72 Charger - Long Awaited Update...

[72Charger-SE]

The front is mounted.  I had to redo the rear brackets as I underestimated the distance needed to properly connect to all four bumper mount brackets.  This is being done today so... LORD WILLING it will be rotating tonight!

[72Charger-SE]

I have the connecting 2" steel tube for the rotisserie to connect the two ends together however I have to cut it down a bit.  I did not want to guess wrong so I am waiting till the rear is mounted to connect them. 

[nvrbdn]

looks as though you are doing a nice job.

[JB400]

 

[72Charger-SE]

Photos of this evening's progress...  The car is not balanced yet so no 'rotisserizing' ...  the metal in the sleeves does not want to slide very well when I try to lift one of the ends.  I sprayed penetrating oil on them and will try again tomorrow evening...

[72Charger-SE]

More Photos...

[NJRBros]

WOW I was not expecting this!  Looks great!  We also messed up on the bracket lengths, but we left it on to work on stripping the underside, then when we drop it to work on the quarter panel we'll fix them..  Hopefully you get any small issues sorted soon and have it doing 360's! 

[72Charger-SE]

NJRBros...   when I try to use the balance threaded rod the metal in the 'vertical sliding sleeve' is binding...  I used PB6 penetrating oil to hopefully get it to slide more freely.  Is there a type of 'treatment' I could use on the metal to help it slide better?  Also, I see i need to fully weld to top of the threaded rod bracket to the vertical slide.  The bolt solution i have allows for too much 'play' and changes the angle of the slide creating more binding...  see photos...

The first photo is without any pressure on the threaded bolt.  You will notice the top is level. 

The second photo is with pressure on the threaded bolt.  You will notice the top is NOT LEVEL and creates a significant angle and added tension to lifting the vertical slide.

I plan to weld that top piece solid tonight so it has no play whatsoever.

[NJRBros]

I don't think I'd weld the piece solid because you won't be able to fully disassemble the rotisserie.  Ours had a thicker sleeve so it couldn't rotate as much.  You could probably just weld a piece of metal inside the top piece to act like a shim.  We did that for the car mount bracket we made.



If you're also saying that this sleeve is binding, then I'm not sure how to correct that.  You MAY be able to use the same shim idea for that, but I'd just tack them in to test in case it makes it worse.

[72Charger-SE]

Thanks NJRBros.  I am OK with welding the top piece as the rest can be broken down for storage.  I plan to fabricate a bit more by cutting off the front legs and making them removable thus easier to store.  I wanted to wait to do that as I was sure there would be a few more additions to the rotisserie design after the initial use.

[72Charger-SE]

OK.  I took your 'spacer' advice...  worked GREAT!!  Thanks!

Since there was not enough space left on either side with the original drilled hole I had to redrill but that wasn't too difficult.  Especially now that I have an understanding of how to properly sharpen a drill bit with a bench grinder.  Thanks to my brother in law for that lesson!  Very helpful!

[72Charger-SE]

Pics of the 'Rotisseried' Car.  I am planning to start on the rocker panels in the next day or so and finish what I started weeks ago.  EXCITED to get going!

NOTE: We are still not 100% balanced as it wants to 'return' to it's original state.  We will work on that as time permits.  Also, the 'binding' of the ends was due to the different heights of the car (the front was too low) thus creating a binding on the rear when attempting to level it.  More lessons learned...

[72Charger-SE]

As a side note...

42 Years and 5 days ago this car came off the assembly line in St. Louis...  Now it is back 'on the assembly line'...  

[nvrbdn]

 

[72Charger-SE]

Cutting out the Old...

[72Charger-SE]

More Photos...

[72Charger-SE]

Front rocker panel area...
This was a pain in the butt...  However I enjoyed getting creative and fabricating the pieces!

[72Charger-SE]

More of the front rocker panel...

[72Charger-SE]

Final photos of front rocker panel...

[72Charger-SE]

Passenger Rocker Panel...

[72Charger-SE]

More of rocker panel...

[72Charger-SE]

Rear Quarter Panel Patch...

[72Charger-SE]

Rear Quarter panel continued...

[72Charger-SE]

Rear Quarter panel continued...

[72Charger-SE]

Marker Lights...  Gone...     I just like the look without them...