Another new old guy...NE Arkansas

[RickDGTX]

Good morning. I've looked at the site many times, but never joined. Lots and lots of info here. I get frustrated reading some of the published stuff now, since I was there when all this stuff was new, and know how badly in error a lot of newly published stuff really is. This site seems to be a wealth of correct information, in contrast with a lot of the other. I'm an old Mopar guy, and my wife and I currently have a 1968 GTX that we've owned for over 40 years. It was originally a 440 car, but the block had been replaced with an early '70's block when we got it so the numbers-matching thing was not an issue for what I later did. The car was built in April of 1968, and several years ago, a friend of mine had an original 426 Hemi which had a casting number of April, 1968. I know that's a little later than an original hemi for this car would have been cast, but it's close enough. We replaced the K-frame with a correct one for the hemi, and the rest is history, as they say. It's period correct, if not totally original. Solid lifter comp cam, two edelbrock almost/repro AFB's, Torqueflite, 3.23 axle, big round chrome breather. Looks original, anyway. As an aside, I traded a Marlin .44 Magnum levergun and $750 for it way back then. How times have changed.... We also have a '21 Challenger R/T Scat Pack, widebody, shaker hood car, and she drives a '22 Grand Cherokee Summit with a 5.7 hemi, which is the last year for that engine in that platform. Terrible gas mileage, but rumbles nicely. I mostly drive a Wrangler Rubicon. We just like hemis and Mopars, I guess. About 50 years ago, we had a '70 Challenger R/T with a 440 SixPack and a shaker hood, so the new Challenger is a trip back in time, although better in every way than the old one. We went on our honeymoon 51 years ago in another '68 440 GTX, so when we (she, actually) found the one we have now it was a no-brainer. I also spent over 36 years working for an agency that always furnished me with a vehicle. The first two were 440 Mopars, followed by a couple more with four-barrel 318's, so I was a pretty happy young-un. When I retired in 2012, I was driving a hemi Charger. When I retired, I asked if I could keep my gas credit card, but you know the answer to that. I've rambled long enough. This may be my first and last post, but rest assured that I'm soaking up the info that you guys so freely share. Rick

 

[hunt2elk]

Welcome to the site. Great looking GTX.

 

[polywideblock]

G'day from Australia

 

[RemCharger]

Welcome. Can't believe the audacity of shutting down the gas card.

 

[mr. b]

welcome to FBBO nice looking GTX

 

[khryslerkid]

Welcome Rick! (You're officially not a Lurker anymore) Nice X !

 

[ckessel]

Welcome from the central coast of Cal. And you are correct on some of the current printed garbage. Thats what happens when companies buy out the competition, cancel out their great magazines to fatten their yearly bonuses, then get rid of those in the know and then try to rely on reprints of old articles to fill the magazine. Hmm... sounds like Hot Rod.

 

[Budnicks]

Nice 68' GTX, best year too

welcome to FBBO from NorCal Sierras

 

[AR67GTX]

Welcome from another Arkansan!

 

[davek]

 

[moparedtn]

Ah, another fellow 1968 GTX owner!
Y'know, they made about 20,000 of them - and I think half of them are on here now.

 

[KiwiKid72]

Welcome from New Zealand.

 

[Jerry Hall]

Welcome from Alabama, nice GTX, but don't let this be your last post. I'm sure you have much to contribute.

 

[68gtxman]

Good morning. I've looked at the site many times, but never joined. Lots and lots of info here. I get frustrated reading some of the published stuff now, since I was there when all this stuff was new, and know how badly in error a lot of newly published stuff really is. This site seems to be a wealth of correct information, in contrast with a lot of the other. I'm an old Mopar guy, and my wife and I currently have a 1968 GTX that we've owned for over 40 years. It was originally a 440 car, but the block had been replaced with an early '70's block when we got it so the numbers-matching thing was not an issue for what I later did. The car was built in April of 1968, and several years ago, a friend of mine had an original 426 Hemi which had a casting number of April, 1968. I know that's a little later than an original hemi for this car would have been cast, but it's close enough. We replaced the K-frame with a correct one for the hemi, and the rest is history, as they say. It's period correct, if not totally original. Solid lifter comp cam, two edelbrock almost/repro AFB's, Torqueflite, 3.23 axle, big round chrome breather. Looks original, anyway. As an aside, I traded a Marlin .44 Magnum levergun and $750 for it way back then. How times have changed.... We also have a '21 Challenger R/T Scat Pack, widebody, shaker hood car, and she drives a '22 Grand Cherokee Summit with a 5.7 hemi, which is the last year for that engine in that platform. Terrible gas mileage, but rumbles nicely. I mostly drive a Wrangler Rubicon. We just like hemis and Mopars, I guess. About 50 years ago, we had a '70 Challenger R/T with a 440 SixPack and a shaker hood, so the new Challenger is a trip back in time, although better in every way than the old one. We went on our honeymoon 51 years ago in another '68 440 GTX, so when we (she, actually) found the one we have now it was a no-brainer. I also spent over 36 years working for an agency that always furnished me with a vehicle. The first two were 440 Mopars, followed by a couple more with four-barrel 318's, so I was a pretty happy young-un. When I retired in 2012, I was driving a hemi Charger. When I retired, I asked if I could keep my gas credit card, but you know the answer to that. I've rambled long enough. This may be my first and last post, but rest assured that I'm soaking up the info that you guys so freely share. Rick
View attachment 1525396Welcome from NJ!

 

[68BabyBlue]

Welcome from PA. Like you, I was also there back in the day, drove a GTX on my honeymoon, have had six more since then, including two '68s. You've come to the right place, and I'll bet you have a lot to contribute.

 

[PlymCrazy]

This place is the fact-check of all Mopar fact-checkers imo. Lot of folks who lived it and done it are right here. And they do a great job of passing along their knowledge to the next generation.
Great story with your car!
And greetings, welcome from NY!

 

[HD539]

Welcome from Washington State.

 

[65Bel]

Good to have you aboard Rick!! Sweet looking '68 GTX . . .

 

[RickDGTX]

Thanks for all the responses!! I never expected such a welcome. I remember when there were not even many repro parts for our old cars, much less an internet that would enable us to have such a network of like-minded people to share info with. I look forward to learning from all of you, and I'll certainly share any knowledge that I have. In case any of you are not familiar with it, this site........AHPSOC MAIN - autohistorypreservationsociety.org is great. It has lots of old road tests from the day scanned for our viewing, and is a great source of info from the day. Funny....some of these articles I actually remembering reading way back when I was a teenager in study hall "studying." Our librarian, bless her heart, kept subscriptions to the car magazines that we loved.

 

[RickDGTX]

G'day from Australia

I love Australia. I have relatives in/around Sydney, and we were there several years ago. A great car culture. I picked up a book by Gavin Farmer and Gary Bridger called, "hey, Charger," and learned all about hemi six packs and so on. Great stuff. Who of us up here knew? Not I, but looks like we missed a lot of neat stuff.
Rick