Seriously considering this one for sale but someone said $70-100k to restore. Your thoughts please. It's a 1958 double door.
Save for an expected budget, then triple it.
If you are going to pay someone to do it for you, and you want a propped job - then it would be close to the money
Don't do full resto buy one done
$60K would not be unreasonable. $88 per hour for a shop to do it and 600 hours panel, paint and assembly. Plus materials cost.
So 52800$ just labour
$3k panels
$7k decent motor
$1500 gearbox
$2000 wide 5 IRS
$1-2500 front disc beam
$1000 rubbers
$1200 rims tyres
$3000 missing parts
$2000 front rear safaris
$5000 slush fund which could blow out to 10k.
=$81000 ...and resale of 30-40 k $ ...most shops would be $100 hr with resto work ..oh plus purchase price of bus and tow truck fees
Dont forget $4000 for put on rotisseri, paint stripping, soda blast outer panels and garnet blast floor inside and underneath
$4000 for paint materials, etch prime, epoxy prime, filler, hi fill, paint colour inside, outside etc.
Where is the money for steering box and suspension refurb?
If you leave it standard, have you ever driven one like that? Very underwhelming
Great reality check above, and in my opinion, some of those prices/estimates fall short of the mark.
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That's a typical bus resto not a resurrection resto that I do to my busses ..steering box redo 6-700 listed beam n susp $$ ..didn't include pleather
interior so add 3-10 k .. It's getting harder to find og paint busses so theses would be the ones holding value as its only original once ..
Nothing wrong with stock running gear cost to refurb og gear is similar to doing an IRS or straight axle conversion or 68/69 ball joint beam refurb
so up to owner ...if bus buyers think 30-40 k is expensive for a regoed ratty bus they haven't done any homework on costs involved to build one
Neah, $250 of bog and she'll be right
Speaking as someone who just wanted a "Tidy Runaround" my $6k Splitty soon became $25k - and it was still in primer with no interior and more
welding to be done !
My advice is if you weld go for it ..... if you don't then run for the hill's !
I sold mine, bought a Gay window and couldn't be happier
Mine is/was in a bit better nick than that but I agree with the price guides. I'm going down the road of learning to welding and panel beat myself.
I'm not saying I have any where near the skill of the guys on here, but if you have the patience and are in no rush then you can do it. You might
just have to use a bit more plastics than the guys who can panel beat it perfect. There is so much knowledge on here it's crazy and the repair panels
are amazing.
Just set a side a big chunk of your life and realise it's probably a 5 year project. Set yourself up and enjoy the highs (and lows) of going
yourself.