I have been collecting antique furniture all of my life. Stripping and refinishing is NOT restoration, its more about destruction. Check the price on a Stickley table sometime. One with a tired, crackled, original finish, and one beautifully refinished. The former will be worth 10X the latter. I've learned to appreciate "patina".

Now at some point, a repaint may be inevitable. But its not restoration.

Now refreshing a bike with a more modern drivetrain? Sure, I've done that a lot. I'll tend to keep the original parts if I have them for a future owner. Often, I obtain such bikes either as a frameset or without original parts.