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1969 Road Runner....another one!

Capt-Culver

Well-Known Member
Local time
6:10 AM
Joined
Feb 21, 2011
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Location
Columbus, Ohio
I guess I'll start at the begining.....

I told my story on the Welcome board, but for those that didn't get a chance to view that thread, I'll tell it here too. I grew up on the east side of Columbus Ohio, in Pataskala. I still live here now. Pataskala is just a small little town about 4 miles west of NTR. Mopar Nationals take place here every year in August. I have very early memories of my father taking my down to Brice Road to watch the cars. I bet my first year there was around the age of 8. Over the next several years we went to watch the show and I have very vivid memories of thinking to myself "When I get older, I'm going to have one of those cars!" As I got older, life got in the way. All I cared about was girls and partying. After high school, I left for college. Got married, started a career, bought a house and had a daughter.. (a boy on the way!)

We were finally getting settled into the house after a few years and the familiar Mopar muscle sightings appeared, yet again, on Rt 70 east of Columbus. As luck would have it, I didn't have to work that Friday or Saturday. I loaded up the family with a blanket and some soft drinks and we headed to Rt 79 in Heath. My daughter was only 2 years old for her first expierence.... but she never stopped smiling. Then it happened, I caught myself saying "When I get older, I'm going to have one of these cars." It dawned on me that I wasn't getting any younger and I am now "older". The search was on.

I was never a car guy. I've never worked on them, studied them or knew basic operations. Up until just a couple years ago, I couldn't tell you the difference between fuel injected and carbourated engines. So, I thought that if I'm going to buy one of these cars, I should start reading a little. Joined a couple websites, did reserch, studied etc.

It took me 2 years....and I found my car last November on this website. 69 RR, K2 Vit C Orange, 383 - 4 speed, 3.91 rear end, airgrabber car with V21 HP hood stripes.

I'm scared!

I know I'm going to make mistakes....and I guess the reason behind starting this thread is so I don't screw it up too much. I hope to learn as much as I can....cause I don't know what the he77 I'm doing. I want to have fun and learn this machine inside and out. I could have bought a finished car, but what fun is that? I'm not naive...I know just because it's a project, it's not going to be cheaper. I'm fully prepared to dump $20-22K into this car.

I have a couple things working in my favor! First, my wife. She is a car girl. Her daddy owned a 1972 Chevelle SS (more on that car later) and she's been around muscle since she was born. So, I won't have to deal with a nagging wife in my ear. She's been very supportive of this purchase and she is the reason we chose a Road Runner. I'll get into the detail on that at a later time. Secondly, my father. He had plenty of muscle when he was a kid. GTO, Chevelles, Firebirds etc. He was never a mopar guy...but has respect for all classics. And thirdly, my brother-in-law. None of this would be possible without him. He is THE car guy in the family. He is a grad of Wyotech (google it) and has years of expierence on the mechanics and body work for these classics. I hope to learn more from him as we go. And, hopefully I have the support of the community here.

But, I'm still scared. Scared that I bit off more than I can chew, scared that I'll get burned out and sell it off in pieces, scared that I'll kill myself by knocking over the jack. Just scared...






Ok, I guess we can get to the car portion of this thread. Haha...I won't tell you about my fears for at least a week!

Unlike so many of you, I didn't own very many tools. So, that was the first order of business. Since November, I've tooled up. Got my compressor, blast cabinet, welder, engine hoist, stand, I had to run 220 to the garage, air tools blah blah blah. The "shop" is my 2 car attached garage. I also have a storage unit so I'm not tripping over crap in the garage. I ordered most of the metal I'm going to need last week. New hood, floor, LH inner fender, trunk extensions, LH outer wheel house, and the 4 window corner pieces on the deck filler. It should be here by Friday. Yesterday, I started disassembly.


This is the first time I saw the car:

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At home snuggled in my garage:

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My engine at the storage unit:

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My First blasting job in the cabinet:

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How it looked as of yesterday:

IMG_0909.jpg





I'll try to tell you more later...I think I've rambled on enough. If you want to see any pictures of anything specific, let me know.
 
Great story Capt. Welcome to the site. You will find lots of help and advise on this site. If you take your time and try not to get to frustrated , you can do this. Just take in some of the advise of others , and follow general safety rules when working. Check out some Build Threads on this site also. You could even check mine if you like. The Golden Rottisserie Chicken. Hope that helps some
 
Hello Capt - from a fellow Ohioan. Love the car - love the story, which has a lot in common with where I've been and what I'm working on right now as well. I just posted yesterday on the start of my 67 project. Good luck as you start on yours and please don't kick any jackstands!

Mark
 
Thanks, I've checked out all the resto's on this site...and I think the work and skill is something to be admired! You all do an amazing job at bringing these cars back to life.


I have been keeping a personal blog on Facebook. You'll find those status updates below:

Nov 23rd: Day 1: Pulled the 1969 Roadrunner in the garage. 4 year restoration starts now!

Dec 29th: Day 37: First restoration catalouge arrived today!

Jan 2nd: Day 41: Picked up a sandblasting cabinet today along with some body hammers and dollies. Engine stand is in place. Hopefully get the welder and large compressor tomorrow. Still on track to start disassembly in mid march.

Jan 4th: Day 43: got the engine hoist tonight! May have to start disassembly earlier than thought. Might pull the engine Sunday.

Jan 8th: Day 47: It's out! The Engine came out today...no issues!

Jan 15th: Day 54: most major tools have been purchased. I have to run 220 to the garage this week. This will run the welder and compressor. I'll end up blasting the car in April. I won't be able to blast the car in the garage, we'll have to do that outside. So, I got some research to do on blast media. Since I won't be able to collect the media from the ground, it must be biodegradable. Corn cob or walnut shell seems to be the most practicable in this situation. Next update soon...

Feb 8th: assembled the blast cabinet. 220v was run to the garage today. We're on hold until it warms up...at which point I can kick (my wife's) car out of the garage.

Feb 18th: Day 87: took inventory of some extra parts and moved them to the storage unit. Started doing some disassembly today. Still debating which media we are going to use for blasting. Roughly a month and a half before we do that.

Feb 21st: Day 90: Today I spent only 1 hour in the garage....but it was a good hour. I got the welder set up and tested my electrician job on the 220 I ran...didn't burn the house down! Only made a small bead on the drivers side door using flux core wire....I still have to hook up the gas to officially make it a MIG welder. It's funny how something so insignificant can change my mood....a real sense of accomplishment, even though I hardly accomplished anything.

March 6th: Day 104: My wifes truck is officially out of the garage until next winter. The car was moved to the middle of the garage to give ample space on both sides to work. I moved the blast cabinet and compressor over from the storage unit. I also built a nice work bench tonight. I have a few other small things to arrange in the garage, build a welding cart etc. We're only days away before we start tearing her down.

March 7th: Day 105: The compressor is working!!! Set up the blast booth and bought my first bag of media. First order of business was to test the booth. This is a before and after of the fender tag. This tag decodes the options the car was born with. I'm not sure if anyone is paying attention to these updates anymore, but I want to continue documenting the progress somehow and hopefully entertain a couple of friends in the process.

March 11th: Day 109: Disassembly!!!
 
AYE AYE CAP'N...... looks to me like you got a good start on things. Dont be scared.....HE WHO MAKES NO MISTAKES IS NOT DOING ANYTHING. you will learn about this car as you go. its a simple machine. you are in the right place to keep mistakes to a minimum. anything you are about to embark ( capn joke there)... one or all of us has already went through. TOOLS TOOLS TOOLS...ya gotta have em. nothing to be scared of here....your efforts and labors will be your just rewards...i guarantee it and im sure all here will also. best of luck and the best advice i can give you is this.....IF IT DONT LOOK LIKE ITS GONNA FLY,,,,IT PROBABLY WONT !
 
:sSig_welcometoourcl:tiphat: nice looking pretty clean ,enjoy :headbang:
 
Welcome to the site Capt-Culver and good to see you found your dream. Like the other fella's said, lotta great folks around with a lot of experience willing to help you out if the need arises.

Looks to me you got a good start by getting some tools and adequate space to do the work. Often over looked, those elements are just as important to the resto, as the car itself. Being oraganized and having a plan (which you're well on your way), is another important variable.

As far as being scared and wondering if you're bitting off more than you can chew, well.....such is life isn't it? It's all about how you approach it, your willingness to learn and obviously work. When you really start rolling on the car, try to stay focused on one thing at a time. Trying to compute all the variables at once will simply overwhem you and possibly throw a railroad tie in you momentum and morale.

Formulate a plan in such that it will create a work flow....Trying to replace a panel back there, then patch up here, then change that part over there will leave you bouncing all over the car and trying to remember where you left off to begin with. If you focus your efforts on a specific task, you're destin to do a much better job than trying to stretch your skills over 10 things at once. And moving from one area onto the next in a flowing fashion will keep you familiarized with the area.

I guess those are some key things that come to my mind that are not really technical, but create the foundation for restoring a car. After doing this for years now, I too find myself nervous in situations, wondering if I bit more off more than I can chew, but it's actually pretty easy to settle the nerves knowing I got great guys here that would back me up. Also, if a guy puts his mind to something, he can accomplish anything. You just gotta want it enough and are willing to put in the effort.

I'm sure you'll pull through just fine. Just remeber we're here to help if need be, questions arise..ask away
 
Welcome to the site Capt-Culver and good to see you found your dream. Like the other fella's said, lotta great folks around with a lot of experience willing to help you out if the need arises.

Looks to me you got a good start by getting some tools and adequate space to do the work. Often over looked, those elements are just as important to the resto, as the car itself. Being oraganized and having a plan (which you're well on your way), is another important variable.

As far as being scared and wondering if you're bitting off more than you can chew, well.....such is life isn't it? It's all about how you approach it, your willingness to learn and obviously work. When you really start rolling on the car, try to stay focused on one thing at a time. Trying to compute all the variables at once will simply overwhem you and possibly throw a railroad tie in you momentum and morale.

Formulate a plan in such that it will create a work flow....Trying to replace a panel back there, then patch up here, then change that part over there will leave you bouncing all over the car and trying to remember where you left off to begin with. If you focus your efforts on a specific task, you're destin to do a much better job than trying to stretch your skills over 10 things at once. And moving from one area onto the next in a flowing fashion will keep you familiarized with the area.

I guess those are some key things that come to my mind that are not really technical, but create the foundation for restoring a car. After doing this for years now, I too find myself nervous in situations, wondering if I bit more off more than I can chew, but it's actually pretty easy to settle the nerves knowing I got great guys here that would back me up. Also, if a guy puts his mind to something, he can accomplish anything. You just gotta want it enough and are willing to put in the effort.

I'm sure you'll pull through just fine. Just remeber we're here to help if need be, questions arise..ask away

X2
 
Best of luck to you Capt!

I have been where you are now, saying "what the he77 am I doing, am I crazy?"

You are off to a good start, in my opinion. To add to some of the other good advice already given, I'll add one other thing:

The road to restore a car is a long one. If you only keep sight of the end goal, you might get frustrated. Make small goals along the way AND THEN CELEBRATE when you achieve them. It may seem kind of stupid, but this helps keep the motivation going.

I am sure your car will turn out great! Have fun and don't be afraid to make mistakes - we all do...

Hawk
 
Welcome Capt., as stated earlier..just take your time and learn from what you are doing. There will be days when you are so frustrated you can scream and in that case turn off the lights, close the door and walk away for the evening. There are times when walking away is the smartest thing to do especially when you are to tired to think straight.....been there done that.
Take photos as you take things apart for future reference, there will be so many parts that you will not remember everything. Bag and tag smaller parts and get a few sturdy boxes or totes with lids to put everything into, number them and make a list of what is in each tote by number. When its all painted and ready to go together set up priorities as to what parts are needed next. You will be fine, ask questions about things you don't understand or have you confused, we have all been there at one time or another.:icon_study:
 
Capt, You have a nice project there.. One of my all time favorite cars. These guys have givin you some great advice, no way i could add to it.. Ill say this you may think you have bitten off more then you can chew, but i think we can all say that, or have in the past. Once i bought a basket case Chevelle that included a frame, glass and part of the body, absolutely nothing else and took years to do, It wasn't until after i was done, inspected, insured and plated that i found out my wife, my friends and the guy who owns a garage that delivered it told me they thought i bit more off then i could chew, the guy that delivered it was the first one i visited and he had the 2 mechanics that worked for him come out and he explained what i started with.. That alone made all the difference with me remembering those days you will say that. Good luck to you sir, you have my attention with the updates...
 
Thanks

Thank you all for the motivation....it's truely inspiring!



Day 111: Interior trim, exterior trim and dash came out today....



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Hey Capt. Culver, congrats on your find. I have a hunch you found this in Indiana. I went and looked at and did buy some of the parts from this car last year. Just curious, did you get this car Indiana?
 
Hey Capt. Culver, congrats on your find. I have a hunch you found this in Indiana. I went and looked at and did buy some of the parts from this car last year. Just curious, did you get this car Indiana?

Yep! Got it in southern Indiana, about 45 mins west of Cinci. What parts did you get off it? It's not missing much. Missing the z bar, shifter, aigrabber box and air cleaner.
 
I thought i recongnized it. Congrats, keep us updated with pics. Im have my pics and updates posted here as well. I think i got fender from that car. I bought a bunch parts from him and alot of other people as well. Hard to remember exactly what i got where. I like making road the road trips cause you never know what you might find or run into. If you end up needing some parts let me know . I do have a very workable air grabber hood with inserts still attached. I will have extras parts between my 69 and 70 resto projects just let me know and maybe i can help you with something... Good luck.
 
solid looking car you should be fine. try not to get to frustrated when things don't go acording to plan, and try to do things in steps if you can it will make it seem less daunting. i remember the first time i cut the rear quarters off of a car.. i thought i had killed it! if i have any advice at all it would be take your time and ask as many questions as you can.
 
Doors

I was able to get a couple of hours in the garage today and stripped the doors... found a lot of bondo and rust, not sure if I'll be able to save them.

On a side note, I broke a couple of studs today. Does anyone know if there is an aftermarket provider for this support bracket that came out of the door?


IMG_0944.jpg


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And before they were blasted....yuck!



IMG_0946.jpg
 
Your best bet is probably to just put a new stud in it, or try and find a good used one.
 
Day 113: AMD sheet metal arrives! Woohoo


Thanks again guys!

After blasting and before epoxy primer, I've read that I should wipe the body down with a de-waxing / de-greasing agent. Is this accurate? Is there any negative side effects with this process?
 
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