1969 Charger Build.

[NickJ]

Super productive over the long weekend. Managed to finish up the quarter (for now) and button up a few more things prior to her nap for the winter. Some members on here warned me on burnout and I'm definitely there when it comes to sheet metal. Going to take a weekend off and start tearing down the 440 next.. Might be nice to use a set of wrenches for a change   

Nick
https://www.facebook.com/Rowdy69Charger

[Charger-Bodie]

Looked like you had some filler over some shines e coat on the quarter. You will want to Remove that or it will eventually peel off.

Coming along though!

[best-laid-plans]

New guy here just admiring some of these build threads, especially 1969 Chargers. Great work

[NickJ]

Thanks guys. As for that black gel coat it's definitely coming off. I just needed to throw a little primer on her since she's going to be outside for a couple months. Once things thaw out a bit I plan on finishing a few more rust repairs and then re-sand the entire car in preperation for paint.

Nick

[NickJ]

The cold has kept me out of the garage lately but I did manage to get the motor torn down. Everything looked great inside and now it's off to the machine shop. She'll be getting cleaned and inspected and then back home for a mild build. Thinking the hood and decklid will come off today so I can start working them over. I've found that flipping between major projects keeps me from getting burnt out and keeps me chugging along while I wait on parts/money/weather. 

[NickJ]

Ronda's back in the garage and she had an unpleasant surprise for me when I started work this morning...    Any thoughts on the best way to tackle this? The rest of the roof is solid. I've seen patches for the bottom corners but nothing for the top. Thanks Fellas.

[keepat]

The pesky vinyl top gremlins. I have a few spot just like that but have yet to tackle them. As long as the metal is good at the top corner it should be a easy fix!
Good luck!
Pat

[fy469rtse]

Yep we have all been there,
Last one ive done was the same, I cut two strips , one for this obvious holed area, the other was for the window seal area, mine was probably worse,
I cut level with the bottom, top  just under the fold line, idea was not cutting right up to edge,
Was to help minimise distortion ,
Take some measurements, I did it not in one strip, but spread it say in four pieces,
Critical that you keep checking measurements,
Reason is that once window go's in and stainless fitted, it will show instantly if roof has moved at all,
Remember to get in and clean up as much to inner when you cut open,
Only chance you will get to attack surface rust crud inside
Oh and great progress, yes I did like you,
When I got burnt out on metal work,
Turned to engine or trans

[NickJ]

Thanks for the advice guys... Luckily(I guess) I have a lot of other things to do before I even start tackling that project... In other news, I Got a little work done today. Managed to weld all the vinyl top trim holes plus a few extra holes the factory was kind enough to leave behind. Also, started cleaning up the quarter seam so I can smooth it out. Onward and upward! 

Nick

[MxRacer855]

My project started out on the same rented U-Haul trailer.   

Jeff

[NickJ]

  Those U-Hauls do come in handy. The wife and I are hoping to move to NC after I retire so I think I'm going to invest in my own trailer soon though.

  In other news I managed to get a little work done Sunday. It was my Son's 13th birthday and the Super Bowl so I only managed about 2 hours. Removed the valance, bumper, and grill with hopes of finally assembling my new grill from Classic.... Unfortunately I found the left headlight bucket bolts were both broken (The ones in the fender).
 
  Any idea on where I can get replacements? I'm sure I can grind the spot weld and pull it out, just need another flat faced bolt to weld in it's place.. Any help would be greatly appreciated as always fellas.  Thanks!

Nick

[NickJ]

Managed to get a few things done this weekend. Pulled the windshield(without breaking it!  ), the dash, and most of the stuff on the firewall. Only a few random pieces left and she'll be completely stripped. Need to start inventorying and figure out what can be fixed, what needs to be replaced, and what I want to sell. Feels good to be making solid progress. 

Nick
https://www.facebook.com/Rowdy69Charger

[NickJ]

Been a long time without an update. Had to do some traveling for work and the weather has been a bit of a bear. I did manage to weld in my floor patches and spent a few lovely hours last night scraping off rustproofing with a putty knife. Next step will be tackling that rear window bed and then hopefully sheet metal will be complete. Slow but sure.....right?

Nick
https://www.facebook.com/Rowdy69Charger

[68pplcharger]

Just came across your build... Nice! Coming along very well nice work

[hollywood1336]

A little advice if you don't mind. Forget the putty knife, use an angle grinder with wire brush attachment for removing the insulation/undercoat. It will come off much faster and cleaner and not damage and scratch the sheet metal. Wear good protective clothing though, after a while the wires come out and will stick in bare skin. Found out the hard way, it was like someone had performed acupuncture on my arms. I have included a picture so you can see the before and after results with the angle grinder/wire brush.

[hollywood1336]

You can get the wire brush attachments from Harbor Frieght, pretty cheap, get a few (large and small) as they will self destruct after a while as mentioned.

[NickJ]

Thanks for the tip. I'd actually switched to a wire wheel after the initial scraping. It was just so thick in spots that the wheel just smeared it around. Now that I got rid of the globs I'm in business with the angle grinder. Thanks again.

Nick

[comet_666]

There is that mysterious firewall hole again!

[NickJ]

Not sure what that thing is for. It just had a black plug from the factory stuffed in there. Anyone know?

Nick

[comet_666]

Out of curiosity was it an early build date car? Mine was Oct 68 and has it.

[NickJ]

Yep. August 1968

[Ghoste]

Not sure what that thing is for. It just had a black plug from the factory stuffed in there. Anyone know?

Nick

We've been trying to figure it out for a while now.

[NickJ]

 Had a pretty productive weekend. Got the front clip removed and rebuilt the hinges/re-aligned the doors. (Not perfect but much better). Anyone have any tips for fine tuning? I'm about an 1/8" high and it's a PITA to make that small of an adjustment.

  Spent soe more time underneath wire wheeling. I only have a small area left behind the rear seat and then the rear wheelwells. Definitely not a job I want to do again anytime soon. I'm hoping to have the floors both inside and out prepped for POR-15 in the next couple weeks.

  Nascar at Texas this weekend so no work on Ronda.. I suppose a break will be nice. 

Nick
https://www.facebook.com/Rowdy69Charger

[MxRacer855]

I hated scraping undercoating and cleaning metal. At one point I was actually laying on my back on my garage floor sand blasting the bottom of my car (car was draped with a tarp sealed to the floor). I had full motocross goggles on with a balaclava and a hoodie. Very... unpleasant. 

Looks great! 
Keep 'em coming.



Jeff

[fy469rtse]

yep in much better shape than when you stated