First Project

[dirtypamopar]

Starting to turn the corner on my first full project. I opted to go the resto-mod direction as this 69' charger I bought does not have matching anything and was originally an old grocery getter. Here is where I am so far









View attachment 295046

 

[Darius]

Looking really awesome Dirty, keep up the CLEAN work!

 

[Kern Dog]

Looks very nice. You probably will want to replace that Edelbrock carb if the engine has any cam bigger than stock.
Tire sizes? Interior?
I started off with a 98% stock looking interior waaaay back when, but have embraced newer, better supportive seats. I like to corner the car and the stock vinyl buckets were like sitting on a steel folding chair.

 

[dirtypamopar]

Rest of Car

Looks very nice. You probably will want to replace that Edelbrock carb if the engine has any cam bigger than stock.
Tire sizes? Interior?
I started off with a 98% stock looking interior waaaay back when, but have embraced newer, better supportive seats. I like to corner the car and the stock vinyl buckets were like sitting on a steel folding chair.

Kern - What makes you say that about the Carb? Its rated at 750 CFM and should be able to push the engine just fine from what I've read. Unfortunately I don't have the CAM specs....it is bigger than stock but I bought the engine from a guy who already had it machined, balanced, bored over .30 and replace the pistons and connecting rods. I was going to have it put on the dyno before I made any more changes and see how it performs.

I just upgraded the suspension as well with new Hotchkis springs, control arms, steering rods etc. I also put in new steering box by Borgenson (one of the tight ratio ones...running same setup in my Roadrunner and it works great).

Interior is going to be mostly stock except I'm putting in set of Cuda seats up front..simply because I love the way they look. I replaced the entire dash with new gauges and panels, but I'm going with a MOMO steering wheel for a little more of a modern feel.

 

[Brandy]

Looking great. Send me some of that huge pile of cash you must have in one of those garage cabinets...lol.

 

[dirtypamopar]

Kern,

Wheel sizes are 18 x 9 in the back and 18 x 8 in the front. 40s and 45s

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Ghost,

I bought the car with the engine completely rebuilt for 5k because the guy was desperate to get out of the project. I did however have to replace the floors, both fenders, the hood, weld in frame rails, both doors, replace the grill, buy all new interior and rework the roof which was a total mess and pretty much had to buy everything else new. I reused some of the parts (all the trim and lights) but this one did cost me a pile of money....mostly because I'm going to drive this thing daily in the summer and I don't want to spend every weekend fixing it.....I do all the work with my father in Pittsburgh but drive mostly in Chicago. I have a limited workplace in Chicago so reliability is key.

 

[Homstead]

Very clean looking car! Keep up the good work!

 

[747mopar]

Great job so far, I finished mine not long ago and they do cost allot of money for sure but rest assured it pays off once you start driving it! I like where your going with this one, should be sweet.

Edelbrock Carbs are junk in my opinion but you'll figure it out yourself or be one of the few that likes them. At the very least put the thickest phenolic spacer you can under it (not much room in a Charger) because the one thing they do well is vapor lock. Best wishes

 

[Kern Dog]

The Edelbrock carburetors are best suited for stock engines or those very close to stock. They are not as easily tuned as a Holley or a Demon. I have read many times about how someone was told that they are great, only to have the owner rip them out and swap in a Holley.
Higher compression, bigger camshafts, headers and single plane intakes wreak havok with the 750 Edelbrock. Do a google search on it, the feedback isn't good. I've run the 600 on mild 318s and 360s and they are fantastic. They just don't work well in a modified big inch motor. The accelerator pumps are too small. The carbs evaporate fuel after a few days time. They run lean when you need enrichment. If you only intend to cruise and keep the RPMs down, it will work and deliver decent mileage compared to the Holley/Demon types.
Not trying to piss on your pancakes here! Personally, I prefer to know what lies ahead of me.

 

[Mocajava]

Impressive car and I am sure you are ready to put in some serious seat time! Congratulations on very nice work, I am looking forward to the burn out videos!

 

[dirtypamopar]

I don't doubt the knowledge on this forum that is for sure, the Edelbrock was free so I went with it. I do appreciate the feedback and I take it seriously. I had looked at a Demon 850 CFM but then I got the Eddie for free so I figured I would try it out because I have a 600 CFM on my 69' Roadrunner but that engine is essentially stock with only headers, a purple cam and a new intake on it so that may explain why I never had any problems. I'll give it a go and if it sucks...well i'll take it out...no biggie.

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Your input on Eddie carbs seems is becoming a pattern....and I do appreciate it. I mentioned in another reply that I have one on my roadrunner which is not stock, but very mild with only headers, a purple cam and a new intake on it so that probable explains why I never had any issues. I'll give this one a go and drop in a demon if it doesn't run well. I do appreciate the open and honest feedback, we all want the same thing and that is to have the best car possible!

 

[Bb70charger500]

That's a nice looking charger you have there and .You deff stole it from the poor guy who owned it before.
Oh well it's the at the right place at the right time deal.
The eld carb is a good driving carb anything under 450 hp it will work just fine on but if your in it for 95% racing and 5% driving I'd go holly or demon . But honestly ask your self am I racing the car every single day or driving it here and there to have a bit of fun . I love eld carbs there extremely reliable (except the new crapy fuel problems) witch require you to reseal it more often then you used to. I feel they adjust easyer then the others but that go's two ways my buddy can't figure out my carbs and I. Have problems with his . So again this is a little one sided because I don't race race .So the eld is just fine for my street cars but.... I did have a 10 sec camaro once and the eld just didn't cut it I went with a demon on it and it raced great but you always had to adjust it often you can just set and forget it like the eld . So you be the judge on what you like . I will add I don't run big block cars (only two ) I mostly run 340's -360's hell even the mighty 318 (this motor could care less what it has on top ) but the 318's never exceed 250-300 hp I build fun drivers to sell make life easyer on the next guy .
My current 340 dinoed 486ish to the rear wheels with a 750 on it . It was huffing a bit I may give a demon a try again for this motor or tune it down a bit and leave the eld as I was shooting for
450 hp
Good luck ether way

 

[Dennis H]

The Edelbrock on my newly rebuilt 440 would not tune. Persistent stumble. Switched to 850 Mighty Demon. Nice. I too have a Momo (Johnny Player Special) steering wheel. Love the diameter, lack of dish. Perfect. Your car looks great in that color. More, the seats in my friends 'Cuda are awful and seem short. I see a hole where the Bullhead-Connector goes. That's gonna be all new too or replaced with different technology?

 

[dirtypamopar]

That's a nice looking charger you have there and .You deff stole it from the poor guy who owned it before.
Oh well it's the at the right place at the right time deal.
The eld carb is a good driving carb anything under 450 hp it will work just fine on but if your in it for 95% racing and 5% driving I'd go holly or demon . But honestly ask your self am I racing the car every single day or driving it here and there to have a bit of fun . I love eld carbs there extremely reliable (except the new crapy fuel problems) witch require you to reseal it more often then you used to. I feel they adjust easyer then the others but that go's two ways my buddy can't figure out my carbs and I. Have problems with his . So again this is a little one sided because I don't race race .So the eld is just fine for my street cars but.... I did have a 10 sec camaro once and the eld just didn't cut it I went with a demon on it and it raced great but you always had to adjust it often you can just set and forget it like the eld . So you be the judge on what you like . I will add I don't run big block cars (only two ) I mostly run 340's -360's hell even the mighty 318 (this motor could care less what it has on top ) but the 318's never exceed 250-300 hp I build fun drivers to sell make life easyer on the next guy .
My current 340 dinoed 486ish to the rear wheels with a 750 on it . It was huffing a bit I may give a demon a try again for this motor or tune it down a bit and leave the eld as I was shooting for
450 hp
Good luck ether way

Thanks for the input. So to be fair, I got the body which needed two fenders, two doors, a trunk, and the tranny needed rebuilt because the guy did it wrong. So for 5 grand I got the building blocks plus an engine (no headers, no carb)....my father helped me find this car so I felt it was a good deal but wasn't totally sure at first because I got into the project I realized it had the wrong leaf springs in it and the tranny problem. The tranny wasn't a big deal because a buddy of mine rebuilt it and put in a shift kit etc for 200 bucks.

As far as carbs go, the feedback is pretty consistent however because I won't be racing this thing I figured I should stay with the Edelbrock for now and at least drive the car a bit and see how it goes. I'm going to hot rod it a bit and just enjoy driving it around town. I was hoping to get 450 hp out of this engine but some feel I will get more with the Eddie heads, the bigger bore (.30 over), diamond pistons, balancing etc. I honestly don't know what to expect other than what I've seen other 383's produce. I've read that a stock 383 with headers, a new intake, a new carb and new cam can make up to 450 so I don't think I'm being unrealistic....need to put it on the dyno.

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The Edelbrock on my newly rebuilt 440 would not tune. Persistent stumble. Switched to 850 Mighty Demon. Nice. I too have a Momo (Johnny Player Special) steering wheel. Love the diameter, lack of dish. Perfect. Your car looks great in that color. More, the seats in my friends 'Cuda are awful and seem short. I see a hole where the Bullhead-Connector goes. That's gonna be all new too or replaced with different technology?

Dennis,

Yeah your feedback on the carb is pretty consistent. I mentioned in my other posts that I'm running one on my 69' RR and to be honest it gives me zero issues but the motor is close to stock (only upgrades are headers, new intake, the Eddie Carb and a purple cam. I'm gonna see how it goes, if it runs like crap, well out it goes. I'd just like to give it a chance...its brand new ya know.

You probably notice a few holes in the firewall because

1. I removed the heater box to save on weight. I only drive these cars in the summer. I did everything I could to lighten the load including No AC, aluminum radiator, no washer bottle, aluminum driveshaft by Mancini, etc.

2. Some of the ignition gear hasn't been mounted yet.


Also you mention the Cuda seats feeling small...you got me worried now. I was going to use the two Cuda seats and a buddy seat in the middle. I honestly love them but i should take another look before I put them in.