original restorations ?'s

[oldno7]

I see guys trying to do 100% restorations on their trucks, So im wondering what (exactly) is acceptable. I had a guy recently trying to sell me a original fender, but it had the side marker light filled by previous owner, and the lower section had been fixed with a repair panel. So that got me thinking about all this. In my eyes if you have to take and repair the lower section of fender with a patch panel, then its not original. So just wondering what is accepted by the judges when scoring takes place, or how do you all feel about this subject.

[TBONE1964]

I agree to a point and I would never undo a filled in marker light. There are too many decent fenders out there to mess with that. I would however do a repair or a patch as long as it was minor and I could find a good original donor fender to cut the patch from.

If it is done correctly, I don't think a judge at a car show could tell the difference. Even when using aftermarket patch panels, if done right, it is hard to tell.

[flashed]

I know of an award winning LS6 70 Chevelle convertible that started with very little sheetmetal that wasnt completely rusted out .It is more Chinese steel than American steel and it wins at national events (mostly indoor shows ) but most dont know its history.

[Sicklajoie]

Judges have different agenda at every show. If you've got judges that are big on being a stock appearing restoration, it's about the fact that it *looks* original and is done right, not the fact that it *is* original.
They look for straight and properly aligned panels with even gaps (which these trucks aren't well known for to begin with lol). I've never seen them dig deep into whether they were actually original panels or not.