I admire your attitude in wanting to tackle this yourself
Having done a full resto. myself, trust me I know how much effort is involved [and $$$$$$$$]
You get to develop skills, gain satisfaction and in the end you can stand back and say, "I DID THAT!".
You will go through a ship load of welding consumables and abrasives.
I would suggest you find a friendly Workshop who are prepared to give you information in exchange for some business [or beer!].
You need to follow a definite plan with specific products to arrive at your goal.
Time will be a big problem.
Panel problems I found quite easy to repair, but after a while you start chasing your tail and need to break out and start protecting what you have done.
Some primers can be left for ~3 months before requiring further coats so there is an urgency there.
Do plenty of research, develop a plan with certain products and go for it