Breakdown of Questo restauro richiede molto tempo, ma lo comincio a fare.
questo
this (masculine)
ma
but
il tempo
the time, the weather
molto
a lot of / much
Questions & Answers about Questo restauro richiede molto tempo, ma lo comincio a fare.
Why is lo placed before comincio instead of attached to fare?
This is an example of clitic climbing. With aspectual verbs like cominciare a (to begin to), finire di (to finish), and continuare a (to continue), pronoun placement is flexible. You can put the pronoun before the conjugated verb (lo comincio a fare) or attach it to the end of the infinitive (comincio a farlo). Both are perfectly correct and common.
What exactly does lo replace here?
It replaces questo restauro (this restoration). Since restauro is a masculine singular noun, we use the direct object pronoun lo. It acts as the direct object of fare, so the second clause essentially means "I begin to do it".
Is it possible to put the pronoun in between the two verbs, like comincio a lo fare?
No. The pronoun cannot sit in the middle of the verb phrase or immediately after the preposition a. Your only two options are to pull it all the way to the front (lo comincio a fare) or attach it to the very end of the dropped -e on the infinitive (comincio a farlo).
I always mix up the prepositions. Does cominciare always take a?