different hobby like rock collecting. I will never do the math, it's part of my truck expense in my contracting business.

I prefer to not post what I have spent on my Suburban.

But, it is not an "investment": that would be the spending of money in the hope of making more money.

My "joke" is that I spent less than what a new Suburban costs. Everyone smiles when they go for a ride in it; and, other old truck owners regularly remark about how smooth-running and quiet it is on both back roads and highways - Priceless.

$3,000 is what I spent on the paint and paint supplies.

Also, a Suburban is the most expensive vehicle to restore:
- four doors
- 8 seat cushions, and 4 seat frames
- 13 to 16 windows (as many as 8 of them are movable)
- no bed, but double the interior area to paint, a large rear floor area, and a lot more exterior surface-area to paint

tclederman: I don't have the windows but with a panel I am not that far behind you!!
Well, after posting the lengthy post above I finally sit down and made a spread sheet of what I have in the panel...so far!
It seems no one likes to mention how much he spent on this, or what this or that cost but hey, its part of the hobby and we all know "close" to what we have in them anyway!
So, for Watts benefit, in answer to his question...so far I have $5200 in my panel and just now got the engine/tranny sitting on the chassis. Even with wheeling and dealing, discounts where I work and from JimCarter I feel this ain't half bad. The BIG job now is the body work.
Even at this rate I'll have less than in the 37 but the 37 was really near a basket case when I started on it so previous CONDITION before you buy it is EVERYTHING.

I estimated around 7-10 G's for my project. I've already bought 3 trucks an old van, and lots of paint, tools, and parts (not to mention a small playground's worth of sand). I'm a little less than halfway done, and a little less than halfway to budget. I'm about inline with Achipmunk. I think 7-10 grand is about average.

I got a daily driver, driven it about 8,000 miles (wild guess) in 1.5 years owning it. paid $2,100 for the truck, $600 on tires, $370 for king pins (if only I had a 100 ton bench press..), $10 for a driveshaft bearing, a few hundred in gaskets, weatherstrips, spark plugs, and the alike. then oil and filters of course. it's still not pretty, but:

at $2,300 per year including the truck itself
or $900 per year including major stuff
or $300 per year to keep it running

I figure it's really not that bad

Much like all bolters who are building their own trucks we keep pouring money into our projects and it doesn't seem like we will ever see light at the end of the tunnel. Someone in our car club explained to me that the approach he took was to enjoy the hobby. Don't start thinking about the cost because you may get discouraged. Work at it every day possible, if the funds are low for those parts you need now look for stuff that needs doing that requires sweat equity instead of cash. I have allowed myself 4 yrs to do a complete frame off approx. $3,000 per year but I know if I added up all the invoices it would be more so I'm not going to do that. I love this old truck. This hobby has introduced me to a whole lot of real good stovebolt people in both Canada & USA. Bartering,searching,Informaton sharing & exchanges. My truck has parts from Arizona,California, Quebec,Ontario,Nova Scotia & here in New Brunswick, Canada.
I know this is what its going to take for me to realize my dream of owning one of these beautiful restored trucks. Like Johnny Cash said in his song "I GOT IT ONE PIECE A TIME" except for the part in the song that said it didn't cost him a dime.

I absolutely agree!

Only time I think about what I have spent is when someone asks. Only time I think about what it will take to finish it is when I need to spend more.

This is a hobby not an investment.

I'm sure that some you guys just don't want to know how much you have invested, but my plea is to the people who already have spreadsheets of expenses...

PLEASE SHARE!?!

It would be an invaluable tool for those of us who are just starting a project; to have some sort of concept of where and how much money to plan for... priceless!

It doesn't matter if it's a hobby that we are never getting our money out of, being able to plan for these expenses would allow me to... spend more. :-)

Mark
PS I'm sure there is some shame about exposing where you have gotten screwed on price or wasted investment, but please try to overcome the shyness, as I'm sure that everyone else here has made mistakes. (Except me) hopefully, you can help the rest of us to skip some of those mistakes...

Ive been reading the resonses...my jaw has hit the floor. But Ive come to realize something.
1. This whole build is gonna COST alot.
2. Ive wanted grandpappys burban since I was a lil rat.
3. This is getting the full restore to its original state. (my best friend had already gotten in touch with the show "Overhaulin" and was going to have them "steal" it and "cherry" it up....I dont want it chopped, dropped, tubbed and blown. I like original.
So, with all that in mind....Im in this for the long haul. I dont have any grey hairs yet....but by the time Im done...they'll either be gray...or gone.
Now to go pull the engine. Later yall.

Watts, I've had my burb for about 6 years, and I actually drove it one time the first year I had it. All the windows were broken except the rear door glasses, so my first purchase was all new smoked glass $700.00. I'm doing all the work myself, and its been apart now for about 5 years, and I've fixed the floors, painted the interior, changed out the drive line, transmission, and rear end. I knew it was going to be a long process, so I spent the the last couple of years on my 53 3100 just so I can say, I've got one done. If you check out Tom Brownell's book "How to restore your chevrolet pickup", it will give you a good idea how much money you can pour into these projects. I think $10,000 dollars would be very realalistic low end figure. The book also advises a person to have a plan, so you can get a better idea just what involved in restoring an old vehicle. Hang in there, sometimes you just got to stop and smell the roses.

Just drive it,, and do what you can,when you can.
And if your finances change,,,park it in the garage,,, tear it apart and really get into it. Or if the finances change the other way,,,,just park it in the garage. It'll be there when things get better.

I followed one part of Marty's advice with my suburban. It sat in the garage for 13 years until I had some money and some time. The restoration lasted about 10 years. I kept records of the costs and you do not want to know the total (it might depress you). Spread over 10 years, it was not so bad. Now I have a totally restored vehicle to pass on to my daughter (and maybe her offspring).

You could, however, follow another piece of Marty's advice, "Just drive it, and do what you can, when you can."

Tim

Just food for thought may I add this. IF you KNOW you are going to keep the vehicle until its a finished product the time to buy up the parts you need is NOW. On my 37 I started buying parts that I knew I would need the first week I had it. You know, $25 a week or maybe a monthly allowance. I did this while I was doing strictly the "labor" parts. You know, tear down, blast, prime, paint, rebuild all those things that cost very little.
By doing this I saved a lot of money by having already bought some of the part from a simple glovebox to the bed assembly. Prices go UP.
On my current panel project I have been doing the same thing for two years. I am amazed now at how much some of the parts have gone up since then.
Also take advantage of sales......like the 25% off JCarter offered last Dec....and the additional 5% back in April for those who had made a stovebolt contribution.(Saved a cool $50 bucks on my radiator) That may never happen again and if it does it will be 25% off a higher price than last year!

I think you get the idea now!

Parts cost
1000 1952 chevy panel
500 Gauges speedometer and cluster
400 4:10 gears
3000 paint (gray and black GO RAIDERS)
100 front grill
300 1991 Dodge 4X w/Cummins
150 Brakes
40 interior door handles
$15 Plastic Jesus in Hula skirt
4300 1991 4x4 Dodge 250 with a Cummins 5.9 diesel to swap under.
150 rework leaf springs
50 summit trans cooler
125 B&M shifter
100 sheet metal material
100 bucket seats
2700 for custom misc. fabrication.

still counting.... and no it still doesn't run.

Do you feel any better now.
The feeling of having a one of a kind panel is priceless, it's the divorce that sucks JK;) My wife still loves me despite my insanity. Maybe you can show your wife this post and make your obsession less raging.
Good luck with the carryall

This thread came up back when I was stil new to the bolt. It made me ponder what I was getting into. As Tim said at the time it isn't an investment in the finacial sense, but it is an investment if you consider the enjoyment as a return.

I'm close to completing a total restoration of my panel and like Tim you don't want to know the total, but here are approx numbers on some of the bigger items Total reciepts for parts to date is pretty close to $25 K.

Original engine rebuild with upgrades and blueprinting. $6,500
SM420 Trans and driveshaft rebuild and new clutch. $1300
2 complete orignal seats and reupholstery $2,000
Total brake rebuild w/new wheel,axle brgs and seals. $1200
5 Custom made 19.5 inch wheels w/radial tires. $4,000
New springs and hardware all around. $1200
Custom built mandrel bent 400 series sst exhaust system. $750

Like Alvin, this doesn't include general labor, body work and paint. But I have burned through a big pile of parts and pieces. I've had to have a couple custom made because I couldn't buy them. I could have bought a fancy new car of my choosing for what I've spent on my panel.

But then one thing is for sure when you do what you do, you are going to stand out with a panel.

My 65 helped to get me through the worst time in my life!It gave me something else think about and something to look forward to. I started out saving an old truck and somewhere along the way it switched to saving my mind. curt

What the total cost does not include are all of the things that we couldn't live without and more ie: Air Compressor, mig welder, lot's of tools, do-overs, extra parts, wrong parts, stupid mistakes, rentals, detours, things you bought for going stock, things you bought for going custom, things lost in the mail etc.

I will spend about $5k plus purchase price on my Burb. But instead of listing it all I will try to give my tip of how to avoid spending your hard earned $.

I’m doing everything my self. Paint, pre chrome work, panel beating, engine restore, reupholstery and so on and so forth. Yes it is not always easy, especially if it’s something new. However if you are into restoring cars/trucks this is what you will save the big $$ on.

Don’t buy everything just to make it new? Repair/restore otherwise you will end up with a car more after market than original and it will cost loads and be of inferior quality. Most things can be fixed with blood sweat and tears.

Will not mentioned names but some web/shops targeting car restoration enthusiast sells things at a premium. They often have a habit of glamour ordinary stuff to sound like it’s there patented super dumper stuff. Needless to say stay away.

Sure its cool with powder coating but it costs a lot. It’s most likely you will not drive you car/truck in such way you really needed. Hence blasting/scraping/sanding and normal paint/primer will be just as good for you weekend cruise and it save you a ton when you make it your self. Don’t buy all new bolts, instead electro plate then again and they will look and be as good as new.

Just a few things you can do to keep cost down..

Cheers Dyna

Well, ok here comes the shocker. Ive been restoring a 1948-49 suburban for about 3 years now and it's finally coming to a close. As we sit now we are at about 35K plus 2k for upholstery and 1k for electrical installation. Now this is total cost with my labor included. Parts total he's at about 20k.

Hind site on the whole project in my eyes is that it should have been a frame off but unfortunately wasn't because we never intended it to be such an in depth build. It slowly evolved into one. If I had made it a frame off I probably could have had a nicer out come over all and maybe saved money for him too. You'd be surprised how much running back and forth to ACE Hardware can cost. Especially since there bolts are priced like they are gold plated. If you want to convert to SS hardware id recommend you find a bolt whole-seller who sells to the public. You will save big time by buying from them. 1/4-20 bolt from ace= 45 cents same thing from bolt supply= 5 cents.

Bottom line is do your homework before you attempt anything because there is ALWAYS someone who has done it, learn from their mistakes first. This was my first full build and I must say I learned a lot of do's and donts with it. Probably more dont's. I will agree that it's not always best to buy reproduction stuff as I am facing several dilemmas because of this.

I saved every receipt on my 49 Sub frame off. The last time I added it up it came to $18,800. There are some things I would do differently but I am satisfied with the end result. This was also my first build and I learned a lot. I am 78 and retired and the money came from a part time job. The build took me 8 years so the cost was spread out over that period of time and it didn't seem like it was financially difficult. Its still not finished (headliner, inside side panels, etc.) but I am driving it and having a ball. I think it depends a lot on your stage in life and your family situation. I would do another build even at my age because I feel if I don't stay active and keep my brain exercised I would soon be in the old rocking chair. It was fun and even funner? driving it getting all the thumbs up. Even from Harley guys.

Weeds

I feel your pain.

I talked with a Grand Prix team owner some 15 years ago. He said if you want to buy a Grand Prix car it's about a million bucks. If you want to actually race it, it's about 10 million bucks. If you want to win a race it's about 50 million and if you want a chanpionship, it will cost you about $100 million.

Applied to this hobby I think it's something like this.

If you want something that will start, it's $2-3 thousand. If you want something you can actually drive on the streets, it's about $5,000. If you want a nice clean resto/rod it's about $15 to $20 thousand, and if you want a full-on restored winner it's about $50 thousand and up.

I have a friend that has been in Hot Rod mag twice. His latest car is over a hundred thousand and he is not done. That's with having someone do all the work, but yikes.

$15-20 thousand seems like a good leveling place for a decent machine.

I can't help but think this thread should somehow be displayed more prominently somewhere. I think it would be a great place for a newby to get his feet wet. I went into this eyes open after a lifetime of busting knuckles. But I have known of so many who jump in, not realizing the amount of work, expertise and money that it takes. It often doesn't turn out well for them. So if this was an easy to find resource for someone giving thought to the prospect, they would have plenty ot think about. Especially with some real world prices being shared.

I'm glad lots of folks are finally putting some figures out there. It just seems no one wants to mention what they pay.....perhaps for fear they paid to much or much less than someone else but in all honesty, it really helps to know the ups and downs in real world things.
That said guys, I did some adding tonight on my panel. This is the first time I actually have kept a record and its mostly for buying future parts and making things easy for the next owner, possibly my daughter...or nephew.
My total so far is about as close to $16,000 as you can get and I still need the inside. I'm pretty good other wise.

What we do not see is all the wheeling dealing, trading and bartering that we do over parts ect. Heck, I've had friends and bolters GIVE me parts.... and yes, I pay it forward to when I can. I've got super deals on engines, tires, wheels, and as I mentioned earlier, "most" everything was bought at a discount of at least 10% but a lot of it at 20% and that was a while back. The same parts to day have gone up by that much since I bought mine.
BUT, I like it better than a new one and its PAID FOR. Antique tag means no more county taxes,road fee's, same tag good long as I own it. Insurance not bad.... and 4 1/2 years of enjoyment I've had and meeting a LOT of good bolters. It don't get any better.

Whew where does the money go? I'm into mine right now for about 12k and the body still needs a few more patches and then final body work/priming/painting. My chassis is 80% restored and the engine is completely rebuilt. I would estimate I should be into mine for around 20k. The sad thing is you can look hard and find one already done in that price range. But atleast this way mine is getting done the way I want it done and it is a good way to relax when working on it.

I spent 10,000.00 on my 1946 Suburban with no engine or transmission. Spent 2,000.00 on new rear end and probably another $2,000.00 on miscellaneous parts not counting $700.00 for new rear fenders.

I expect to have $20,000.00 in mine before I am done however only 54 Chevy 1946 Suburbans with a tailgate were built so I figure it is worth it.

I also have a 1941 1 ton I bought 5 years ago and I am just finishing it up.

$3,500.00 for the truck, $4,000.00 for new drive train, $700.00 for radiator and fan. Another $2,000.00 in other stuff.

Probably $12,000.00 by the time I am done this June but who has a 1941 1 ton Chevy, only 54 built.

I love the look of the Art Deco Trucks and their crank out windshields.

The bonus is that they are so old few people remember them so they can not complain about how you finish them.

The one ton will be my "Daily Driver" and the "Burb" will be my truck show vehicle.

Belive me the "Juice is worth the squeezing" I have had four of them already.

I'm into the project around 20 grand last check. I have all receipts. Not bad IMO for less than two years. I have done all the work to date with the exception of sandblasting the body and the wiring. I am 95% complete and hope to have it on the road within the next couple of months. I have about another 5 grand left to spend to finish it.

Interesting how close some of these experience$ are to mine...

My 51 3100 Panel is nearing completion.
I've done everything myself except the actual machine shop work on the 455 Buick I put in it.
Total investment including the $800 I paid for it and parts is $15,500.... I had to farm out the final blocking & paintwork. That will be about another $4-5K. The only remaining expenses will be a Vintage Air unit and misc. interior bits and pieces.

This was a body off project. I probably could have found a nice one for a lot less, but I've enjoyed it immensely and have honed my metal working and fabricating skills respectably along the way. Gonna take this summer off and enjoy driving the old cars instead of building them. Then I'll be looking for the next project!

mike