Don's 69 Charger Rust Belt restoration

[mopar4don]

did you put that snubber plate reinforcement in there? Leon.

Good eyes!
No I did not. I guess I just figured I would not be racing it.
Do you think that is a mistake?

Well, I just figure if your going to add Sub Frame Connectors & other reinforcements you might as well add the pinion snubber plate. you say not racing but then sub frame connectors not needed then ect., ect. BUT, Really it's all optional & matter of opinion. Are you going to add a plate to reinforce lower control arms?
Here is a pic of a Cuda I did with all the reinforcements. Unfortunately this is the only Pic I got, the rest lost on old computer. in this pic you cant see the heavy duty snubber plate. Leon.

Yes I welded in the firm feel reinforcement brackets on the lower control arms. along with their K-frame reinforcements. I documented it in this thread. (It was a long time ago)

[mopar4don]

I didn't like the way the quarter extensions matched so I did some metal work.










I also didn't like how they looked down low so I fixed it







       
 

[hemi-hampton]

did you put that snubber plate reinforcement in there? Leon.

Good eyes!
No I did not. I guess I just figured I would not be racing it.
Do you think that is a mistake?

Well, I just figure if your going to add Sub Frame Connectors & other reinforcements you might as well add the pinion snubber plate. you say not racing but then sub frame connectors not needed then ect., ect. BUT, Really it's all optional & matter of opinion. Are you going to add a plate to reinforce lower control arms?
Here is a pic of a Cuda I did with all the reinforcements. Unfortunately this is the only Pic I got, the rest lost on old computer. in this pic you cant see the heavy duty snubber plate. Leon.

Yes I welded in the firm feel reinforcement brackets on the lower control arms. along with their K-frame reinforcements. I documented it in this thread. (It was a long time ago)

 

[hemi-hampton]

Working with aftermarket for many years I've ran into those same 1/4 panel problems (& many other fit problems) & have done all that same stuff, cut/splice weld ect., ect., And people wonder why it cost so much & take so much time to restore a Car. They don't understand until they try it for themselves & see all the problems you can run into. What really sucks is when someone restores a car & doesn't do anything to fix these bad fit problems. Your doing a great job on that one. LEON.

[mopar4don]

Thankyou

[Stevearino]

Better than factory. Nice work as always Don.

[mopar4don]

Thanks Steve.
And just so you know, every friday I look forward to your youtube update!
You Sir, are amazing!

[Kern Dog]

I didn't like the way the quarter extensions matched so I did some metal work.



I also didn't like how they looked down low so I fixed it

    
 

I love the attention to "blueprinting" the body like you're doing here. It is what makes a car really stand out compared to an original. I'm impressed. You inspire me to do the same when I go through the body on "Jigsaw".

[hemi-hampton]

      

[mopar4don]

Getting ready to paint, but before I do that I wanted to get Resto Ricks undercoating sprayed inside the trunk.








     

[mopar4don]

And here is what it looks like after paint



                      

[mopar4don]

A few more....

      
      

[mopar4don]

A HUGE THANK YOU! to my friend Ralph who did the painting






   

[timmycharger]

  Looks amazing! Such great work on this build, I learned so much about how these panels go together from your work and documentation. Thank you!   

[mopar4don]

Thanks Timmy, I still have a ways to go.
Next up, final gaps and final metal work.

[tan top]

   looking good M4D   

[birdsandbees]

Now there's a BIG step. Looking good Don.. keep at'r !

[Charger-Bodie]

exciting times

[mopar4don]

  looking good M4D   

Thank you

Now there's a BIG step. Looking good Don.. keep at'r !

Thanks Wayne. A huge step for sure. (every time I see a 7up machine for sale I think of you) 

exciting times

Thanks

[Dino]

Woot woot!! That is awesome! Nice work Don!

[JB400]

      


Looks good. Can't wait to see the rest of it painted

[mopar4don]

Here is a long overdue update!

My deck lid needs some more attention, so I used a stud gun and pulled out a dent.
These 3 pics are what I have showing the process







So next I wanted to strip it to be sure there were no surprises!
I used a heat gun and putty knife to get the majority of the filler.
Then followed that with a wire wheel.











Overall its good. It just had a lot of filler   

[mopar4don]

Here are a couple more pics showing the dented area



 

[mopar4don]

Next up hood hinges.....

I was having a problem with the hood not closing properly.
When I would close the hood, the back edge along the cowl on the passenger side was not down all the way.
I would say it was up about a 1/4 of an inch.

So I removed both hinges and took the spring off. I checked all the joints and they seemed ok.
What I found was that the teeth were worn really bad!

This is the only pic I have showing how bad the teeth are worn. (zoom in to see the gap between the teeth)
Yes I know this pic shows the hinge in the open position but trust me they are just as bad when in the closed position.



Now it just so happens that I have a few extra sets of hinges.
You would think I could find a good set.... NOPE! They are all bad!

So I decided to fix these. And this blue hinge would be the test subject.

I had to do a LOT and I mean a LOT of research to come up with the right gear tooth shape.

Once I had the shape I drew it up in CAD/CAM then machined it into acrylic and tested it. NICE and SMOOTH!



 


So next I welded up the teeth, and made a fixture, then machined the new teeth.







A friend made up some new rivets and after machining the pivot holes I put it together and it worked perfectly!
NICE and SMOOTH!





So since it all worked I went ahead and picked a set of hinges. Machined new pivot holes for all the joints, and welded up and machined new teeth, epoxy primed everything, and installed the rivets.

I am happy to report that they work flawlessly on the car! And yes, when I close the hood, it truly closes all the way! 
   

[mopar4don]

These are the only pics of the rebuilt hinges. And they show how I mushroomed the back side of the rivets in my press.