The 1957 Hood Plus Strategy Considerations

I have spent a few hours trying to prep the 1957 hood for primer. Unfortunately my endeavors have not met with much success. The hood actually might be too far gone to salvage.. There is a small dent/bulge in the hood probably caused by it being shut on something that was left sitting on the engine? It is proving to be very difficult to repair and I am getting close to giving up on the process. I have to admit my "shade tree" bodywork skills are probably being pushed to the limit and as a result it might be time to turn it over to an expert or even pursue a replacement hood? However this all becomes a secondary consideration if I do not plan to reassemble the 1957??

I continue to ponder my strategy around the disposal of the extra car (the 1957) and the related parts. How far should I take the reassembly before throwing in the towel and hitting Kijijji and placing an ad? The big issue for me is making one drivable car out of the two and having enough money generated from the sale of the second car to finish the first one. My "spider sense" tells me to reassemble the powder coated chassis with all the good parts from both cars then sell off the remaining vehicle as a "basket case". This action must be taken soon as I really feel the need to make a definitive decision and get on with it?