A restoration takes years, and memory is the first thing to go. Which supplier had the good rubber seals, what the floor pan looked like before it was cut out, how much has actually gone into the car so far. A camera roll of four thousand photos answers none of that.
File photos by area, not by date
When you come to refit the dashboard two years after stripping it, you want every photo of the dashboard in one place, not scattered across the timeline between shots of the sills and the engine bay.
Log every part and where it came from
Part numbers, suppliers and prices matter when something needs replacing, and again when you sell. A buyer paying serious money for a restored car wants to know what was fitted.
Track the spend against a budget
Restorations run over. Almost all of them. Seeing the running total against the figure you set is the only way to make an honest decision about the next expensive job.
Finish with a build sheet
A printed record of the work, the parts and the photos is part of the car’s value. It turns a nice restoration into a documented one.
CarRestore is a phone app that keeps the whole project in one place: dated photos filed by area of the car, parts and suppliers, spending against your budget, and a build sheet to print at the end. It works offline.