Dam never thought of using an old tail panel trim as a template. 1 year piece they dont reproduce. I think your good to go. I have to drill for my pentastar emblem , patch panel.
Alan's 1970 Charger Restoration
- Thread starter rklewis1005
- Start date
Not to be critical, does the body line below the rear side marker light look too sharp or bit is it just an illusion?
Good question, I'm off work today, so heading over this morning to give it a good look over before it hits the booth for primer. They were full AMD quarter panels and they were aware of not making some lines to sharp - more round like factory.
Vinylester primer for blocking. They will round out some of the body lines as they prep for paint.
no pics of the back corner lines for us tell me they didnt fill them. 
Headed back over Tuesday to drop off the square bracket for driver's side muffler mount (behind rear seat) so they can drill the holes for that. I'll take pics of those corners, but they're not filled.no pics of the back corner lines for us tell me they didnt fill them.
They sent me a picture today (Sat), so it's clear they didn't fill the end caps.no pics of the back corner lines for us tell me they didnt fill them.
Got the engine & transmission on the K-frame today.
Slowly mounting accessories. Had to add a shim under the water pump pulley, ordered alternator bolt kit (alternator was in the back seat when I got the car), and a spark plug shield for #7.
The shop has it one the rotisserie & plan for about 100-150 hours for blocking, sanding & paint it should be ready to come home for reassembly in February (planning on late Feb). Ordered replacement wheel opening molding for final test fit - too many extra holes and bends in the originals.
The shop has it one the rotisserie & plan for about 100-150 hours for blocking, sanding & paint it should be ready to come home for reassembly in February (planning on late Feb). Ordered replacement wheel opening molding for final test fit - too many extra holes and bends in the originals.
Having the engine out makes it a breeze when you work at getting the accessories lined up.
Wow!!! That is an incredible transformation in such a short period of time. Looks fantastic. The body shop earned their money on that one. All the work on the engine, trans, interior was well done as well. You'll be driving it before you know it.
Thanks - a lot of work & $$$. Looking forward to driving it. I'm planning 3-6 months reassembly, so there's an outside chance I could take it to Carlisle in July.
Bottom painted with thicker / more chip proof coating as I'm planning to drive it.
Picked up the radiator and heater core from McKinney Radiator in Forest City, NC today. Recored and looking a lot better.
Shop is still sanding and blocking. I stop by weekly to check in on it. Looking forward to seeing it in paint (TX9)!
Meanwhile, I've been purchasing and installing the missing spark plug wire brackets, heater hose bracket, and kickdown linkage. The kickdown linkage and bracket were completely removed - Alan removed them when he added a Ford carburetor. No one recalls why he did it.
Added the thicker gasket recommended by many here which allowed to choke to clear the carburetor. Special thanks to @davek for helping me figure that out Added the fuel lines & filter to the pump. The engine is getting there!
I've also been cleaning and sanding the headlight doors. Prepping them for paint. There was 1/2 a fin missing on the grille, so I tried plastic welding on some old grille sections (extra parts) to see if I could get comfortable with it. I managed to get the missing fin installed in the grille. I have a lot of sanding to do, but I believe it will work out fine and most people will never know which one it is.
Meanwhile, I've been purchasing and installing the missing spark plug wire brackets, heater hose bracket, and kickdown linkage. The kickdown linkage and bracket were completely removed - Alan removed them when he added a Ford carburetor. No one recalls why he did it.
Added the thicker gasket recommended by many here which allowed to choke to clear the carburetor. Special thanks to @davek for helping me figure that out Added the fuel lines & filter to the pump. The engine is getting there!
I've also been cleaning and sanding the headlight doors. Prepping them for paint. There was 1/2 a fin missing on the grille, so I tried plastic welding on some old grille sections (extra parts) to see if I could get comfortable with it. I managed to get the missing fin installed in the grille. I have a lot of sanding to do, but I believe it will work out fine and most people will never know which one it is.
Still working on the headlight doors & grill. I'm estimating about 2 weeks before it's ready for paint. I've been using red Scotch-Brite pads to remove the old paint. My plan is to use grey Scotch-brite pads next, then go over it with 1000 grit sandpaper.
I noticed that the area near a bracket hole appears to be broken or notched. It's the same on both ends, and the other grille I have shows the same notch. The notch looks rough, like it broke, but I'm wondering if it's some kind of rough notch the factory did. Anyone have another 70 grill to compare?
I noticed that the area near a bracket hole appears to be broken or notched. It's the same on both ends, and the other grille I have shows the same notch. The notch looks rough, like it broke, but I'm wondering if it's some kind of rough notch the factory did. Anyone have another 70 grill to compare?
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The shop provided another update - getting close to paint.
"I'm going to go ahead and get the rest of the paint materials ordered and mix the paint. After today the exterior body will be ready for a final grit sand that's ready for paint. Then we will take it apart and finish up some detail in the jambs and start painting after that."
They will still be toning down body lines before paint.
"I'm going to go ahead and get the rest of the paint materials ordered and mix the paint. After today the exterior body will be ready for a final grit sand that's ready for paint. Then we will take it apart and finish up some detail in the jambs and start painting after that."
They will still be toning down body lines before paint.
Not a whole lot to report this week. They are still preparing for painting, conducting the final test fit, and drilling the missing holes (such as the reverse light wires and accelerator pedal, etc.). Since it should be coming home in 3-4 weeks, I took a break from sanding the grill and started tackling the garage cleanup.
After 2 years of cleaning/blasting/sanding/painting parts, my garage has a thick layer of dust on everything. I want a clean area for reassembly, so no time like the present. I believe a lot of the dust came from the blasting cabinet, so I fixed that first. Replaced seals, put RTV along some joints, and added a homemade cyclone dust collector. I followed online DIY videos using an old Evapo Rust 5-gallon bucket and my Shop Vac. I added a motor speed regulator to reduce the suction. When I ran it at full blast, it was too much. I need it to collect the dust and keep it contained to that area, not pull the gloves out of the holders. I ordered a set of retractable casters that will arrive today. That should make it easy to move and keep it out of the way. I may even do my blasting in the driveway to keep my garage clean.
I'm throwing stuff away that I don't need/use and adding a bit of organization. I should be done cleaning by the end of this weekend, including painting most of the walls.
After 2 years of cleaning/blasting/sanding/painting parts, my garage has a thick layer of dust on everything. I want a clean area for reassembly, so no time like the present. I believe a lot of the dust came from the blasting cabinet, so I fixed that first. Replaced seals, put RTV along some joints, and added a homemade cyclone dust collector. I followed online DIY videos using an old Evapo Rust 5-gallon bucket and my Shop Vac. I added a motor speed regulator to reduce the suction. When I ran it at full blast, it was too much. I need it to collect the dust and keep it contained to that area, not pull the gloves out of the holders. I ordered a set of retractable casters that will arrive today. That should make it easy to move and keep it out of the way. I may even do my blasting in the driveway to keep my garage clean.
I'm throwing stuff away that I don't need/use and adding a bit of organization. I should be done cleaning by the end of this weekend, including painting most of the walls.
You are nearing the best part of building these car. Final assembly of a freshly painted car!
Finished cleaning out the garage. I wiped down everything and painted the 3 big walls. I may paint the other wall when I'm feeling ambitious - it has the doors on it so a lot more taping and messing around. I replaced the 2nd fluorescent ballast with a smaller/brighter LED light and moved both of the LED lights about a foot closer to the doors. It's much brighter and will be great during reassembly. I still have a movable/adjustable floor LED set for additional area lighting.
Since the weather was nice over the weekend (70s on Sunday), I was able to paint the front splash shields, bumper/filler brackets, and the exhaust/fuel tank restraint bracket. I used Eastwood Chassis Black Primer and Paint. I used the Chassis Black "Satin" and it came out looking more semi-gloss. It's exactly how it hoped it would look. I was using the Seymour high-tech black semi-gloss, but in my experience, it scratches/chips more easily than the Eastwood Chassis black.
I'm still sanding away at the grille fins. I wonder if I'm overdoing what's necessary. I plan to sand it/remove all the existing paint, then use SEM adhesive promoter, SEM Trim Black, and SEM Clear as a final coat. I'm considering using SEM High Build Primer, but don't really want to resand the entire thing afterwards. Has anyone sanded a grille/removed all the paint and repainted? I plan to try painting a piece of a broken grille 3 different ways: 1) Not removing all the paint - just sand/smooth/clean, 2) Removing all paint without High-Build Primer, and 3) removing all paint with High-Build Primer (I may have to order some, so I'll try just 1 and 2 first). I'm likely overthinking it, but since the 70 Grille is one of the first things you see, I want it to be as good as I can make it.
Since the weather was nice over the weekend (70s on Sunday), I was able to paint the front splash shields, bumper/filler brackets, and the exhaust/fuel tank restraint bracket. I used Eastwood Chassis Black Primer and Paint. I used the Chassis Black "Satin" and it came out looking more semi-gloss. It's exactly how it hoped it would look. I was using the Seymour high-tech black semi-gloss, but in my experience, it scratches/chips more easily than the Eastwood Chassis black.
I'm still sanding away at the grille fins. I wonder if I'm overdoing what's necessary. I plan to sand it/remove all the existing paint, then use SEM adhesive promoter, SEM Trim Black, and SEM Clear as a final coat. I'm considering using SEM High Build Primer, but don't really want to resand the entire thing afterwards. Has anyone sanded a grille/removed all the paint and repainted? I plan to try painting a piece of a broken grille 3 different ways: 1) Not removing all the paint - just sand/smooth/clean, 2) Removing all paint without High-Build Primer, and 3) removing all paint with High-Build Primer (I may have to order some, so I'll try just 1 and 2 first). I'm likely overthinking it, but since the 70 Grille is one of the first things you see, I want it to be as good as I can make it.
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