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Don't Tell the Ol' Lady

daddywinz

Member
Local time
7:00 PM
Joined
Nov 25, 2020
Messages
7
Reaction score
23
Location
Eastern Washington
firstly, i have a long history of hoarding projects that never get on the road.
this time, i vow to press on.
in fact, i've already had THAT conversation with the wife.
...it's happening, blessing or no.

i bought a '65 Barracuda v8 4spd car exactly 20 years ago, just months before my 2nd kid was born. i just sold it, after finding out some kid popped the back glass out of it.

i bought a '73 Duster Twister for my daughter, who was turning 16, 11 years ago.
After stripping it to a shell, she said "i don't wanna work on it anymore".
It's been in boxes ever since. I don't fix cars FOR my kids, i fix them WITH my kids.

i was offered several B Bodies in my 20s, which i stupidly passed on:
a 68 Coronet, grandma owned, for $800.
a 68 Charger for $600.
And i made an offer on a running & driving (not usually my thing) '65 Belvedere II with a 4 door parts car, a few years ago. After calling the guy once a month, for 8 months, i found out he sold it to another mopar freak for 200 bucks less than i'd offered?!?
i've been butthurt ever since.

Anyway, i haven't been able to stop geekin on a mid-60s hardtop that's been sitting in a pasture a few miles from my house. But it's behind a locked gate, and i could never seem to catch the guy at home. i stopped by there 7 or 8 times. i took fuzzy pictures over the fence as i drove past. I even found the gate open at the beginning of Covid, so i layed on my horn in his courtyard. Nothing.

Finally, now that Covid is getting quite boring, i stuffed a note in his front door handle, when i found his gate open again last week. Well, "Hoot" called me back that night, and i'm the proud new owner of my first long-awaited B Body!!
...it's a Boy!

i must admit i'm a plymouth guy,
but i couldn't hold that against this '1965 Dodge Coronet 440 Hardtop.
It seems pretty solid, and worthy of bringing it back to pound the asphalt.
opinions welcome.

My Coronet 440 2.JPG My Coronet 440.JPG My Coronet 440 5.JPG My Coronet 440 4.JPG My Coronet 440 3.JPG
 
i'm still assessing the merits and cost of bringing this old brute back from it's shame in a goat pasture.
Metal is pretty solid, though i haven't done a proper inspection.
Some rust in the floorboards, but as my dad said, one old license plate should fix it.
I've found a couple of so-so front fenders for it, and i hope they're not too rough.
I think i've got a grille lined up too.
I have engine options, but i'm really trying to put together a 4 speed for it.

NEED:
Front & Back Glass.
Wing Windows.
Complete RB 4 speed conversion.
Dash Pad.
and a bucket of Mopar nuts n bolts.

everything is on a budget, and momma is definitely watching.
 
Welcome from Alabama, glad you have finally landed a B body project.
 
Welcome to the clan. That '65 will be quite a project... make momma proud!
 
Welcome :thumbsup: I had to laugh this morning reading this. I always wanted a 65 Dodge Coronet
In the last 50 years only Plymouth's have followed me home.
That's a major project you got there. Plans ?
 
Dodge, Plymouth....whatever, turn them upside down and they're all mopar. I know that car is cool it has a button on the dash that says so.
 
Congratulation on the new baby Boy ! 65 Coronet is No Joke , Definitely a Great car you Picked , or as they say it picked you ! I'm a lover of of all years 62-65 B~Bodies I have a 63 & 65 Plymouth & have always wanted a 65 Dodge but even as a roller here in California Minimum $5-$7 Thousand in same condition as your car , Have fun with your build definitely I'll be watching your Thread !!
 
good for you don't stop this time do some work everyday even if its a little work it all adds up
 
welcome.png
One of the more handsome ones from that year for sure.
Looks like a ton of fun for a fella. This could be awesome!
 
Welcome from Pennsylvania!

In any old Mopar, replacing the floorboards and trunk floor is almost a given. Having said that, it look like you have a real project there!

Some advice:
Go slow to go fast. In other words, take LOTS of pictures of EVERY ANGLE POSSIBLE of EVERYTHING BEFORE you tear anything apart.
Bag and tag everything, even if you feel stupid doing so because it is "obvious" where the part goes
I took pictures as I disassembled certain parts. These were very helpful later during reassembly.
Write a log or list of parts you need. It makes it easier when you go parts hunting or something pops up and is available

Take your time and continue to clean up, restore, obtain parts little by little until you have collected everything you need. celebrate small victories like restoring a small part.

Good luck and looking forward to the build!

Hawk
 
welcome, always liked the coronets, good luck on the build!
 
welcome to FBBO cool coronet project keep us posted
 
Welcome to the site! And it drives me up a wall when someone sells something that they say "if I ever sell it, I'll call ya" and they scrap it or sell it for cheap to some stranger. One time I sold a 2 dr sedan Valiant to a guy I knew that needed some parts off of it. Clean body and no rust. Told him not to scrap it once he picked the parts off and what did he do....yep, scraped it. Found it 2 weeks later in a local pick and pull. Pissed me off to the point that he never got anything from me again.
 
Welcome, what part of eastern Washington? I’m in the Tri Cities.
 
PM PartStalker in Puyallup, WA (he has a lot of 64-65 parts)

Also check Portland, OR Craigslist (recently seen quite a few offerings for 65 parts)

Good Luck
 
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