73 Road Race Cuda

[70chall440]

I will confirm or deny when I finally get mine fired up; at the rate I am going it might be awhile... I got the formula from Mike and Muscle Motors, he tells me that this combo should make north of 500HP, however we will see. He swears that it will and that he has dyno sheets to prove it. I was going to use some shorty headers, but he was insistent that I needed to use TTI or Hooker super comps to see the HP. The only change I made to his formula was the EFI 6 pack, but it should flow as well as what he was using so that should be a wash.

[70chall440]

I have been working on getting the fenders sorted out. These are goodmark repops and while they are not bad, they do have some issues.

The first issue I ran into was the nut for the stud at the rear of the drivers side fender broke free requiring me to cut out the block, weld in a new nut and then weld it all back together.

The next issue is the passenger fender has shipping damage at the back where it would be by the windshield. I was able to beat it back into rough shape and will be able to correct it during the body work phase.

The last issue is that on the bottoms of the fenders where they bolt to the body (down by the rocker panel by the door), they do not line up at all. At first I was thinking something was seriously wrong with them (too long, wrong stamp, etc) but then after close examination realized that the inner brace they are using is not stamped deep enough and the flange where you would put over the studs or put bolts through was made too long. This is a result I think of their measuring technique in manufacturing. The "engineer" focused on the distance from the underside of the inner brace to the bolt hole slots, however he did not measure from the top of the fender down, thus the bolt holes are below the place they need to be. Unfortunately due to the shallowness of the inner brace, you cannot simply drill/make new holes because there will not be enough room for a nut or bolt with washer to get in there (the washer would push up against the inner brace).

Therefore there are 2 options
1. make a bracket that drops the mounting points down about 1/2 inch. This could be done relatively easy, however if you really look at it you will notice the fender attaching flange hanging down slightly. Not a huge issue, but an issue all the same.
2. cut out a window in the inner fender brace and raise it up about 1/4 inch, then remake the mounting holes, then trim off the excess flange.

I am going with option #2 as I think the results will be much nicer. Of course this is the most amount of work, but after 8 years or so, I guess I can wait a little while longer. Here are some pictures for your viewing enjoyment.

[70chall440]

Here is some pictures of the gap at the top; not terrible but can be much better.

[70chall440]

Obviously I spend too much time on this forum as this is my 2000th post... Damn how time flies 

[roadman5312]

Obviously I spend too much time on this forum as this is my 2000th post... Damn how time flies 

                        It becomes an addiction.     Stick around, your technical help is invaluable, your political posts very insightful.      

[70chall440]

Thanks!

I have not intention of going anywhere, too much fun here 

[Challenger in NC]

Here is some pictures of the gap at the top; not terrible but can be much better.

So I guess this is what I have to look forward too, since I have a GM passenger fender as well .

[70chall440]

So I guess this is what I have to look forward too, since I have a GM passenger fender as well .

Most likely. It isn't that bad but it depends on your skill set and tools.

[70chall440]

So I made some headway on the drivers side fender. I built a new inner brace piece and got it welded in. I was going to TIG it all in, but I couldn't get it positioned where I liked it, so I ended up MIG'ing it in. It came out well and I still have some work to do. I need to close up the holes, then cut new ones into it in the right place.

[70chall440]

Spent all day working on the fenders and I think I finally got them to line up and fit. I was intending on closing the gap by the door but now I am thinking I am going to leave them. I need to clean up the driver's door skin but all in all I think it is ok. I will see what I think tomorrow and see what I think. I can definitely see what metal/body guys get paid a lot and why it takes such a long time to get a car done; especially with these Goodmark fenders.

[Ken D]

If it is any consolation it was a lot of work with my AMD parts also to get nice gaps.

[70chall440]

Good to know. I think it is the overall design of the cars (lots of sheetmetal parts all welded together to make it) and 40 years of abuse, coupled with perhaps a little tolerance stack with the new parts. My gaps (except for the tops to the fenders, isn't bad, in fact they are very acceptable to me. Its the tops of the fenders which I go back and forth about. I am most likely going to close the gaps because if I don't, I will always look at it and know I could have.

[usraptr]

Don't know how I missed it until now, but just found and read this from page 1.  All I gotta say is you have some GREAT fabrication skills!   

[70chall440]

Don't know how I missed it until now, but just found and read this from page 1.  All I gotta say is you have some GREAT fabrication skills!   

Thanks, I really appreciate the compliment. It has been a long path and I have learned a lot over the years.

[70chall440]

SITREP - I worked on the car all weekend. The fenders about sucked the life out me but I think I got them as good as I need them. May not be the best for some its going to work for me. I also got the inside of the fenders primed, the underside of the header panel and the undersides of the front and rear valances primed.

My next step is to mask off the parts of the car that I don't want paint on, then install the fenders, header panel and valances, then start the body work.... yippee....

The left side (passenger) looks larger but once the it is bolted down and adjusted it is better.