1969 Dodge Charger R/T 440 Restoration

[KiddysClassics]

Kiddy's Classics traveled to Kentucky to take an original owner's 1969 Dodge Charger R/T 440 out of its 30+ year slumber. It was packed behind the family's belongings under inches of dust and made its way to our shop for a full restoration.

[BLK 68 R/T]

Looks like a great project. Good luck with your resto

[Shakey]

Right on - welcome to the site!   

[Ghoste]

I'm no expert but I think that muffler has had it. 
Welcome to the site.

[tan top]

hello & welcome     , looks a a good project  ,  keep the pictures coming !! 

[6spd68]

Looks like a great base to start with! 

[KiddysClassics]

When the vehicle was put away, it was not properly prepared to sit for so long. Because of this, the motor's internal parts were badly rusted and rodents had made it their home.

[KiddysClassics]

  Thank you for the welcome wishes!

[Homerr]

Welcome!

Looks like a nice crispy one.  We love seeing progress pics, keep em coming.   

[Challenger340]

Great looking project starting point 
But methinks that rusted Engine, is going to be one UGLY dis-assembly job ?
Keep us posted on your progress and good luck moving forward.

[Ghoste]

I don't believe I've seen a case before where the furry little critters went up the exhaust like that to nest right inside a cylinder. 

[66FBCharger]

Welcome.
It looks like a great starting point.

[freddyd02]

Welcome, looking forward to this one! 

[jaak]

I'm no expert but I think that muffler has had it. 
Welcome to the site.

Cool project!

Jason

[68RT440]

Nice project, Im digging the color combo...

[bill440rt]

Very cool Charger! does look crispy, but a complete starting point.
Goes to show these Charger projects like this are still lurking around. 

[Dino]

Thanks for saving a Charger!   

What's the plan?   

[KiddysClassics]

Initial blasting was done to uncover the damage. The entire vehicle will be temporarily coated in a weldable primer while repairs are being made. Once all the repairs are made, the entire car will be re-blasted and coated in epoxy.

[KiddysClassics]

We intend to restore this very "crispy" car to it's original condition. As with any restoration, all the parts were saved for later in the restoration. The parts that are in good condition will be reused, the parts that are not will be refurbished, repaired, or replaced. It will be painted the original color.  The Owner of the car wants his car back just as it was when he bought it off the show room floor.  The original 440 engine block and heads were too far gone and will be replaced.  In short the plan is to stay as close to the original as possible while some minor additions may be made to ensure the longevity and drivability of the final product.

[Homerr]

Looks less crispy blasted, I was expecting a lot more damage!

It seems like the norm around here concerning rust on Chargers is that after blasting the car looks twice as bad.  Usually from uncovering previous bondo-only repairs.

[Cncguy]

I don't know about re blasting. You may warp the crap out of those panels if you blast again. I have heard you can one blast a car once.

[KiddysClassics]

Homerr - your right, except it is not just chargers is every car.  Anytime someone tells me a car has been repainted even if the paint job is 20 plus years old I refuse to give estimates on jobs till after the media blasting is done.  We are also working on a 1963 23 window bus in our shop.  You can go to our website and look at what we found was covered up on that with filler.   

CNCguy -  I don't like getting technical on forums because there is always someone that reads it and wants to be that guy who has no experience in the field but wants to through his two cents in because that's what is his brother told him he heard, and his brother heard it from his cousin who overheard a guy at Walmart that was buying the two gallons of bondo on the shelf to fix the damage caused by a guy who sandblast his car but does not mention he was using play sand as the media for blasting.

On that note:  We use special media and techniques to prevent a panel from being damaged during media blasting.  I have personally tried everything when it comes to blasting, from play sand, to soda, to plastic beads, to the increasingly more popular water blasting. Our process will not warp the panels, I could blast the car 10 times over and nothing will change.  Our process causes no more damage than using 80 grit on a D/A to strip the panel.   I have had several panels brought to me and have had to fix the damaged and warped panels caused by someone else blasting that did not know what they were doing. I assure you the panels were not warped by heat from the friction of blaster hitting the surface as so many people talk about.  If done correctly "IN MY OPINION" nothing gets rid of rust better and gets a car cleaner than someone who knows what they are doing with the right "DRY" media. 

If you don't know what you are doing take it to a professional.  If you ask them about the possibility of warping the panel and they waiver at all, find someone else to do the blasting.  Also if you are unsure about having them blast the car have them do one fender first or a door skin, don't turn them loose on the whole car.  Inspect the panel, get involved with the shop you are working with.  Don't just trust them because they sound like they know more than you. They may have just read further down the same forum that you are getting your information from.   I hope this helps some of you guys out there.  We are here to help when we can but typing takes a lot of time so feel free to look us up and call if you have any questions.     

Shaun Kiddy - Kiddy's Classics

[tan top]

Initial blasting was done to uncover the damage. The entire vehicle will be temporarily coated in a weldable primer while repairs are being made. Once all the repairs are made, the entire car will be re-blasted and coated in epoxy.

  looking good 

[charge69]

Welcome, sir and any questions you might have can be answered correctly by one of the many experts here!   

Does the car have a fender tag or build sheet?  The pictures make my old, slightly color blind eyes think it is R6 but it could be R4.  It has a white interior and tail stripe like mine but no vinyl top.  It will be a sharp car when finished.  I have to say, it is a real shame about the original motor. Can you save the original transmission?

If the fender tag was there, we would all like a glimpse of it !

[Ghoste]

Yes, I'd love to add it to the registry.

[JB400]

I'm surprized this one looks as solid as it does.

[6spd68]

Shame the 440 couldn't be saved...