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Now you've bought the car of your dreams? If you haven't read my post on what to look for when buying a car with a wood framed body it still wouldn't hurt to have a read. Now you have the car what's next. Well before starting to rip everything apart take as many photos as you can. Take from every angle and of every acessable area. Eye along the body lines to see if you can determine any sag or bowing of the body that does not look right. If there is sag, twist or bulging of the body you should jack, pull, lift and brace it back to as close as to what looks like proper. This is important as I have seen bodies sag out and end up wider then they are supposed to be and the doors still seem to fit. I have experience with a 1930 Ford fordor that was 3" wider then original with fitting doors and that was a "restored" car. Once you are satisfied that the body is close to proper shape then measure as many points as you can and record them. Measure across the pillars at the bottom, top and at a defined point at the belt rail. Measure door opening widths and heights. Measure all angles where pillars meet the floor and cross sills meet the main floor sills, etc. Make diagrams and record these angles. You may find differences from side to side but dimensions and angles should be close. Despite the common belief that all bodies were different even among same year and body style from a specific manufacturer, they were produced to blueprints and any difference was due to poor quality control and less then stellar workmanship. Remember most cars were mass produced for profit. Really the body should be close to symmetrical and big differences will be manufacturing errors and possibly poor attempts at repair or restoration. Once you are satisfied that all possible documentation has been done, only then should you start to disassemble. I have seen many cases of people tearing apart a body and ending up with a pile of tin and wood sticks and not able to reassemble the car. You only have to be off a half degree or a quarter inch at one end to have a large error at the other and have a body that cannot fit together. Sounds like a lot of work and it is but most anyone can do it if they pay attention to the details and follow the necessary procedure. Now this is if the car is whole when you get it. If it is already apart then life becomes more interesting. Then your first thought would be to find an example of your car and hope the owner would allow you to photograph and measure it. Barring that a working knowledge of body design and engineering would be necessary to calculate dimensions and angles to refit the body. Don't despair as it really only takes time and patience to get the job done. I will give one good piece of advice to end this topic for today. Rebuild the body first as it is the most difficult part of the restoration. The mechanicals can be done by most everyone. If for some reason you need to sell the project, a car that has a finished body that needs mechanical work as opposed to a finished chassis with an body that needs total rebuild should be more attractive to a potential buyer. Back to work for me!
