1969 Dodge Super Bee Coupe Restoration

[themechanic]

Rag stuffed inside each horn so I don't fill them with media.

Horns and grill brackets ready for media blasting.

Horns and brackets blasted, etch primered and painted with CDA1603 Semi-gloss. Painted the horns heavy hoping for the odd run, as they were dipped originally.

Headlight eyebrows taped off on the polished parts and etch primered.

Black painted on the eyebrows, now to wait for paint cure to tape/mask and paint the argent.

Grill brackets cleco'd on ready to rivet in place.

Don't have any 1/8" steel tubulars so using some soft A4-4 aluminum rivets instead.

Brackets on and grill ready for painting.

Two coats of black and after it's cured will be masked off for argent.

While I had the paint flowing, headlight shields painted as well.

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***** on Valentines Day, eh?

 

[dadsbee]

***** on Valentines Day, eh?

Yep, screwed 8 times yesterday.. no make that 9, I took one back out so she could take it with her today to buy 7 more of the same. Then I get to screw 15 more times tonight!

 

[dadsbee]

I think the most dangerous thing I've polished so far, headlight rings. Leather gloves on and I still checked to see if my fingers where gone! Watch those screw tabs as it leaves your hands.... and sure glad my car wasn't in it's usual assembly spot!

My four OE rings looking like new, they were so beat up looking that I had actually bought some used replacements a couple years back.

Door locks that a previous body shop beat up, instead of removing, during a paint job in '88.

Same gig... up through the sandpaper grits and then power polish.

Both door locks and the trunk lock ready to install, if I only had a car.. maybe tomorrow!

Rubber spacers and glue for the tail light panel.

Spacers in place, ready to install when I get my car back.

Almost forgot about the front headliner trim. Painted with same paint as the upper dash board and steering column, CTP70000 Duplicolour Trim. It's not supposed to have gloss, just like the dash board.

 

[69L48Z27]

Looking good! I had one of those rings fly away before.

 

[dadsbee]

Took 154 pictures today.. I'll bore you with 20 of them!
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Time to bring Therapy home from the beauty shop.

Cut and buffed and lots of klear remaining for future touch ups.

Out in the snow with a 4 gear on bias plies. Reminded me of a simpler time, but driveable.

Ready to load.

Next trailer mod... some grit mixed into some clear. I "drifted" the car up the loading door and almost got the rear quarter on the cable.

Just an easy to grab shot while in the trailer.

Fender art.

Jen talking to me. Is it Purple or Blue?

Reflection of Therapy's home showing in the door.

Mopar in the snow..

 

[dadsbee]

Yah.. I think I took 154 pictures today alone.

Gorgeous. Reflecting the big Oak tree that's 75 feet away.

Snowscape reflection.

Canada Eh !

Sun shining through the garage door.

Reflections of my mess.

I hid a car in the trunk.

Now that's straight!

Lights out and time for me to get some house renos done. Back tomorrow to blacken her eyes!

Freshly painted rear marker bezels to match the stripe.

 

[dadsbee]

Hood lip extension screwed into place.

Painter George would probably kill me if he knew what I was about to do!

All taped and covered to give Therapy her black out treatment. I've lost a lot of sleep over this decision myself but it is what it is, correct.

Scuffed all that pretty paint with 320 and wiped clean.

I didn't think B5 cars got it, but the consensus and Chryco literature says it does.

Painted with Duplicolour CDA1605 Flat Black, from the bottom upward.

Passenger side I did about correct keeping the spray shooting upward only as was done on the assembly line. Drivers I got a bit heavier, but still looks okay.

All the tape and masking off.

Ready to do headlights, bumper, grill, etc.

 

[dadsbee]

Headlight pots painted as per assembly line spec for easy ident without trying to read the position stamps. Passenger side Hi/Low = Black, Pass Hi = Blue, Driver Hi = Orange and Driver Hi/Low = Red.

New headlight adjuster kit. You need two kits to do a car.

They come assembled backwards, don't let that confuse you.

The plastic snaps into metal housing.

Push into hole and give a good smack to lock in place.

Adjuster in place.

Wish they'd taken my old ones out before paint and body work, but this or similar is what you need.

In through the hole beside the adjuster socket and use the hole as a pivot point to pop the old ones out.

Marker reflector bezel backs painted with etch primer to simulate factory colour for final assembly.

 

[oldbee]

Yah.. I think I took 154 pictures today alone.

Gorgeous. Reflecting the big Oak tree that's 75 feet away.

Snowscape reflection.

Canada Eh !

Sun shining through the garage door.

Reflections of my mess.

I hid a car in the trunk.

Now that's straight!

Lights out and time for me to get some house renos done. Back tomorrow to blacken her eyes!

Freshly painted rear marker bezels to match the stripe.
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Didn’t even feel the outside temp for awhile!!!

 

[The Rebel]

Nice job! Bet you were glad to have the blackout completed.

 

[moparjohnny]

Nice job! Bet you were glad to have the blackout completed.

wayne, was the sway bar painted black from factory as well? thanks

 

[dadsbee]

wayne, was the sway bar painted black from factory as well? thanks

I believe it was bare steel with a heat treat finish. With no way to really simulate that after media blast it got a flattish black paint.

 

[3white74]

Man ....that's a nice looking radiator in that car!!!!!

 

[dadsbee]

Man ....that's a nice looking radiator in that car!!!!!

Thanks Steve, it was a GREAT core you sold me. Now that I have it redone my only wish is that I'd given it another coat of paint after my radiator shop rebuilt it. He hit it a bit light it seems and hard to touch up now, but I'm not pulling it out!

 

[dadsbee]

Headlight "bucket" spring. Screw goes through the spring to retain same to mounting frame.

Adjuster spring installed.

All 4 buckets are marked for location. Hi-Lo RT, Hi RT, Hi-Lo LT and Hi LT.

All four buckets in place on their adjuster screws and springs.

The OEM style bulbs I bought from a guys collection a few months ago. 4000 and 4001's, all General Electrics

All 4 bulbs in place.

They even work... well after I remembered to put the dimmer switch in the wiring harness.

Still need to aim them all of course. That can wait for a warm day outside to use the white door.

Reproduction signal lights. My "OE's" weren't from my car anyhow, something I picked up in 1988 at the Oro Flea Market and they weren't in the greatest of shape. Would be nice if the repops came ready to install.

Taped off and painted with Flat Black Rustoleum Primer and Paint.

 

[dadsbee]

Carefully taped off the center grill with some 3M fineline 1/4" tape on the fresh black and no other tape touching fresh paint for fear of it peeling.

Three light coats of the CBVW2039 Reflex Silver Metalic

Carefully peeled all the tape and amazingly all clean crisp lines.

I stared at it for some time! Absolutely amazed at how it came out.

Really like how it came out. I couple bleed out spots showing that I already cleaned up.

Now the eyebrows were another story. Terrified paint would peel on the anodized finish and I wasn't disappointed in that! Knew I should have tried to construct a painting "mask". How Chryslers supplier would have done it. Paint the Argent, drop a mask over it and paint the Black.

A few coats of the Reflex Silver and I was quickly reminded that just because it's the same brand of paint... it doesn't mean it's compatible.

The Black was Acrylic Enamel and I let it cure for SIX days under the furnace outlet. The Silver is Acrylic Laquer and it crazed like hell.

I managed to save it by sanding out the lizard pattern.

Sprayed a light coat of Hi Build Primer and then waited an hour.

 

[dadsbee]

While waiting I got the freshly refinished horns ready to install.

They get their own Brown colour coded bolts for some reason, with serrated tooth washers to bite in for a better ground.

Horns and horn relay installed.

An hour later, a few coats of the Silver over the Hi Build Primer and success with a smooth flow out.

Of course my expected nightmare happened and now I get to hand paint the black. I'm not taping it again...

The Silver/Argent came out nice in the end though, now to see if I can save the Black.

 

[The Rebel]

Looks great! Just wondering what the dates are on the High/Low's. I need to get high beams as both are probably burned out. I'm wondering how the brightness is on NOS vs modern bulbs.

 

[dadsbee]

You want BRIGHT, NOS probably aren't the ticket and you'd want Halogens but make sure you wire them via relay if you do and not directly through the dash switch.

Dates, I didn't really care... getting new matched pairs of bulbs was my priority.

 

[moparjohnny]

You want BRIGHT, NOS probably aren't the ticket and you'd want Halogens but make sure you wire them via relay if you do and not directly through the dash switch.

Dates, I didn't really care... getting new matched pairs of bulbs was my priority.

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wayne,what silver paint is used i see a number but what brand name. thanks