I'm writing a little software to organize my car restoration. Anyone interested?

Florian,

Send it.

I'd love to give it "a run" for you.

 

Hello Florian,

being just a FH-engineer I would love to try a software specifically written for classic car restoration by a Dr. Ing.

Let me know, when you are ready with it. My Alfa will get a nut and bolt restoration and I think your software could be handy for this.


Best Regards

Martin

 

Florian,

You have 5 different sized bolts holding your Widget in place. 10 different washers and 3 different nuts.

How do you know which one goes exactly where when more than one will fit the holes in the Widget?

 

SW Engineer and amateur mechanic here.

Not to be a negative nancy, but it seems like you'd end up spending more time futzing with software than actually getting work done. Lord knows I've tried to do some simple home automation and ended up throwing in the towel after a few lost weekends...

If you were working on a dozen cars at once, only then might I see the need for some software... but even then spreadsheets can cover 99% of your needs.

When I took my GM's interior apart to replace some wiring looms, I was able to manage the entire disassembly and rebuild with some ziplock bags, a few boxes, a digital camera and a piece of paper.

I just numbered the bags, and wrote down the picture number(s) that went with each bag. The numbers went in order: bag 1 contained the first parts to come off etc.

That's all you have to do, organize as you upload them onto your computer. Most modern filesystems allow us to create folders, that's all you need.

Want to replace parts? A 2nd piece of paper is all you need.

Don't like paper? A Google / Excel spreadsheet works just as good.

 

of course; but don't we permanently lust for new challenges ?
The new FChat Facebook site makes me worrying more.

Best Regards

Martin

 

then he will have a look into the workshop manual, which says, that some previous owner was screwing things up in using bolts, washers and nuts which were just at hand, instead of the correct ones
And if your example appears in reality he will embed a photograph or a sketch, which shows the correct sizes and locations.

Best Regards

Martin

 

http://www.collectorcarcompanion.com/

 

Martin,

Use the wishbone pages from the Parts Catalogue, for an example. LOTS of different sized nuts, bolts and washers pictured.

Same for the "Left and Right Engine Heads" pages.

Lots of opportunities to screw-up there.

 

Because with countless hours of labor, chunks of hair missing from frustration, and many beers cried into, you can have your very own hand-crafted wheel. And you'll save that $49.



Now I know why the missus looks at me sideways every time I suggest making another wheel.

 

I might be interested, although I'm way deep into the restoration at this point to go back and catalog. Could use it for the next one. Can it be run on a Mac?

 

Hi, I too am interested, because first I restore a 400GT and second I am part of the European Ferrari 400 Club and many of our members also restore their cars. We have a large database of models and especially the Ferrari 365 GT 2 +2/400/400 i/412, if you are interested you can come here:

http://www.f400club.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?fid=29

If you want us to participate in another way thank you for let us know.

Theodore
Ferrari 400 GT Auto #20337
http://www.f400club.com/

 

Don't make the job harder than it is. Take pictures of EVERYTHING. If the parts won't fit in the bag, tag them with a piece of masking tape.

 

Florian told, that he loves tinkering with code just as tinkering with cars.

To advice against his software project is just as saying to many of us ' why bother with that 308 ?; Purchase a better car with less problems and cheaper maintenace. They are already on the market. '.

Therefore Florian; Dig In !

Best Regards

Martin

 

Mark; I think even using Florian's software won't allow switching off one's brain while working
Except Florian plans to further devlop his program for a smart phone App.
That would be a different affair

Best Regards

Martin

 

A mobile app platform such as smart phone or tablet really take this sort of endeavour to a more useful level.

The ability to pick up the computing device and interact with it (categorize the part you just took a picture of, for example) without leaving your workspace at the car makes the use of the
computing power much more practical than trying to balance a laptop on a fender.

 

That'd be a pretty messed up, grease filled, dinged, smart phone or tablet, I'll tell you that. But I do get your point about instant cataloging. Might have to get a dedicated device just for the resto so you can keep your other wares in good shape. Does anyone make a rugerized tablet (a la the Panasonic computers)?

 

FarmerDave, a phone screen is too small. A laptop too bulky, awkward to balance. My solution would be to get a computer with a decent 20" screen and stick it on a table with rollers. Not ideal, but it gets the job done, and that's how a lot of similar diagnostic tools are set up, on a stand with rollers. In my opinion, that would be the best solution.

Next, the software. In theory, it should be useful. In practice, I doubt it will be. Not saying you shouldn't do it, but people either know software or they know cars. You are trying to merge the two, and instead of creating synergy, you might end up doubling the effort and complication/points of failure/annoyances. If parts came with a rfid chip embedded, it would make the workflow much simpler, if we had th right interface. You remove the part, hold it up, rfid reader somewhere on the ceiling recognizes the part, screen confirms it and asks what you want to log about it, you speak your notes, done. You place it on a shelf, shelf's reader logs the location, done. That would be truly useful.

Your workflow does not seem to make the job easier in any way except when it comes to sorting for actions needed ie. to compile a list of parts to order.

My solution would be to create a bunch of separate areas, with shelving if necessary:
These would correspond with the actions you will take. They would be labeled as follows:
To be processed
Replace with new parts
Replace (from donor parts)
Repair
Machine/create new parts
Clean
Undecided
and also have a final shelf/area for Items Ready for Installation.
etc.

Set up shelves as needed in each area.
Set up a sequence ie, if an assembly has parts to be replaced and repaired, then decide what happens first (probably repair, in case it brings to light other parts to be ordered).
Arrange the shelves to reflect the workflow.

Now take the car apart. Put assemblies where they belong, in labeled boxes or bags.
Carry out appropriate actions.
Move the assemblies down the line, and
Put them in the car as they become ready and end up in that final area.

I would also have an online logbook. Even something like Evernote. Create different notebooks for different areas (eg. transmission, steering, dash, seats, trunk, body panels, etc.), then different notes for different assemblies, and put your notes in that.

I would use Excel to track the contents of each area, updating as I took an item off a shelf and processed it. This way, if an item is found in an area where it does not belong, you can refer to your spreadsheet and see where it should go and what needs to be done. Perhaps you need to order parts--do so, enter the info, and put the assembly in the correct area. Or maybe you just need to update your spreadsheet.

This would not get in the way of working on the car. And it would allow me to track lots of info without spending too much time on the computer--just update the notebooks and spreadsheets at the end of each day/week. On each shelf, you could even have a top and bottom half division and put in things that need to be entered (into the spreadsheet and evernote) on the top shelf and then move them down to the bottom shelf after they have been entered. Or you could just use flags labels with two different colors to show pending data entry versus data entry complete. Any simple system will do, as long as you are consistent about using it.

Objectives met:
Get physical work done (Disassemble car, process assemblies through repair/replace, etc., reassemble)
Enter data to track info and costs
Visually be able to see different states for each mode
Help advance the assemblies through the different stages of processing.
Not create a system that takes too much time by getting in the way or being too complicated.

So, what does this not cover? Assemblies that are sent out for work (repair or replacement) at other shops. How do you track that except by checking your spreadsheets constantly, and that is assuming you remembered to enter it on there before sending it out.

Trick for this is to create an empty box labeled with the assembly that is at the paintshop or whatever. Leave it in the first shelf until the part comes and then move it to the appropriate shelf. Done.

And yes, I would take pictures and download exploded diagrams and stick them in the appropriate boxes and also keep them online in well organized folders. I would name the files with the folder name and then a descriptive file name--this way, if the file gets moved around accidentally, you know where it is supposed to go ie. Transmission - broken flange at rear.jpg. You would know this is a picture of a transmission part, and belongs in the Transmission folder. Or, you could have one big folder with all the pics--as long as you are good about descriptive file names and always name them consistently, it should be easy to keep the info organized. What I mean is, don't call one pic Flange - transmission.jpg and another one Transmission, broken flange -01.jpg. That won't help you when it comes time to sort things. Edit to add: You can simply attach pics to the appropriate Evernote entry--if you do this, you don't have to worry about filenames (unless you made a mistake and can't figure out the right note to attach it to).

If you have decent web access (who doesn't?), I advise using google spreadsheets and evernote. But really, any similar software package can do.

Depending on how good you are with Excel, I would have multiple worksheets, one for each shelf, one for vendor info, one for tracking orders and a summary sheet with costs.

Think of the hours saved programming!

Ok, now, if anyone has managed to wade through all that, could you please start to pick this apart? Would love to know what I have missed, what could be better, etc.

 

At places like Best Buy, REI, you can buy clear, heavy duty plastic bags (sort of like gladlock bags) for tablets. Put yours in one, and you won't have to worry about screwing up the tablet.

Tablets are not easy to enter data and notes into, though, but they are handy for basic things, quick lookups, and of course, with decent lighting, quick pictures. Unfortunately, renaming and organizing info captured in tablets is more work than its worth...I recommend Evernote. It allows you to maintain organization, add in pictures, and also access the info from any other device with web access.

 

OK, looking back at the original post, I see that my suggestion on the software side is vey similar, but OP wants to create and use a database. Fair enough, but I see the following downsides:
1. Programming effort
2. It's not necessary. It's already a normalized database - you don't need to create a database to track this, a flat file like a spreadsheet will do. I like the idea of "attaching" labels, same as using location and labels to denote status in the physical world. But you could do the same thing by moving it from one worksheet to another to show change in status, or entering the status in one column ie. To be ordered/Waiting/Received.

There is also the problem of multiple similar parts within an assembly ie. bolts of different sizes as mentioned earlier.

I would just use a spreadsheet unless there is an added benefit to developing a custom db.

 

I'm an old school DIY'er I think this is overkill to the max. Sorting your photos should be easy. The mistake most people make id to not take enough pictures. Given your favoritism for "code" over actually restoring the car should create at least 3 times as much fun as just putting it back together. To each their own.

On a positive note, I would incorporate the tools required for each sub-assembly. It's not always clear if the bolt you are installing "blind" (can reach it but can't see it) are, for example, a 7/16" or a 10mm. I seem to waste a lot of time rummaging through the tool box trying to determine if an end wrench or a socket is the best application for the job.

Steve