1966 Dodge Dart

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Did you sand the chrome off the bezels and polish the pot metal? I have seen that done and it works well!
 
Man, this looks very good! You have great talent! Keep up the good work! I look forward to seeing this at the track! Where is your nearest Drag strip? I am working on a 66 also, The underside is blasted and painted with "Chassis Black" It is nice stuff, much like the POR 15 but less expensive! Also note, USCAR Tool has kits for the "A" body for leaf spring relocation. They make a great kit. Much easier to locate, and weld due to the index plates which are laser cut on the boxes and the shackle mounts. I am nowhere near as far as your project, however I have "vision" and looking at your work gives us "all" more vision of how to hotrod the early "A" bodies...keep up the great work. Also included is one pix of my 65 GT car "fat tire" and lots of small block go!

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Toolmanmike, No I didnt sand the chrome off but have considered that on some of my worse tail lights. The ones you are seeing are actually ones that I was lucky to find from a guy in Phoenix that he had sold his car and had those left in his garage that he was going to use and never got around to it. If the person that is interested in my old tail lights decides he doesnt want them I will have to try polishing the pot metal. These parts are so hard to come by now a days!
Rob- the nearest drag strip is Cecil county Maryland. About 45 minutes from my house. I havent been there in 30+ years! But I hope to get there this year and also race while there!! I already did the relocation of the springs. Lots of cutting and welding was required. I've never driven this car since its purchased so I look forward to that day. I like your 65. Wish mine was at that point.
Rod
 
you keep up the good work! It will be there soon! All good projects take time and effort! You have a good thing going!
 

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When the wife gets home tonight I hope to go out to the shed and finish welding the inner fenders. Last night I finished cutting pieces and tacking them in place. The passenger side seems to have gone much better then the drivers side went. I couldnt imagine how much easier it would be if I had the correct tools! Here are the pics of the passenger side without the final welding done. YOu can see in the first pic the smaller lips I made then tacked them in place. Then I just cut and fit pieces to fill in. Once done I will use seam sealer and paint the inner fender.
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I'll update tomorrow after i hopefully get the welding completed.
Thanks for following
Rod
 
When I extended the rear wheel openings on my 65, I choose to NOT put the trunk extensions back in. I feel this is where all the moisture sits and then you know what happens next! RUST!. So I simply made braces out of round rod at the front & rear of the quarter panel where the trunk extensions would have been used for support. I heated the round rod on the ends and forged a "flat" then drilled and taped the ends for 1/4 X 20 bolts. Bent the ends to pick up the angles necessary for the frame and quarter panel. Much like the Dodge pick-up trucks do for their support. So now I can paint and keep the inside of the quarter panel very clean and most of all DRY! Just a suggestion before you "seal up" an area which is prone to rust!
 
Rob Eppler said:
When I extended the rear wheel openings on my 65, I choose to NOT put the trunk extensions back in. I feel this is where all the moisture sits and then you know what happens next! RUST!. So I simply made braces out of round rod at the front & rear of the quarter panel where the trunk extensions would have been used for support. I heated the round rod on the ends and forged a "flat" then drilled and taped the ends for 1/4 X 20 bolts. Bent the ends to pick up the angles necessary for the frame and quarter panel. Much like the Dodge pick-up trucks do for their support. So now I can paint and keep the inside of the quarter panel very clean and most of all DRY! Just a suggestion before you "seal up" an area which is prone to rust!
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I would have to see that. How do you keep the water out of the trunk?
 
Hey Rob, do you have any pics of that. Please post so we can see exactly what you did and how it ended up. For me water is not an issue because I wont drive the car in rain and it will be stored inside a garage but im very interested in seeing pics.
Thanks for the suggestions
Rod
 
I wanted to finish the inner fender tonight but I got a call from my welding friend just after i crawled under the car and he says he can weld up my radiator fan shroud tomorrow if I can get it to him. So I ended up running to ace to find some aluminum bracket angle then laid out and cut the 3 pieces. Taped them together and tried the fit so I should be good for him to weld it together. Then I crawled back under and started welding again. 10 minutes into it I run out of wire. So i go back to ace to get wire even though I had a 1 lb spool of Harbor freights best! My buddy calls to check if shroud will be ready and I tell him its already in the truck. Then I tell him what Im buying and he tells me he'll get me some tomorrow as he works for a welding wire company. So i decided to use the harbor freight wire. What a pain in the A--! It pops while welding, doesnt penetrate as well. cant strike an arc all the time as it acts like the ground disappears. I decided to wait for some quality wire! Its amazing the difference between the hobart wire I was using and the harbor freight! Im attaching the shroud pics that will get welded tomorrow. Then I'll just need to cut 2 holes for my 10" electric fans.
Thanks for following
Rod

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What I did in the trunk is make a plate out of aluminum [thin gauge] I used the trunk extension seam as a guide and made the aluminum plate to extend to the quarter panel.[from the wheel tub to the back of the trunk floor] Using "door edge" protectors [found them at Auto Zone] on the outer edge of aluminum panel which lays against the quarter panel for trunk "weather proof" I then bead rolled a few lines on a 45 degree angle to increase strength and add a little detail. Then using scotch-brite sanded the pieces for a clean look. I will search for some pix, or this weekend I will uncover the beast and click some photos of both the "round rod" supports as well as the trunk aluminum plate. Believe me, I do not drive my car in the rain either, however not always is it in a controlled atmosphere, so moisture is still a problem. I have loaded one pix that I found, on the very left side you can see the aluminum panel. Not the best but maybe this will give you an idea of what I mean. The center panel is where the battery is as well as the shocks for easy adjustment! "Remove to gain access"
 

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A couple of years ago I worked with my brother in-law [Chip]on his 1965 Barracuda Gasser + 1956 Hemi/build and install. Search this on this forum 1965 Barracuda Gasser + 1956 Hemi, you will see my man cave and all the cool stuff we did to make this happen! Having never built an old Hemi, I learned a lot and it certainly was cool building a "street Gasser!"
 
If you have followed this thread you know I have struggled with the rear inner fender wells. I can say that I am finally done welding and grinding in that area. Or at least I hope so. Here are a few pics of what I ended up with. Keep in mind It is my first time doing anything like this!
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This was a bigger job than what I had thought it would be and Im glad its finally done, however when I put the rear housing back in I decided to move it back 1" on the front spring box mounts since my relocation boxes had been drilled for this. I think my rear shackles sit to much straight up when they are in the factory location in the box. Now with it moved back the rear shackles lean back but it allows the body to go lower as the springs seem to relax and now the tires(slicks) hit the inner fender. I dont think the street tires will since they are about 3" shorter but i didnt try them yet. Also im not sure I can put the rear shocks on with the rear back an inch so I might have to move it forward to where it would be normally.
 
Ive also been working on the electric fan mounting since I couldnt use the 16" fan and shroud I had purchased with my radiator. I had a friend weld my ends to the shroud for mounting and then I started the lay out for the two 9" fans.
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I only used one fan to lay out both sides so I was surprised when I took the 2nd fan from its box and found instead of a 9" it was an 8" fan. I checked the boxes to find it was boxed wrong. A call to the vendor and 3 days later I had a new one and I was able to finish my installation this weekend. The fans have very little clearance (about 1/4") to the water pump pulley.
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I ended up sealing the sides with the foam that you would use for sitting a topper onto the rear truck bed. It worked very well.
Rod
 
My last task for this weekend was to fit the drive shaft loop for the car. I had bought a summit loop which I would call universal. I did some modifying so it didnt hang so low then trimmed the sides up so it would look much cleaner. I am really happy how it turned out.

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Next on the list for this week is to install the fuel line including the return line along with mounting the fuel regulator. Still much to do. Thanks for following!
Rod
 
trunk supports not the greatest pix but it is what it is! I just took this pix, it is cold outside and the underside of the car is well....drag-strip used! But you can get the idea of my extensions "supports" for the quarter panel sheet metal. You can also see the "ribs" of the home made sheet metal which took the place of the trunk extension. Again kind of dirty...or well used, you take your pick!
Sorry it took so long! I see your car is moving along just fine! Good for you
Rob
 

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rod7515 said:
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View attachment 1714684310I cut the tubs out today and then moved the inner wells in to the frame, tacked them in place and now have to add the new center section in and then complete all the fill in areas. I have a few questions and I will be posting them in the body section later tonight.
Here are a few pics of progress from the weekend and today.

Rodney
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hey there,wow looks great,,Iam building a 65 dart 270 sedan,ive been trying to figure out what size tires I could get under it,you were able to get the 295"s in were you? how many inches did you open the tubs looks to be almost 3" is it? for your springs,did you buy a kit to weld in after cutting the old out,,i hope you don't mind helping with enfo? I just made and installed my frame conectors,,my 360 is being built right now ,may get it in May,hes slow but the best around as he has 5 engines hes doing now,the centerlines I have for the rear are 15 x almost 10" wide,I should get the 295"s on them I think,,how many inches did you have to move yr spings mounts over on the axle? to you buy new ones or reuse the ones you cut? thanks again!!
Rusty
 
Just an update on where Im at. first to Rusty's questions, As for the mini tubs, yes 3" which moved the inside right against the frame. As for the tires yes 295/50R15 on 10" rims with 6.5 bs. as for the rear end perches they move the same 3" as the springs moved. I didnt weld them on until I sat the rear in place and measured to center it inside the wheel wells plus made sure of the angle. And if I remember correctly my spring relocation kit came with new perches how ever you could clean and re use your old ones if you need to.
Now Ive made some progress in the last few weeks. Ive finally gotten the fuel lines underneath done and run up into the engine compartment. I tried to keep the running clean and looking good.

I used a double wall shrink wrap tube for protection going thru the frame.
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Then when going up the front engine compartment near the headers I used this heatwrap around the fuel lines.
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Here you can see I ran the lines inside the frame connectors.
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This last pic shows how I had to loop the return line back into the tank because of rear shock mounts.
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Also I was able to make the rear bracket that will house my emergency cutout switch, 2nd solenoid and the fuel pump relay.
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And lastly I mounted the radiator over flow. I didnt like this tank at first but I think its going to look really good mounted. I made my bracket from some aluminum c channel and notched out some of the one side to clear the radiator support wall that is not flat.

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Hoping to get out tomorrow and do a little more but last week I bought another tractor to clean snow with and Im in the process of getting the plowing lights and cab mounted and wired up and completed.

Rod
 
Thanks Alex5280, I wish I could take credit for it all but I have a good friend thats a welder and he helps with some of this. Hes also great at coming up with ideas and material. Im sure most everyone has that one good friend thats glad to help out!
Rod
 
Well I finally got back out to work on the car. Made some progress and now feel energized to do more. Here are some pics of the completed fuel lines inside the engine compartment. I am using an electric fuel gauge so I needed to find a fuel feed that had an 1/8 NPT fitting facing the firewall. It was funny because I went to the local speed shop locally and they said the was no such thing. Then I called summit and spent 10 minutes with their tech and they were trying to find some adaptors as they said there was no such thing so I decided I would drill and tap my own and when this one arrived it had the fitting in the back. Although I know the size of this system is larger then I am ever going to need I am very happy with how it turned out.
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I also finally purchased a battery and placed and mounted the hardware for it to be moved to the trunk. Then I spent the morning spreading seam sealer across all the seams inside the car. Went to the trunk and ran out of sealer so I will get more this week and finish the trunk then do the inner fenders wells from when I tubbed and rebuilt them.
I had my friend come over Friday night and he finished welding the roll bar to the floor and trunk. I'll try to post some more pics later this week.
Rod

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rod7515 said:
Sb449valiant, Yes I did end up going with the 295/50R15. I am using a 10" wheel with 6.5 back space. Once mounted I have about 1/2" of clearance at the wheel wells and about 1" on inner tub. I will probably cut the lip of the fender well slightly to make some additional clearance. Thanks for asking, was starting to think no one was reading my thread! lol
Rod
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Keep writing buddie,,very interested as Iam building a 65 2 door sedan,also iam having my motor build,360 as well.. just ready to open up my wheel tubs as well,I am hoping to put 295"s in but not sure if Ill have to chop the the axle up or not,what ,do you think? will i have to move my spring boxes or would offset hangers do the trick,,iam not sure how to post pics but would like too,i also have mine on a rotessire,,just finished my floorpans ,frame conectors,,wow you tire me out with your posts on your progress as I know exactly how much work your going through!! great job Rod..appesiatte any pointers from you too thanks
 
Made some additional progress since last posting. The battery is now in the trunk and its time to start the running of the wires. Im going to be changing the ammeter out so I will be using the MAD directions. Also with the change to a more modern ignition I can eliminate the resistor. I will be trying to hide the wires but not sure how that will go. Also I havent figured out yet if there will be enough space under the dash to put the coil, ignition box, starter relay and an auxillary fuse panel. Here is a pic of the battery box location now.
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Now Ive also finished painting the door jambs and windshield front and rear areas.
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Ive cleaned out the heater box and installed the new core and installed it back into car as well.
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In the above pic you can see the heater moter. I repainted that before the assembly went back in and it really stands out against the white firewall!
Rod
 
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