[e015475]

I wish I could have 'pulled this off myself', but it didn't quite come about that way.

My '49 was in a one-man body shop for a year and a half, and I finally asked the guy if it would get done any quicker if I came and helped out. I didn't expect him to say yes, but he said sure, come on in and work on it anytime you'd like. I'd just retired, so I started going to his shop everyday to work on the truck.

I'd always been a bodywork and paint hack, but between what he taught me and what I read from articles like yours I've learned a lot and improved greatly.

I'm on my second project now, a old MG with a coach-built body (metal over a wood frame) Same arrangement as on the truck - I show up at his shop to work and he fills in all the gaps for stuff I don't know how to do. So far I've learned the basics of metalwork, including fabricating new doors for the MG on the English wheel, making crowned patch panels on the wheel, shrinking/stretching/planishing/straightening with a hammer a dolly, welding with gas, and on and on. The latest has been how to perfect your metal work with fillers, so this post was timely.

The guy with the body shop hires guys to work but they last a couple of weeks and leave. I don't really understand why, as I have a lot of fun doing it - it might of even been a great career if I'd started it forty years ago.