Glad to hear you made it fine and now the body shop fun begins! It is a GREAT idea for you to visit the shop OFTEN for two reasons:
First, it reminds the crew there to keep up progress on your car and it gives both you and them many opportunities to review and assess the details of the work being performed. This will help eliminate the possibility of what could be important decisions (large, medium and small) being made in your absence because nobody wanted to "bother" you or thought they could reach you. When it comes to getting an absolutely correct restoration, you will want to be "bothered" and the best way is to just present yourself as often as possible.
Second, photos of the car in disassembly, refinishing and reassembly is a VERY important part of the documentation for your car. Having these will ensure you have proof of what your car is and of what and how the restoration work was done. It will support the value of your car in the future. Take as many photos as possible and if you can't be there at important points ask the shop to take some photos for you.
You are at a disadvantage due to distance but try your best. I was lucky as I was able to get my body and paint done at a shop in the city where I was working at the time so I would randomly scoot over there during lunch breaks 2-3 times a week. I knew when they took their break so I would plan to arrive about in the middle of that time when the shop was empty and I had full access to shoot photos at will. After that, they would be coming back on to work and I could chat with them briefly and work out any details I noticed before they continued. I made sure they knew I was politely watching them and they took it well because I never became overbearing or excessively demanding. I was happy with the outcome and they told me they actually enjoyed working WITH me on a car we were both proud of at the end. Hopefully you can accomplish the same so keep posting progress pics and info!
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