Later in the week, I met Jim at the restoration shop, which was located in an old warehouse just west of Detroit. After seeing the Catalina in person, we decided I would document the restoration process. For all practical purposes, this was the start to my journey of documenting and photographing automobile restorations.
For nearly two years, I followed the Catalina’s restoration, capturing each stage from primer application to block sanding, guide coat, paint application, wet sanding and then buffing. These steps were followed by the final assembly and detailing. What you see in the pictures within this article is the culmination of a process that took more than two years. The finished product is an award-winning, best-in-class restoration that possibly makes this Catalina the finest example on the planet. It has received top honors and awards at the Pontiac Nationals and concours events throughout the Midwest. Like every world-class restoration project, the attention to detail sets this 1963 Pontiac Catalina Ventura 421 Super Duty apart from many of the automobiles it has gone head to head with at judged events.
For me, this Catalina started a new chapter in my journey of capturing classic automobiles and sharing them with the motoring world. Much was learned from this endeavor. Many of the techniques remain in my memory bank and the approach and process that I have successfully used for 17 years started here with Jim Crawford and this 1963 Pontiac Catalina.
