Old Habits Die Hard--after 25 years, another Project Charger!

[rasalhague96]

Back in the day, 25+ years ago, the first car I ever bought with my hard-earned money was a '74 Charger SE with a mighty-mighty 318. The second was a '71 SE with a dead 383, which I swapped with a 440. Sometimes I think those two cars were each one part transportation, one part exercise machine, and one part frustration generator. :icon_thumright:

Now it's my son's turn. I just inked the deal on a '71 base model Charger, sans engine and tranny, but with plenty of rust. I expect it will take everything I remember about Chargers and much much more to bring it to the road once again.

I look forward to reading a lot and asking a rack of questions!

 

[super-bee_ski]

Congrads!
But you and I are both in So Cal and there is NO RUST here.
What happened?

 

[rasalhague96]

Congrads!
But you and I are both in So Cal and there is NO RUST here.
What happened?

Thanks for the welcome. I look forward to this and my son is beside himself.

Not certain yet, I still have to pick the beastie up. . . looks like I'm getting a teenager's project where she--yes, she and that's a good sign because I have lots of daughters who want to help--had it in the garage for a couple of years, bought some spare parts and lost interest.

Unfortunately, what's left of the floor pan in the trunk has a bunch of sand in it so it could have spent the past ten years just about anywhere. It has a 2002 inspection sticker on it--forgot to check the state--but obviously not a California car. It needs to be stripped to bare metal and given a ration of TLC.

I have a picture of it but it's surrounded by someone else's junk. I'll post a pic when she's on the trailer by the end of the month.

 

[Budnicks]

welcome to FBBO it sounds like a great Father & Son 71 Charger rustoration project....

 

[Propwash]

Welcome aboard...Glad to see you're passing it on.

 

[kdtjb]

Howdy

 

[rasalhague96]

So, I'll throw this out there, and the answer may be one of taste, patience, and finances but here goes: How much rust is too much rust?

Quarter panels, floor pans can all be replaced, but I read a posting here where a guy was parting out his project Mopar and it got me wondering.

My question is: Where is the tipping point, seeing how much restoration supplies and techniques have improved over the past 20 years, and what rusted component is a deal breaker?

 

[Ron 73]

Welcome aboard the site! Sounds like a real nice project for your son, Honestly im not sure if i love the car there is a deal breaker.. If im understanding correctly here anyway.. Some cars are worth more then others, thats true, but some cars are loved greatly by some, so if there is a way, going the extra mile it is worth it, with me anyway.

 

[charger360]

well to us northern guy's that is a rust free car! looks like it is worth saving to me!

 

[Donny]

How much is how much you want to spend, then, triple that figure is what it really will cost. These cars don't reflect rational decision making! But, they reflect our hobby and desire to tinker and pester it till its better! And, they're fun to do, this is why we spend the money on them! Post some more but better detailed pics and I'll give you my honest assessment on what you'll need.

 

[snakeyes]

welcome and congrats on a nice father son project , theres alot of father son time there ,enjoy and post up your work in progress ,thanks for sharing :hello2: