Restorations Bring History To Life
By Renee Warren Lynah Photos by Katie DeSantis
Richard Dryer’s auto affair began in his dad’s garage when he was 6 years old and it never stopped. He grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, drag racing and occasionally blowing up engines his father brought home from work. His dad taught auto mechanics in the Cincinnati school system and had access to plenty of “practice” parts and was up-to-date on all the latest auto technologies. Richard got his certification in auto body and continued working on cars long after his father retired in the 1980’s. After trying his hand at the auto insurance business, he found himself back in the garage with his true love: antique automobiles.
Today, Richard works around the clock 7 days a week bringing pieces of history back to life. Looking around his garage on a sticky June afternoon, he shrugs and says, “I guess it’s a love affair . I guess I was born with it. I used to call it a sickness, but you get over a sickness. A disease. . . just progresses .”
Richard’s clients come from all over the country, usually finding him by word of mouth, and the parts that make these old cars new again are shipped from all over the world. Most of his clients could purchase their dream car at an auction for half the price of the restoration but it’s not about the money or the time spent. It’s about the histories and the stories in these automobiles. Sitting in his garage right now, in various stages of restoration and maintenance, are a Jaguar 1970 XKE, a 1960 Healey, a Chevy Blazer named “Big Blue”, a 1953 MGTD, and a yellow VW Beetle, among others. Each has a story… the owner of the 1953 MGTD dated his wife in the car in the 1960s- quite the memorabilia of a lasting marriage. They’ve held onto it all these years… soon they can relive those early memories.
In the show room sit two 1947 MGTC’s, one a stately green, the other a bright red. The proud owner of the two cars is Charlie Schott of Panama City Beach. Charlie carried the green TC around in boxes for 34 years before bringing it to Richard. The red one was brought from England after World War II . The original owner left it to his son who sold it to Charlie several years ago. Richard points out details reminiscent of the war: pristine battery box and toolbox that were once ammo boxes. He explains that scrap aluminum was used to build many of the cars in post-war Europe. Richard shows me a “before” picture from a small album that lies in the vehicle’s front seat. The transformation is remarkable. Richard and his team restored every detail of the vehicle, from the rotted out tub frame they replaced, to the dashboard they refinished, right down to the wheels they sandblasted and painted. The only detail Richard didn’t personally restore was the upholstery. He chuckles, “My hands are too big for that stuff!” Richard says of the work they did and the results, “We wanted to make it authentic.… It’s very, very close to a 100 point show car.” The pristine MGTC’s second lease on life has already begun: It recently took First Place in the MGT Series in the 2014 Brits on the Bay Car Show in Pensacola.
[box type=”shadow” align=”aligncenter” ]Richard can be contacted at rcdryer@yahoo.com or (850) 257-3366. His shop SSR Restorations is located at 1300 W. 17th Street in Panama City. [/box]