How do I find out what's "right" in doing restoration?
There's the issue of getting back to an accurate original state,
and books seem to exist that address this problem -- at least
to some extent. They'll tell you which mirrors are right, and
what the legal interior/exterior paint combinations are.
But other questions seem to come up. They tend to be more general and
procedural, like "besides the frame itself, which components should be
painted with the standard undercarriage black coating?". (As I talked
to the seller about the partially restored TR3 I'm buying from him, I
asked if he would have done the black coating on the outside of the
transmission. He said "no, that wouldn't be the right thing to do".
But at the same time, he was confident that the front-end steering
components were appropriate candidates.)
Is there a book, for example, that talks about these kinds of choices?
Besides the undercoating, I can see that other questions are going to
come up:
- Is it "right" to paint the engine block? Should the color match
the body?
- Is it "right" to put chrome valve covers on the engine?
- what paint stripping techniques are preferred by serious restorers?
- ...
Maybe the answers really depend on one's goals for the car. So assume
that my goal is originality. Maybe I should try to get a copy of
show judging standards? Would they get down to the level, for example,
of specifying which under-components should be black?
Is it feasible to get a professional restorer to visit periodically,
to act as a consultant?
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