Forget about the actual mechanical and body repairs for a minute, it's those little details that sometimes drive me crazy:

It’s easy to nearly get lost in the details when you are restoring an old Volvo. I’ll start with the obvious securing pieces: screws, nuts, locknuts, bolts, washers, hose clamps, rivets and poprivets—sizes vary even when they should be the same, according to the eccentricities and warps of the car (and its previous owner). Most are metric, some aren’t or weren’t, and try for stainless (because if it can be prevented you never, NEVER want to repeat the headache you had getting those rustbitten things off); hope you labeled and baggied everything when you removed them! If you want to be really smart, or anal, you write down the size or name of each item as well. The people at the hardware store know you WELL by now, and by the end of this process you’ve probably amassed quite a collection of this hardware, yourself. Rethread those stripped threads, if necessary, or use your head and find another solution to secure the parts. It also helps to put a white sheet or towel underneath where you’re working, in case you drop some miniscule piece, so it can be easily found (can anyone here relate?).
Next come gaskets, grommets, rubber parts and seals—some need adhesive, most don’t, but be sure to get the right kind of adhesive for the right job—glues, calks, silicones and “bedding compound” in the case of the windshield installation—don’t forget to take into account drying time and temperature when dealing with these or you may need to start all over. Even without adhesive needed, installing "a simple seal" can be more than you ever asked for.
Clips or springs can be harder to find but can be found, or just rework many of these worn parts by removing the rust or haze accordingly with wire brush, sandpaper, wool or abrasive pads, with different grades according to the job. After all that you sure don’t want that rust to reappear too quickly, so prep and attack with primer and paint, or rustproofing POR products, each respectively applied (according to its nuances of the product and size of the part) with either spray, foam brush, or your kid’s cheap tiny paintbrush—oh, and nearly forgot to mention the importance of having the right kind of solvents and cleaners for clean-up because you sure don’t want to go to bed wearing the paints or adhesives if you can help it (sometimes you can’t). Getting a spot of the black POR product on your face is a bummer.
Oils, lubricants, and grease are important in the removal and reassembly and maintenance, and they are sprayable, smear-able, and pour-able, too. Did I forget to mention strip calk and butyl putty? (Warning: do not get the strip calk on the bottom of your shoe. Do NOT get the strip calk on the bottom of your shoe on a warm day and then walk across your living room floor on the way to wash off in the bathroom). Give your kids a ball of the butyl putty to keep them occupied while you finish your work—it’s better than playdough. Have plenty of thick and thin rags, old towels, and paper towels, latex gloves, cloth or leather workgloves (for cold days--those who live in sunny CA or have a heated garage may not relate, but out of desire and necessity I’ve spent many a day and night working in a cold barn or garage). And for Pete’s sake, try to keep all this stuff organized.
I won’t even begin to mention tools here because they would practically require an essay apiece (i.e. “My (Long) Day With the Puller,” “My Adventures with the Torch,” "Reworking Calipers for Beginners" or “How the Sawsall Got Those Old Shocks Off Pretty Quick” to name a few.

The care in the details that no one ever sees can make all the difference.


Cheers...Holly