Just finished my first full restoration on a 1943 Springfield

Had this old guy bring in his grandpa's rifle from the war, all rusted up and the stock was split. He just wanted it to look nice on his wall, didn't even care if it fired. Took me about three months of evenings after the shop closed. The moment that got me was when he came to pick it up. He didn't say anything at first, just held it and his eyes got a little wet. Then he looked at me and said, 'You brought him back.' He paid me the $600 we agreed on, but he also left a case of local craft beer on my bench. It wasn't about the money, you know? It was about fixing a piece of someone's story. Anyone else get hit right in the feels by a client's reaction?

3 comments

3 Comments

margaret_singh13d ago

Had a guy cry when I fixed his dad's old truck radio, just wanted to hear that same static-filled ballgame again.

jamiemiller25d ago

Man, that's the stuff that makes this work worth it. What was the hardest part to bring back on that Springfield? Was it the metal finish, or getting the wood grain on that old stock to match and look right again?

xena_rivera6325d ago

You know, @jamiemiller, I always thought the metal was the tough part. But matching that old wood grain? That's what really makes you pull your hair out. Totally changed how I see a full restore.