71 Road Runner Restoration Started

[71airgrabberRR]

At the alignment shop....

Made it safely to get the front end aligned. Here are a few photos of the car on the rack.

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Back Home ........

After the alignment was done and the car was loaded back on the trailer, I stopped by a gas station and filled the tank with 93 octane gas.

This little 340 was running on what I had left over in my lawn mower gas can and did not like it one bit!!! It was 87 octane crap gas, not that today's ethanol blends are any better.....

Anyhow when I was removing the rear tie down straps I noticed a fuel leak. Better now than later I guess. The lock ring on the fuel tank sending unit is leaking.

Now I know the gas gauge works.....

2 steps forward, one back....

At least now she is back home. The next time it leaves will be for good.

here is a photo after the alignment was done. The wheels look straight now !!! Lol.

The car drives like a dream.

Kind of hate it that I had to get rid of it.

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Parts and Progress .......

Today was another good day..................:headbang:

The heater core for the Bird came in, and it looks like the chin spoilers will arrive soon. Will post a few photos of the parts soon.

On the Duster, a lot was accomplished.

Fixed the following:

Fuel tank sending unit leak

windshield wipers .......... Had a bad wiper motor...... Luckily I had a good spare 3 speed unit on hand.

Exhaust final alignment and tightened all clamps. Ensured the chrome 3" tips were exactly where they should be.

Adjusted the clutch

Removed rear brake drums for final inspection safety check and adjustment

Started diagnosing horn problem, possible bad relay, not 100% sure just yet. Steering wheel button is grounding like it should, and both horns work when jumped with a hot wire.

Still have to finish fixing the horns, connect the 2 power wires for the power antennae, and get the AC wired properly and charged.
Hopefully tomorrow this will be done. Then the new owner can come and pick her up.


Which means I can get caught up on a few honey do's around the house and get cracking on the Bird !!!!!

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Interesting times ahead.......

Yesterday the chin spoiler arrived for the Bird. I've been telling you all some photos to follow soon. I promise you they will come.

But I have been very busy with a lot of things both good and bad, and I have another crazy work schedule this week.

My mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer's / dementia a while ago and she has been getting worse lately. It seems like after Dad passed away she started declining rapidly. She is at a point now where something will have to be done soon.

So we have been doing a lot of research and soul searching, not to mention saying some prayers too.

That was the bad.

The good is that I have made some great progress with the wiring on the Duster. I had to pull the dash back apart and start tracing out wires one at a time until I was able to get the AC clutch and the heater fan motor working.

The horn is the last obstacle. I have power to the relay. When the wires leading to the horn from the relay are energized, both horns work. I checked the steering wheel horn contact and it grounds the system when the button is depressed.

The horns still do not work. I am thinking the relay is bad. I don't hear any clicking noises from it when the horn switch is closed.

Anyhow, here is a picture or two of what the dash looks like on the Duster.

Please say a few prayers for Mom.

Thanks.

 

[ct71rr]

Sorry to hear about your mom. The Duster is coming along nicely.

 

[old tired rebel]

Prayers for you and your mom. Your car is coming along nicely.

 

[tallhair]

You and Mom and family all have my prayers ... and thanks for the updates on the cars.

 

[73runner]

Love the thread.... Lost my dad a few years ago to Alzheimer's. My prayers are with you and your family.

 

[Basket case]

prayers out to you and Mom.
I musta missed that you were seling the Duster, too bad, she's a beauty.

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Parts Pictures as Promised

Thanks for the thought and prayers everyone. You all are some wonderful people.

I sold the Duster back in December when it was still on the rotisserie. I used part of the money from it to live on, while my wife was out of work when she severed a ligament in her ankle. Then I used some to buy the RR, the parts car SSB, and the parts shown here on this thread. So I am sad to see it go, but things happen for a reason. I have always liked the body styling of the 71 and 72 B-Body Plymouths, so when I had the chance to get this one, I jumped on it. I have always wanted one, so I can cross this off the bucket list.

Here are the pictures of the heater core and the chin spoilers for the Bird..........

 

[F.C.Fury]

Man you get to play with some fun toys!! :icon_eek: I'm also quite jealous of your shop and tools!

 

[71airgrabberRR]

Head Light Switch

This afternoon I stopped by a local parts store and they had a brand new head light switch for the Bird in stock. I'm pretty sure this is a fairly common application part that fits many of our Mopar muscle cars.
Here are a few pictures along with the box end that shows the part number. It was less than $20 out the door.

 

[ct71rr]

If only more parts could be less than $20...:laughing9:

 

[tallhair]

I was wondering how you had the time to be doing all of this .. sorry about the wifes ankle and hopes she's healed completely. If you are out of work I wish you luck but if you can make a living doing this you are living the dream man! More power to you brother.

 

[71airgrabberRR]

No I have a full time job and work an average of 56 hours a week.

This is a hobby for me. Its relaxing and a great escape to simpler times.

I was out of work last year for about 6 weeks because of an injury.

It would be living the dream though if I could make a living doing this, but I would be concerned with no steady paycheck. I pour my heart into each car I restore. It hurts when they end up leaving. It's almost like when your kid leaves home for good. Your happy for them but you miss them still the same.

The misses still has problems with her ankle. She's a real trooper with it though and keeps on going. I hardly ever hear her complain about it, so when she does I know it's pretty severe.

 

[Budnicks]

your progressing nicely the Duster looks really good :hello2: , now get back on the RR...LOL...

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I hope the wifey feels better soon...

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It's been awhile since I have check out your progress, I love how your documenting your builds here... good luck & keep up the great work :headbang:

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IMHFO I think it's pretty hard to make money at this stuff & have any time for your, family or your own cars too, be able to stay competitive in pricing will kill your profit if any... Unless you have a great work force & great shop with all the necessary tools, equipment &/or knowledge {even more outlay & overhead}, you do all the work your self in house & not have to pay a bunch of other shops to do stuff for you... That will help to keep you rolling in the dough $$$, one man shops really struggle allot & rarely succeed, especially in todays economy... But I agree 100% if you can do it & not have to worry about a regularly paying bills or a regular income, coming in all the time or an actual real paycheck/profit, after coving the overhead expenses, of running your own business... Then yes it would be awesome to do... But, It's not the same fun, when you have to do it thou either...

 

[71airgrabberRR]

"In House""

I agree with you. It would be fun for a while but I'm sure it would get old after a while and be pretty hard to make a living at it.

I do this as a hobby / relaxation.

I do everything on my cars, except for machine work, and alignments. Years ago when I worked in a machine shop I did that too. Now I clean and measure my parts, then take them out to a very good local shop and get the actual machining done. Then I pick everything up, bring it home, check everything out with my micrometers, and do my own assembly.

Now I get my cars front ends "close" then trailer them in to get the alignment done. Back in the '80s I had access to a front end alignment rack so I did everything then.

I recently picked up a monster press so now I can do all of my press work in house.

The Duster is sooooooo close to being done now. I can't wait to get started back up on the Bird.

 

[usaroadrunner]

that duster turned out awesome but guess what is gonna turn out better...that 71RR...just so you know after you get that bird done if by chance you dont like it...i got an xtra spot for it in my garage..lol cant wait to see the progress.

 

[71airgrabberRR]

"In House"

I agree with you. It would be fun but I'm sure it would get old after a while and be pretty hard to make a living at it. I don't think I would want the headaches that go with it.

My good friend / go to guy and fellow Mopar enthusiast has a restoration shop here in our town. He does VERY good quality work. In fact he finished up a Red '68 HEMI Charger R/T earlier this year, that recently took 1st place in its class at the Mopar Nats.

Some of you may have seen it this year at the show.

It is a numbers matching original 4 speed car and is absolutely gorgeous. The Charger has a black interior, dog dish hub caps and a black vinyl top. They just did a photo shoot of the car and it will end up in a magazine soon.

I do this as a hobby / relaxation.

I do everything on my cars, except for machine work, and alignments. Years ago when I worked in a machine shop I did that too. Now I clean and measure my parts, then take them out to a very good local shop and get the actual machining done. Then I pick everything up, bring it home, check everything out with my micrometers, and do my own assembly.

Now I get my cars front ends "close" then trailer them in to get the alignment done. Back in the '80s I had access to a front end alignment rack so I did everything then.

I recently picked up a monster press so now I can do all of my press work in house.

The Duster is sooooooo close to being done now. I can't wait to get started back up on the Bird.

Im sure you all can't wait either!!!!!!!

One of my goals on this thread was to document everything that goes into building a car and provide part numbers, etc. that go with it. Hopefully it will help someone who is working on their car somewhere along the way.

 

[old tired rebel]

All I can say is your attention to detail is outstanding. Can't wait to see the Road Runner