How old ya gonna be when you finish your current project?

[Flashback]

Just curious, how many of you might be working on projects you might be able to estimate your
ETC on completion and so how old will you be? I figure I will be 70 when I finish my 53 coupe!
I am 66 now, and just got it driveable.

[Bob Andrews]

Fun, soul-bearing topic!

I have many projects, many different makes, but my most-desired is 62 Daytona 2dr. HT, R2/5-speed with Skytop. Thus far I have a solid, straight shell all stripped; r2 engine complete carb-to-pan with blower, fresh and ready to go; and a mountain of NOS body panels, trim, etc. That one is stalled due to business recovery, further delayed until I'm completely debt-free (any other Dave Ramsey followers out there?). I have gone back and forth about selling off everything since the timeline to do it the way I want is so long, but haven't. Everything is safely stored, and I keep my eye out for more odds and ends; right now that's how I'm enjoying the project, dreaming and planning. I've actually had a couple people take potshots at this, like there's anything wrong with how I'm doing it; kooky, I know.

All that said, I figure about 3 years before I can get seriously into it, 5 years to completion. I'll be about 55 years old.

Of course, that's barring any life detours <G>

[N8N]

trick question. No project car is ever finished! Even if it is "show ready" there is always something that you'll find to change/fix/update!

nate

[Tahiti Coral]

Are they ever really done?

I'm not sure on the timeline. I've owned the same Lark for the 3rd time now. The first time was in high school, the second time I was going to start restoring the car and had it partially disassembled in my grandfather's garage. I got married, had a baby, got divorced and gramps was using the car as a workbench when back in my 20's. I sold the car to a coworker, he put the car back together and owned the car at least 15 years.

Fast forward... I bought the car back when I was 40 and didn't do a whole lot until recently. I am now 45 and have started working on the car bit by bit. I just bought a nice frame in MN that I will sandblast & paint and switch out the old weak rusty one on the car. I will need to replace front floorboards and have some bodywork to do (need front fenders). When will I be done? Who knows. Being a 4dr Lark, it will never be worth what I am doing to it, but then how can you replace sentimental value??

[jclary]

I am also 66 and I am full of corny sayings (like the one in my signature ). I say "corny" because sayings are easy. However, when you become or are involved in a "real life" target of the sayings, they sometimes seem to ring hollow, or lose their cuteness.

One of my sayings is..."I'd rather die with things undone, than to get everything done and wait to die."

Nearly three years ago, my oldest brother (who I loved dearly) told me that he had just been diagnosed with stage 4 stomach cancer. During the next several months, we spent time discussing our past with serious and light hearted banter. On a few occasions, I used the saying above, but this was the first time the saying rang with such a harsh impact.

One day during that period of my life, I rode my motorcycle to visit one brother in the VA Hospital in Asheville, N.C. After leaving there, I rode another 50 or 60 miles to visit my oldest brother in hospice in Shelby, N.C.

It was ordinarily a beautiful route, winding roads, mountain vistas, and the growl of a powerful V-twin. However, I was an emotional wreck, because I realized that both of my brothers had reached a point in life where they had seen their last mountain vista, taken that last curve, and the wind was now at their backs. One had wanted to buy my old Nissan truck. Now, I knew that woud never happen, and the other would never complete the purchase of the '55 President Coupe sitting in my "Man Cave." We had many discussions of how he and his son were going to "fix it up" and participate in SDC events with me.

I take comfort knowing that they left with things undone, but neither were they just waiting to die.

For me...I'm staying busy.

[sweetolbob]

trick question. No project car is ever finished! Even if it is "show ready" there is always something that you'll find to change/fix/update!

nate

Well said Nate.

Mine are finished when I sell them, until then everything in the pole barn is unfinished.

Judy said the 83 Avanti must be finished as it looks and runs great. Well, kinda but there's that little issue of installing the EFI and, Well the trunk rack looks out of place so it's gotta go but I guess it's almost finished.

Bob

[Neal in NM]

When you ask how old do you mean MENTALLY or PHYSICALLY?
Neal

[John Brayton]

Finished?

I agree that to call it finished is, at best, optimistic. However I want to be finished enough with the 53 coupe to be driving it in 2011. I'll be 61.

Regards,
John Brayton

[Chris_Dresbach]

Age when done for my three projects:
My '40 Champion: When I'm 99.
My model N: I will be dead and my kids will have to finish it... If I have kids... lol
Turtle: Done, I'm 16.

[candbstudebakers]

Most dreams are never done and never will be, all for reasons we all know, time , money, space, family, and after time the dream just fades away and a project just needs to go away, have seen that many times in my 69 years, right now I have 4 cars I call done and still will not enter for judging , just display only 3 of them I got from family of friends that passed away and I am proud to own their dreams and glad I was able to get them at the time . the other is my 63 standard finished but not done, hang in there with your dreams that's what it is all about.

[starliner62]

114 or never

[aarrggh]

[Cale Wilbern]

It used to bother me when somebody would ask, "But, WHEN is it going to be finished??" Now I just say, "This isn't for 'finishing', this is just for workin' on".

[Dave Bates]

Hoping to have one at the Summit meet this coming year and the other Myer's meet early 2012.I'l be 49. Dave

[rusty65]

There have been some cool, witty and truthful responses to this question.(sorry if I break the streak.)
A quick trip to the strong box indicates that I titled Sarah in 1999.Even now she looks like just a driveable parts car.Every year I have a list of things I want done, and every year something gets in the way to muck it up.Let's see, I'm 52 now so that means in 12 to 20 years it should be done.I'll get my 3rd place trophy,spin around and have the "big one", sending me to that great Swap Meet in the sky.The Mrs. will sell the car to some next-gen CASO for pennies on the dollar, and the cycle will continue.Kind of like the 'Circle of Life', automotive style.