On the 1st of January 2023 we staged a photoshoot to record Ken and Ray Walsh’s almost-complete Austin K8 restoration.
What they’ve accomplished from what in truth amounted to two piles of scrap is nothing short of fantastic. But behind the Happy New Year smiles and handshakes, they didn’t seem quite as chuffed as they should have been.
Since the project got underway at the beginning of October, I’d visited their lockup a few times to record progress. In late November, everything was on track for completion before Christmas. Then the gremlins hit the fan – literally.
“For Ray and I, time is not elastic,” Ken Walsh explains. “We are ruthless about hitting deadlines. But that’s our hobby, doing the best possible job, affordably, and in the fastest possible time.”
Like most badass grafters of their generation, their get-on-with-it and no excuses grit conceals a sentimental side.
“John Booth had owned a K8 for restoration for four decades,” Ken continued. “Career and domestic concerns
