Body resto ???'s

So the restoration shop in my town wants to charge $70/hr just for labor, not including parts. Is this a good price? He has 2 mustangs in the shop that have had body work and filler on them and looked pretty damn good. I'm thinking of starting sanding the body down so I get as far ahead as I can, and there are some spots where you can see the rust all the way through. What kind of spray do you guys recommend applying after sanding to temporarily protect the sheet metal, as I will only be able to sand a little bit at a time due to time restraints? Also, what grit sandpaper should I start with? I plan on taking it down to find out just how bad the rust is. Let me know what you guys think and I'll post pics as I go along with more questions.

from what i hear, thats a solid price, bascially plan on paying these guys 70-100 bucks an hour...but thats also out here in california, where everything generally costs more.

How much money ya got? Thats not a bad price, but for that price you can stand to be picky about who you get to do it. I have pretty much did my owen body work except when welding is involved. If you asre not REAL picky about your car you can find a neighborhood shop who hires winos to do the manual labor, like bulk sanding, etc and they may only charge you $45.00 an hour. When I was a youmgun' I guess you could have called me a wino, but thats another story. The neighborhood shop will want to do your car when they are not busy with insurance work, which is where their profit is, and it may take 6 months to a year with your car sitting behind the shop in the rain and snow. JB

Off topic, but I'm a wino. Nothing like a cold bottle of Asti Spumanti to relax in the evening. Cheaper than a beer buzz too!

As far as the bodywork, these guys have it down & what JB said is very true. You get what you pay for. I watched my grandfather's Cadillac sit for 3 years unpainted on a lift. By the time the car was resprayed, everything had been sitting & needed replaced like shocks, brake lines, etc. Also it started burning oil. Apparently sitting in a dusty paint booth while other cars came in & out had took it's toll. The car was drove for about 6 months before being sent to the salvage yard out of disgust.....

YOU SHOULD CHECK ON EVENING TRADE SCHOOL BODY SHOP CLASSES!!!!
YOU YOUNG PEOPLE NEED EDUCATION

trade schools are picky the one i went too sucked and they didnt do anything and charged as much as a pro shop. also the work was always mediocre. my tranny teacher let them do the body work on his 70 chevelle and they couldnt even line up the quater panels so the doors would line up with the body. not worth it in my opinion