Did I mess up buying this rust bucket?

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[QUOTE="standup303, post: 1973995728, member: 65283]”, slant 6. I bought it with intentions of installing a V8 this winter[/QUOTE]
Why not leave it a slant, maybe juiced up a bit and drive and enjoy it. Adding more power from a decent V8 entails more than just a motor swap - better brakes cooling and V8 transmission come to mind.
 
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Kern Dog said:
Guys that do termite inspections for existing home sales use a pointed stick to poke wood framing to look for soft spots. Paint can cover the rot and hide it well but a hard stick can detect where wood is rotten or patched poorly.
The same applies with rust on cars. A screwdriver can be used to poke at areas that you suspect. To me, your car has just simple surface rust where bare metal allowed some minor oxidation to occur.
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i like using very light magnets, usually fridge magnets from cheesy pizza shops, to look for excess bonbo

with this car, i would pay very close attention to the base of the roof
those vinyl tops look awesome can if moisture gets under there it can become a rust issue quickly



what made you think the paint is no good?
it looks decent in the pics
 
standup303 said:
With enough wire wheel/sanding work and rust specific products, do you think it’s worth keeping and building?
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Like others have said, that looks pretty solid. I wire wheeled all of my rusty spots down, painted the rusty spots with Rust Mort, let it dry and then painted over top of it. The rust mort neutralizes any rust and stops it from growing.
 
I like the people who advertise “rust free” car. These cars were rusty coming off the line. They made you buy the undercoating to cover it up.
 
BKCowGod said:
I will never forget the time I lost a spare tire out of my 1970 BMW. The entire spare tire well just gave up and dumped it in the middle of the road. Luckily I was in a small town, just pulled over and grabbed the tire and threw it back in the trunk.

You did good on this one, it looks solid!
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A buddy had a Vega in HS that happened to.
 
RustyRatRod said:
Big motor.
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Yes, that’s the end game plan. 434/340 based stroker W5 - 904 in a light weight duster.

A 340 inch or 5.6ltr if s considered big only by todays standards and a 6.4 is consider a mammoth sized engine. Not so! Not so, in my book.
 
rumblefish360 said:
Yes, that’s the end game plan. 434/340 based stroker W5 - 904 in a light weight duster.

A 340 inch or 5.6ltr if s considered big only by todays standards and a 6.4 is consider a mammoth sized engine. Not so! Not so, in my book.
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they dont call em small blocks for nothing

i think the smallest engine in my garage is the 3 liter in my boat

in the cars it goes up from a 3.5 in the family hauler to 5.7 in my wifes car to 6.0 in the plow trick to 408 in the duster
 
That car is fine. My daily driver 340 dart sport literally has no inner and outer rockers. Somehow all the door gaps have held fine.
Around here your car would be considered in excellent condition.
 
standup303 said:
Just bought my very first classic car. It’s a 74 Dart. Has a pretty poor but new Plum Crazy Purple paint job, new vinyl top, new seat covers, slant 6. I bought it with intentions of installing a V8 this winter.

The car had a rust resistant coating installed a long time ago, but the more I look the more I am thinking I may have screwed up buying this car. I have been looking at Eastwood products and POR-15. With enough wire wheel/sanding work and rust specific products, do you think it’s worth keeping and building?
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Duuuude ! Your Dart is in WAY better shape that mine when I got it. Check the hole in my floor ! (then replaced with a Stamped Floor Pan from AMD)

Replaced the Floor and Crossmember... + about 20 hours... cost me around 4000 Canadian Dollars.

Plancher_6.jpg
 
standup303 said:
Just bought my very first classic car. It’s a 74 Dart. Has a pretty poor but new Plum Crazy Purple paint job, new vinyl top, new seat covers, slant 6. I bought it with intentions of installing a V8 this winter.

The car had a rust resistant coating installed a long time ago, but the more I look the more I am thinking I may have screwed up buying this car. I have been looking at Eastwood products and POR-15. With enough wire wheel/sanding work and rust specific products, do you think it’s worth keeping and building?

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Actually on the grand scheme of things, it looks pretty good. One of your first moves should be join a local car club. Always a helpful few willing to help, and many will have body work skills. One or two can help you inspect it more closely. A wire brush on an angle grinder to knock loose scale off is good. Then a spray can of One Step or other rust converter is a good investment. It soaks into any rust and turns it black. This stops further rust progression. Then in the trunk and underbody you can apply POR 15 to further protect the metal.
Best wishes and enjoy your "new" toy.
 
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