I can't find anyone local who will repair/repaint my 78 pace car. I've even have a close friend who's an expert body shop guy but knows next to nothing about corvette's or fiberglass. He said he'd paint it if I got it ready but he won't do the repairs.

It needs a lot of help to get it to the point it's ready for paint. Front and back bumbers have "bumped" something before I bought it. No serious damage but I'm guessing they need to be replaced. The front spoiler will definitely need to be replaced. The rear spoiler is getting very wavy. There appears to be heat cracks in the hood. A seam on front the fender is starting to crack and there are several knicks and scratches that I simply cannot live with anymore.

Any advice would go a long way. I'm fairly handy just don't have any experience with fiberglass.

 

Well not sure where you and the car reside..BUT..almost a year ago I BEGAN my search to properly do minor body work and paint my 78 Silver Anniversary t top..
I talked at length with the dozen + complete car paint-body/classic shops and Including MAACO..;0
Most folks don't realize that the majority of shops and bus bucks are from auto collision repairs and not refurbishing classics..
PRICES I got varied from 7K-15K.. And worse, 3 mos to 1.5 years stsrt to finish..
That tells you even theclassic full body-fender pait shops Still keep the lights on with insurance bumper thumpers..etc..Be patient..look around, talk to others in your area in car clubs..Think about what all you want done..To commmunicate effectively with a shop for great work and scope as you expect,,ya gotta..tell 'EM..which means you must plan what work you want done..The outfit I finally found has a full line auto repair facility as well as body-paint( and occasional classic.I got to know them as well as the two fellows who did the body-paint stuff.I negotiated to have them install all new weatherstripping (I supplied)as well as new silver a decal kit...
Price came back far under the 10k figure..and the work is perfectly done..BETTER than new..2 tone silver over met gray..cut-buffed with proper prep and a lot of refinements to the rather poor original work by factory..time was 70 days..and we were happy with them, their communications during the process....and most importantly, the old car shines like a silver dollar and is absolutely straight..
AS note..I have accessto Portland,Vancouver,Salem, Eugene, and all the surrounds..Jim

 

Thanks Jim
I'll keep asking around. Not a lot to pick from here in Saint Peter Minnesota but I'm just an hour south of Minneapolis so there's got to be some shops that would take on the project. If I don't find someone by this fall I'll probably make it my winter project since our winters here give us about 6 months of down time for any car enthusiasts.

 

A quick Google search for "Minneapolis antique car restoration", turned up the companies below, and a few others. I don't have any idea how close you are to any of them, but most people don't consider it unreasonable to travel a few hours, to deal with a quality restoration shop.

You shouldn't be afraid to travel a little either, to deal with a experienced professional shop. One of my better customers is a Corvette restoration shop here in South Jersey. Even though he's a small, one man shop, he does work for people hundreds of miles away. He's building a 59 resto-mod right now, for a customer from Connecticut.

I tell people all the time, never take a Corvette, or any collector car, to a regular body shop, for paint, body or restoration work. That's not what body shops do. Body shops are geared up to do collision work. They deal with insurance companies that want the work turned around quickly, and customers who need their car back fast. Restoration type work is a low priority for them, they take it as filler work, to do during slow periods. Very few employees in body shops are experienced in restoration work, and the skills needed to do restoration work, are often different from those of the regular body man.

From what I've seen over the years, it rarely turns out well, when a body shop gets involved in restoration work.

http://www.straightlinecustomcars.com/

http://carcreations.com/

http://www.hotrodfactory.net/

http://www.classicsplusinc.com/

 

I am in process of rebuilding the front end of a 56k mile Pace Car and replaced the brackets that secure fenders to nose and support the spoiler. This is straight forward...bolts, nuts and rivets. Probably something you could take on. I also secured an NOS three-piece spoiler so have the original front spoiler.

Ask yourself whether you seek a driver paint job or paint job that will pass judging? Find an NCRS Chapter and ask around what paint shop they use. The Michigan NCRS chapter (your neighbor) is quite active at the national level and if you go to the NCRS website, you could contact an officer and begin that search.

Prep is critical to long-term paint adhesion when painting fiberglass so you do want someone that understands the dynamics of working with that 40 year-old material.

Hope that helps!

 

http://kissautobody.com/

They do work for NCRS restorations. I've had them paint a fiberglass fairing for my motorcycle.