73 charger freshen up

[masshole73]

Been on this site for a while now and just recently pulled the 318/727/8 1/4 driveline from my what used to be daily driven charger. So far drivers seat has been mounted, 440 is off to the machine shop to grow in size and battery has been moved to the trunk. Installed Ss springs and waiting on ordering a Dana from moser(hopefully around the end of December.) fiberglass bumpers are on order and not sure if I want to go chrome or painted yet, but they should be here in a few weeks if not less. Then I can hopefully button up the exterior and start dumping money into the motor again.

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Pictures didn't come out in the order that I wanted but the complete photos are of the car about mid summer. Anything else has been done in the past couple weeks

 

[Kern Dog]

Who makes fiberglass bumpers for the car?
Good to see someone embrace the 73-74 B body cars. Are those wheels staying on the car? I ask only because most "Pro-Touring" builds feature a lower stance with 17-20" wheels and lower profile tires. Either way, I like what you have done. Good work.

 

[masshole73]

Front wheels are 15x8, and yes I might change out tire sizes. Rears are 15x10 I believe and I might up to a 17. Car sits about 3 inches off the ground in the front, and much higher in the rear although that may not be 'pro-tour' it is the look that I like. Unlimited products makes the bumpers (also made the hood.) have had great results with their products. Okay maybe it is more of a racecar now that I think about it..

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Original idea was to slap an XV motorsports front suspension underneath and make it handle like a dream, unfortunatly they are out of business, and none of the major companies make suspension for the later chargers that I know of. So for now it's reinforced lower control arms, pst solid adjustable tie rod sleeves and other bits and pieces. K frame has also been notched and cut.

 

[Kern Dog]

XV was sold and they are in business again. I'm not sure of what all they sell now, but I just bought a set of 3 point seat belts for my car last month.

 

[Bb70charger500]

Very cool we need more pictures I bought a fiber glass bumper years ago maybe 15 years ago or so I couldn't find a good core so I went glass it worked great till I hit a wall it broke I fixed it it looked good as new. So I finally found a nice bumper to go on the car so the glass one got retired not sure what I did with it I don't remember

 

[masshole73]

i cant wait for the glass ones. trying to shave as much weight as possible from this big heavy car. which is why im not sure if chrome would be the best route to go.

 

[Bb70charger500]

Yeah there heavy alright are you going to get the fiberglass power buldge hood ? I think there about $450 that would shed some weight fairly quick I think they even sell glass fenders keep up the good stuff

 

[masshole73]

Already have the full glass six pack hood. Sticking with that, love the way it looks

 

[Bb70charger500]

Ah 10-4 that hood you have does look bad *** . I think I saw glass fenders to at one point in life can't remember where that will help cut some weight too. These are very heavy cars I remember the first time I pulled a door off (by my self) my foot hurt for a week. So how about some more pictures ,at least someone s car is getting work done on it . I haven't touched any of my charger s in years . I just got my RT and got it in the garage I bought for it and I'll check to see how it's doing in about 5-6 years at the rate I'm going maybe one of the other charger s will be almost done by then.keep up the hard /good work gives me something to read and look at

 

[masshole73]

Ugh. 71 r/t is my absolute dream(hence the 71 front end.) but gotta work with what I got. I'll throw some more pics up in the am, not a ton being done tonight besides some music and beer. Tomorrow, will be a different story.

 

[Budnicks]

Cool project

good luck & happy Moparing

Merry Christmas

 

[masshole73]

not much done since the holidays..few odds and ends, new k frame bushings installed was probably the biggest. rear drivers side was a pain in the a$$. the nut welded to the frame rail somehow broke so the bolt kept spinning and spinning. finally just drilled a big hole inside the frame rail so i could get a socket on it. should probably fix the big hole i drilled...but naturally ill wait until the car is driving and i have access to a welder. pics coming later tonight.

 

[Kern Dog]

Cool. Keep them coming !

 

[masshole73]

Little bit of an update..fiberglass bumpers came in today. Man do I hate painting fiberglass. Need to have the local paint store mix up a couple more cans of green so I can finish those, then install the front end. Probably a lot of shaving and cutting will have to be done. Want to flush them and eliminate the ugly filler pieces. Also picking up a console this week, then I can start tackling the audio system! Slow and steady.

 

[Kern Dog]

Hate painting 'glass? I've never worked with it. Maybe the paintwork isn't so bad, just the prep work?
Should be a nice weight savings though? Thats something to be happy about. It isn't easy owning a cool car. You always find ways to blow money on it.
Good luck and keep the faith!

 

[masshole73]

Hahaha VERY true! Maybe I should rephrase.. I am a professional painter by no means. 20 years old and I can turn a wrench, but when it comes to paint, the most professional I get it having the local place mix up a couple cans of color match, do some decent prep, and start spraying. Not sure why but the paint didn't like sticking to the fiberglass no matter how thin the coat. Now I'm not going to go blaming my tools and such, however I'm not sure if the paint and the fiberglass just don't get along or if my prep wasn't good enough....point being, the bumper looks alright and ultimately it serves a purpose. Doesn't have to be perfect. I love how light they are, however they are sort of flimsy. I opted to stick with the steel bumper brackets rather than go fiberglass for this reason. But not before shaving as much extra material as I could off of them. So it evens out. Have to get a couple more cans, and finish them up, then figure out how to get the 71 grilles to fit good because that is something that will bother me. Pics coming later tonight!

 

[masshole73]

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hopefully the pics worked, got everything hung super loosely so I could check general fit. Bit of trimming still needed, painting bumper tomorrow and maybe get it wrapped up by the weekend. Man I hate fiberglass, time for a shower!!

 

[masshole73]

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Update brackets for the 73 grilles didn't fit for the 71's at all. Made the center brackets out of some aluminum, nothing too fancy. Going to have to get creative on the outer ones. Or if anyone makes them then I'll order the correct 71 style. If not then will run with this for the time being. As long as they hold the grilles in place where I want them to sit then it's really no big issue. Oh well. Re spraying the bumper tonight and hopefully have everything mounted by tonight.

 

[Kern Dog]

Good work. I like the look of painted bumpers on those cars. The amber inner headlights are a cool touch too.
Temperature plays a critical role in how well the paint flows as well as how it sticks! My experience is that the paint and the part/car needs to be above 60 degrees for several hours for the paint to work. I have had fisheyes and other blemishes when spraying even rattle cans below 60 degrees. One trick is to put the part in direct sunlight if possible. I've put paint cans in a bucket with warm water in it to raise the temperature. A trick that some may consider dangerous: I've used a handheld propane torch to the underside of the cans to do the same thing. Cold paint seems to spatter instead of flow like a mist.
When you think of automotive paint, it actually is an interesting process. You take a liquid, spray it through a nozzle to make it a "mist/fog/spray, then it lays down on the surface to be a liquid again until it dries to a solid. Once the paint is on a part or a car, temperature and the type of solvent determine how well the paint flows out to lay flat.
Anyhow, I'm glad to see a young guy NOT spending time on an import car!

 

[masshole73]

Hahaha couldn't pay me to drive an import. I live for mopars haha. And hmm. Well that would explain it if temp is the case, considering it's been about 20 degrees here. Shop might be a bit warmer but still surely below 60. I'll give some of those tricks a try when I re spray and update!