How to start hotrodding with little knowledge or money
(How to get started in hotrodding) |
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'''[[A foreword:]]''' | '''[[A foreword:]]''' | ||
| − | The first thing to say in choosing and building your first | + | The first thing to say in choosing and building your first hot rod project is that there's no one way of doing it. Below I'll outline a few thoughts that should be helpful to the beginner. With luck, perhaps this article will become increasingly comprehensive and a good resource/starting point. |
'''[[Step one: Knowledge]]''' | '''[[Step one: Knowledge]]''' | ||
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'''[[Resources]]''' | '''[[Resources]]''' | ||
| − | Hotrodding is an exercise in restraint. With a $100,000 dollar budget we can all build a HorsepowerTV 700 horse | + | Hotrodding is an exercise in restraint. With a $100,000 dollar budget we can all build a HorsepowerTV 700 horse Chevelle. The average guy, especially the beginner hotrodder, does not have this kind of bank account. In many cases, however, you can build a decent first project for a few thousand dollars. If you have the restraint to spend your money in the areas that matter, you can save vast amounts of money overall. |
What you'll find is that the more knowledge, resources and tools you have the more money you can save. For example, if you learn to rebuild a carburetor, you don't have to order a new one. At the highest levels of hotrodding, whole panels, frames or entire cars are completely fabricated. | What you'll find is that the more knowledge, resources and tools you have the more money you can save. For example, if you learn to rebuild a carburetor, you don't have to order a new one. At the highest levels of hotrodding, whole panels, frames or entire cars are completely fabricated. | ||
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I see a lot of young hotrodders make the same mistake. They scrape together 1200 bucks or so, go find a car they like and buy it thinking "wow, I have a project car and I only had to pay 1200 dollars, I'm way ahead of the game!" What they don't see is that even if the car looks "ok" it needs EVERYTHING. The brakes are shot and the lines are corroded. The engine needs to be rebuilt. The transmission has a boatload of miles on it. The rear end is sloppy, there's rust here and there and the paint needs to be redone. The interior is pretty much shot. Make no mistake, this car needs THOUSANDS of dollars worth of work to be respectable. 1200 + 8000 dollars in parts + hundreds of frustrating hours worth of doing work you have no idea how to do = burnout, failure and debt. | I see a lot of young hotrodders make the same mistake. They scrape together 1200 bucks or so, go find a car they like and buy it thinking "wow, I have a project car and I only had to pay 1200 dollars, I'm way ahead of the game!" What they don't see is that even if the car looks "ok" it needs EVERYTHING. The brakes are shot and the lines are corroded. The engine needs to be rebuilt. The transmission has a boatload of miles on it. The rear end is sloppy, there's rust here and there and the paint needs to be redone. The interior is pretty much shot. Make no mistake, this car needs THOUSANDS of dollars worth of work to be respectable. 1200 + 8000 dollars in parts + hundreds of frustrating hours worth of doing work you have no idea how to do = burnout, failure and debt. | ||
| − | Ideally what you want to find is a decently solid car. Body work is one of the tougher aspects of hotrodding, you probably want to learn some basics first. Find a car for between 3000-4000 dollars that has a clean body and decent | + | Ideally what you want to find is a decently solid car. Body work is one of the tougher aspects of hotrodding, you probably want to learn some basics first. Find a car for between 3000-4000 dollars that has a clean body and decent paint. The interior should be all there and in fair shape, if not good. A blown engine is not a deal-breaker, but keep in mind its a good idea to be able to drive the car to assess the other issues it has. How is the suspension and brakes? How does the transmission shift? Remember, keep you first project simple! |
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| + | == Where to Start. == | ||
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| + | Start with small projects on the vehicle. Don't just take the whole car apart and wonder what you are going to do. If you have a camera, take pictures before so you remember how it went together. Seek the knowledge of a mentor, and have him assist it some parts of the project and answer your questions as you proceed with a particular job. Prepare a job list, have the tools and the parts BEFORE starting, be aware of the procedure of the job and act it out accordingly. | ||
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