I have recently found the FirstGenFirebird website and man is it a great mound of information for all of us Firebird lovers. I grew up with friends and family who had hot rods but way back then I did not get into building engines or cars.(I was into sports) When I was 15 years old I bought my first car with the money I had saved over the summer for cutting yards. And my first car was a 1969 Firebird, 4 speed. To make a long story short I still have my Firebird after 25 years. I drove it though high school and college but soon after college I parked it and bought me another car. Since then, my Bird has been sitting for the past 13 years. My plan was to get my Bird going after my father retired. My father was a huge car person and had many Muscle cars way back in the day. But I thought after my father retired, we would have more time to spend together and more time in general to do the father/son thing. Several years went by and my father got sick. It has now been 2 years since my father has passed away and my family has tried many times to convince me to "get rid" of my Bird. There was even a situation with codes having a problem with my "non-running car." About 8 months ago I cought the bug-the bug of getting my Bird flying once again. My car needs engine work and body work to remove rust. Like I said earlier I am more of a sports person and not a gearhead like most of you guys in here. I know a little about cars but I want to learn more. I have been reading, watching tv shows, going to car shows and crusins to talk to everyone and learn. I have found an engine guy who I can trust to help me out with my engine to see if it is saveable. I guess my question is where do I start? The rust on the car concerns me the most. It will need new panels or patch panels? So is it best to cut the rust out and add patch panels or to install a new full size panel? I am not sure if I want to do a body off restoration or a body on half restoration. The car needs to be sand blasted or chemically diped to see how far the rust goes. What is good advice on sand blasting? I heard if it is not done correctly the medal on the car could become warped. I am in Tennessee-does anyone know of a good, honest person or company to deal with? I have talked to a few restoration companies here but would like to look at more. I have many questions but I will stop now to see what kind of advice I receive before I go any further. Sorry for the long story. Thank you for your time and any information that could help me get my Bird flying again is very appriciated. Ronfox@newhorizonscorp.com