Panel beaters- Melbourne- Dandenong area

Hey Guys,

I've got a MK1 Escort I'm doing up ( http://classic-ford.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=20189 ) and I;m getting to a point where I need help with the body work.

The car has very little rust in it ( the spare wheel well and the L/H/R Dog leg) but it has alot of dents in it, and it was rear ended at some point. The R/H/R 1/4 panel is full of big from the door the tail lights also!! I've had a few guys come and look at it and they either don't want to touch it or they are quoting anywhere from $10,000 to $20,000+ to do the job!!! Best quote I've had was $5,000 which was fine with me, but he is now too busy to do it!! I've been waiting over 2 years for him to become free to start it!!

So does anyone know of a decent panel beater around the Dandenong and surrounding areas ( down to Mornington is fine and up to Morrabbin is also O.K.) that will do a decent job that will last longer than 2 years? I don't want a show car finish, just a nice clean body and a nice paint job, for a decent affordable price. It also doesn't need to be done immediately, and can be done in sections as required. The car is currently stripped out to a rolling shell, and I can transport it with no problems, but only on weekends at the moment, or after work ( 7pm onwards).

If anyone has any suggestions, ideas, recommendations, or just like to help, that would be great. Please email me. Thanks in advance guys.

Hi Geoff,

I spoke to Kevin ages ago and he was willing to take it on, but he has other work on at the moment plus he has moved house. Not sure when or if he will be able to do it. I gave his number to my old boss who got him to restore his HT Monaro, which is what has taken up alot of his time. So far he has spent the best part of 2 years on it and there is still more to do! In a way I wish I hadn't passed his number on as my old boss jumped in straight away. Now I'm stuck.
I'm just exploring my options at the moment. It's getting to the point where, if I can't find someone to help me panel beat it, I might just get rid of it and be done with it all. I've had it 9 years now and just want to enjoy it, but I'm not getting any joy out of it at the moment, and It's very hard to get motivated on it. If the body was done, I can start putting all the mechanicals back in it and get it going again. I'll try Kevin again in the next month or so and see if he can do.

Thanks

Been a little while since I posted. Been flat out with work, but I decided to do a panel beating course at Tafe. I've doing a basic course now and hopefully will start the more advanced course later in the year. Then all I need to do is the painting course and I should be right. One of my teachers does restorations for a living and has siad he is more than happy to help or offer advice when I need it, so hopefully, with his help and my new skills, I should be able to tackle this on my own.

Now if I can do a sewing course I could do the trim as well.....................[:x)]