granted, you are correct. the resale would not be a reason to go to this extent.
but
the people that pay to have a truck built are not people with "too much money" nor are they "bill gates". it is insulting to the individual that is investing their money into their dreams to automatically assume that they are filthy rich.
The individuals that have had me build their vehicles (so far) are the same as most on this forum, they worked hard for their money. an electrician, an entrepenure selling clothes, a stock broker, a fireman, a chicken farmer, a surgeon to name a few.
they are people who have had bad experiences with other shops or seen what some shops do and they are after someone that will have attention to detail, someone that knows cruisers and has the same passion as they do about their desires and will treat their baby with care.
this vehicle is a perfect example of a guy that trusted different shops with his Cruiser. he had trust that they would treat him fair and would look out for his investment.
what did he end up with?
the first stab was when he bought a polished rust bucket out of Quebec. it looked VERY nice in the pics and in person. when he laid it on its side wheeling the rust in the A pillars litterally popped out and showed how bad the bondo was. he trusted that guy.
then he had a young lad attempt to make it into a buggy for wheeling and DD. the roof was chopped off and it was pushed outside to sit summer and winter for 5 years. i don't know the full story of that one but he also trusted him.
then it was sent to Ontario to a minitruck guru where the body was stuck on, no interior, the engine wasn't completed, the truck sat crooked and once again it was shoved outside, pile up with parts of wrecked minitrucks for 2 years. he trusted him.
next it went to a couple good old boys where, when it was delivered, it sat outside again, tires flat and the ARB winch and 8274 was stollen.
then i came into the picture, the owner approached me to take his baby and bring it back to life. he has an attachment to the vehicle, a bond you might say. i have known many Cruiserheads that form bonds with their machines. to most it is just a capable vehicle to wheel and beat up and scrap and buy another, they have no idea what a bond is.
he wanted me to take this abused and neglected truck, strip it down and rebuild it. he also wanted to be able to blow snow (1.5km of unmaintained winter road) so he wouldn't have to buy a tractor and blower. he wanted to be able to weld with it so he wouldn't have to buy a portable welder to tow behind. he wanted to be able to enjoy tunes inside while using it as a DD summer and (mostly) winter. he wanted to be able to run power tools, grinders, sanders, skill saw etc. he likes lights, he wants to be able to see to work at night, to drive at night. he wanted true 4wd so we added the lockers.
he wanted all this and more but he wanted it done right the first time.
this meant checking everything, modifying, fabricating and trying to plan to make everything last against the rust for as long as realisticly as possible.
as you go through you can see that the previous hands on the machine did veneer work. galvanizing a rusted frame. slapping paint onto an engine,tranny,t/case to make it look nice but the insides were crap. a body job that is insulting to even the most clueless Cruiserhead.
hindsight is 20/20 and IF the bond wasn't there, the owner should have started with a virgin truck in decent shape.
no, he doesn't have unlimited funds. he has a dream and a bond with a Cruiser and is making it come true.
