Looking for some suggestions for a restorer for my 52 F! pick up. It's been a daily driver but its time to restore to get some bodywork done, etc.
I am located in Connecticut and looking for someone in N. England that is capable of helping me out.
Any suggestions?

 

Google restoration shops in Connecticut.... might find one near your location that will help you out or check with repair shops willing to work on "older" vehicles. Are you planning on doing any work yourself or farming out the whole project? Got a pic of your 52?

 

Hi Joe,

One suggestion that I would make for you is to have a clear - and detailed - two-way conversation with a potential shop before dropping off the truck to them.
Your expectations of quality and finish have to be perfectly aligned with the shop owner. And the extent of work must be clear and understood too. Third, the amount of time it takes to get a good result must be agreed upon as well.

Otherwise you might get an interim bill from the shop for a whopping amount of money and not see any real progress yet. It takes a shop more time than someone might think just to disassemble the truck and document/photograph the assembly order to then prepare it for the actual repairs and replacements.
Like Moe said above, you have a choice to make. I have found it best to disassemble the truck myself and then bring parts to the shop for the skilled work to be done. Sometimes it will be easier for you to source and buy the parts you need/want - otherwise you will paying for a high amount for the research/purchasing part of the whole job. Find out if the shop will let you do that.

Another thing, in some cases it will be more practical to replace fenders, tailgates, grilles, hoods and bed sides with new reproduction parts instead of paying for many hours of labor to restore the original parts. Or you can locate used parts in better condition than your originals to save time and $$. This is when a detailed two-way conversation is most important to happen before the job begins.

Last, a good portion of a restoration cost comes from the little parts that get replaced. (bushings, shackle pins, latches, lenses, bulbs, emblems, wires, bolts, cables, etc.) They may be small but they sure add up fast! Removing and replacing rusted and stuck shackle or king pins can get frightening expensive for example. So can doing something as easy-looking as installing the hood trim. One little broken stud..........ka-ching in labor.

Find a place that has dealt with older vehicles before. Talk openly about what you need (not want) the truck to look like afterward - show quality, cruise night quality, or perhaps just better looking than what it is now. Some shops will only do things one of these ways well. The time to find that out is before they get the job.

Hope this helps. and yes, let's see some pictures of how it looks now.
Tom

 

As has been mentioned you and the shop need to have a very clear idea of what you expect as a finished product and the time frame . The little " add on's " can add up quick . For an example changing my door latches to bearclaw has taken around 30 hours if I was paying $100/hour that's a huge addition . Your time frame can also have an affect on price . Allot of shops are willing to do stuff a little cheaper if it can be used as a fill in . Although this often seems to be jobs that end up being ignored . But please don't let us scare you there are lots of great shops just be clear with expectations .

 

Joe,
Not to rain on your parade, however, it will cost considerably more to have your truck restored than it will be to buy a truck restored to your standards and sell your current truck. A factor of 2 or 3 times would not surprise me. The reason is simple, it just takes too many hours. I have been doing my own restorations including body and paint for over 40 years. I kept records of my time on just one vehicle, a 1938 Ford woodie, which I did in my prime. That took me 1700 hours. Do the math. These trucks just will not bring the $ that it takes to have them done. Restorations by others will cost buckets of money because they take buckets of time.