Hi Peter....welcome to the Club
What a fine car! haven't seen one on the road for a very long time.
If your mechanic is 'old school' then he should find his way around the engine bay with ease, they were so much easier to work on back then.
Sounds like a carb strip and rebuild should do it and resolve the running issue.
As for the struts it may be worth trawling ebay to see what is out there even if they are secondhand to try to keep the car original as much as possible.
Let us know how you get on with it over time.