Don's 1969 Charger Restoration

[mopar4don]

Great job as usual Don! Your thread inspired me to go in as deep as I did on my car!

Oooo sorry??

Well done Don!

Thanks

Very nice work!

Thank you sir!

Holy smokes Don. And I thought I was being **** when I put my cars together, but you are kicking my butt. Pretty low percentage of these cars driving around with the insides of their doors as nice as yours. Big thumbs up to you .

Thanks Joel! I sure miss reading and getting inspired by your thread (I still refer to it from time to time)

Thanks Don...... I still am planning to visit you, maybe when I do you can show me your car?

Thanks for the pictures! Know I know where the brackets go!

Glad to help!

 

[threewood]

Ok, more random pictures showing patching the inner door
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Measured and transfered the holes for the door seal
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Those door repairs look great! I did the same on mine, had to patch the front and rear lower corners and a few weatherstrip holes. Much cheaper than skins and I actually enjoyed doing it. You're making nice headway, keep it up.

 

[mopar4don]

My door skins came in

I removed these brackets from the top window edge of the old door skins

 

[eldubb440]

My door skins came in

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I removed these brackets from the top window edge of the old door skins

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I need a right and left set of those if you have any junk doors hanging around

 

[mopar4don]

Those door repairs look great! I did the same on mine, had to patch the front and rear lower corners and a few weatherstrip holes. Much cheaper than skins and I actually enjoyed doing it. You're making nice headway, keep it up.

Thanks threewood!

I need a right and left set of those if you have any junk doors hanging around

eldubb440 let me check this weekend and if I don't get back to you send me a reminder

 

[SGTPaul]

Nice work Don. Happy Easter to ya!

 

[Moparstyle]

Great project very nice work will definitely be watching this build good luck

 

[mopar4don]

Nice work Don. Happy Easter to ya!

Thanks Sarge, hope you had a great Easter

Great project very nice work will definitely be watching this build good luck

Thank you sir

 

[mopar4don]

So once I got them were I liked them I welded them in.
(I had to assemble the glass and vent wing to make sure they were in position)

 

[mopar4don]

Then I punched some holes in around the perimeter of the door skin (for plug welding)

Next I installed the sound deadening pads

 

[mopar4don]

And then I installed the skin, bending over the lip.
I used a hammer and dolly, and a hockey puck for a dolly. I was very careful bending a little at a time. Checking my progress along the bottom with a straight edge. (level)

I will hold off on welding the door skin until I get all of the panels on and fitted. This will give me a little bit of adjustment with the skin.
It all turned out very well!

 

[dadsbee]

Great stuff Don! I was just going to say.. leave it loose until you can line up the "line" with quarter and fender!

 

[mopar4don]

Great stuff Don! I was just going to say.. leave it loose until you can line up the "line" with quarter and fender!

Thank you sir. Some one else gave me that advise. So that's what I did.

 

[pat1969charger]

Looking great Don! Must feel really
Good to be looking at a almost
Comeplete body. I have been really slacking on mine the last year. Keep up the great work!

 

[mopar4don]

Looking great Don! Must feel really
Good to be looking at a almost
Comeplete body. I have been really slacking on mine the last year. Keep up the great work!

Hey thanks Pat, It does feel good to look at it and it appears to be a full body.
In reality it is far from it. The good news is winter is over and I can get back to fitting the body panels!

 

[daytona kid]

Beautiful stuff Don!

 

[mopar4don]

Thanks!

 

[RT68440]

Looking good Don. After I get my trunk lid back together I'm going to pull the skins off of my doors to clean inside of the folds and reinstall them as well as pull the headlight buckets out of the fenders. Your pics of the process will help me with that as not many people do it or if they do they don't document it.

 

[mopar4don]

Update-
I layed out my steering column parts to reassemble.
note: I used this article to help me in reassembly
http://moparconnectionmagazine.com/...-restoration-turn-signal-switch-installation/

I then inserted the tube into the column and slid the spring over the end

next I slid the lower bearing on and bolted it up

Next I inserted the shaft. Don't do it like I did or you will have to unbolt the lower bearing and slide it over the shaft and then re-bolt it to the column (because of the drive dogs on the shaft)

Now on this side of the column is most of the work

First the lower collar goes on

then the upper

here are the parts we need to assemble

start with the c-clip (this helps to prevent the upper bearing from going to far)

 

[mopar4don]

next on is the upper bearing. (I applied a light coat of grease to help it slide)

next I carefully tapped the bearing into place.
In this pic I used the old bearing against the new bearing along with a deep well socket, this way I was pushing on the inner race.

next is the upper retaining clip

then the bearing insulator goes on over the bearing

next is the hardest part! bolting the collars together. This may take a lot of trial and error to get it right

then the turn signal switch goes in held by the retainer

next I put the wire cover on

and the lower black plastic cover