I am not a gear head or metal person like most in here so I am having my '69 built from the ground up.
I have owned my '69 for 27+ years. I drove it through high school and college but parked it at my parents house (on concrete) when I purchased another car after college. It sat untouched and not driven for 13 or so years. Through the years I had many offers and opportunities to sell it (and for good money) but I never sold it. Year after year my family and friends wanted me to get rid of my '69 but I would never listen to them. And today I am thankful I did not listen. I promised myself that one day I was going to have the car restored.
My plan was to restore the car after I completed school and after my father retired. Time went by and I waited too late to get started on the restoration. My father passed away 5 years ago this month and I am still kicking myself for waiting too late. But a few years ago I decided the time was right to get started and it took me almost 2 years to find a builder I could trust and with the experience to do the job. After several references, many questions, and time looking at current and past builds I became comfortable with my builder. Even though I am not a gear head I am able to do the grunt work like cleaning and blasting parts, etc. By doing this I am able to learn about my car and the build in general. I understand now what it takes to build a can and the hours and money it will take. I have dedicated this build to my father.
In the beginning I wanted an original build. At this point the car is still waiting on the metal stage to begin and as time goes by my vision has gone from original to modified to high end modified back to original. I am at the point where I am concerned about making the wrong decision (for example Full Quarters or patches) I am only going to build a car once and I want it done right. So once the metal work is complete I expect it to last with no problems for the rest of my life if at all possible.
I now see that there are so many different ways and so many decisions to make while building a car. My '69 is not a rare car and several people have told me to build it like I want to build it. I don't plan on selling the car but I know things could change down the road. If I go the modified rough then I will have more money in the car then probably what it's worth but that does not bother me since I plan on keeping the car. This sounds crazy but the '69 is like family to me.
So getting back to the question of Full Quarters or patches, I still have not made the decision. To avoid any problems down the road I think Full Quarters on both sides would be the right thing to do.
I also have other metal issues with the truck, floor, doors, and fenders. And I will post on these at a later date.
