My situation is a little different, as I will be doing all my own paint and body work. I have a friend and a family member who've been in the autobody business for a long time so when I asked their advice it was with the understanding that I would be doing the work myself. To your point though, most of their experience is late model collision repair and not so much with restorations like are discussed here.
Admittingly, all my paint and body experience has been with later model projects and collision repair as well. My current restoration project is a 69 R-code Mach I, so my goals are completely different. Ultimately, I'm shooting for a conours driven style restoration. I really want to get the original look with primers, sealers, overspray, etc. but I'm nervous about the idea of trying to realign everything after it's painted. My car has all it's original Ford sheetmetal, so that's a plus. I've worked with the aftermarket stuff in the past, and have had to bend, twist, cut, weld, and shim like crazy to get panel gaps and alignments set. Even then it sometimes takes three men and a boy to hold a fender in place while the bolts are tightened. I'd be scared to death to take some of those panels loose after all the work it took to get it together the first time!
My car was partially disassembled when I bought it, so I really won't know what the original fit and finish looks like until I get a little further along, but it is a very rust free car and shows no sign of any previous accident damage. I have test fit the fenders and they looked ok, but I'd have to say it still took a little more finagling than I hoped to get them bolted down. Pretty scary to think about doing it again after they're painted.
My next step is to get the door hinge pins and bushings fixed, then get the door alignment dialed in. I'll make another go at the fenders and hood after that, but was hoping the experts on the forum might have some insight and advice for someone doing this level of restoration for the first time.
