Need tips on radius cutting rear wheel wells

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falconsdart

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I have a 72 dart custom and I want to put on a my bigger set of slot mags from my old dart sport i have for it, but they are too big to fit in the rear. Narrowing the rear end and getting tubs are out of the question for me, I want to give a shot at radius cutting. My main problem is I don't have a plasma cutter, I only have a saws-all and a grinder. Its my first time trying anything like this(pretty new to the car world still) so I was wondering if anybody had some advice for a newbie like myself trying this. I am set on going for it, I just would like some tips on drawing a perfect radius and cutting it out without it looking like a total hack job. Thanks in advance, you guys are always awesome on here!
 
Do you have a welder? Are you trying to save the paint?
Do you have a jig/sabre saw?
 
I have a welder but its a mig and i dont have the right gas for it right now to use it on sheet metal. Im not worried about the paint, its just primered right now(rolling project). And I do have a craftsman 1/5hp sabre saw
 
Drawing the radius is easy, you just tie one end of a piece of string to a sharpy,and the other to the hub
Keep tension on the string and you get a perfect radius everything
Just cut it out with a sawzall (stay within the lines) and trim with the grinder

On a sidenote, is the dart custom 5 on 4 or 5 on 4.5?
It may be old enough to still be 5 on 4, in which case the rims from the dart sport won't fit
 
Sounds like smaller wheels are in order...
 
so I was wondering if anybody had some advice for a newbie like myself trying this.
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my advice is to get the proper wheel for the car and not to butcher whe wheelwell..
 
abodyjoe said:
my advice is to get the proper wheel for the car and not to butcher whe wheelwell..
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absolutely, who in their right mind would ever think of doing a thing like that?

Hemi_dart_015_zpsccgmqbdh.jpg
 
Air shocks and shackles my man, BAM!
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Just kidding, I vote for what abodyjoe said, unless the quarter & wheelhouse are rusted out already, then hack away. But if you think you are into cars long term, replacing quarters & outer wheelhouses is time better spent doing more enjoyable improvements, like just adding inner wheelhouse extensions & spring relocation kits.
I think even as badass as they were, the original 68 Hemi SS cars looked hacked back there.
 
Roger Ram Rod said:
Air shocks and shackles my man, BAM!
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Just kidding, I vote for what abodyjoe said
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don`t do the long shackle thing. make a good template of your wheel wells, and then use it to stretch and heighten them from stock. you can carefully roll the metal on the front(for a taller tire) to where it`s flat against the inside front of the wheel well, w/o butchering it .
use a jigsaw for best control.
 
Thanks for the advice guys. I ended up using a sabre saw with some metal blades, measured up how much i would need off and made a template to trace on the car. It worked out really good in my opinion, sorry to the guys who advised me not to do this though! I took into consideration everyone's opinion, but it comes down to the look i have pictured for the car and that's the route im going. I plan on getting a late 60's swinger sometime and I will make sure not to butcher it like this one I have now.
 
diymirage said:
Drawing the radius is easy, you just tie one end of a piece of string to a sharpy,and the other to the hub
Keep tension on the string and you get a perfect radius everything
Just cut it out with a sawzall (stay within the lines) and trim with the grinder

On a sidenote, is the dart custom 5 on 4 or 5 on 4.5?
It may be old enough to still be 5 on 4, in which case the rims from the dart sport won't fit
Click to expand...

Yeah the bolt pattern is 5x4 and these wheels were off of my old 74 sport and they were also 5x4. I've owned only 3 darts so far(74 sedan, 74 sport, and now my 72 custom) and they all have had the small bolt pattern. Its also hard to find wheels for it when they're that small of a bolt pattern also, atleast in my local area.
 
Change the rear axle.
Get the correct offset wheels.
Save the car and prevent driving around like a hack.
 
falconsdart said:
Thanks for the advice guys. I ended up using a sabre saw with some metal blades, measured up how much i would need off and made a template to trace on the car. It worked out really good in my opinion, sorry to the guys who advised me not to do this though! I took into consideration everyone's opinion, but it comes down to the look i have pictured for the car and that's the route im going. I plan on getting a late 60's swinger sometime and I will make sure not to butcher it like this one I have now.
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Hey, its your car to do how you want. Pics would help.
 
falconsdart said:
Yeah the bolt pattern is 5x4 and these wheels were off of my old 74 sport and they were also 5x4. .
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That's cool, I thought they were all LBP by 74
Mine is SBP aswell, so I know what you mean about not finding wheels


And pics are a must
 
Here's the only picture I have right now, I still need to go in on the driver side and grind some more and then paint it. And every time I post a pic it's usually sideways, still don't know how to correct it.
 

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mischiefdart said:
When I did mine I started on the inside. There is a crease on the outer wheel house that I followed. I then made a piece of filler out of flat stock to bridge the gap between the wheel house and quarter panel. Trimmed the quarter to about 3/8 of an inch of the filler and bent it under and welded it in place.
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I like it! Did a hell of a better job than I did too
 
all depends whether you are a "boy racer" type or lean toward the purist type! like said, if going for the 68 hemi SS look, ya gotta do what ya gotta do!!!!!

if sold it could all be put back stock for a few $$$$ ( o k maybe more than a few!)......

hey these are A Bodies, how many dozens come up for sale there every week!!!!

ask 100 guys, get 100 different answers, whether choice of paint color, changing/engine build, wheels, mufflers, you name it!!!!!!! lol
 
barbee6043 said:
all depends whether you are a "boy racer" type or lean toward the purist type! like said, if going for the 68 hemi SS look, ya gotta do what ya gotta do!!!!!

if sold it could all be put back stock for a few $$$$ ( o k maybe more than a few!)......

hey these are A Bodies, how many dozens come up for sale there every week!!!!

ask 100 guys, get 100 different answers, whether choice of paint color, changing/engine build, wheels, mufflers, you name it!!!!!!! lol
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Yeah I'm a young kid so I guess I could be classified as a "boy racer". I seem to run into darts for sale all the time in my area oddly enough. And that's very true! Everybody's got their two cents they want to throw into the pot
 
My car had the typical rust where the quarter panel and outer wheel house meet so why not? Needed quarters anyway. I like that 15x10 wheels and tires fit with no problem now.
 
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