Slow, Driving Rustoration 1972 Dart
Long weekend, long post.
I started looking at removing the steering gear so I could put a rebuild kit on it. The more I looked the less I was interested in doing it this long weekend. It looks like the best time to do it would be when I'm changing the exhaust manifolds. So I started out working on my used manifolds to see what I needed to do. I decided I'm going to cut off the bell on the smaller 1 7/8" outlet passenger side and change it to 2 1/4" at least to the depth of the flange, then flare it smooth the rest of the way into the runners. I got the bell cut off and am sending it off to a friend who owns a machine shop to enlarge the outlet and smooth out the flange to match the driver side manifold.
Since I replaced the rear end and springs, the ride has been better but the stance was moderately raked back to front. I had previously tried to adjust the torsion bars but they wouldn't budge. I soaked them overnight with penetrating fluid and tried again on the morning of the 4th. I used an impact and slowly started switching forward and reverse to try and break it loose. I was taking turns side to side to give it a break. Finally it started budging and I'd slather on the liquid wrench each time it moved forward or backward. Once I got it moving easily with a ratchet I set it back to where it was and moved out to smooth pavement, the church parking lot. After about 3 adjustments and trips around the block I got it looking and feeling like I wanted. I only raised the front end up about 5/8" but that along with installing new front suspension bumpers really made a difference in the ride. When I got the car in October it had no bumpers at all so it frequently bottomed out loudly. Now with the extra travel and bumpers and new springs in the back I'm pretty happy with the ride height and comfort.
With Winter going straight into a rainy Spring and directly into a hot Summer I can feel my time to do body work slipping away from me. Add in the fact that I'm likely moving before next spring and I've started reevaluating my plans... again.
***This section not for the faint of heart.***
The reason I lost my last Dart was because I tore into a full restoration before I was ready. I had done a literal "weekend paint job" on that 1970 Dart back in 1988. That included rust repair, body damage, vinyl top re-paint, and custom scallops and trunk stripe. It looked good. Good enough to cruise in, and clean enough most people wouldn't guess it was basically a hack job. That hack job still looked good 3 years later when I tore it all apart. Then life happened and I had knee surgery and quit my job at the body shop to go back to college. While there my dad sold the home where I grew up, and where the dart was stored, so he could move into the city. He had no room in the city to store the Dart so I agreed to sell it. If I hadn't torn her apart, I would likely still have the old Dart.
That's why I have tried to make sure this is a true driving restoration. 3 weeks is the longest she has sat undriveable. So I have made a decision for the short haul to do a decent hack job of body work on the rust. I am not kidding myself, I know this job I do here could be what ends up being what the Dart looks like for 5 years. I'm not exactly repeating what I did with my 1970 Dart. For one thing I actually had a shop then. I have a cramped driveway from which to work. But I will allow myself more time to at least do it as right as possible while doing it wrong.
Rust remediation:
Yesterday I spent the morning sand blasting the driver side lower quarter rust. I was able to reach the rust from pretty much every angle, including from inside the trunk. After sand blasting I coated everything in a generous coat of rust restorer spray. Even if that stuff doesn't do much it makes me feel better. Next came the foam fill, yes, expanding foam. The best part about foam is it doesn't rust and is way faster than welding! Again, I'm not fooling anyone, I know its limitations and knowledge is power even when ignored.
Next came the all-metal filler, another great product to make you feel better about your hack job. I just make sure all of the foam is encapsulated in this stuff before adding regular body filler. Makes a guy feel like he's doing something substantial ;)
I'll spare you the play-by-play pictures. I believe this method will allow me to get a better looking car by winter and keep me cruising all summer and fall. Thankfully I have friend with a bodyshop who is willing to let me paint in his paint booth and has a PPG paint mixing system in-house!
As I said in the first post on this rustoration, "So here's my plan, and yes it's not for everybody."
Happy Moparing!
Long weekend, long post.
I started looking at removing the steering gear so I could put a rebuild kit on it. The more I looked the less I was interested in doing it this long weekend. It looks like the best time to do it would be when I'm changing the exhaust manifolds. So I started out working on my used manifolds to see what I needed to do. I decided I'm going to cut off the bell on the smaller 1 7/8" outlet passenger side and change it to 2 1/4" at least to the depth of the flange, then flare it smooth the rest of the way into the runners. I got the bell cut off and am sending it off to a friend who owns a machine shop to enlarge the outlet and smooth out the flange to match the driver side manifold.
Since I replaced the rear end and springs, the ride has been better but the stance was moderately raked back to front. I had previously tried to adjust the torsion bars but they wouldn't budge. I soaked them overnight with penetrating fluid and tried again on the morning of the 4th. I used an impact and slowly started switching forward and reverse to try and break it loose. I was taking turns side to side to give it a break. Finally it started budging and I'd slather on the liquid wrench each time it moved forward or backward. Once I got it moving easily with a ratchet I set it back to where it was and moved out to smooth pavement, the church parking lot. After about 3 adjustments and trips around the block I got it looking and feeling like I wanted. I only raised the front end up about 5/8" but that along with installing new front suspension bumpers really made a difference in the ride. When I got the car in October it had no bumpers at all so it frequently bottomed out loudly. Now with the extra travel and bumpers and new springs in the back I'm pretty happy with the ride height and comfort.
With Winter going straight into a rainy Spring and directly into a hot Summer I can feel my time to do body work slipping away from me. Add in the fact that I'm likely moving before next spring and I've started reevaluating my plans... again.
***This section not for the faint of heart.***
The reason I lost my last Dart was because I tore into a full restoration before I was ready. I had done a literal "weekend paint job" on that 1970 Dart back in 1988. That included rust repair, body damage, vinyl top re-paint, and custom scallops and trunk stripe. It looked good. Good enough to cruise in, and clean enough most people wouldn't guess it was basically a hack job. That hack job still looked good 3 years later when I tore it all apart. Then life happened and I had knee surgery and quit my job at the body shop to go back to college. While there my dad sold the home where I grew up, and where the dart was stored, so he could move into the city. He had no room in the city to store the Dart so I agreed to sell it. If I hadn't torn her apart, I would likely still have the old Dart.
That's why I have tried to make sure this is a true driving restoration. 3 weeks is the longest she has sat undriveable. So I have made a decision for the short haul to do a decent hack job of body work on the rust. I am not kidding myself, I know this job I do here could be what ends up being what the Dart looks like for 5 years. I'm not exactly repeating what I did with my 1970 Dart. For one thing I actually had a shop then. I have a cramped driveway from which to work. But I will allow myself more time to at least do it as right as possible while doing it wrong.
Rust remediation:
Yesterday I spent the morning sand blasting the driver side lower quarter rust. I was able to reach the rust from pretty much every angle, including from inside the trunk. After sand blasting I coated everything in a generous coat of rust restorer spray. Even if that stuff doesn't do much it makes me feel better. Next came the foam fill, yes, expanding foam. The best part about foam is it doesn't rust and is way faster than welding! Again, I'm not fooling anyone, I know its limitations and knowledge is power even when ignored.
Next came the all-metal filler, another great product to make you feel better about your hack job. I just make sure all of the foam is encapsulated in this stuff before adding regular body filler. Makes a guy feel like he's doing something substantial ;)
I'll spare you the play-by-play pictures. I believe this method will allow me to get a better looking car by winter and keep me cruising all summer and fall. Thankfully I have friend with a bodyshop who is willing to let me paint in his paint booth and has a PPG paint mixing system in-house!
As I said in the first post on this rustoration, "So here's my plan, and yes it's not for everybody."
Happy Moparing!
