Back on the Duster...aka what i did on my summer vacation

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blown340

blown340

FABO Gold Member
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Ok so I'm on a mission to get the Duster back up and running before the end of July...Thats my wish anyway





So the engine came out,got a replacement oil pan,because the Moroso 8 qt hung down too low

The crack in the intake manifold was fixed and I had to have a friend machine it flat

Carbs were cleaned and gone thru, Innovate air ratio setup was installed,and while I had the engine out I should have pulled the tranny and changed the seals...more on that later.

So I got the motor fired and set the timing,I need to work more on the innovate setup and when I went to adjust the valves,an adjuster broke. So I ordered a complete new set as they have changed to a 12 point lock nut



I also have on order a 4 link rear suspension from Bill Reilly to replace the leaf spring setup thats in it now.

I am also looking into putting a stock fuel tank back in it and get rid of the fuel cell in the trunk.

Also got a MSD 6 BTM,which will retard the timing based on the amount of boost the blowers making.

So I pulled the tranny out,seals were leaking, and when I pulled the pan this is what I found.



So I fabbed up a transmission stand and pulled the tranny apart to try to find out where the material is coming from.I have not got it completely apart yet so I'm still searchin

Starting...


Ending...haha


So tomorrow I will head down to the local restaurant supply house so I can pick up more cookie sheets and some big plastic tubs so I can keep things separated. Good thing I have a repair manual and a video so I can put this back together....the story will continue
 
Yes I am in West Sac,right off 80 at Jefferson blvd

JW if you ever have seen a pro street like 68 dart silver in color running around Davis? The guys name that had it was Dean,and I believe it had a big block in it

But that was many years ago,and he might have moved
 
I am pretty sure he moved, there are only a handful of other mopars in Davis that I know of:

72 white Dart 318 (owned by a friend)
71 F3 Dart with black vinyl top
(68?) white Barracuda (only saw it in passing)
A really nice (68-69?) blue Barracuda convert with a white top

Looks like you have a nice shop, where is it so I can come park my Demon in there :D
 
sharpie said:
I am pretty sure he moved, there are only a handful of other mopars in Davis that I know of:

72 white Dart 318 (owned by a friend)
71 F3 Dart with black vinyl top
(68?) white Barracuda (only saw it in passing)
A really nice (68-69?) blue Barracuda convert with a white top

Looks like you have a nice shop, where is it so I can come park my Demon in there :D
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Haha...When the car is done I will clean up my side,right now it looks like a bomb went off in it....pm me I'll give you my address and phone number,you can stop by when your out and about..


OK update time...I got the tranny parts all cleaned up and dropped them off at the tranny shop on Friday for new bushings and inspection of all the rest. UPS dropped off my adjusters from Harlen Sharpe,a MSD unit I got of ebay (but since I will be welding on the car I'm going to wait until thats finished before I hook up the new unit) and my new street lynx rear 4 link setup.



So the rear end and leaf springs come out



HAha.some of the rubber from under the car...reminds me of working on a pro stock car after breaking in tires



rear end after a bath



Grinding the frame where the upper cross member will be welded in.The broken stock shocks will be removed and the holes welded up.



This is the xmember..coil over shocks and the upper links will bolt to this



Rear end housing stripped down..the lower plates will bolt inside of the mount that is already on the housing now...so it will have 3 ubolts per side. I'm thinking this is going to get into the brake lines,so I'm going to make up some new lines after I get it up in the car and figure out where everything goes



I removed the fuel cell,fuel pump,filter and the aluminum fuel line,the trunk is a disaster,thanks to a previous leaking battery....I will get a battery box on order,and I have to weld up the hinges,so they will fit with the mini tubs. and just try to clean it up some....Well thats it for today,I'll see how much I get done tomorrow.

 
One thing I learned is do not rush it! Do it right the first time, Looking good!
 
looks good. keep the pics coming on the 4 link setup coming! I am thinking of ordering it for my 75 dart. thanks
 
Update....
Tranny shop called me and made me a smoking deal to go ahead a put my tranny all back together,so I said go ahead...They are going to build it with kevlar bands and hi-perf red clutches. They will also cut the converter open,check it out and weld it back up.This is what I've got done on the car.

Here is the cross member welded in.



I dug out my narrowing jig and a empty case and which originally I was going to use while I welded the upper brackets on the housing. Kinda,forgot that I didn't have the tranny in,so I couldn't measure the engine angle. So I ended up lifting the back of the motor to where I thought it rides,got that angle,and just tack welded the upper brackets on the housing at this time.

Narrowing jig stuff...




Where I'm at today...with the springs screwed all the way down and the mounting post on the lower hole,I am too high in the back end. So tomorrow I will call RMS and see if we can come up with some shorter shocks,so I can get the ride height where I want it. I think what I'll do is unbolt the shocks at the bottom,raise the rear end up to where I would like it to ride,and hopefully that will be my center to center shock dimension....more tomorrow



 
Okkk here goes...I had to go out of town for some circle jerk racing over the 4th weekend,so I haven't got much done

Sent the shocks and springs back,but won't get the shorter ones for a little bit as he is out of the springs....Ended up buying a new converter,by the time the replaced the bushing.welded and machined the ring so that they could weld it back together,for $100 more I will have a new one. Hopefully the tranny will be done this week.

When i did mock it up the wheels were to far back in the wheel well,and since the lower bars are non-adjustable on the street kit,I went ahead and slotted the front mounting hole. Then,when I finalize the location,I will weld flat washers to make up my new mounting hole.



I did get all the new rocker arm adjusters installed...yee ha



I also found a new Barry Grant single fuel regulator that I might install,to replace this 2 regulator setup I have now. Try to clean it up some.



My local guy couldn't find the stock fuel tank that he thought he had,so I will get one of those on order tomorrow..more to come
 
Whoo hoo...rear end is finally done...ride height came out awesome,whatya think



ok enough funnin...I am moving the fuel system around,going back to the stock tank and decided to try to move the pump and filer. Here is the way it was with the fuel cell.



and I thought about putting the filter and the pump on the same side. When I get the new stock fuel tank,I will weld a fitting in the bottom of it and that will be my pick up point for the fuel.



Si I'm thinkin,you know what,I've never looked at the fuel filter. So I pull the cannister down and this is what I found.



which lead to this..........



And after digging for a bit,It ended up looking like this,thanks mr filter for doing your job haha....note to self check fuel filter more often



SO now my question...if I mount the pump as pictured,the outlet from the filter will have to angle down to meet the inlet on the pump. Then,on the outlet side of the pump,I would have to angle it back up so it runs along the frame.The 90* fitting is just there to keep junk out of the pump.



Or, I can cut a hole in the floor,which would move the pump up so it is in a straight line with the filter. This pic is showing the old battery mounting plate,which will be replaced with an aluminum box. I could then make a enclosure so the top of the pump would not be seen when the trunk is open.

The sharpie circle is approximately where the top of the pump would come through.

Would you do it? cut a hole,make an enclosure,I'd have to make it big enough so it doesn't overheat the pump right? Open to suggestions.

 
WOW! Blown, some job your doin there. Nice work. Really nice.

That filter was hammered huh? You didn't notice a pressure problem? Hell of a filter!
 
damn, you put in the wrench time thats for sure!

Looking good, keep it up!
 
rumblefish360 said:
WOW! Blown, some job your doin there. Nice work. Really nice.

That filter was hammered huh? You didn't notice a pressure problem? Hell of a filter!
Click to expand...

Prine said:
damn, you put in the wrench time thats for sure!

Looking good, keep it up!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the responses...rumble,come to think of it,I did not the pressure falling off when I would roll in the throttle.

Haha..Prine,if I wrenched as much as I'm actually at the shop,this thing would be on the road...but I'm just trying to plan ahead as I go....

SOOO...both of you...do I cut a hole in the floor for the pump to come up through?
 
A hole in the floor with the stock tank back in? Well, I'm not a big fan of cutting up the metal if I don't have to. 340fastback, AKA John, made a bracket for his pump. Alot of work to make the bracket, but saved the OE metal and all the cutting and work there after.
 
Yaaa...no floor cutting. It looks like this is where the pump will end up. I got the new fuel tank and after setting it up in there,the outlet hose will fit between the tank and the frame.I just have to cut the hose from the filter to pump to length.

Also,I have marked where I will install my pick up fitting in the fuel tank.I was going to install it in the center of the tank,but I remembered from before that it would get in the way of the floor jack when it was in the center.

Today,I got back my trans and converter,so hopefully I can get that installed this weekend. Enough mocking,I need **** assembled haha



 
Ahhh....the good...finally got the flex plate,transmission,converter and starter in....hooked up the cooler lines and shift cable....

Flex plate and converter





So...after all that is in,I went to slide the driveshaft in so I can mess around with pinion angle and this is what happens......Shaft will only go in so far then stops...it should slide all the way in.



So,I removed the tail shaft housing and it's back to the tranny shop to have them see whats up with the rear bushing,as I have no reamer or way to hone it out. Somedays I feel like going wide open into a bridge abutment...today was almost one of those days:D
 
SPS said:
Hi, your new suspension from the rear axle looks great
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Yes I can't wait to get it finished and try it out...I'm going from almost flat leaf springs and broken rear shocks to this set-up. Should make a world of difference.
 
Hey, is that bill's rear end setup?If so when ya get it back on the road let us know how it handles,I've been looking at his setup for awhile and want to know how it handles and all. thnx8)
 
ace26 said:
Hey, is that bill's rear end setup?If so when ya get it back on the road let us know how it handles,I've been looking at his setup for awhile and want to know how it handles and all. thnx8)
Click to expand...

Yes it is,the street lynx set up. Yes I plan on doing some small road trips when I get it going and I'll give you some feedback on it.
 
ace26 said:
Hey, is that bill's rear end setup?If so when ya get it back on the road let us know how it handles,I've been looking at his setup for awhile and want to know how it handles and all. thnx8)
Click to expand...


Ace26 if you check on Bigblockdart.com their a bunch of members who have the street lynx already installed in fact abodyjoe has one in his car and as far as I know he loves it.
 
sharpie said:
are you gonna be working on it anytime soon? Like tonight? :)
Click to expand...

Sorry just saw this....Ya i'm there pretty much every night,except Friday,I'm going over to Sears Point for the Drags. Then I leave next Thursay for work...yehaa

Your more than welcome to stop by anytime after 7:00 pm
 
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