BUILDING A VINTAGE BENTLEY PART FIVE
ANOTHER VIEW OF THE MOCK UP. MY SON CALLED IT A BENTLEY PUPPET!
SELECTING A RESTORER
This can be very difficult for the uninitiated. Restorers are not situated at everybody`s front doorstep. The restoration establishments can vary from a rather salubrious purpose built office and workshop, to an industrial unit, to a private garage on a housing estate, to a dilapidated cow shed or pigsty on a farm. The type of workplace does not necessarily indicate the quality of the work produced there. The high profile places with permanent employed staff are going to be more expensive than the smaller units, as the overheads will be higher. The one man cowshed units can turn out superb work but don`t give them too much cash up front, as they might go on a bender and disappear for a while.
When visiting a restoration establishment for the first time, don`t make an appointment.
On arrival, park your car discretely and if possible always walk into the workshop area, ignoring the office for the time being. What you will probably see are the mechanics standing around drinking cups of tea discussing the world situation, or more probably, football or girls. Just think that someone is going to be billed for this mind bending meeting of minds.
After a few minutes one of them may notice you and ask if they can help, in this brief period you can make a good assessment of what the work ethic of the workshop is.
What to look for:
1/ How many cars are there in the workshop awaiting attention.
2/ Are the cars not being worked on covered over.
3/ Are the floor and workbenches clean and tidy.
4/ Dust is the enemy of rotating parts and in a highly professional workshop all dismantled engines, rear axle nosepieces, gearboxes etc. that are not being worked on should be covered with a dust sheet. Any precision parts lying on the benches should be resting on and covered with clean paper. Any ball bearings that are exposed should be covered with plastic film.
5/ The mechanics should be wearing reasonably clean overalls.
6/ What percentage of the cars are Bentleys.
After some time you will be ushered into the office ( if there is one) and meet the proprietor, at first he will be a little phased by your workshop entrance, and not having seen your car arriving, won`t be able to immediately pigeonhole you into a financial group.
Make no mistake; the proprietor will be sizing you up just as you are him. You may be offered a cup of tea or coffee, but it`s best to decline, as most restorer`s mugs are never washed properly and should carry a public health warning.
Discuss your project with him carefully noting his body language, is he evasive about estimates and delivery, and of course he will say that he is working at full capacity at the moment but may be able to fit you in soon.
It is very important that you establish a programme for the work to be carried out and at a rate that you can afford, and have this in writing, otherwise you could get a nasty shock one month because the restorer has concentrated on your car only and billed you accordingly.
Sometimes a restorer will advertise a newly restored car for sale on behalf of a client. This can be because the owner has lost control of costs and allowed the restorer to carry out work he cannot pay for. Remember, the restorer will only be interested in recouping his costs as quickly as possible and not in getting the best price. You have been warned!
Once your car is at the restorers normal practice is that it will be partially dismantled so that it cannot be taken away easily. If you have a problem with a restorer that cannot be resolved amicably it`s best to pay his costs to date and remove the car. Of course there will be an element of punishment in the bill for taking the car away, but it`s best to smile and pay up, remember your car is a hostage.
I`m not saying here that restorers are the only ones to blame, customers can be very tricky and cause problems, such as not paying the bills on time or creating difficulties because extra work has been invoiced for, which was not expected.
Sometimes restorers will under quote to get work and make up the difference in ``extras``.
In some industries this is normal practice, the only way to avoid these problems is by good communication and whether or not the owner has the required Bentley experience the restorer should point out all the costs to the owner in writing before the start of the project.
BENTLEY MECHANICS.
It`s amazing how being associated with Vintage Bentleys can affect the attitude of the normally humble mechanic. Contact with the cars seems to expand the ego to an extent that these mechanics become larger than life pundits and a simple conversation with them will turn out to be a monologue to their own magnificence. If caught in this situation, a good conversation stopper is to ask them what Vintage Bentley they own. This usually works, but the more enterprising ones will have some obscure ongoing project that sounds exciting.
No matter how incredibly knowledgeable a mechanic seems, some of the work I have observed in progress has been truly awful, a good question to ask them is ``how many vintage Bentleys have you restored``. The answer may be surprisingly evasive.
Again I have to emphasize, that do not rely on a simple instruction to a mechanic if you are asking them to do something special eg. The scuttle tank support framing on a blower. Provide them with sketches and photos so that there is a good chance of them getting it right. If you don`t do this, and they get it wrong, you will be the one who pays for the remedial work whether you know it or not.
CLICK HERE FOR PART SIX
This can be very difficult for the uninitiated. Restorers are not situated at everybody`s front doorstep. The restoration establishments can vary from a rather salubrious purpose built office and workshop, to an industrial unit, to a private garage on a housing estate, to a dilapidated cow shed or pigsty on a farm. The type of workplace does not necessarily indicate the quality of the work produced there. The high profile places with permanent employed staff are going to be more expensive than the smaller units, as the overheads will be higher. The one man cowshed units can turn out superb work but don`t give them too much cash up front, as they might go on a bender and disappear for a while.
When visiting a restoration establishment for the first time, don`t make an appointment.
On arrival, park your car discretely and if possible always walk into the workshop area, ignoring the office for the time being. What you will probably see are the mechanics standing around drinking cups of tea discussing the world situation, or more probably, football or girls. Just think that someone is going to be billed for this mind bending meeting of minds.
After a few minutes one of them may notice you and ask if they can help, in this brief period you can make a good assessment of what the work ethic of the workshop is.
What to look for:
1/ How many cars are there in the workshop awaiting attention.
2/ Are the cars not being worked on covered over.
3/ Are the floor and workbenches clean and tidy.
4/ Dust is the enemy of rotating parts and in a highly professional workshop all dismantled engines, rear axle nosepieces, gearboxes etc. that are not being worked on should be covered with a dust sheet. Any precision parts lying on the benches should be resting on and covered with clean paper. Any ball bearings that are exposed should be covered with plastic film.
5/ The mechanics should be wearing reasonably clean overalls.
6/ What percentage of the cars are Bentleys.
After some time you will be ushered into the office ( if there is one) and meet the proprietor, at first he will be a little phased by your workshop entrance, and not having seen your car arriving, won`t be able to immediately pigeonhole you into a financial group.
Make no mistake; the proprietor will be sizing you up just as you are him. You may be offered a cup of tea or coffee, but it`s best to decline, as most restorer`s mugs are never washed properly and should carry a public health warning.
Discuss your project with him carefully noting his body language, is he evasive about estimates and delivery, and of course he will say that he is working at full capacity at the moment but may be able to fit you in soon.
It is very important that you establish a programme for the work to be carried out and at a rate that you can afford, and have this in writing, otherwise you could get a nasty shock one month because the restorer has concentrated on your car only and billed you accordingly.
Sometimes a restorer will advertise a newly restored car for sale on behalf of a client. This can be because the owner has lost control of costs and allowed the restorer to carry out work he cannot pay for. Remember, the restorer will only be interested in recouping his costs as quickly as possible and not in getting the best price. You have been warned!
Once your car is at the restorers normal practice is that it will be partially dismantled so that it cannot be taken away easily. If you have a problem with a restorer that cannot be resolved amicably it`s best to pay his costs to date and remove the car. Of course there will be an element of punishment in the bill for taking the car away, but it`s best to smile and pay up, remember your car is a hostage.
I`m not saying here that restorers are the only ones to blame, customers can be very tricky and cause problems, such as not paying the bills on time or creating difficulties because extra work has been invoiced for, which was not expected.
Sometimes restorers will under quote to get work and make up the difference in ``extras``.
In some industries this is normal practice, the only way to avoid these problems is by good communication and whether or not the owner has the required Bentley experience the restorer should point out all the costs to the owner in writing before the start of the project.
BENTLEY MECHANICS.
It`s amazing how being associated with Vintage Bentleys can affect the attitude of the normally humble mechanic. Contact with the cars seems to expand the ego to an extent that these mechanics become larger than life pundits and a simple conversation with them will turn out to be a monologue to their own magnificence. If caught in this situation, a good conversation stopper is to ask them what Vintage Bentley they own. This usually works, but the more enterprising ones will have some obscure ongoing project that sounds exciting.
No matter how incredibly knowledgeable a mechanic seems, some of the work I have observed in progress has been truly awful, a good question to ask them is ``how many vintage Bentleys have you restored``. The answer may be surprisingly evasive.
Again I have to emphasize, that do not rely on a simple instruction to a mechanic if you are asking them to do something special eg. The scuttle tank support framing on a blower. Provide them with sketches and photos so that there is a good chance of them getting it right. If you don`t do this, and they get it wrong, you will be the one who pays for the remedial work whether you know it or not.
CLICK HERE FOR PART SIX