No offense to anyone out there but there are some of us who’ve taken a lot of time, effort, and money to learn about these old cars. We’ve worked hard to perfect what we do, and some, have taken what we’ve learned and gone into business fabricating things from wood, springs, to rubber parts. I used to take a lot of my time up helping others and often when they were stuck on a piece, I would offer to make it for them. I know my time was well appreciated and I enjoy helping others but I can tell you more often than not, those people would say that I wanted too much money for the item and then the conversation would stop right there.
I don’t think most realize the amount of time alone it takes to make wood pieces AND make them CORRECT, never mind picking out and getting the correct wood for the item. I machined a mold for a pedal surround myself that I had quoted to three machine shops from $8000 to $12000! Now when I tell someone the finished piece from that mold is $275, a price quite a bit cheaper than a well known rubber parts manufacturer charges, if they even sold it but they don’t, they say I’m crazy. I’ve been asked if I can make paper drawings of my patterns and send them and I’m sorry, I just don’t answer anymore.
Cabboy politely replied why he couldn’t supply a paper pattern but one has to realize he’s running a business and making a livelihood from his expertise. I myself have graduated from this old car hobby to a business and I’m very busy. There are very few people making car wood these days and even fewer getting the wood done in a respectable amount of time. I am currently close to finishing a complete rewooding and sheet metal restoration of a 32 Oldsmobile convertible roadster that I started in August of 22. I have about a month left to go on a very extensively rotted car. The wood work barely covers half the time it’s taken so far and I can guarantee that many people just wanting a complete wood kit will wait 4-5 years just for the wood from a few other suppliers. There is a reason things cost what they do and more than not, it’s the time you’re paying for. The owner of this 32 Olds was ecstatic that I even agreed to take the car because of its poor condition but he’s even more ecstatic at its restoration. Sorry for the rant. Here’s a link to the body restoration.
https://forums.aaca.org/topic/385214-1932-canadian-oldsmobile-dcr/page/3/#comment-2503431
