71 Challenger R/T Grill Restoration

[ROMI]

Yeah, it's a 70 though.  I found some products that strip paint off plastic but it seems the most popular is dot 4 brake fluid!  There is one other that suposedly works quite well, it's Castrol's "Super Clean Degreaser", only problem with it is that you have to soak the part which would be kind of hard to do when it's 4 feet long 

[Carlwalski]

...only problem with it is that you have to soak the part which would be kind of hard to do when it's 4 feet long 

That's what bath tubs are for.....you didn't honestly think they were for cleaning humans did you!?!? 

[70Cuda]

It won't fit in a bath tub, trust me, I already tried that.  The Cuda grill with the headlight bezels off barely fits whereas the Challenger one is full width.  I considered kids pools, stock tank, thick plastic over some kind of frame, etc.  Let me know if you find something that works (or doesn't) on the stripping or soaking.

[KillerBee]

Great post guys.
The wife and I currently own 2 1971 R/T Challengers.
One is an original plum crazy 383 4 speed car.
The other is an original 340 auto car that currently has a 440 in it.
I will be working on grill restoration myself for one of the cars.
I have a NOS R/T grill that has a small crack that I'm hoping I can repair with glue.
I also have a nice argent 71 grill that I'm hoping to strip and redo like an R/T.
I was told the plastic underneath the argent paint is black.
I'm sure the grill resoration guys have some way to safely strip the paint off the plastic.
Please post if you find a way to get it done.

[ROMI]

Last night I did a little test on a portion of my grill (textured argent) by pouring a "puddle" of brake fluid in one corner.  I let it set for about 19 hours and lo and behold the paint scraped right off ! There was absolutly NO effect on the plastic whatsoever.  It did not just wipe off but it did scrape off without much effort.  I think this would be a great way to get the paint off if one could figure out how to submerse at least part of the grill.  The obvious issues are with WHAT to put it in and (EEEK) the use of a LOT of brake fluid.  As for now I continue to sand......   (sorry I forgot to take some pics)

[70Cuda]

Be careful of the metal in that grill though too.  We should both post pictures when we are done.  I've been kind of lazy on mine but now that the weather is improving I might have to get more serious.

[ROMI]

Well, I skipped church today and tried to finish up my grill.  I decided to separate the inserts from the main grill so that I could paint them better and so that I could flatten out the chrome clip slots.  I have some silver to finish on the main part but for now, here's a few pictures.

[70Cuda]

Looking good, tell me more.  How did you flatten out the clip spots and more specifics on how you removed the inserts and how that went please.  Also, how are you planning on fastening the bulges back in - if you have picked a rivot, what is it and where did you get it?  Which black and silver did you use?

[ROMI]

I bought a heat gun from Home Depot (paint dept.), I used a small paint scraper as a straight edge to flatten them straight.  I had the gun on low and never got more than 4" close, keep the gun moving, it only takes a few seconds.
As for removing the inserts, I used a 13/64 drill bit. The rivets are aluminum and the bit never has to go through the grill so you never touch the plastic. When you start drilling, the aluminum just spirals away and before you go very far they just pop through. I drilled from the back.  The two rivets closest to the metal back brace have to be drilled from the front and those are a little bit harder.
I'm still looking for the means to attach the inserts back but at the very least I have a friend of mine (he works in purchasing) looking for a black round head hex machine screw.  I have some on a machine I use at work but obviously I can't take those. After I'm done you won't be able to tell the difference.
Finally, for the paint, I got the correct silver from Totally Auto, Inc. but the black I got from Murray's auto parts. It's the only "Satin Black" that I could find that I liked and was like the factory paint. I can't remember who makes it but I can find out if you want me to.

[70Cuda]

OK, thanks for the info.  I have the colors I was planning on using posted in a couple other posts but here they are again

SEM 39143 Trim Black
SEM 39283 Light Titanium Metallic

If I were to drill the rivots out I'd really like to put rivots back in again so I'd have to find those first.

Now, how are you going to polish your stainless?  I buffed everything on my Cuda but may not be as agressive on these and may polish them on the bench.
 

[ROMI]

Yeah, I like the SEM products but I had the silver from a 71 Duster Sharktooth that I restored and I didn't want to pay $11 for the SEM black (I'm cheap!). I did look at their black for the tail panel and I'll probably use it for that but for the grill, what I used is fine.
I may give the chrome a once over with the Dremmel but they really don't need it.  Good Luck and post back here, I'll be looking forward to it.

[71340RT]

I sanded and masked up my hole grille on my 71 Challenger RT and it took forever. If I ever restore it again I may try to find the rivets and take it apart and do it right. This is a great post for everyone wanting to restore there grille.

[ROMI]

I noticed when I got mine apart that there was a line on the underside of the inserts where the silver never made it to the plastic. That made me believe that just like you 71340RT, the factory masked and painted AFTER they assembled, otherwise there wouldn't have been a place where the silver paint "missed".  That grill looks great!

[70Cuda]

I disagree with painted after assembled. That would be a lot of work and besides that, if you look at the rivots you drilled out, they weren't painted either.  So, I really think the bulges were painted off the grill then rivoted on.

[70Cuda]

OK, while I was partially melting my grill with the heat gun...not too bad...I did notice the rivots were black too.  The heat gun thing is doable if you are very careful.  For rigitity, I used two files and a smooth cut up piece of those galvanized roofing shingles (so I didn't leave file marks) and some plastic clamps (which by the way, are a good indication that you are getting things too hot).  I only had one minor issue and think the trim will cover if not, I know how to build it up.

camjams rivots aren't black though
http://www.cuda-challenger.com/cc/index.php?topic=15827.0