I think you can't go wrong either way. If you really want to restore this Elky, do what you can, learn along the way, and if there's something that's over your head, pay a pro to do it, and watch and learn so you can do it next time.
If you really want to just cut your losses and get something more solid as the basis of your project, now is definitely the time to do it, before you get too deep into it financially.
BTW, are you in Daytona Beach?