Half-and-Half Restorations

[Mike]

There is a half-and-half 109E displayed by the IWM at Duxford. It went on war bond tours after it forced-landed in 1940. The graffiti and hangar rash that it picked up on the war bond tours is considered part of its history so they decided to preserve some of it.

That is a better reason for a half-and-half than just showing off how much work was done, IMO. You can show the latter fine with photos.

August

That restoration isn’t so much half-and-half but half-assed. Some panels that have been replaced are still unpainted, the missing spinner was not replaced, stencils not added. Very, very poor for a national collection.

[bdk]

So there is no universal answer.
The "only original once" cliche is not universal.

I agree 100%! Tastes change over time too. You don't see many rat rods at Pebble Beach either. Most Pebble Beach cars are WAAAAAY over-restored. Think 1960s Ferraris had good body and paint when they left the factory? Think again! I've seen all manner of multi-million dollar cars stripped bare in preparation for a high end restoration.