Gotta start with a place to start the restoration.
I bought my E-Type in 1979 while attending the Military Intelligence Officer’s’ Advance Course in Arizona.
I had orders for Munich, Germany and a '68 Cutlass Supreme just wouldn’t do.
Started construction of “a place to start the restoration” in Sep 2019 and am just wrapping up.
Here’s a simple chronology of the build:
incredible! I looked up “man cave” and saw this photo.
Now you’ll be getting the floor dirty, though…
Craig has cleaning staff for the plebe work…
The start of any restoration starts with planning, preparation and funding.
Boxes, bags, and tags to be used to store parts and components. Right now the boxes are full of air – -- but lots of room for Jaguar stuff.
Gotta takes notes and photos. No photo of the phone camera – too hard to take a photo of the photo making machine:
Very often people ask how much a component weighs.
The bathroom scale was relocated to the garage – but to only goes from 0 to 300 lbs. – so I picked up a scale that goes from 0 to 560 lbs. That otta be enough; already started an eXcel spreadsheet of some spares and parts I have on hand. Already started More to follow . . .
Nice. I still have envy. 
Two things I’d suggest:
A fist full of sharpies and a thermal label maker.
I found one like this useful.
Meanwhile…where is the car and what does it look like?
Also, as an aside, whether the bits are stored in boxes or baskets, it sounds like you’re preparing for a true “basket case.” More power to you!
Tom
the short photo-story shows the car
See Avatar - spent a decade plus in this storage facility
Photo 1 - moving day (28MAR21); storage bay is in background
Photo 2 - its current location in my purpose built hobby shop
The Jag was stripped for painting 1992/93. Major items were removed by paint shop.
I have all the bits/pieces in boxes and baggies. Some examples as laid out on attached garage floor 3 years back:
So – it’s not a basket case, but I didn’t strip the bits off the car. The body/paint shop did number/label each baggie and I built a comprehensive spreadsheet IDing each baggie and box.
Craig;
Congratulations!!! But I am not sure why you think you are better then the rest of us and want to mark, store, catalog, bag and clean the parts so nothing is lost and you know what everything is and where it goes.
All kidding aside, you are starting out on the right foot, great. Now set up a couple of GoPro cameras and you can document the whole thing!!
Good luck, Joel…
Joel – that reminds me. I have a cabinet of spares on which I have experimented with vapor blasting. I haven’t decided yet what do next with these parts: leave them bare (these photos are 1+ years old), paint them, powder coat them?? Vapor blasting aluminum leave a smooth, satin-y finish; haven’t experimented on steel or other metals.
It took years of searching to find the early style Series III cam covers with “Jaguar” cast into them as opposed to the flat on which a gold and black “Jaguar” decal is applied
Got any of those stickers?
I need one!
Paul – if I had one, it’d be yours.
SNG Barratt’s offers them at $4 or $7 each if someone doesn’t offer you one.
Thanks! I contacted Tony, to send me one!
Craig, it’s been a long time coming, and surviving the “assignments”. Bu tit looks like you are finally settling down and able to start on her.
LLoyd
It’s not what you look at that matters. It’s what you see.
Henry David Thoreau
and it will only take two years to watch the video 
Time lapse 1 frame every minute (16 seconds of video every 8 hours). 2 years of 8 hour days/5 days a week = 2.3 hours of video. Manageable after you edit out all the “nothing happens” time 
No, no, no!
Time @Craig_Balzer sits upon the “contemplation stool” I gave him will be significant moments!
Zzzzzzz…
Shame it’s been so long. Why did the work stop at that point?
Tommy
Long 30-year story distilled to a dozen(+) lines (maybe TMI, but you asked):
1990 – Orders from Arizona to Korea / 1-year unaccompanied tour best time for paint / Single
1991 – Still in Korea / Body work completed / Married
1992 or 3 – Still in Korea / Body shop says paint it and take it home, or take it home; needed the room
1993 – Jaguar put in storage by Phoenix body shop (didn’t see any point in painting a car I wouldn’t see for quite some time)
1993 --1996 – Assigned V Corps, Heidelberg, GE / side trips to Kosovo & Macedonia.
1996 – 2000 – Assigned to NATO’S LandCent Command, Heidelberg, GE / side trip to Kosovo.
2000 – 2003 – Assigned V Corps, Heidelberg, GE, deployed to Kuwait for ground ops into Iraq
2003 – Purchased home in Colorado Springs
2003 – Retired ceremony after 27+ yrs US Army held in Saddam Hussein’s Palace at Baghdad Airport
2003 – Began work as Defense Contractor – various/numerous locations in AFG
2007 – Divorced // worked for years paying off debt accrued by spouse
2009 – Moved Jag from Phoenix to Colorado Springs another storage facility
2016 – Retired from Defense Contracting (16 yrs in AFG)
2019 – Began construction of Hobby Shop
2021 – Completed construction of Hobby Shop // Begin restoration of Jaguar // single and loving life
Craig, what a fabulous story! Thanks for sharing. I, too, went through divorce and, like you, was also able to hold on to my 1967 OTS, which I’ve had since 1971.
Coincidentally, we have a Colorado Springs connection. I had my car during my first three years at Colorado College in 1971 - 1973. I drove her into rolling rubble due to deferred maintenance and tried to sell it with an ad in the Colorado Springs Sun. No takers. My dad agreed when I opined that she’d be worth some money someday. He said drive her home to Connecticut and we’ll put her on blocks, which I did. She was resurrected in 1985 - 1988. Lots of stories, like you!
So pleased to see the fruits of your labors.
