Befriended a retired gent who used to worked in an auto body shop and he offered to do some restoration work on my integra. For $200 he said he'll grind the rust spots out, patch them with bond-o, and paint the entire car. No mention about metal fabrication as I don't think he has this capability in his home shop (and not sure there is any need for this type of work).

The car is white, never been wrecked, and has a few minor rust spots (bubbles) in the typical places - rear wheel wells, rear brake/turn signal areas, around windshield, side window panels. Got paint code and source for acrylic enamel paint, hardner, and reducer. Purchased replacement double pin stripes at Advance Auto.

I know that a lot of you guys have experience in this area and perhaps can offer some suggestions on things that I might do in prep for and during this project. Thinking of keeping appearances stock but would be interested in any modest enhancement suggestions.

 

this is where the saying "you get what you pay for" comes into play.

while it sounds like you're getting a good deal, these special "hook-up" or whatever deals usually turn sour as soon as the customer (you) realizes that the friend that's doing the work does something against your liking. you show your dissatisfaction, and he'll stop working on your car, or something worse.

i've read plenty of these stories all over the internet where someone thinks they're getting a good deal on some body work and in the end they have to pay some professional to correct the work.

my suggestion is that you dont do it at all..

 

Spec R, thanks for the frank reply. I am keenly aware of the "get what you pay for" concept and your reminder does cause me appropriate pause.

My consideration of this deal is based on my evaluation of the character of this person, his 5 years of professional body work experience, and the fact that he is retired. Clearly, if he were operating a business $200 would not be sufficient for him to break even let alone make a profit. Having met him in person and knowing that many retirees want to make use of their free time while helping others (and, of course, making some money on the side) I am inclined to believe that he is not out to swindle me. On the other hand, anything is possible and I will be especially vigilant for any signs of problems of this sort before I turn over my car.

Since I have no experience in getting body/restoration work done thought I would throw this up for discussion. Assuming my assessment of the offer is correct, wanted to make sure that there aren't any other tasks that should be considered at this time (eg. of the "kill multiple birds with one stone" variety) or some other factor that I should consider.

 

hmmm well if its more like 200 bucks for labor, and you pay for the supplies/tools up front then i guess its okay. i'm sure you're not expecting/desiring a show quality paint job for your car so maybe it works. dont be dissuaded by my words, but whatever you do, share some pictures of the progress with us.

in fact, take some pics now haha

 

You have to realize that this type of job would cost at least $2500-$3000 at a body shop. If this deal is for real and he would charge you $200 for rust removal and paint, I would make sure to get every little dent and pop it out and/or bondo it, so that when you have a fresh coat of paint, you wont go, "shit I should have patched that little spot there." This is something you can do yourself anyway and let him do the rest because Im sure tha for $200 hes not gonna sit there for 2 days and take care of every little blemish.

 

Just and FYI- if the paint is "bubbled" and rusted on the outside, then the underlaying metal is pretty much gone.