64 Dodge Polara

[Sixpaksteve]

Good looking '64 Mr. Cruizer. Good luck with your project as I can to relate to what you're going through. Time & money......Money & Time. :notworthy:

 

[747mopar]

Very nice, cool cars for sure and looks like some great working going into it. Good luck

 

[cruizer88]

good idea to stay away form "fall" talk...so far we barley have summer here in OH.

 

[cruizer88]

ahhhh! The job from hell. I have spent the last two days scraping 50 years of Florida gravel road from the back, bottom of my 64 Dodge. Stuff falling everywhere. The dirtiest job there is in restoring an old car. I got three more days and she will be shiny and black underneath from front to back. Then I never have to look at the bottom again until I get to rebuilding the rear end and adding new springs. After that the body get media blasted so I can see what bodywork needs done. It won't be a heck of a lot, just a little something going on behind each rear wheel. Not major stuff, but stuff that needs fixing the right way. I love welding stuff so...The inside of the trunk looks like it did back in 64 aside from a patch where the spare sits. Spackle paint is cool stuff.

 

[Ron 73]

I used that "Spackle paint" on a 66 Chevelle i did a few years back, well, a bit more then a few years now lol! But yes, its cool stuff, it was expensive as heck back then i cant imagine what the stuff costs now!! Sounds like your having some fun under the ole gal with scraping and stuff, once you get it done and painted up that sore back and tired arms will feel much better! Your doing a great job, you'll be cruising the high way soon, wish you luck its going to be a sweet ride!!

 

[cruizer88]

Man! Am I glad that is over. I just spent the last week scraping and cleaning the underside of my 64 Dodge Polara. 50 years of gravel road and old undercoating all gone. It is now all black and coated with POR15. What a dirty job that was. Covered from head to toe in dirt and grunge for days. Did you know that getting dried POR15 off your skin is a "B"?? You almost have to scrape that stuff off. No matter how you try you still get some on you.

Now its back on its wheels and ready for media blasting and then body work. I love this hobby. So what do you think? Bright orange or bright white for final color??

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Now that I am retired I have the luxury of time. Money is money and meant to be spent on toys and family.

 

[cruizer88]

0.070" over would be 4.32" piston diameter form the original 4.25. 440 stock bore is 4.35 isn't it? So that won't work will it?

 

[6t4polara]

Stock bore for a 440 is 4.32 and yes it will work.

 

[cruizer88]

Thanks. I will look into getting the block tested this spring and see what I can do with using 440 pistons. That would save me some cash on the build for sure.

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Well, I have the entire car now media blasted and in PPG DPLF (90) primer for the winter. All I have left to do this fall is replace the lower quarters and the lower legs on the front fenders. I got new sheet metal from Classic to Current in Detroit. I can't see using too much filler at this point so on to the welding I go. I have to work fast. I have no heat in my car barn so once November rolls around I am done.

 

[cruizer88]

work ongoing on my 64 Polara.

Just a little update about my car work. I had the body blasted and now the entire car is in DPLF90 primer. I bought lower quarter panel sections and have the passenger side already replaced and ready for primer. I had to recreate the vertical wall of the trunk that the quarter rolls under to meet. This was tricky since there were some structural features in it that I wanted to keep (for some crazy reason, since no one will ever see them again). So it took a while to make all those little bends in the sheet metal. But for not doing this kind of work before it looks pretty good. Once the filler is added and blocked it will be invisible. I will do the drivers side this week. Then the car goes to sleep for the winter since I have not heated my car barn yet. I go south in the winter now to enjoy some golf, fishing, and sunshine. I will post some photos a little later.

 

[Basket case]

sounds like a cool project...but let's see the work!

 

[super-bee_ski]

Pretty!

 

[Ron 73]

Man! Am I glad that is over. I just spent the last week scraping and cleaning the underside of my 64 Dodge Polara. 50 years of gravel road and old undercoating all gone. It is now all black and coated with POR15. What a dirty job that was. Covered from head to toe in dirt and grunge for days. Did you know that getting dried POR15 off your skin is a "B"?? You almost have to scrape that stuff off. No matter how you try you still get some on you.

Now its back on its wheels and ready for media blasting and then body work. I love this hobby. So what do you think? Bright orange or bright white for final color??

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Now that I am retired I have the luxury of time. Money is money and meant to be spent on toys and family.

The color that makes your blood pressure shoot up "a little"..... I have high BP so i try to be careful how i say things lol, You are the judge, you have to go out for a drive looking at a car that turns you on, not us...

 

[cruizer88]

Photos as requested

Passenger side lower quarter repair

 

[Basket case]

something tells me you've done this before......:icon_pray:

 

[cruizer88]

Actually I did...in 1967. I really have little to no body work experience, but some things seem to make sense and I seem to be able to do this fairly well. Thanks for the compliment.

 

[cruizer88]

Yeah, I get that. The question was just for fun with the members. I am 90% sure what the color will be but that may change up to the time I buy the paint.

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I was a metallurgist in my former life at one time. So me and metals get along. The nice thing about metal (as opposed to say...woodworking) is that you can make a little mistake and then get the metal back to where you want it with a little coaxing.

 

[Ron 73]

Looks like some pro work for sure!!!