You might recall that I had started to restore my '66. I found and repaired a new cab, started bed repairs, and had acquired most of the parts I was going to need.
But- I had a lot of life changes get in the way. My daughter was born, our first child... With her arrival, I decided it was time to change jobs. I had been working for the previous 12 years as a Merchant Marine officer, which was a job I loved, but it took me away from home for 6-8 months a year, something I no longer wanted to do with a child.
So, I took a job with a German chemical company that is building a new plant near me. Then, shortly after, I stumbled on the deal of a lifetime on a house VERY close to work. It was an online auction on a foreclosure, and we got it for about 1/3 of what it was worth. So, on top of everything else that was keeping me busy, I had to sell my old house and get moved into a new one!
The move turned out to be great in a lot of ways, though. You might recall that in my prior home, the neighbors didn't really 'approve' of my boat and truck restoration activities. It was a snobby area, and I was kind of the odd man out. I had one neighbor that would call the sheriff if I used a grinder... It was not a good place to work. I also only had a 2 car garage attached to the house, which limited my ability to leave projects out long term. So a lot of my work happened outside in the driveway, which my neighbors REALLY hated.
But, we got such a great deal on the house, I was able to build what I've always wanted- A dedicated shop building! This is my NEW, 24' x 48', shop-
For the first time, I've got a place to store and work on my boats, trucks, and other toys... Without annoying the neighbors, or (far more importantly) the WIFE. Of course, It's already mostly full-
So- It's time to get started again on the '66.
It's going to be slow going- I know boats, but not trucks. I'm sure I will have TONS of questions. Originally, I wasn't going to be doing as much work as I'm planning on doing now- But since the decision was made to replace the cab, I decided I might as well bring it all down to a bare frame and rebuild from there.
I've never done this before, so bear with me- And HELP!! I'm going to need it
-Andrew
don't ask me how I know.. I love the garage!! and glad that your settled back in and back in the slick world..
