Well, here goes nothing.

[Rdchallenger12]

The condition of that BS is amazing!

I took it out carefully. Going to copy it and put the copy back in and laminate the original and frame it.

[Rdchallenger12]

Well I disassembled the rear portion of the car today and ran into my first rust and half assed fix problem. Between where the bumper bracket bots go in the frame is rusted (no big deal) but it's rusted up into the trunk pan too and one of the previous owners just used undercoating on the whole trunk area to cover it all up. So it could be as little as a few patches or as big asva whole new trunk pan. Won't know until I'm able to get the under coat junk out of the trunk. Oh and the one that really make me shake my head and wonder how bad it is.... The person sprayed in the expanding insulating foam you get in a can up under the trunk.

Will get pics tomorrow

[Challenger in NC]

While doing the interior teardown today, I found this gem! Made my whole day!!!

Not only is the buildsheet in great shape, the backside of those seats look new. My dad took his buildsheet out of his car back in the early 70's and yours looks as good, if not better.

[Rdchallenger12]

Well here's the last two days progress. Going to clean up the bumper brackets and wire wheel the rust. Next up, remove fenders and engine.

I haven't a clue what I'm doing since this is really the first time I've done something like this so hopefully I'm going about it correctly.

[Hamtrak]

In my 40+ years of owning old MoPars I have never had a sheet that nice.

[usraptr]

So I bit the bullet and went for where the problem spot may be, original vinyl top. I had a leak coming in the trunk when washing the car so I expected the worst. Doesn't look to bad

That's a very common issue with the E-bodies.  Almost all of them leaked.  That's why during most restorations the trunk floor pan needs to be replaced.  In my case it was the floor pan and Dutchman panel.

[brads70]

That's a very common issue with the E-bodies.  Almost all of them leaked.  That's why during most restorations the trunk floor pan needs to be replaced.  In my case it was the floor pan and Dutchman panel.

   I think they added a code on the fender tag for the leak. 
They all leaked!

[Beekeeper]

I haven't a clue what I'm doing since this is really the first time I've done something like this so hopefully I'm going about it correctly.
[/quote]

If I may make a suggestion on this point...before you go too much further, try to really be honest with yourself on what you want to accomplish in the end. Different goals require different approaches.

If you're looking to do a full restoration and make it look good as the day it rolled off the line, you really need to disassemble everything (taking hundreds of reference photos and individually bagging and marking all hardware as you go. If on the other hand, you are just trying to have a respectable cruise night special, you don't really need to go that far. If repaint is part of your near future but you aren't looking for car show perfection, you should still consider that a decent paint job requires the removal of everything touching the paint.

 I bring up this last part because once you start fixing leaks around front and rear windows, you will discover that doing it right means removing glass, dash, anything in the area that a welder can burn. Then you will probably want to replace trim clips which typically are rusted in place. By the time you clean, weld, and grind, you then will want to paint that whole area for protection. You see where this is going.

I dove into what you're doing on my first Mopar and one thing led to another. I owned the car for only months before I started "fixing a simple leak" and many years later along with tens of thousands of dollars, it still wasn't done. Came out beautiful in the end but it definitely was not what I planned in the beginning. Primarily because I really didn't plan.

You seem to be figuring it out and I don't wish to dampen your spirit. In fact, the opposite. Many folks get in too deep too soon and get discouraged. In my opinion, there is value in really planning out your project. I plan and over analyze too much on my projects but it's paid off for me in the end.

Keep in mind that there will always be surface rust here and there on even the cleanest cars. There is lots of overlapping sheets on metal everywhere and while the factory used sealers, water gets into all these joints. Even if you manage to get it all, it will reappear here and there. Especially if you drive it.

I like your car by the way and the pictures look good. Doesn't look bad at all. I'm anxious to watch your progress.

[73440]

  I think they added a code on the fender tag for the leak. 
They all leaked!

 As they say if windows didn't leak they'd use them on submarines

[Rdchallenger12]

As they say if windows didn't leak they'd use them on submarines

Hahaha! I think I've used that saying regarding doors and keeping them locked while at work.

[Rdchallenger12]

Update:

I HATE trying to remove my dash when the whore interior wiring harness is taped together not allowing the bulkhead to be disconnected, which in turn does not allow the frame to move for you. Instead, I just removed the dash pad to repair. It's cold... will tackle the frame when it warms up about 5 degrees lol.

That is all, end rant.

[GoodysGotaCuda]

I haven't a clue what I'm doing since this is really the first time I've done something like this so hopefully I'm going about it correctly.


If I may make a suggestion on this point...before you go too much further, try to really be honest with yourself on what you want to accomplish in the end. Different goals require different approaches.

If you're looking to do a full restoration and make it look good as the day it rolled off the line, you really need to disassemble everything (taking hundreds of reference photos and individually bagging and marking all hardware as you go. If on the other hand, you are just trying to have a respectable cruise night special, you don't really need to go that far. If repaint is part of your near future but you aren't looking for car show perfection, you should still consider that a decent paint job requires the removal of everything touching the paint.

 I bring up this last part because once you start fixing leaks around front and rear windows, you will discover that doing it right means removing glass, dash, anything in the area that a welder can burn. Then you will probably want to replace trim clips which typically are rusted in place. By the time you clean, weld, and grind, you then will want to paint that whole area for protection. You see where this is going.

I dove into what you're doing on my first Mopar and one thing led to another. I owned the car for only months before I started "fixing a simple leak" and many years later along with tens of thousands of dollars, it still wasn't done. Came out beautiful in the end but it definitely was not what I planned in the beginning. Primarily because I really didn't plan.

You seem to be figuring it out and I don't wish to dampen your spirit. In fact, the opposite. Many folks get in too deep too soon and get discouraged. In my opinion, there is value in really planning out your project. I plan and over analyze too much on my projects but it's paid off for me in the end.

Keep in mind that there will always be surface rust here and there on even the cleanest cars. There is lots of overlapping sheets on metal everywhere and while the factory used sealers, water gets into all these joints. Even if you manage to get it all, it will reappear here and there. Especially if you drive it.

I like your car by the way and the pictures look good. Doesn't look bad at all. I'm anxious to watch your progress.

This is pretty spot on.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Rdchallenger12]

I haven't a clue what I'm doing since this is really the first time I've done something like this so hopefully I'm going about it correctly.


If I may make a suggestion on this point...before you go too much further, try to really be honest with yourself on what you want to accomplish in the end. Different goals require different approaches.

If you're looking to do a full restoration and make it look good as the day it rolled off the line, you really need to disassemble everything (taking hundreds of reference photos and individually bagging and marking all hardware as you go. If on the other hand, you are just trying to have a respectable cruise night special, you don't really need to go that far. If repaint is part of your near future but you aren't looking for car show perfection, you should still consider that a decent paint job requires the removal of everything touching the paint.

 I bring up this last part because once you start fixing leaks around front and rear windows, you will discover that doing it right means removing glass, dash, anything in the area that a welder can burn. Then you will probably want to replace trim clips which typically are rusted in place. By the time you clean, weld, and grind, you then will want to paint that whole area for protection. You see where this is going.

I dove into what you're doing on my first Mopar and one thing led to another. I owned the car for only months before I started "fixing a simple leak" and many years later along with tens of thousands of dollars, it still wasn't done. Came out beautiful in the end but it definitely was not what I planned in the beginning. Primarily because I really didn't plan.

You seem to be figuring it out and I don't wish to dampen your spirit. In fact, the opposite. Many folks get in too deep too soon and get discouraged. In my opinion, there is value in really planning out your project. I plan and over analyze too much on my projects but it's paid off for me in the end.

Keep in mind that there will always be surface rust here and there on even the cleanest cars. There is lots of overlapping sheets on metal everywhere and while the factory used sealers, water gets into all these joints. Even if you manage to get it all, it will reappear here and there. Especially if you drive it.

I like your car by the way and the pictures look good. Doesn't look bad at all. I'm anxious to watch your progress.

I agree. But I'm not talking about literally no idea what I'm doing. I'm playing it by ear as far as a plan except for the main outlines in my first post. But on that note do we ever really know what we are doing when we start on our very first resto. The old saying, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.

[Challenger in NC]

I agree. But I'm not talking about literally no idea what I'm doing. I'm playing it by ear as far as a plan except for the main outlines in my first post. But on that note do we ever really know what we are doing when we start on our very first resto. The old saying, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.

I got punched in the face, knee'd in the gut and kicked in the crotch.

[Rdchallenger12]

I got punched in the face, knee'd in the gut and kicked in the crotch.

Know that feeling. No crotch shots yet though.