1972 Duster, 340/4, black on black (the endgame)
Hit a milestone moment on this yesterday (Tuesday) and that's justification enough for an update on The Progress So Far:
Been working pretty steady on lil' Taz when I have the time and while most of it hasn't been photo worthy plenty got done. One of the biggies was replacing the lower control arms. The ones I saved over the years were out of a '76 Scamp and the sway bar mounts on '73 through '76 were different. I found a stablemate on Craigslist in Oregon-a TX9 '72 Duster 340/4 speed that was being parted out (no title) and road tripped to spend a day stripping it. Not much-beyond the LCAs I got the engine compartment harness, beat up tail lights and door panels as well as plenty of reference pics. Took them to my local welding/fab shop and they blasted them and installed new urethane bushings. Fun fact-Proforce bushings DO NOT FIT. Too big-they collapsed when he tried to press them in. The correct ones come from Andersen Restorations and come in a set with two lowers and four uppers.
And they're in-and without much trouble either:
Then came a bunch of stuff that wasn't really photo-worthy. The heater box is rebuilt and reinstalled. I wanted to use the original heater core but it was showing evidence of leaks and to fix it probably would've been close to the cost of a new aluminum one which weighs half as much. Glove box is in but I don't have the right striker for that older Barracuda style push button latch. Might have to make one to force the missing one to turn up. Parking brake is in. New fuel and brake lines are in. Adding the subframe connectors meant making new lines to fit and while I was at it the fuel line is now 3/8" instead of 5/16" and the vent to the canister is 5/16" instead of 1/4". That one is probably overkill but in an emergency it can be swapped for the fuel feed if needed. I replaced the disintegrating cardboard barrier between the back seat and trunk with a piece of plywood doorskin veneer. Probably the same cost and I can hang amplifiers off the plywood so I don't have to drill more holes in the body-and they'll be up & out of the way. Tail lights are in-they'll probably come out again but for now they're out of the way and somewhere safe like the instrument cluster.
And the milestone? Tuesday afternoon Mountain Mobile of Livingston MT spent an hour putting the glass in :lol:
It's been almost 40 years since this car has had glass in it. You forget it's a fastback with that back window out for so long. It's so cool to have it back in again that once again, after I hit "post reply" I'm going back down to the workshop to look at it again before bedtime. To me, it makes it feel like it's finally coming together for real.
The trunk lid is ready for paint-Gibson has their annual end-of-fiscal-year-shutdown for inventory and maintenance next week so I have a 5 day weekend coming up to knock that out and start on the doors. The stainless is all ready to polish & install. I have a hotknife coming so I can trim and final fit the carpet. The upholstery for the front seats showed up so those can be done. I work with someone who's contacting the dirt track racers he knows to see if anyone local has a dyno that can do the cam break-in on the motor as I'm not doing that in the basement. And the wire harness lurks in the corner in a box, waiting...
Assembly is the best part of a project car. And-the glass is in :thumbsup:
Hit a milestone moment on this yesterday (Tuesday) and that's justification enough for an update on The Progress So Far:
Been working pretty steady on lil' Taz when I have the time and while most of it hasn't been photo worthy plenty got done. One of the biggies was replacing the lower control arms. The ones I saved over the years were out of a '76 Scamp and the sway bar mounts on '73 through '76 were different. I found a stablemate on Craigslist in Oregon-a TX9 '72 Duster 340/4 speed that was being parted out (no title) and road tripped to spend a day stripping it. Not much-beyond the LCAs I got the engine compartment harness, beat up tail lights and door panels as well as plenty of reference pics. Took them to my local welding/fab shop and they blasted them and installed new urethane bushings. Fun fact-Proforce bushings DO NOT FIT. Too big-they collapsed when he tried to press them in. The correct ones come from Andersen Restorations and come in a set with two lowers and four uppers.
And they're in-and without much trouble either:
Then came a bunch of stuff that wasn't really photo-worthy. The heater box is rebuilt and reinstalled. I wanted to use the original heater core but it was showing evidence of leaks and to fix it probably would've been close to the cost of a new aluminum one which weighs half as much. Glove box is in but I don't have the right striker for that older Barracuda style push button latch. Might have to make one to force the missing one to turn up. Parking brake is in. New fuel and brake lines are in. Adding the subframe connectors meant making new lines to fit and while I was at it the fuel line is now 3/8" instead of 5/16" and the vent to the canister is 5/16" instead of 1/4". That one is probably overkill but in an emergency it can be swapped for the fuel feed if needed. I replaced the disintegrating cardboard barrier between the back seat and trunk with a piece of plywood doorskin veneer. Probably the same cost and I can hang amplifiers off the plywood so I don't have to drill more holes in the body-and they'll be up & out of the way. Tail lights are in-they'll probably come out again but for now they're out of the way and somewhere safe like the instrument cluster.
And the milestone? Tuesday afternoon Mountain Mobile of Livingston MT spent an hour putting the glass in :lol:
It's been almost 40 years since this car has had glass in it. You forget it's a fastback with that back window out for so long. It's so cool to have it back in again that once again, after I hit "post reply" I'm going back down to the workshop to look at it again before bedtime. To me, it makes it feel like it's finally coming together for real.
The trunk lid is ready for paint-Gibson has their annual end-of-fiscal-year-shutdown for inventory and maintenance next week so I have a 5 day weekend coming up to knock that out and start on the doors. The stainless is all ready to polish & install. I have a hotknife coming so I can trim and final fit the carpet. The upholstery for the front seats showed up so those can be done. I work with someone who's contacting the dirt track racers he knows to see if anyone local has a dyno that can do the cam break-in on the motor as I'm not doing that in the basement. And the wire harness lurks in the corner in a box, waiting...
Assembly is the best part of a project car. And-the glass is in :thumbsup:
