MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Hole is cut
1970 Duster, Trans-Am-inspired "Pro Touring" build
- Thread starter MopaR&D
- Start date
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MopaR&D
Nerd Member
And now with the scoop installed
I don't think I got any pics of the air-box-pan-thing while it was on lol. This scoop was pretty straightforward to install and as you can see it's well secured with studs that go through the hood which I fastened with washers and Nylock nuts. Still needs a bit of tweaking, I need to tie the hood supports back in together as the hood now wobbles and shakes noticeably more than it used to but nothing of concern. I also forgot about one stud that goes at the very front and center, "I'll get around to it eventually" lol.
I don't think I got any pics of the air-box-pan-thing while it was on lol. This scoop was pretty straightforward to install and as you can see it's well secured with studs that go through the hood which I fastened with washers and Nylock nuts. Still needs a bit of tweaking, I need to tie the hood supports back in together as the hood now wobbles and shakes noticeably more than it used to but nothing of concern. I also forgot about one stud that goes at the very front and center, "I'll get around to it eventually" lol.
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
I also bought and installed a new 750 cfm Street Demon carb. I only had to pull the carb about 6 times to get the jetting dialed in 
but other than that it's been great. Much better manners than my old AFB especially in cold weather. I no longer need the old dual-snorkel air cleaner with the heat-riser intake setup to keep it from freezing up even though I have an Air-Gap intake. Gas mileage is down a bit though which I knew would happen with the larger primaries this carb has. As you can see in the pics I also went ahead and converted to a full Lokar throttle and kickdown cable setup; that was more of a pain than it should have been (interference at the trans end for the KD) but it all works great now and the shift points/kickdown is much easier and precise to adjust.
but other than that it's been great. Much better manners than my old AFB especially in cold weather. I no longer need the old dual-snorkel air cleaner with the heat-riser intake setup to keep it from freezing up even though I have an Air-Gap intake. Gas mileage is down a bit though which I knew would happen with the larger primaries this carb has. As you can see in the pics I also went ahead and converted to a full Lokar throttle and kickdown cable setup; that was more of a pain than it should have been (interference at the trans end for the KD) but it all works great now and the shift points/kickdown is much easier and precise to adjust.
Can't wait to see it,Khalid
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Hey Tim, pics are up now you see 'em?
Next mod I will be doing is adjustable strut rods. The drivers side has always had an annoying clunk and pulls to the left under hard braking. I am also going to fab and weld some stiffening plates to the lower control arms as they are pretty flimsy especially at the T-bar socket end which I think is where my clunk is coming from. I'll be placing the order with PST as soon as their Black Friday sale starts, getting some other goodies for my cousin's '71 Satellite build too. Heck I might bite the bullet and get some "mid-grade" shocks like KYBs too, the blown out Monroes on it now are a total joke and barely lasted a year after I put them in. I ultimately want to put in a set of fully adjustable Viking shocks but those run $800+ and I definitely don't have that kind of money right now.
Next mod I will be doing is adjustable strut rods. The drivers side has always had an annoying clunk and pulls to the left under hard braking. I am also going to fab and weld some stiffening plates to the lower control arms as they are pretty flimsy especially at the T-bar socket end which I think is where my clunk is coming from. I'll be placing the order with PST as soon as their Black Friday sale starts, getting some other goodies for my cousin's '71 Satellite build too. Heck I might bite the bullet and get some "mid-grade" shocks like KYBs too, the blown out Monroes on it now are a total joke and barely lasted a year after I put them in. I ultimately want to put in a set of fully adjustable Viking shocks but those run $800+ and I definitely don't have that kind of money right now.
While you're buying things on sale from PST you may as well get some bilsteins while you're at it.
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Hey Caleb! I thought about that, I'm going to buy a set of Bilsteins for my cousin's Satellite but for my car I don't want to drop any serious money on a set of shocks unless they're adjustable. You can get a full set of KYB's off RockAuto for around $120 as opposed to $400 for the Bilsteins; more than Monroes but they aren't crap. My car needs some dang sway bars the most of anything really, and the back end still sits too high for cornering the car feels "out of balance" in a way in hard turns. So much to improve and so little $$$$!! LOL... Oh yeah and then there's the fact I'm running fat 60-series tires on 15" rims and even care about handling
I can't say with experience between KYB's and Bilsteins since I've never had either but from what I've heard from multiple people I'd skip the KYB's.
I COMPLETELY know what you mean about so little $$$$!! I've got so much to do to my car including little stuff that wouldn't cost much but just don't have the time or money for any of it right now.
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Hey guys, so it's been a while (almost 2 years? holy sh** lol), figured I'd give y'all an update. In February of 2017 my old 360 broke a ring land and cracked a cylinder wall, rendering the car dead in my garage since then. For a while I was planning on rebuilding the original 318 the car came with but then realized, screw that I want more power! LOL... so, enter the 5.9L Magnum swap. I went to a Pull & Pay junkyard near me and got a short block out of a 2001 Dodge Ram 1500. I couldn't check the odometer because it's the stupid digital type and the dash and most of the wiring was totally gutted/wrecked. Fortunately once I got inside it didn't really matter, this thing is mint! No ridge on the cylinders whatsoever, main bearings look good, just need to check rod bearings but I'm guessing those are good as well. I'm a believer now! lol
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
I also did some R&R to the rear suspension; I installed proper-size shock plates (universal from Speedway Motors, nice and cheap!) and new axle U-bolts from Mancini, oddly one of the only places you can find them in the right size anymore. I also installed adjustable aluminum spring shackles (also from Speedway) and polyurethane shackle bushings from Mancini. She sits nice now, probably going to need to raise it up a slot or 2 though as I know the damn tires are gonna rub the fenders. Also I know I need to get some proper clamps for the leaf springs, those puny aluminum straps gotta go lol.
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
So I'm a huge fan of the Roadkill shows and I decided to make a full list of everything I want to do before it's back on the road, like they do in the show... I'll be happy if half of it gets done. The windows reeeally need to be fixed but I'm not looking forward to it
Watch KYB'S measurements! Sold them for a few years .. Great product , but if you do chassis mods , those measurements might limit your gains in performance.
Measure, according . ..
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Hey Tim, I'm still on the fence about the KYBs honestly, been reading more about them and everyone complains about the harsh ride. It might not be too bad with the current fat tires combo but once I put 17-18" wheels with low-profile performance tires I'm betting it'll be hard as hell. Might just get some cheapos for the time being, it really needs sway bars all around I think.
How does that carb come apart?I also bought and installed a new 750 cfm Street Demon carb. I only had to pull the carb about 6 times to get the jetting dialed in
View attachment 1714992262
View attachment 1714992263
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
It sucks, there are 2 screws that hold it together from the top, then 6 more that screw in from under the base plate. If you're doing a lot of tuning you can leave the bottom screws out to take the top off easier but when you're done you'll have to put the screws back in at some point. But yeah if you need to change jets the carb has to come off to take it apart. Other than that it's a fabulous design IMO it's like Holley engineers redesigned the Thermo-Quad (pretty simple on the inside).
Speaking of which I found my accelerator pump isn't working now for some reason, gotta pull it and fix that now arrgghhh!
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Here's the video I also posted in the SBM forum of the first startup with the "new" engine...
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
The next major task is getting the aluminum radiator from Engineered Cooling Products installed but it's a tad too tall compared to my old stock one. I don't have the hood on the car to check but how far can the top of the rad and cap stick above the upper core support (or whatever that's called) before it'll hit the hood?
I also need to get the trans cooler lines in order, was going to convert them to braided SS line with AN fittings but my aux. cooler only has simple flared hose fittings on it which aren't removable. I guess I'll have to bend up some hard lines, I'd rather not have 3 feet of rubber hose going to and from the cooler lol.
I also need to get the trans cooler lines in order, was going to convert them to braided SS line with AN fittings but my aux. cooler only has simple flared hose fittings on it which aren't removable. I guess I'll have to bend up some hard lines, I'd rather not have 3 feet of rubber hose going to and from the cooler lol.
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Here's a pic of how far the rad comes up...
Like your 70 Duster . . . Thumbs Up !
Looking Good
Looking Good
813Demon340
Well-Known Member
Cool Duster! I like your build, sounds good!
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Here's my build thread for the engine: Junkyard 5.9L Magnum + Edelbrock LA heads build
After looking at some other threads I think the radiator should be fine especially after I bash the dents out of the lower core support, should lower it 1/4-1/2". Then I just need to drill a hole in each side radiator bracket to mount up to the top 2 original mounting holes, hang the radiator on those, then drill the other 2 mounting holes in the car for the bottom "hook" sections of the radiator brackets to bolt to.
One thing I did before hooking up the new heater hoses was to flush the heater core, I used some of the fluid you get at the parts stores mixed in a big measuring glass with water I near-boiled in the microwave. A bit of brown gunk came out but not as much as I had hoped, the heater has always just been "adequate" I want it to work better, still chilly around here esp. at night for the next few months.
I also went with Gabriel shocks in the rear, curious to see how they hold up compared to POS Monroes. Later on I'll get some for the front as well but at least there are some in there (I took the old rears out to put in a 1988 Chrysler Fifth Avenue I had a few years ago), I'm just tight on funds right now and the cooling system is a higher priority.
After looking at some other threads I think the radiator should be fine especially after I bash the dents out of the lower core support, should lower it 1/4-1/2". Then I just need to drill a hole in each side radiator bracket to mount up to the top 2 original mounting holes, hang the radiator on those, then drill the other 2 mounting holes in the car for the bottom "hook" sections of the radiator brackets to bolt to.
One thing I did before hooking up the new heater hoses was to flush the heater core, I used some of the fluid you get at the parts stores mixed in a big measuring glass with water I near-boiled in the microwave. A bit of brown gunk came out but not as much as I had hoped, the heater has always just been "adequate" I want it to work better, still chilly around here esp. at night for the next few months.
I also went with Gabriel shocks in the rear, curious to see how they hold up compared to POS Monroes. Later on I'll get some for the front as well but at least there are some in there (I took the old rears out to put in a 1988 Chrysler Fifth Avenue I had a few years ago), I'm just tight on funds right now and the cooling system is a higher priority.
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
The car is back together and running, or was... fixed the trans inspection plate rubbing or at least most of the time, still scrapes once in a while but nothing like it was.
But about a week ago the pressure line blew off my Federal P/S pump, figured it was a good time to upgrade to a Saginaw what a pain in the butt that turned out to be...
But about a week ago the pressure line blew off my Federal P/S pump, figured it was a good time to upgrade to a Saginaw what a pain in the butt that turned out to be...
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Tomorrow I test it with full pressure, if it leaks at the pump fitting I'm gonna be pissed I used some conversion brass "bushings" to make the O-ring fitting into flare. I got it seated as far as possible and cranked down the pipe fitting extra tight. Also grabbed a shorter belt from the parts store now the pump is tilted about 30° down to make clearance for the line, hopefully it won't leak out the cap all the time. I might eventually get some low- profile 90° AN fittings from Bergman Auto Craft I already have some braided -6AN.
I hope it all pans out for you. I get the frustration level for sure. Bergman Autocraft, now there’s a good fella.
MopaR&D
Nerd Member
Well it works... *phew* thank God no leaks. I also added the triangle-shaped plate that kind of ties the pump brackets together, pulley alignment is very good now and the belt is properly tight. Looking at the pump with fluid in it now, the lean isn't quite as bad as it first seemed.
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