I'm Heartbroken. Time to face reality that my Cuda is a parts car.

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More pix. The drag race guy crudely made aluminum mirror delete plate pop riveted on. That's since been removed and holes welded over and ground down. I got real lucky to find fenders, grilles, valance locally on Facebook auto trader that have been sitting in a storage unit since the 1990s. Ended up using a 73 dart hood and hood hinges bought from salvage yard (same hood as a 69). Grilles were smashed and missing parts. Reglued them together with MEK, filled in the voids where plastic was missing with JB weld. Hunted down all the missing parts to make them right. Point I am trying to make is, damn near anything is fixible. My pops threw almost nothing away. There was always a way to fix it. This car wont be perfect, but it will be nice when done.

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Cars are like women... They don't have to be perfect to be fun.

Is sooner drive an old rust bucket Mopar than ANY new car...
 
This hobby spirals into perfection sometimes. I’d post up a ton of pics and see what can be done to help you make a totally informed decision. Once you decide, don’t look back....I’d love to have a two door dart, but this one was cheap (my four door) And I tell you what...not having it look perfect is half the fun. I just enjoy the time travel while driving it and not worry about perfection. It never will be. And that’s ok.
 
Get it structurally safe to where its drivable. If the inner fender wells are rough but replacement framerails are ok, get some AMD inner fender wells. Or hunt on here for them. Always guys offering up sheetmetal. I got a rust free used valiant LH inner fenderwell for the 69 , and a rust free used spare tire well.
 
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It all comes down to what you want for yourself. I wanted a 65 Valiant wagon back in the 1990's.I was given this total basket case that was rust from end to end.I made it work .I replaced the cross member,the trunk floor,used Barracuda quarters and made them work,cobbled together a floor,when the transmission started to slip I made it a 6 cylinder 4 speed,when the 225 died I put in a 170.I used this car for work,I'm a carpenter.I sprayed it with white epoxy primer and it looked pretty good for 3 years then it started rusting again and I brush & rollered Rust O Lium on her.Did that a second time a few years later.As long as she looked good going down the road to keep the cops off my *** I was good with it.Today I'm getting ready to take her on a 1500 mile trip up to my camp in the Adirondack Mountains .It's a 400 mile ride up.Last week she got new tires new brakes,a full tune up & oil change . Upon my return a good rust free front clip goes on and after that 4 good rust free straight doors go on . Then I hang a set of 65 Barracuda rust free quarters on her and the body work gets done to make her a cool ride that is going to be very presentable with a proper paint job.Don't need her to work any more so now she can just be a toy. You see,it's all about what your expectations are for the thing.Anything can be fixed and kept running and even brought back to decent shape .If you want to do it you will if you don't there are plenty of guys out there that will so don't turn it into a parts car if you can possibly avoid that. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, I'm 70 and started with this car in my mid 40's

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Yeah man, I feel ya. Something happens to our ambition over 50. I am having issues getting going on mine, but I am past the "rust removal" process, did that in my late 30's. If I was to start now, I'd pay the money for a running driving car, but I bought mine when I was 25, and at that age I didnt have the coin for a running driving car. Now, its for love of the car that I press on, if even at a slow pace, I am quicker wrenching than at body/paint, so I am tackling mechanical issues when I get a burst of ambition, also, doing body work in between. Good luck man, and you have to go with how you feel on this decision. I do want to say there is alot of good advise on here though. I agree the car doesnt have to be 100% correct. I have an H code Swinger, but i want to drive it, not fixing it up to sell for top $$$ so, I know when I pass it on the paint wont be perfect. But, I do try and put the best parts and paint/body materials that I can afford on it. I want to be able to say "yeah, I did it myself" and be proud of how it turns out. Do the best with what you have, like said, it can be fixed. the trunk pans, frame rail rust, is all common. someone has been there done that. I had a 69 Coronet in the late 80's with typical frame rail rot, back then you had to hack a good piece from a donor car, now those rails are available reproductio. Times are good to be in the hobby, alot of parts available, or at least more than say 15 -20 years ago. I remember when Mopar repop parts was like non existent. We should be thankful. the stuff still is expensive though, I remember telling Chevy guys "yeah to do a Chevy is cheap"...:)
 
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Yep just go roadkill on it. Make it safe to drive and have fun with it. Mine has sat in the garage for way too long wanting perfection. Have decided that I am just going to do it to the best of my abilities and get it on the road.
 
My .02, FWIW. I don’t know how much you have in your project, but you could probably sale it as a roller and probably recoup enough to get into your more door. There are probably plenty of people here that are looking for that car to build. Although, on the other hand, it would be a shame to not go ahead and make use of that new mig welder you got about a month ago...
 
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Ratty muscle car!
With all your demands on time, family needs and budget. Make it safe, get it on the road.
I bought a driver that was somewhat complete, I’ve barely been able to do simple upgrades. Because someone needs help or grandkids or.....Family comes first. That car won’t love you back. I’m a little older and fairly active, but ya there’s a difference from my younger years. Plus the heat and cold bug me more now that I’m older. I don’t have a heated or cooled garage. If structurally the frame is too far gone, maybe sell and find a driver.
 
Wow, this kinda blew up a little, lol. So many replies, I can't answer you all individually, so I'm going to try with one reply.
First off, thank you all for the words of advice and opinions. A lot of good stuff here.
Second, again, sorry if I got snarky with anyone... was a bit upset, lol.

After reading all these while I was at work today on my breaks, I've decide to NOT part it out, although that makes the least sense for me financially.

If I ever do get rid of it, I'll try to find someone that wants to fix it. I don't think I'd get much selling it whole.. I'm to damn honest about what the car would need. Also, I'd be picky about who bought it.. it'd have to be someone that loves these cars, and knows what they are doing. No selling it to a 16 yr. old kid who wants to 'fix it up', or a guy I know is gonna bondo the crap out of it to flip it. Makes my buyer potential window pretty small, more so being in a rural area.
Truth be told, I feel a bit silly whining about this car, after seeing what some of you are doing. You guys are truly inspiring!

Even more inspiring, is have you all to help me with advice when I need it.. and it doesn't matter if it's not what I want to hear.. you guys that have been there before are a damn treasure.

As far as me fixing it myself, I know I can. I'm pretty determined once I put my mind to something. Saving up for a gas bottle for my mig welder... got a bunch of old scrap stuff to practice on. It's a good thing to know anyway, even if I never use it on this car. Fixing this car was the driving force behind getting it though, so in a way it'd be kind of a waste to not use it for this.

The car sat in my garage for 10 years... what's a few months more patching holes?

Also, maybe I don't need a whole floor.. or rear floor, maybe cut a few corners by patching a few small holes, instead of buying new stuff. I'm not building a concourse car here. Just make it safe, and drive it.

Thanks again, to you all.
 
63spf said:
Saving up for a gas bottle for my mig welder ???

Flux core wire ! No need bottle. Its all I use in my Lincoln. Clean welds !!!
@ $100 for 10lb. roll or $25 for 2lb. Hawaii price !!!
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I'll try it, have mine set up for flux right now.. still have to do a little electrical wiring in the garage first though. Wife doesn't like it when I blow the breaker and the TV shuts off in the house, lol.
 
Doing a full main floor change is easy man. I have an article on how to drill and pop spotwelds. When iinstalling the main floorpan you need to remove the doors, steering column, and roll down the quarter windows. It fits right in thru the door opening.

If you doing a transition pan and main floor the transition pan goes in first, so you cut back the floor pan, pull and replace the transition pan, then overlap your new floor pan.

Fit the parts and use self tapping screws to hold them so you can weld, then remove the screws and fill the holes.

Look at a lot of build threads. I got my transition pan and inner wheelhouses from a 1970 scamp parts car.

I have 2 build threads for some metalwork ideas for you.

My 1967 barracuda
67/68/69 cuda dilemma

Read a lot of build threads. See how others have done the sheetmetal work. Many ways to accomplish the same thing. As a matter of fact I think my used spare well I got from here cost me $50, ditto for my rust free LH inner fenderwell. Sometimes when you get into it some stuff isnt as bad as it looks. BTW AMD does make both A/C and non A/C firewalls for these cars. Between that and a main floor plan that licks some issues, And you can always splice in a windshield A pillar as long as you measure and brace it well first so nothing moves.

You got to remember it's now a 50 year old car. These things were made to last 10-15 years when they were new. Its beaten the odds, and AMD and Goodmark have everything you need, well maybe not everything, but a great deal of it.

Use the search function on FABO, and surf a lot of build threads. Get a lot of ideas. Show us some good pix of the issue it has. Chances are many on here have solved those very problems and can guide you thru it all.
 
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moparmat2000 said:
Doing a full main floor change is easy man. I have an article on how to drill and pop spotwelds. When iinstalling the main floorpan you need to remove the doors, steering column, and roll down the quarter windows. It fits right in thru the door opening.

If you doing a transition pan and main floor the transition pan goes in first, so you cut back the floor pan, pull and replace the transition pan, then overlap your new floor pan.

Fit the parts and use self tapping screws to hold them so you can weld, then remove the screws and fill the holes.

Look at a lot of build threads. I got my transition pan and inner wheelhouses from a 1970 scamp parts car.

I have 2 build threads for some metalwork ideas for you.

My 1967 barracuda
67/68/69 cuda dilemma

Read a lot of build threads. See how others have done the sheetmetal work. Many ways to accomplish the same thing. As a matter of fact I think my used spare well I got from here cost me $50, ditto for my rust free LH inner fenderwell. Sometimes when you get into it some stuff isnt as bad as it looks. BTW AMD does make both A/C and non A/C firewalls for these cars. Between that and a main floor plan that licks some issues, And you can always splice in a windshield A pillar as long as you measure and brace it well first so nothing moves.

You got to remember it's now a 50 year old car. These things were made to last 10-15 years when they were new. Its beaten the odds, and AMD and Goodmark have everything you need, well maybe not everything, but a great deal of it.

Use the search function on FABO, and surf a lot of build threads. Get a lot of ideas. Show us some good pix of the issue it has. Chances are many on here have solved those very problems and can guide you thru it all.
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Thanks! I agree with you on everything you said. That said, I'm way ahead of you on reading all this stuff, including yours :)
I'll get there, just takes time and money. Those two things mess with us all, I think. I just need "more patience, grasshopper".
 
I agree with Mat, sometimes it’s a lot easier just to do the full factory panel.

These cars were just spot welded together. If you use the factory panels there’s actually not a ton of welding involved. There’s more labor- more spot welds to drill, more fitting to do, that sort of thing. But welding? Less than doing patches. My ‘72 Challenger is a rust bucket. It’s kinda strange though, some parts are really rusted, others are just fine. Like yours I think it sat outside in a field for awhile before someone decided to do a flip job makeover. I started by doing patches, like the drivers side floor pan. The rest was fine so I left it. Well, I did more welding for the patch than I would’ve needed to do for the whole panel.

My Challenger is getting a ton of metal replaced. I’ve already replaced the drivers side floor, about 1/3 of the firewall and foot box, half the trunk, half of one rear frame rail and about 2/3 of the other. What I learned from all that was to stop being cheap and buying sections and making patches and buy full panels! And I’ve got full quarters and the entire hardtop structure on the passenger side to do, plus the left front frame rail. But you know what? The frame rails were easy. Taking all the measurements and making sure it’s all square is time consuming, but it’s not super hard. And the welding is just more spot welds. Lots of spot welds, but mostly just spot welds.

As for the flux core, it sucks. No one that’s used gas with a properly set up welder would want flux core. It spatters, it makes a mess, and it’s lousy for sheet metal. For the amount of work you’ve got, can the flux core and get a nice gas set up. You’ll appreciate it.
 
Does it have a true variable speed for the wire feed? Not a click type setting for the wire speed.
 
72bluNblu said:
I agree with Mat, sometimes it’s a lot easier just to do the full factory panel.

These cars were just spot welded together. If you use the factory panels there’s actually not a ton of welding involved. There’s more labor- more spot welds to drill, more fitting to do, that sort of thing. But welding? Less than doing patches. My ‘72 Challenger is a rust bucket. It’s kinda strange though, some parts are really rusted, others are just fine. Like yours I think it sat outside in a field for awhile before someone decided to do a flip job makeover. I started by doing patches, like the drivers side floor pan. The rest was fine so I left it. Well, I did more welding for the patch than I would’ve needed to do for the whole panel.

My Challenger is getting a ton of metal replaced. I’ve already replaced the drivers side floor, about 1/3 of the firewall and foot box, half the trunk, half of one rear frame rail and about 2/3 of the other. What I learned from all that was to stop being cheap and buying sections and making patches and buy full panels! And I’ve got full quarters and the entire hardtop structure on the passenger side to do, plus the left front frame rail. But you know what? The frame rails were easy. Taking all the measurements and making sure it’s all square is time consuming, but it’s not super hard. And the welding is just more spot welds. Lots of spot welds, but mostly just spot welds.

As for the flux core, it sucks. No one that’s used gas with a properly set up welder would want flux core. It spatters, it makes a mess, and it’s lousy for sheet metal. For the amount of work you’ve got, can the flux core and get a nice gas set up. You’ll appreciate it.
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When I parted out the dart last summer, I learned a great deal how these cars go together. Got pretty good with a spot weld cutter. You give me food for thought though, full floor might be easier at the end of the day. Thanks man!
 
.023 solid wire gas shielding is the way to go for sheet metal, much more control and cleaner, my 2 cents. Also flux core and solid cord use diff polarity should say on or in your welder.
 
I agree. On my sons car I looked into doing four separate floor pan patches, then fixing the trans tunnel issues. The amount of patchwork quilt non stock butt welded seams to make it into one piece again would a been epic. Well you have to ask yourself, what's your time worth. Plus the patch pans I was looking at were about $119 each x 4. So $476 and a ton of non stock seams. I bought the full main floor pan at summit racing at 35% off black friday sale plus tax, was $369. drove to Arlington to get it. I will fit it when the time is ready, mark. It, pull it out and drill it, clean up all the mating flanges and apply weld thru primer, then weld it up.

The missing automatic console brackets I got from a fabo nember who cut em out for me. I sandblasted them. I think I payed $70 for used ones. Sometimes used rust free metal from cars that are from the southwest is a cheaper option.

Heck theres a guy on here in western Colorado that has a 1970 dart more door shell that's immaculate. I think he wants $400. for it.

Floor pan, transition pan, inner wheel houses. Trunk floor, trans crossmember, rockers, front and rear framerails. Inner fenders. Cowl, firewall. All immaculate rust free Colorado metal. Cleanest floorplan I have ever seen.

Spotweld drill it apart. Would take a few weeks to carefully drill it apart to save everything you could use from it, but your looking at maybe $2,500 in metal if you had to buy it all new. Of course that leaves outer wheel houses and trunk drops you would have to get since they dont work from the dart on a barracuda.
 
skidmark said:
.023 solid wire gas shielding is the way to go for sheet metal, much more control and cleaner, my 2 cents. Also flux core and solid cord use diff polarity should say on or in your welder.
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Yep, got the wire and tips already. Just saving up for a gas bottle. And yes, pretty plainly states on it about the polarity.
 
skidmark said:
.023 solid wire gas shielding is the way to go for sheet metal, much more control and cleaner, my 2 cents. Also flux core and solid cord use diff polarity should say on or in your welder.
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You can use a little thicker like .030" on floor pans, and frame repairs, but on exterior sheetmetal, I have found .025" solid core w a mig welder works much better than the thicker wire.
 
A/C firewall. Not sure if your car is A/C or not. Lookit them floorplans. If you carefully peel it apart saving everything off it even if you dont need all the pieces, theres a lot on that thing you can resell and get your money back. If I didnt already have everything I need for my sons notch, I woulda went on a road trip and would be already drilling this one apart.

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moparmat2000 said:
You can use a little thicker like .030" on floor pans, and frame repairs, but on exterior sheetmetal, I have found .025" solid core w a mig welder works much better than the thicker wire.
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Yup, depending on what your doing and position it’s good to have options. Only takes a minute to switch wire, flip or change drive wheels and tip. I usually leave an .035 liner in.
 
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