Left for Dead 68 Barracuda Buildup

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Thanks for following along and joining in guys. Working space is always at a premium around here. Projects tend to get pushed back into a cold dark corner out of the way and forgot for lengthy spells of time. This cars treatment was no different.
I have a customers car leaving in the morning so by the weekend I should have the furniture
rearranged enough and the car sitting in a suitable workspace for the winter.
This area will have heat and better lighting so the pictures should improve a bunch.
I will then get to start up the photo guide here of what to do and probably a few
what not to do's learned along the way also.
I am as anxious as I have ever been now that it is getting close. This car hasn't had a
engine between the rails in two or three decades. Its slant 6 had been gone long enough
by the time I got the car all the under hood grease and oil was washed away by the weather.
Once the car is situated my first job will be to remove the front suspension so I can sand blast
the engine compartment. I think by cleaning it up I will be able to see if any spots need a repair.
It should also help with the clarity of the photos for you guys following along.
 
It's nice to see pics. I am trying to take a lot of before pics so I remember how it looked when it came in.:coffee2::cheers:
Memory is getting crappy! lol
 
Pictures coming soon. I did a small amount of cleaning some of the rust off of
the car a dozen years ago and sprayed a little gray primer on it to protect
it and make it all one color. This was so long ago the primer has mostly wore
away and is back to its ugly rusty unprotected self.
This time around I will use epoxy primer on the areas as I clean them. I will spot
clean the panels in areas I will be working as I go.
I have a small chinese pressure pot blaster that I improved some to make it easier to use
but I can't handle doing the whole car at once with it. I also got some bags of medium grit black beauty standing by.
I live right uptown a block off our court house square so this blasting will have to be done
Indoors. I don't even have a parking lot. I will reclaim my grit by filtering thru a screen. It is gonna be a mess. My floors are nice so it will sweep up easy.
 
I am watching you ....great thread....love the car. That is a significant car to find the way you did.
 
ssba said:
I had to go look.
BH29B8BXxxxxx
Not sure what that translates to due to the motor was long gone.
Here is a photo of the inspiration for this build. Of course I would never copy another
mans car so my plan is to build it as if it was to run in the same A/MP class.
Click to expand...

This is a great look to envision from. Tires hanging out, was the day,....
 
Here is how she sits today out in cold storage. I have a friend coming over this weekend
to help me shuffle cars around and get it moved into a smaller but better lit and heated
workspace. Will be a nice spot to make some real progress thru the winter. Once settled
job one will be to remove the doors and front suspension and blast clean cowl forward.
I may clean more if it is going well but I can mock up engine and transmission with just
the front half cleaned up.
This was a factory air and automatic transmission body when built so I will have some
welding up extra holes in the firewall and a 4-speed trans hump to install as the fitting
progresses. I also will be doing the bashing of the right side inner fender.
 

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Glad to see you all stopping by. I have waited along time for this and can't
wait to get going. I know I have a long road ahead of me before it can be driven.
But it does feel pretty good knowing I will be doing some hands on work to the car again.
I never did really stop working on it all these years. It was just a different kind of work.
Tracking down some very very difficult to find parts. And getting the information needed
proved to be just as hard as finding the parts. I have traveled far and talked to many
people just to be able to do this car.
My plan is to build this with all old parts. If I can make it look as if it was built and raced
back in 73 I will be pleased with the car.
I dont have every detail worked out or the complete plan or a blueprint to follow.
I think it would have been easier if I chose a particular car to clone. All the details would have been set for you. You could study the pictures and copy your findings.
I am trying to build it how I would have done it if I was old enough to build a car back
In 73. I find it can be hard to make a decision on things like what color to paint it or should I
use this part or would this one be better.
 
Here's a few more old A/MP photos. Top pic is dated 1973 my target year for build. Not sure on the others but I like the pics. Many of these cars ran the cragar super trick wheels.
Cragar introduced these wheels in 71. I picked up a set just in case I am having trouble getting the car down to the A/MP weight class.
I really have no idea yet how close I will be to the weight specs. If I can't get it down far enough
It would be run in B/MP.
This pictured hood scoop was a common choice in the class also. I am still on the look
out for the scoop.
The roll bars were basic then and not a complex cage. The class was intended to be a
dual purpose car that could be driven on the street. I have never driven one yet but from
looking at the old photos they appear to be better suited to the track.
There is a YouTube video of Ken Montgomery fireing his car up, backing it out of the garage
and going around the block. I Dont know how to post a link but I reccomend you watch it
if you like these old cars.
 

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SNKEBIT said:
Yup. Those that's some monster rubber right there. Awesome.:burnout:[/QUO

Rear tires will likely be 31s.
I have a pair of 31 16.5 sportsman pro's that I can use for now to set it up.
They fit the 12" rims well. Tread measured 12 1/2".
I am not sure if the engine will be tame enough for street driving. That's not
really my goal with this car. I want it to pull the wheels and pull hard going
down a track. I won't be racing this much and they probably won't let it go
down the track for lack of modern safety equipment.
Differential could go spool or power loc. depends how the engine
turns out. I have several gear sets but should be between 4.56 to 5.13.
It doesn't really matter to me if it turns out unstreetable. I will be happy either way.
I do know already that it won't run on pump gas. I want it to have that sharp crack
of high compression. This is the most important parameter of the engine to me.
I figure if its gonna look like a race car it better sound and run like one.
I haven't done enough research to pick the cam yet. It will most likely be a crane roller
but their are several old cranes to choose from for hemis.
Click to expand...
 
From the mid seventies and a few years on, I was fortunate to have this factory SS in nearby Norway. I did not study details of the car tho, the way I would have done to day. On the other hand I had not developed the BOholic decease I am suffering from now :)
Crossram and carbs were somewhere in Norway at the time. Car went back to the States, and I don´t know it´s where about now?? Someone??

I hope I´m not interfering your thread ssba... just wanted too tell you about it...
 

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You can post as many pictures like that you want Stefan.
That's a great example of what I'm trying to build here.

Since I'm kind of killing time here waiting on my buddy to get here to help me get
the car moved into the shop. I'll post pics of some cool stuff I have come across
over the years to go with the car that don't really count as parts.
These are contestant decals for the nationals at Indy from 73. They are the real
thing and not modern copies. The ticket is from 74.
 

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Some more 70s made equipment. The open face Bell helmet will get painted to match the car. Harness is by Simpson. No date on the extinguisher but it looks to be from the 70s. If I had to guess BELL screen printed their Logo on a bowling ball bag back then.
 

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This is going to be very cool to watch.

Have you already purchased and built the 426?
 
Kmrumedy said:
This is going to be very cool to watch.

Have you already purchased and built the 426?
Click to expand...

Yes and no. I have nearly every engine and chassis part bought. Most of it bolted
together enough to use it for a mock up. I need to get the body and chassis cut and welded to the point where everything will bolt together and fit after the car gets painted.
So its a dry run so to speak.
It feels alot like a full scale model kit at this point but with every piece donated from a
different kit.
My plan is to have every weld done, hole drilled and tapped, hose clamped, clearance ground and bolt tightened so when the engine is built and paint is done it will all go right back together like all the pieces came out of the same box or kit. I dont want to have to change or tear back into the new paint somewhere because I shortcut it thinking I'll do it later.
I anticipate problems with the headers more than anywhere else in the build.
The entire drivetrain is going to be built with more vintage speed parts than factory parts. A lot of the parts will have to be hand built. Which I will do myself. All of it for the most part.
Only exceptions will be the engine machine work and mill work as I don't have that kind of equipment.
Most of my tools are old but good quality so I can get thru most problems that pop up.
I have a good sized compressor, oxy acet torch, 110 Lincoln mig., A fair amount
of air tools and some electric. Old siphon paint guns, not so good sand blaster.
Upholstery and glass tools. parts washer, Jack and stands. Upright press. No fancy stuff like hoist, or rotisserie. I also have a bobcat if I need to weld a axle housing or something heavy.
All work will be in a two car sized shop space.
I have a friend coming over after work tonight to give me a hand getting the car situated
in the work area. And we can get started. Looking forward to sharing this in pictures here and feel free to join in with suggestions as this is the first time around for me bringing a car to this
level.
 
Good stuff. You write a lot of detail which is really nice in threads like this.

This one was for sale the other month. Kinda cool for ideas....

 
That is a great looking car. I like the paint work a lot. That is a new one for me,
thanks for sharing it here. I am still undecided on the paint scheme going
on my build colors and such. So pics like these are great for ideas. I have
some time to sort it out. I do plan to name the car and give it a old style look like above.
 
Car has been moved from cold storage to the workspace as of yesterday evening. My friend
was a big help pushing all the cars around to get her sitting where you see it now.
Today my time has been spent clearing everything out of this space so it can be used for the sand blasting phase. I filled the blaster with black beauty and have 6 more bags ready to go.
We will soon see if I will need more abrasive.
More pics coming when I have the space completly cleared.
 

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I did accidentally stumble onto this car. It was only a few miles away from me on a
dead end gravel road. I think the guy that lives their is the only one that drives down it.
I was still going thru my e_body phase at the time but looking to get back into the "A"s.
I'm pretty happy with the car even though it has some rough quarters and such.
It is a good model & year and a perfect car for me to turn into a vintage race car.No feeling bad about destroying a valuble rare car with this one. And the price was right.
 
If ya don't mind I may be stealing ideas you you go ! Plus my 69 is mostly stock so if you need any reference photos I would be more than happy to post them.
 
This week when I could pull away from work I have got busy getting everything prepared for the blasting. I have changed the oil in my compressor pump and clearing the space so the grit will be easy to sweep up and reclaim.
I also got a better hood on the way to try and make the job more bearable. I think with better gear I can stay with it longer periods of time. I have also been marking which holes wont be needed on inner fenders and firewall so they can be welded shut. More pictures soon as this
all comes together and the metal starts geting cleaned up.
 
ssba said:
This week when I could pull away from work I have got busy getting everything prepared for the blasting. I have changed the oil in my compressor pump and clearing the space so the grit will be easy to sweep up and reclaim.
I also got a better hood on the way to try and make the job more bearable. I think with better gear I can stay with it longer periods of time. I have also been marking which holes wont be needed on inner fenders and firewall so they can be welded shut. More pictures soon as this
all comes together and the metal starts geting cleaned up.
Click to expand...




Well shoot!!!......How ever did I miss this thread?

If you need any SS Cuda build pics or pointers just shoot me a PM. I'll do what I can to help out.

:glasses7:
 
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