The (Ever Increasing) Sum of its Parts

There are also levels of parts problems within restorations. Is “good enough” good enough, or do you want to be correct to period?

by Michael Sheehan

Thanks to feedback from readers, virtually every column inspires a follow-up column. In “Opening Pandora’s Black Box” (December, p. 48), I wrote that “the older Ferraris, from the 512 BB backwards, can be restored by an experienced shop, and virtually any part is or will continue to be available or can be made.” What I left out is the difficulty of finding and the cost of sourcing or making those parts.

Parts procurement comes in two levels of complication. Service work, such as an engine rebuild, is a logistical nightmare, as hundreds of parts—24 sets of valves, guides, valves seats, valve adjusters, etc.—are involved. A complete restoration moves the parts nightmare into an all new dimension of misery, as thousands of unobtanium parts must be found or made and then fitted, tested, and approved.

In a conversation with Wayne Obry of Motion Products,...