64fury74charger
Well-Known Member
These cars are never really done, and that’s part of the challenges that keep us going because we are hooked.
The first "Hawk-Rod" resurrection, Roadkill style
- Thread starter HawkRod
- Start date
These cars are never really done, and that’s part of the challenges that keep us going because we are hooked.
64fury74charger
Well-Known Member
My car is calling but I need dry weather because it’s outside and doesn’t fit in the little garage. Hopefully dry this weekend.
So I've been grinding, bending metal and welding today. A lot! 
First of all, I am no bodywork guy. But I have bent and tack welded 7 different pieces of metal to replace what the tin worm has eaten.
There is still a lot of work left. I have to clean up and weld in a triangular piece on the bottom. But mostly, I need to add tack welds all the way around, as well as finish filling the plug welds. Then I will grind like a madman, weld up remaining holes, and rinse and repeat until it is smooth, blended in, and solid. Finally, I'll spray some undercoating to hide whatever sins my shitty welding and bodywork have left.
It most assuredly won't look perfect, but will hopefully be passable and it will be water tight!
No work tomorrow since I am helping my son move, so I will get back on it on Monday.
First of all, I am no bodywork guy. But I have bent and tack welded 7 different pieces of metal to replace what the tin worm has eaten.
There is still a lot of work left. I have to clean up and weld in a triangular piece on the bottom. But mostly, I need to add tack welds all the way around, as well as finish filling the plug welds. Then I will grind like a madman, weld up remaining holes, and rinse and repeat until it is smooth, blended in, and solid. Finally, I'll spray some undercoating to hide whatever sins my shitty welding and bodywork have left.
It most assuredly won't look perfect, but will hopefully be passable and it will be water tight!
No work tomorrow since I am helping my son move, so I will get back on it on Monday.
I didn't know that a pidgeon could **** on a vertical surface!
JDmac72chrgr
Well-Known Member
ROADKILL!!! It doesn't have to be purty, FUNCTIONAL & WATERTIGHT YES. Save the purty for its resto. Functional for now, it's outta sight, put it outta mind and get it on da road. FOCUS!! ROAD TRIP!!
Alittle motivational push for ya Hawk.
. No worries, when @eldubb440 sees it, he'll bust on ya!!
Alittle motivational push for ya Hawk.
. No worries, when @eldubb440 sees it, he'll bust on ya!!
yeah, or give you a RED "X"!
Taking liberties from one of my favorite movies:
Drive Hawk, drive!!!!
Drive Hawk, drive!!!!
Geez. So you guys won't hire me for bodywork then?!? 
I'll get back on this tomorrow (had to help my son move today). Now remember @zyzzyx that pigeon lives matter too!
It will look a bit better once I have added all the tack welds and the ground them down, shaped and improved the metal. Yes, it will still suck compared to a "proper" repair, but I don't have time for that. Plus, this is RoadKill, so the rule here is to get done what you need to get this crate on the road!
More updates tomorrow...
And, yes: WHERE THE HELL IS @eldubb440 WHEN YOU NEED HIM?!?!?
I'll get back on this tomorrow (had to help my son move today). Now remember @zyzzyx that pigeon lives matter too!
It will look a bit better once I have added all the tack welds and the ground them down, shaped and improved the metal. Yes, it will still suck compared to a "proper" repair, but I don't have time for that. Plus, this is RoadKill, so the rule here is to get done what you need to get this crate on the road!
More updates tomorrow...
And, yes: WHERE THE HELL IS @eldubb440 WHEN YOU NEED HIM?!?!?
Just Bustin yer Chops! You've done fantastic on the whole project so far! Wish I could get
as much done as you have Hawk. And I'm retired!!!!!
as much done as you have Hawk. And I'm retired!!!!!
64fury74charger
Well-Known Member
Geez. So you guys won't hire me for bodywork then?!?
I'll get back on this tomorrow (had to help my son move today). Now remember @zyzzyx that pigeon lives matter too!
It will look a bit better once I have added all the tack welds and the ground them down, shaped and improved the metal. Yes, it will still suck compared to a "proper" repair, but I don't have time for that. Plus, this is RoadKill, so the rule here is to get done what you need to get this crate on the road!
More updates tomorrow...
And, yes: WHERE THE HELL IS @eldubb440 WHEN YOU NEED HIM?!?!?
You probably don’t want to see what’s under that vinyl wrap on my Charger because I did my own body work and patching and really tried to get the areas as smooth as I could. Besides the vinyl helps protect the body from the elements. Saved some money as well.
It great to have a really nice restored car. My 70 is like that.You probably don’t want to see what’s under that vinyl wrap on my Charger because I did my own body work and patching and really tried to get the areas as smooth as I could. Besides the vinyl helps protect the body from the elements. Saved some money as well.
But there is plenty of room for less than perfect cars that are driven. We all do what we can with the funds, time and skill we have. I don't look down on anyone who has put their blood, sweat and tears into making their car the best it can be based on their circumstances.
Today I spent welding, grinding, welding, grinding, etc. until there were no pin holes left in the rust repair area. It was a pain because some of the metal was thin and in some cases I blew through the metal. My welder only has for distinct settings, A - D, and no settings in between. In the B setting I blew through easily, and on the A setting I didn't feel I had quite enough power to weld well. So it fought me, but I finally got it all welded up, and (somewhat) ground down. Then I covered up my sins with copious amounts of undercoating!
Here is the final result. No it doesn't look factory, but hopefully it doesn't look so horrible so as to totally detract from the area in case someone chooses to remove a wheel and inspect the area!
Most importantly, I feel fairly confident that the leak has been addressed. Now to wait for my axles, and hopefully on Wednesday or Thursday I can get get my axles and get them back in the car.
RoadKill - coming to a town near you!!!
Here is the final result. No it doesn't look factory, but hopefully it doesn't look so horrible so as to totally detract from the area in case someone chooses to remove a wheel and inspect the area!
Most importantly, I feel fairly confident that the leak has been addressed. Now to wait for my axles, and hopefully on Wednesday or Thursday I can get get my axles and get them back in the car.
RoadKill - coming to a town near you!!!
JDmac72chrgr
Well-Known Member
BEEN THERE, DONE THAT TOO HAWK!! Welder same, A not enough, B "HOLES", learned how to fill holes, KINDA!! UUUGGGLLLYYY!! Underside of floor looked liked Crystal Cave with all the slag-tights! No water leaks, JOB DONE, GOOD TO GO. Panel bond WAS my friend. Can't see your patch job from Oklahoma. I'll show @eldubb440 the pics, so be ready for razzing, when I see Mark.
Ha! It actually DOES look factory!
Well, I got the axles in.
You guessed it. The vibration is still there. I checked driveline angles and it looked like the engine/ trans were not quite parallel and that the pinion needed to be angled down by 2 degrees. I added two degree shims to the leaf springs, and that did basically jack s**t.
I really don't know what else to do. I will post a new thread to see if I can get any other ideas. Best idea I have at this point is to recreate the Dukes of Hazzard episode when Daisy Duke lost her 73 over a cliff.....
64fury74charger
Well-Known Member
View attachment 1277781
Well, I got the axles in.
You guessed it. The vibration is still there. I checked driveline angles and it looked like the engine/ trans were not quite parallel and that the pinion needed to be angled down by 2 degrees. I added two degree shims to the leaf springs, and that did basically jack s**t.
I really don't know what else to do. I will post a new thread to see if I can get any other ideas. Best idea I have at this point is to recreate the Dukes of Hazzard episode when Daisy Duke lost her 73 over a cliff.....
May I ask you to describe the vibration and how it either varies or does it seem to feel constant when it develops? There has to be something causing it.
There are two elements to the vibration:
(a) At around 60 MPH, there is a harmonic vibration. This vibration oscillates in a rhythmic pattern. Tough to describe in words, but rrrRRRRrrr... rrrRRRRrrr... I would guess the harmonic is maybe 70 to 90 cycles per minute (each rrrRRRRrrr cycle). This vibration has been there since the mid-90s when I "restored" the car.
(b) When accelerating slowly, no issue. When accelerating hard, there is constant hard vibration. This vibration is fairly new since I have been playing with driveline angles to try and fix issue (a). This vibration occurred when I shimmed the rear of the transmission up too high. I since have removed those shims, but then I removed the ISO suspension and that has dropped down the axle and I assume has created the issue again. After measuring driveline angles, I added 2 degree shims to shim the pinion down 2 degrees. No appreciable change that I can feel.
Thanks for the suggestion, but the issue was there before the Gear Vendor's overdrive, and it did not change when I added the Gear Vendor's overdrive. Removing the overdrive is a significantly time consuming task, so I can't see how that will help me at this point, as I feel I've already been there - done that.
Sorry to hear that all of that did nothing for you. The bent axle probably would have caused
a problem down the road, (No pun intended!) so that's been fixed. I had an old friend that
told me that if I couldn't find the problem, leave it alone. It will either get better or worse!
At this point you'll have everyone across the U.S.A. trying to help you as you travel west.
Someone undoubtedly will figure it out! Good luck Hawk.
a problem down the road, (No pun intended!) so that's been fixed. I had an old friend that
told me that if I couldn't find the problem, leave it alone. It will either get better or worse!
At this point you'll have everyone across the U.S.A. trying to help you as you travel west.
Someone undoubtedly will figure it out! Good luck Hawk.
Hawk, I think you are going the wrong way with the shims. You moved the back of the trans down, then you moved the nose if the pinion down, making the relative angles the same. Try leaving the trans the same and go the other way with the pinion. Worth a shot?
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