mopowers
Well-Known Member
Thanks! Easier said than done for this knucklehead.
Mopowers' 66 Dart Build
- Thread starter mopowers
- Start date
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abdywgn
dismantler
you and me both...I remember unloading a Dana60 by myself. we did leave the wheels and tires on and slid it out of the bed of the truck BUT...it bounced. missed me.Thanks! Easier said than done for this knucklehead.
Engine hoists aren't just for engines ... they make great lifting tools for all sorts of things 
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Well, I finally got the doors mounted and aligned good enough for me. Also installed some 3" wheel studs on the fronts.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
I also cleaned up the taillight assemblies and hardware. I painted the inside of the buckets with white paint hoping it would make them brighter. We'll see if it works...
Before:
After some wire wheel action:
And a little paint:
Polished up the lenses and chromed potmetal.
Before:
After some wire wheel action:
And a little paint:
Polished up the lenses and chromed potmetal.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Got the decklid mounted and aligned. I also got the rear bumper cleaned up and mounted along with the fresh taillight assemblies.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Polished up the "D-A-R-T" and refurbished the acorn nuts. I sealed them up with a dab of butyl rope.
The trunk looks pretty decent now. I just have to start running some wires so I can reinstall the fuel cell, battery tray and kill switch. I still need to install the trunk seal.
The trunk looks pretty decent now. I just have to start running some wires so I can reinstall the fuel cell, battery tray and kill switch. I still need to install the trunk seal.
abdywgn
dismantler
busy day for sure
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Speaking of wiring, I swung by Kerndog's house a couple weeks ago for two massive helpings of spaghetti. He generously donated these old harnesses for me to pilfer the connectors off of. About five minutes after getting home, they were reduced to a pile of connectors/terminals and other spare goodies. Thanks again Greg!
A buddy of mine runs those through the dishwasher at home. Another one uses his clothes washer...the type for low water use that has no agitator. His harnesses come out looking amazingly clean.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
That's a great idea. I spent some time snipping the old dirty cloth wiring loom covering from the trunk harness and cleaning it up. It's amazing how filthy that stuff was! My jeans were disgusting afterwards. Once the cloth was snipped off, I cleaned off the wiring with some purple power and an old scotchbrite. I'll be covering it all with some braided covering once I get all the wiring finalized.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Fun little bench project on a rainy day. The keys for this ***** have been long lost so I taught myself how to re-pin the door lock cylinders. I bought a new ignition switch lock cylinder that came with new keys, so I used those keys to re-pin the door locks. It was a little tedious, but I enjoy learning new skills. They work like a charm now.
MidnightSwinger
Well-Known Member
I know I say this to you all the time, but you gotta show me how to do this. I also bought the new ignition lock cylinder with keys and need to key the door locks to match. Good job man!
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Sure man! It's not hard at all. It's kind of a fun little bench project. You just need an assortment of different length pins. Luckily, I had a few old lock cylinders to pilfer from. I only had to file down a couple longer pins. I'll keep what I've got for when you need them.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
It's been a while. Figured it's time for a quick update.
I spent a little time making the parking lamps pretty
Before:
After:
I spent a little time making the parking lamps pretty
Before:
After:
Last edited:
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Then I made a gauge and switch panel for the dash.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
I also made some replacement headlight adjuster nuts since half of them were either cracked or missing. There's a member here that sells 3D printed reproductions, but I try to use every chance I have to play with my lathe.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
I also got all the door/quarter, and vent glass installed and adjusted. Also installed the latches and such, and got those all adjusted nicely. I've never had an old car that had such nicely closing doors.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Started installing the headliner today. These things are a pain in the ***. Here are some photos when I first started.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
After stepping away for a bit, I finally figured it out. Funny how taking a break can help clear your mind when it comes to this type of stuff. I still have quite a bit of work to go, but it's getting there.
rmchrgr
Skate And Destroy
Nice job on all that.
What lathe do you have? I’d like to get one and I look often but just haven’t followed through yet.
Headliners are a PITA for sure, especially with a cage. I’m re-doing the one I put in a few years ago because I installed it with the windows still in. Got it close but was never happy with it. Have to have one though.
What lathe do you have? I’d like to get one and I look often but just haven’t followed through yet.
Headliners are a PITA for sure, especially with a cage. I’m re-doing the one I put in a few years ago because I installed it with the windows still in. Got it close but was never happy with it. Have to have one though.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
Thank you!
I ended up picking up an old 12" Atlas/Craftsman unit a couple years ago. It's not the most precision unit around and it took some work completely disassembling and cleaning it up, but it's been very handy to have around.
I've decided that I'll be okay with any remaining wrinkles in the headliner. I'm just glad I opted for one from Legendary. If it was a thinner/cheaper material, I'm pretty sure it'd be torn in many places by now.
rmchrgr
Skate And Destroy
Yep, mine was wrinkled because I couldn't pull it tight enough to get the material hooked on the cleats front and back. It's not possible to install an OE-style perforated cloth headliner with the windows in. Not sure about the later '72-up cardboard ones.
I remember laying upside-down with my upper back on the package tray while prying up the window gaskets and shoving the headliner material under it as far as I could. It just kind of laid there bunched up and gluey halfway under the gasket lip and would move when you pulled on another section. There were a couple spots where I cut it too short too. It was a mess. I was really sore and pissed off afterwards.
I took that first replacement one out pretty recently and it looked like it was 53 years old, even though I bought it like 6-7 years ago. The edges were trashed from fighting with it. My windows are out now so I will get a better result this time. Lesson learned.
I remember laying upside-down with my upper back on the package tray while prying up the window gaskets and shoving the headliner material under it as far as I could. It just kind of laid there bunched up and gluey halfway under the gasket lip and would move when you pulled on another section. There were a couple spots where I cut it too short too. It was a mess. I was really sore and pissed off afterwards.
I took that first replacement one out pretty recently and it looked like it was 53 years old, even though I bought it like 6-7 years ago. The edges were trashed from fighting with it. My windows are out now so I will get a better result this time. Lesson learned.
mopowers
Well-Known Member
I know exactly what you mean. I've got muscles hurting today that I never knew I had. Reminds me of when I scraped the undercoating off the undercarriage. I'm adding headliner installs to that list of projects I'll be paying someone to do from now on - along with Dana 60 gear set-ups.
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