body and interior o2 Restoration

[markmac]

There have been a number of threads recently with folks about to start, starting or in process of restoration of their o2's - quite a bit of informative information for sure.  I have been working on the restoration of my AlpinA race car for what seems like an eternity (over 10 years sorry to say) and over that time have made some good friends and have acquired some great resources.  If I am not sure about something - generally speaking I ask (and sometimes more than one person so I have a consensus - and therein is one of the reasons the restoration of this car has taken so long...).  Over the years Matt McGinn (Sports Car Restoration) has been a great resource to me - absolutely my go-to guy when it comes to anything having to do with bodywork and the car.  Yesterday spent about 30 minutes with him on the phone going over a number of things - really helpful.  If you are about to work on a car/working on a car, link below is a great way to see how things are done on o2's (the right way).  There may be equals to his work, I don't know of anyone off hand that does it better.  As they say, "the devil's in the details" - you will see that in virtually every image he has posted.

 

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/29110923@N05/sets/

 

 

http://www.alpinabmw2002.com

[jerry]

Studying SCR's photo logs provided me the courage to tackle my rust repairs.  Were it not for his selfless sharing of technique i don't know if i could have done the work i attempted.

 

i still have a copy of his 'pigcheek' fabrication post of several years ago,... 

 

....just in case.  it's on my bucket-list.

[markmac]

Jerry, I hear you.  For me it is like a primer.  Matt is a really generous guy, I sent him some photo's of some 'areas of concern' I have - pinged me back with an email, "call me tomorrow".  These guys are busting a#$ right now with a lot of cars (and not just bmw's).  Matt and I went in on a shell a few years back, he caved out what he needed, and then carved out what I needed, prepped in and sent along in a box to me....pretty cool.  Regardless of where you live, if you are doing a bare metal resto, get epoxy primer on the car (it goes without saying) - the stuff seriously works.  My car was shot in it over 12 years ago - no rust anywhere where it was applied.

 

The one o2 album where he re-applies the seam sealer, essentially the same way the factory did - a detail missed by many......

 

http://www.alpinabmw2002.com

[Grover]

I've not worked with Matt but have heard fantastic things about him over the years. I now have another project car, an old Alfa, and while it's not directly relatable to '02's, one thing I've found very helpful is a series of YouTube videos by Vintage Customs, in Washington. The videos can be a little long-winded at times, but they've got some great techy info regarding fabrication, paint, metal repair, etc.. that can translate easily to other marques. Worth a look if you are interested in this type of stuff.

[JackF]

Getting involved in a restoration, while all about the metal, is also all about the process. What Matt & SCR did for me was to control that process and if you have him do a car for you he will tell you that is what he does. He controls the whole thing. Many restoration shops do the mechanical, but farm out the body/paint. Not so at SCR. They do it all and the finished product shows that attention to detail. Also, when involved in a resto with a pro shop it has to be pleasant. I can't imagine how stressful it would be if you were in an adversarial relationship with the shop doing your car. As well as knowing the business cold and doing outstanding work, Matt, Nate and the guys are really pleasant to deal with and there is real value in that.

I too have found Matt to be generous with his time, but I try not to chew the fat with him as I know he has to put billable hours on the time card every day. Alfa's, 356's, 911's and others are easily within their range. If you know someone thinking about a pro resto, send them to SCR.

[markmac]

I try to be very careful about "stealing" time - under the best of circumstances even the best run shops run on a very thin margin.  We had been trying to get together on this issue for about 6 months, finally spoke on the phone Wednesday and started but a couple of paying customers came in so that call ended.  He rang me back yesterday so we picked up where we left off.  Usually when I call any "shop" guys the first question I ask is if they have a couple of minutes to talk - if its a "no", I call back another day (but start off with the same question).  I appreciate their time and at the same time I am lucky that most want to help with the project (these are all folks I know).  SCR having the one-stop shop is as you suggested somewhat unique and a really good thing.

 

Door gaps, and racked A-Pillar were the topic yesterday....

 

 

 

http://www.alpinabmw2002.com