A little background: I'm about to get my new chassis AND I've recently had to move (a couple of miles down the road) to a place with a smaller garage. So I have a one bay garage where as I previously had a two bay. So while the chassis will fit, working is going to be a bit space constrained. I've found some parts and a truck (mostly complete, but in parts, making it easier to move to the new chassis).

The other option I've mulled but don't want to do it unless I absolutely have to is to have everything shipped to NY and periodically fly back to assemble everything. By later this year I could have most everything present to assemble the truck barring any problems (that we all know will crop up). [My dad lives in upstate NY and has a large barn that would work good for storing, but not necessarily for working on)

So, and especially you souther Cali guys(/gals?), where do you store something like a donor truck/very large parts while working on the main project?

 

You could send them all to my place in NY.......
My x B in Law has a lot of his parts stored on the outside of his buildings. Like fenders, bedsides etc. Nails or screw hooks into the side walls, and just hang.
Do you have room to put up a temp storage garage? Like
10 ft. x 17 ft. Portable Garage

 

For some body parts, I built shelving above my garage door. All the front sheet metal, seat, etc are up there now.


For bigger stuff, those guys must have a back 40 to put things on.

 

In irvine - there's about 5 feet between houses and the backyards barely have enough room to park a bicycle!

I was hoping to hear someone using places like those mini-storage (I guess I could just give them a call), but I'm thinking it's dad's place...

 

Parts truck is at the gf fathers. All my other sheetmetal is scattered I'm my garage... But I have a large garage(I purchased my house with the knowledge that I have too many unfinished projects). If it's unpainted I wouldn't worry about it being outdoors... Maybe a small storage shed or lean to in the back yard?

 

I know of some people that would keep their running car in a mini-storage. It's definitely an option, but the cost starts adding up pretty quickly.

 

I had thought of that too! I do have space in front of the garage, so that's where I would park my daily driver. I'm thinking at this point that I will keep the chassis local. Get the engine, tranny, gas tank, etc all delivered local and assembled.

I can then have my parts truck at my dad's house in (NY). When I'm ready and as I visit there a couple times a year, I can get them sand-blasted and prepped in the barn and then shipped to the painter out there. Not the cheapest or best route, but looking at costs to ship, it's cheaper to do that versus using mini-storage out here.

 

I did the mini storage thing before and as stated above, after a while it will add up. I'd say for a few months though it shouldnt be bad. I do think it would be cheaper than flying back and forth!!

 

I would say mini storage or look for space to rent to build truck. You are going to want to have parts close by to try for fit during build up. You could put cab on high jack stands and roll chassis under it. Shipping would be outragous between ny and cali. You are spending 50k plus on parts do not skimp on where to put it together!!! Can not wait to see some pictures of that chassis. Good Luck

 

Are there garages you can rent?

 

Like you, I moved to a house with a smaller garage a few years ago. The chassis was rolling and had a tow bar so all the parts could roll and made the rounds to a few friends houses. I also have a 91 suburban that I only use one or 2 weeks in the summer to pull my camper trailer so it got stuffed full of fenders and the hood. At lest for me if it isn't in my garage (and just enough of the project to allow some room to work on it) it is not going to get worked on no matter how convenient it is to hook up the trailer and pull it home or to a shop to work on it.

 

With all the empty buildings you should be able to find space to rent. I have a friend who builds race cars and rents space in a industrial park and rent is pretty cheap.

 

I'm in OC as well so I'll throw my 2 cents in.

Stay away from the commercial storage places are $1.25 a sq. foot and up and really go up IF you can find a ground level unit that would be useable (think 10 X 20 )

I've rented a couple of garages over the years for project / parts storage and the best deal IMHO is searching Craigs list for a garage for rent from a large apartment complex.

Perks:

You'll have a 120VAC outlet.... not much but atleast enough for some lights and a radio as opposed to commercial storage that lighting is on a timer.

24 hr. access!! Check the commercial storage places..... Maybe 7am TO 6 OR 7pm. Good luck if you need something from storage other than those times.

I currently have a garage in Huntington Harbour / apt. complex/ 10'X29' @ $175 a month... not cheap but there are 2 trucks and a whole bunch of parts crammed in there and when you do the math $ per sq. foot are a lot less than commercial storage.

 

Charlie_in_OC - thanks - I will check in to that first thing tomorrow. There's a couple that are very close to me and that would work beautifully, and, at that price, if I can get most of what I need to get done in less than a year, it would still be cheaper then shipping the parts truck to NY and only the parts I need back to CA!

 

If you are looking to rent a garage near residential (apartments), make sure there aren't any restrictions on working on vehicles. Many people do not appreciate our passions. Also check to see if there are hour restrictions for working on things (some of us are night owls, while others aren't).