If you're one of the lucky few never to have undertaken a complete start-to-finish project, then you don't have a clue what a joy it truly can be. From the endless burning of the midnight oil (often at the expense of cherished family time) to the countless broken promises from shop owners, if you've never been there, done that, then you're probably better off than the rest of us!
However, on the flip side, not having endured a major project also means you don't know the extreme pleasure of seeing the fruits of your labor and hard-earned money. That's obviously not something that comes easily, but for Kevin and Lorie Long, well, no pun intended, it was a "long" time coming with their '41 Chevy; probably more so for Kevin, as he was the official project manager, though his wife's six-year forfeiture of that little thing called "quality time" was by no means an easy task.
From the day Kevin started collecting parts after first acquiring his '41-which actually came in the form of two trucks, as the owner wouldn't sell just one-he knew it wouldn't be a walk in the park. On the other hand, he probably wasn't prepared to undergo back surgery halfway through it all, either, or deal with the split-up of the owners of the paint and body shop he sent the truck to, which in the long run turned out taking well over two years! Suffice it to say, he endured it all-each and every headache and heartache-right through to the end. The experience learned is definitely something you simply can't buy.
When asked what he'd do differently if given the chance to do it all over again, Kevin replied, "Learn how to do body and paintwork myself!" Along with taking better care of his back, we're pretty confident the '41 Chevy won't be his last.