66 dart gt convert resto

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crvtec90

crvtec90

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2007
Messages
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Location
Jacksonville Florida
my family has been the proud owners of 4 darts over the years. never really finished any of them the way we wanted to. this one is gonna be the best. i live in jacksonville florida and finding old mopars here means rust! being a firm believer that the best rust free sheetmetal comes from out west, i drove to texas with a friend to get my latest project. its been about 5 years since purchase and i believe i have evertything needed to complete it, minus some weatherstripping and a few odds and ends. i have lots of trouble finishing what i start, must be that ADD or somethin. my convertible is an original slant 6 auto, now a v8 4 spd. i am elated with joy to see all the great project cars on this site. it gives me great hope and support. been real busy goin at it strong lately. i constructed this roll around dolly for the unibody u can see in the pics. i can move the car in any direction, spin it in a circle inside the garage and even bring it outside to blow it off or whatever. i have a decent pressure blaster and have been diligent to blast everything i can and coat it with por-15. not building a concours car, just somethin fun to cruise that is truley different. id like to be able to park anywhere and not have to worry about my million dollar paint job.

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Cool. Someone should marry your dolly to the tilt rockers or half rotiserie things other have created. turn it every way but upside down :)
 
my dolly used to be my rotisserie, i just took it apart and changed it a little. i used 2 4x4 posts and mounted one in front where the k frame bolts up, and i bolted the other to the rear where the bumper bolts up. it cost around $60 for bolts and washers. thats a lot cheaper than $1000 for the real deal. i had an open section in the floor pan where i needed some rust repair so i hooked up a chain around the rocker panel and lifted the bare body with my 2 ton engine hoist. this is pretty risky business so kids PLEASE DONT TRY THIS AT HOME without someone to call 911. the unibody was tilted at an angle and supported by other boards under various places on the frame so that i colud sandblast the under carriage. i also had a friend replace the torque box/ leaf spring support while i had it up. the only problem with his welds is that it looks better than the factory side. i wish i had some better pictures. it is important with rottisseries to brace the body as well as possible to prevent body flex. i remember a few times when my conv. was on a regular automotive lift at the shop i could not open the doors easily if it was lifted in the air.

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Awesome!!! Another 66 convertible project. Keep up the good work. It's looking good.
 
so ive been busy blasing everything i can. ive read that one should not blast body panels with regular sand because it can warp panels. Beware! i love blasting because it gets the really hard to reach nooks and crannies. it also removes deeply embedded rust. unfortunately, sometimes when u are done blasting a section u thought was solid, its nuttin but swiss cheese. also, sand blasting is messy and bad 4 ur health. use of a good mask is imperative. the sand gets everywhere. i have hung tarps from the ceiling to prevent the mess in the rest of my garage and also to contain the sand so that i may filter and re-use it. its about $6 for a 50 pound bag which only goes so far, even less when u have deep rust. there is also a large exhaust fan in the back wall of my garage to help with air flow. my garage is now a total sand pit and it will take quite some time to clean out. even the ceiling has a light film of dust. i am using por-15 rust preventive paint. the paint manufacturers and a few car magazines claim u can paint right over rust with this stuff but i prefer to remove as much rust as possible just in case. this stuff is rock hard but u gotta follow the directions real close or it doesnt stick right.

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today was a great day 4 blasting. nice and cool so i could wear pants and a long sleeve shirt and not sweat to death. i took the easy route and soaked my rusty backing plates and shock plates in acid 4 a little while to eat the heavy rust so i wouldnt have to use as much sand.



i was getting a lot accomplished today until my compressor took a dump. i was blasting away and i noticed a funny noise.
 
like i was saying before i hit clicked the wrong button. the blasting was going good. a little too good. there has to be a set-back. i got a few pieces done but i had a lot more i wanted to get done.

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i heard my compressor making a funny noise and when i looked at it, there was a lot of smoke in the air. i thought 4 sure i would be buying a new one. it is really old and i have already replaced the motor on it. i keep it outside, under a little dog house to reduce the noise inside the garage. i have another small tank linked to it for more air volume but it still runs a lot trying to keep up with my 80 pound pressure blaster. all that builds a lot of heat and i blew a hole in my pressure line from the pump to the tank. no more blasting today. superior tools 4 superior craftsmanship!

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today i went to look at a 85 dodge ramcharger 4x4 that belonged to a friend of a friend. it needed a trans rebuild but was in really good shape for its age with lots of good aftermarket parts. im not lookin 4 a 4x4 but it was supposed to have a rebuilt 360. when i got there i found it was just a 318. i already have a brand new 318 and dont need another. the old motor he pulled from the truck was sitting on the floor in front of it. since it was nothing more than in the way to him, he told me i could load it in the truck if i wanted it. he didnt have to tell me twice! i got a 360 4 FREE! damn right it was a good day. its a smog motor and i think it needs a crank, but this beggar is not a chooser. its still a good buildable core.
 
got a welder today. nice roll around cart with it and regulator setup for the gas. now i am ready to practice on some srap. ive welded exhaust and brackets before but not sheet metal, so here goes.

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Cool. Ive practiced abit with mine also. After i clean up the area were im going to weld back in the new radiator support, ill be welding on my car for the first tie. yikes
 
Wow Im impressed with the amount of blasting you've got done with that wee little compressor.You must be a patient man...lol!I burned up a similar one,had a brand new motor.One cylinder went bad while I was spraying,didnt notice.Ended up burning the motor out.

Now I have a 60 gal...

Be aware that reusing sand can cause more rust.The sand can pick up contaminants and moisture.reusing it puts it back on the car.Filter it very well.Make sure it's dry!
 
yeah my little compressor works hard. i have that tank linked to another one inside the garage 4 more volume. pressure blasting actually goes fast, its the cleanup that takes a long time. i prefer to only blast when i can devote the better part of a day because it is so hard to get the sand out of my hair, ears, pockets, shoes, etc. i have been using the sand over and over because it goes fast it gets costly. i regret now that i am almost done that i did not spend the money on a good helmet. its been a real budget build so far. i always clean my metal after i have blasted it since there is so much humidity in Fl . getting all the sand out of the car when done is also important because it will hold moisture and cause more damage as well.
 
needsaresto said:
Wow Im impressed with the amount of blasting you've got done with that wee little compressor.You must be a patient man...lol!I burned up a similar one,had a brand new motor.One cylinder went bad while I was spraying,didnt notice.Ended up burning the motor out.

Now I have a 60 gal...

Be aware that reusing sand can cause more rust.The sand can pick up contaminants and moisture.reusing it puts it back on the car.Filter it very well.Make sure it's dry!
Click to expand...


I use a heavy magnet when I clean my sand out picks up all the rust/metal that comes out ofthe car (I used to have a magnet that pluged into the wall that was really powerfull and i'd just plug it in over the sand and it picked it up instantly) this trick works really well
 
waiting on my 3rd member from fed-ex. 3.23 sure-grip 489 case. i need to put my rear axle together so i can get the car back on the ground and under its own weight. i was supposed to have it last week and have been getting very impatient. this is holding me up big time. seems like no matter how big ur garage is it will still get filled up quick. if i could start putting things back on the car i might have some more free space. i called yesterday and yes, they lost it. they tell me they are searching but i might have to file a claim. SCREW THAT! its not like i can just pick up a phone and get another chunk today( at least not 4 what i paid 4 this one) it took me a long time to find this one and i want them to compensate me 4 whatever it takes to get another one just like it. im sure theyll tell me to just hold my breath.
 
no rear gear 4 tim. i did get my $ back though. the guy who sent it got me the insurance so i need to just be glad 4 that. i still have the puny 7 1/4 to put under it 4 now. might as well use it anyway while the body work and paint is goin on, so that i dont worry about overspray and junk.
 
Scraping undercoat is fun stuff. I cant believe she doesnt want to help me!Got the d.s. quarter panel stripped of undercoat. There was too much rust goin on inside there and i figured i gotta get all of that tar off to see how far the rust had spread. using my handy propane torch and scraper got it done pretty quickly. careful with the heat boys and girls.
 
heres the passenger side. gonna weld up all the trim/slide hammer holes and take care of the rust. you can see it rusting pretty good where the slide hammer holes are. i wonder how long it took to get that rusty after the repair was made.

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found a good deal on another used 3.23 chunk. turns out its junk. the ring gear is pitted and so are the carrier bearings. i got my $ back so now i have 2 741 cases to work with. i will probably just buy a new sure-grip carrier and gears since i cant seem to find a decent used set. might as well spend the extra dough 4 new stuff. couple guys i work with have convinced me to go with the 3.55 instead. i love it when i am looking 4 parts and the ad says to "call 4 price" which pretty much means if u have to ask, u cant afford it.
 
I just bought a 741 case third member off ebay. I had the guy go through it and put a new pinion seal in it and set the back lash and stuff (sorry dont know much about rearends). Its only a 2.93 gear, but i wanted to try this gear ratio out with a 4 speed to see how i liked it. It doesnt have suregrip, but it was fare priced. I figure ill try it out, and if i like the 2.93 gear ratio, ill put suregrip on it later, but if I dont like it, Ill just get a new third member built with suregrip later after ive had my car on the road for some time. I plan on driving my car on long cruises and think the 2.93 gears will get me fair gasemilage. If the car really feels like a slug with these gears, Ill go with 323s later for local driving and the 293 for long huals.
 
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