Talladega or Bust - 1970 Super Bird Cleanup

[dadsbee]

Thanks, but only my wife is supposed to watch my bird get ready!!

 

[dadsbee]

I've always been missing this screw in the door latch.. just never did anything about it until now. Some tool stripped it.. so I tapped it 1/4-28, up from 10-32. Top bolt had a 1/4" body bolt in it and figured I may as well do the lower right while I was there too.

I have tens of thousands of aircraft bolts, screws, etc, and some AN509's worked nice to look stock. If anyone else is in this boat just ask and I'll send you some C/S screws.

Cleaning up the hood, so I can cover it up!

Helping hands with the hood pad.

What a POS this $$$ pad is. Brittle as spaghetti. Sure glad I sprayed it with clear to at least get the "dust" to stop and bond it some what together.

I highly suggest you leave out the one clip in the "indent" and just leave the pad to go straight across.

I managed to fix the cracked/broken hood pad somewhat with contact cement.

I then later added to the repair with some 5 minute, gap filling, epoxy I had mixed up for something else. It seemed to bond it well and bonus was it's greyish/black colour.

Pad certainly cleans up the look of the hood, and hides the only place you could see that the car was originally EW1 White. How long this piece of junk holds up is another thing. Totally disappointed in REM !

When hammering on the hood pad clips I noticed acorns dancing past the reinforcing holes. Spent 2+ hours doing this removing acorns and a mouse nest.

 

[dadsbee]

Miserable little pests...

How they carry Acorns is always baffling.

I just can't leave well enough alone... and one of the few good uses for WD40.. cleans cast aluminum WELL.

Don't want it too good, or I'll be pulling the engine and repainting it next!

Pulley painted, ready to re-install.... when a longer bolt gets here so I can line up the belt correctly.

 

[khryslerkid]

What a POS this $$$ pad is. Brittle as spaghetti. Sure glad I sprayed it with clear to at least get the "dust" to stop and bond it some what together.

Don't know if Detroit Muscle carries this one. Might consider him if you plan on changing it in the future. I know he is a stickler for oe correct, looks and fitment. I got one of his first hood pads for the 1962 and it's spot on. Nice material and is not like the competition's piece that's too thick and fuzzy. His body gaskets, welting ect. are nice pieces too.

 

[dadsbee]

Was the ONLY moulded pad I could find at the time.. from REM. Considering their other products, I expected much better, especially after the hoops and expense I went through to have it shipped to Duluth...then my buddy going across the border to get it and then reshipping again. Then add on top I had to buy correct clips... and I won't say how fun those were getting in! Glad there was 3 spares!

 

[dadsbee]

29 year old radiator seals.. thought I should finally install at least the top one.

29 year old foam seals, we'll see if the peel and stick still works!

Looks like we're good!

Latch tray is off, may as well dolly the dings, sand out the paint and then paint it correct for it's last install.

Underside is typical of Chrysler, a shot of Black paint with no primer... just like the dash frames.

After clean up, shot the underside with SEM trim black and out baking in the sun. Top side is going to need some build primer, sanding and final semi glass paint.

OE shoulder belt.

Can't remember if I bought this trunk mat in '90 or if it was in the car... anyone know correct patterns?

Close up of the trunk mat pattern.

 

[dadsbee]

Some day I'll learn that attempted short cuts in paint only take 5 x as long! Thought I'd just build up the low spots with primer and ^%$%*(@$ ! After hours of sanding yesterday to boot.

Do it once.. do it right...

Been a while since I found a good stripper! Burns skin.. right through gloves!

Paint off and a bit of rust clean up with the spot gun and crushed glass.

Now we can paint.

Had to redo the bottom first with SEM Trim... as the stripper got a few spots.

Duplicolor self etching primer first.

Then CDA1603 Semi-Gloss on top. Just enough dirt and pollen in it that it might look OE !

New battery tray in place and since I'd just repainted the inner fender, to clean up a battery blow up mess from decades ago, figured I'd do it too to make it correct in body colour.

Not perfect, but if you've ever tried to match Yellow... and in enamel to boot... it looks pretty good.

 

[dadsbee]

I'm a flat surface addict, what can I say. Gone for a week and thought a good start was cleaning this all up.

..but I know where everything is...

Thanks to Joe and Bryan for sending me a bolt each, so I can move my alternator out where it belongs. Guessing my cars bolt broke off at some point and was reused a 1/2" shorter...

One with correct head and the other is newer but still an H head... so I have a spare for the tool box.

New battery cables from Brewer's. The most correct I've been able to find (and what I used on the Bee) other than they use a black wire instead of brown for the starter solenoid feed.

A few hours on a hot afternoon and I have a pecking order again.

 

[dadsbee]

Figured with the alternator out I may as well install a long missing vapour seperator. I obtained a correctly manufactured one from Jeff Brown at 521Restoration.

Hoses on first MIGHT make it easier to install in it's crazy place, bolted to the fuel pump.

Took some tries to get the feed hose the right length, to work with the non-OEM fuel pump (barb vs threaded/metal line) but I got it cut for length to where it doesn't kink and should work fine.

I'd say my OE starter cable has been burned / cut off a few times in it's 50 year life!

New starter cable in place and the OE holding bracket on the frame is still usable.

Sorting out correct cable and vacuum hose routing.

 

[dadsbee]

I had gone up town and bought a new power steering belt on Friday and thought I had a new alternator belt the correct length. Went to install yesterday and turned out is was an inch short, story of my life. Cut grass this morning and then went and got a new belt this afternoon. That trip to town took almost 4 hours.. as I went in the Bee. Got a bit done this evening.
....................................

New belts on, alternator alignment perfect now with the longer bolt and spacers to match. Realized the power steering pump pulley has a wobble to it. Belt and pulley set up is seriously wrong on this car, but I'll just continue to make it work!

Off to the "might need it some day" crates in the hangar. Can't remember what I grabbed this off of 40 some years ago, but what are the chances it's a match??!!

How about that... time to buy a lottery ticket.

Nut off, looking for a puller that will work.

 

[dadsbee]

New exhaust heat stove ready to install.

Heat stove to air cleaner hose. Nicely exactly twice the length required = spare parts!

Heat stove, hose and air cleaner installed.

OE breather hose and clamps that I got from @Mopar John

Correct OE ribbed hose installed and note it also has a "Y" stamped on the hose.

Bit of bandsaw work to make the nose seals fit nicely and resemble how they did on the OE.

Weather strip adhesive and clamped to get the tight corner in place first.

Once the corner set, the rest was glued in place so I don't have to fight with it installing the nose. I doubt they were even glued at the factory.

Seal nicely in place, wide section IN the nose, the little filler strip between nose and fenders.

Everything tidied up and ready to put the nose back on... I hope...

 

[dadsbee]

Ah.. the crazy **** I do solo..

Line it up and play with car height. At least easier with the hoist than when I did this solo in 1990!

Just to be safe, thought I'd add some straps.

Almost into place, just working the seal over the fender lip.

Pretty much there and putting the "bumper" bolts into the frame rails.

Roughly in place, held on by the bumper to frame rail bolts.

Time for the latch tray and a shove to hold the nose up tight.

Latch tray in place with all new hardware.

Lower fender extension bolts in place and ready to move on to vacuum lines and light wiring.

Wiring and vacuum hoses run correctly with a rare unobtainium retainer.

 

[dadsbee]

Correct vacuum routing as good as I can make it with the hose lengths I have.

Headlight pods even work... and engine starts just reaching in the window and turning the key!!!

Front end all buttoned up and time to move on to the rest of the car.

New repro tail light lenses to install.

It cleaned up pretty nice.

Looks so much cleaner with the nose seals in the correct way.

Timing and emission decal installed.

 

[dadsbee]

Re and re'd the reverse lights, cleaned the lenses and tweeked the right side mounting tabs so they sit even for the first time in their lives.

New hood pin plate gaskets to install.

Figured I'm taking the plates off I may as well clean them up.

The old routine, 150, 320, 400, 800, 1000, 2000 and power polish with green for stainless.

That looks better.

Front end pretty much done and ready to go.

Installed my reproduction fender tag that David Wise did for me at MMC Detroit, only after proving absolute provenance and history of the car with 1.5 broadcast sheets, original Texas title, etc, etc. Note absolutely no attempt to fool anyone by adding inspection stamps, dinging or bending it, heavy paint, etc. Just a clear coat and bare screws. Some tag collector stole the original..

Engine compartment good to go other than I need to build an original Red capped 27 series script battery with an AGM hidden inside.

Time to get the runner back on. I was fortunate this fell off into my hand back in 2004 or so.

CAREFULLY, removing the road script. Yes I slid some paper in behind the knife..

 

[dadsbee]

New script retainers that I had obtained to do my trunk Bee on the Super Bee. I had to buy 25 minimum.

Carefully worked the old retainers off of the script with a dental pick and jewelers screw driver.

runner OE part number 2964115 Vendor 46357

road OE part number 2964115, same vendor 46357

All polished up and ready to install. Note that OE script is not smooth on the face like reproductions. Each letter has a "flow" or "roll" to it.

Hole placement for future reference and to help others after metal replacement.

Four new retainers in place in the holes.

Script carefully pushed in tight.

Tail lights and bezels removed.

Passenger side lens has been cracked since I got the car in 1990.

 

[dadsbee]

The scary part about licenced reproductions is that 40 years from now the next restorers will think they have OE parts... takes a keen eye to note the little variances.

Ready to clean up and install a new pair of lenses.

Perfectly good 1157 bulb that's apparently been rattling away inside the drivers side tail light for over 4 decades.

New lens in place.

Tail lights back in the car.

That's more like it!

Wish the car looked this clean in person.

Someone hit a curb and it wasn't me, been there since I bought the car. Time to do something about it.

Some dolly and hammer, some sanding, and some outright grinding. All while trying to keep the "steps" even.

Most of the heavy stuff cleaned up, time for the sanding routine.....tomorrow! It's 34C in the shop. At least the humidity is controlled at 32%!

 

[Hemirunner]

That car was great looking before all this. It looks exponentially better! Great work!!

 

[dadsbee]

Some dremel work with a sanding drum and we're getting close.

I bit of 150 grit hand sanding while I wait for my brake pumper to come to work.

Brake bleeder bottle ready, weighted so I don't tip it over.

What a trooper, 36C + humidity in the shop and she's off to the ceiling for well over an hour.

Can I come down yet???

Even though I fully bled the lines with vacuum, and they are full of fluid with zero air, we could not make the rear lines push anything out. An air lock in the master cylinder that bled fairly easily. I ALMOST pulled the M/C off, thinking I needed to rebuild it.

Coming down... 2 hours of yelling "IN.. and OUT", more than she ever has in our marriage!

Thanks gorgeous..

When you just can't quite reach the spot for the nut. Tack on a welding rod..

Frame rail hole stripped for the distribution block bolt, so I fed the nut in behind on the rod.

 

[dadsbee]

If you ever wonder how the mice got in your car... I never thought to look! One trunk extension missing it's plug.

Sure wish the Bee had been in this condition before restoration!

Not bad for a 50 year old car, exhaust is almost 30 years old.

Solid floor and rails.

Off the hoist and ready to clean up the interior and trunk.

Cars swapped places.

Spare tire coming out of the trunk.

Looking pretty good for a quick clean up.

Nut detail of the spare tire rods retention bolt/nut.

H head bolt and rod cleaned of paint overspray.

 

[dadsbee]

Outside for a quick photo shoot.