I have a fish story

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 5:31 am

I had a some extra time waiting or grille brackets/headlight screws.

So I decided to tackle my console project I have over the years collected 4, the nicest one is a factory black if you ever get your hands on a true factory black console or any other interior part that is black ,they always seem to hold up the best as far as color,in my climate .

two consoles are from our chally and cuda, they are blue not the most favorable color for my, and I also picked up a cheap unit some one did a poor dye job.( IT SEEMS PEOPLE HAVE A PROBLEM REMOVING HINGES, DOOR LATCHES,LIGHT PLATES ETC. TO PAINT PROPERLY..............SAME IN HOUSES IT IS JUST ME?)

My main point is Mopar did a different console , in 70(ash tray) ,and after that they changed the area behind the console door (seat belt holder),not totally sure on that but for some reason I have the units with the seat belt holder and I feel it looks unfinished and I wont be using factory belt any way so I opted for the ash tray console and chose to restore that.

It did have some broken parts near the seat area , a comone area to break ,alot of stress there and the repair wont show since the seat will be in the view, but I needed to make sure the repair wont break again.

I used my self curing monomer and polymer and bonded in two steel wires for strength , this repair can be done by anyone using self curing acrylic nails(the type women get those fake nails) from a beauty salon or a local drug store ,that stuff will work well

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 5:49 am

Adding the wire will help, and I just dont want to spend another 3 to 4 hundred bucks for something I can repair and use ,and if something happens I have some spare parts or trading/selling material.

Back to the car I did get the parts needed for some more trial fit of the grille,fenders,hood,doors.

This was done before but after replacing all these panels it was amazing how well everything fir with a few hours of tweaking ,I installed all of it my self ,got it close and the got my my mate Jim to help get things a bit closer knowing all along it will again have to come apart.

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 5:52 am

this is the 2nd AAR hood from Year one it has an inner steel reinforcement structure along the outer mounting edges,but it still aint straight ,

it still has a warp in the middle not as bad as factory hoods(It did flatten out alot in the sun)

but enough to see it ,but no worries the hood and tops of fenders as well as door will get a semi flat masque and also hood pins(they will help keep the edges down .

I probably wont use hinges, just a prop rod, to reduce the pressure and help keep the hood flat.

the doors get set first, since the quarter panels dictate where the door edge is , the doors will dictate where the fenders go.

So we took the front end off as a whole clip and got the doors as close to the quarters ,have a good gap and set the front clip back on and the worst area is the top of the fender/door area/ some welding of some steel rod and some grinding and the gap will be much better.

Got both grilles fitted, not an easy task but the fit pretty well ,for now..............

It all has to come off for paint

AllKiller · Post by **AllKiller** » Sun May 12, 13 1:12 pm

Cuda Looks Tough as Hell....bloody love this therad, Christ i thought id taken mine apart, thats amazing Drew

Pete · Post by **Pete** » Sun May 12, 13 1:31 pm

The AAR Hood works really well with those Gills and the Grille

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 2:18 pm

AllKiller wrote:Cuda Looks Tough as Hell....bloody love this therad, Christ i thought id taken mine apart, thats amazing Drew

Yea when you end up taking a car apart with a drill and a spot weld bit ,that is abut as far as one can go,thanks for the interest

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 2:20 pm

Pete wrote:The AAR Hood works really well with those Gills and the Grille

Yes we like the look too ,there are a few people over here doing this look,a look ma Mopar never did ,I think it is a great look they all seem to make the car have a look of full sinister look

AllKiller · Post by **AllKiller** » Sun May 12, 13 4:54 pm

We restored a 71 grille on the convertible....lot of work and very intricate

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 5:53 pm

AllKiller wrote:We restored a 71 grille on the convertible....lot of work and very intricate

Sigh ............man the grille alone is a pia, and now I am trying to get it to fit right ,

with the head lights sitting correctly in the grille so it doesn't look like it is trying to look around a corner

AllKiller · Post by **AllKiller** » Sun May 12, 13 6:18 pm

drewcrane wrote:
AllKiller wrote:We restored a 71 grille on the convertible....lot of work and very intricate
Sigh ............man the grille alone is a pia, and now I am trying to get it to fit right ,

with the head lights sitting correctly in the grille so it doesn't look like it is trying to look around a corner

good luck Drew...we didnt have thatproblem, all went on ok but the car was all factory parts in great condition.

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 6:48 pm

AllKiller wrote:
drewcrane wrote:
AllKiller wrote:We restored a 71 grille on the convertible....lot of work and very intricate
Sigh ............man the grille alone is a pia, and now I am trying to get it to fit right ,

with the head lights sitting correctly in the grille so it doesn't look like it is trying to look around a corner
good luck Drew...we didnt have thatproblem, all went on ok but the car was all factory parts in great condition.

Well I think it has to do with the aftermarket AMD fenders the random area they welded in the locator nuts to install the plate the holds the headlights in place it has alot of room for adjustment

,but both plates needed some adjustment , not a big deal it wont be seen ,

but I never assume anything will fit ,especially with all the repairs made to the grille and totally new sheet metal ,

I also have these house finches back for the third year they must like Mopars

and the pinon snubber for a nest stabilizer

Dave81 · Post by **Dave81** » Sun May 12, 13 7:22 pm

Cracking Stuff Drew..........

Love your Chally.......Like this one even more. Best Grill style on any year Cuda full stop!

May of missed it whilst looking at the photo's........But have you decided on a colour scheme for this?

Keep the pics and progress coming mate!

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 9:13 pm

Dave81 wrote:

Cracking Stuff Drew..........

Love your Chally.......Like this one even more. Best Grill style on any year Cuda full stop!

May of missed it whilst looking at the photo's........But have you decided on a colour scheme for this?

Keep the pics and progress coming mate!

Yea any colour as long as it is black, we will do a black masque, from the fenderline across the hood , argent tail panel with some type of custom billboard or hocky stick strip it is the wifes decision , but I have alot of influence

Mossy68 · Post by **Mossy68** » Sun May 12, 13 9:21 pm

Even the wildlife out there has taste then Drew.
Choice of any muscle car to nest in and they've chose a Mopar for 3 years on the trot !!!

drewcrane · Post by **drewcrane** » Sun May 12, 13 9:26 pm

Mossy68 wrote:Even the wildlife out there has taste then Drew.
Choice of any muscle car to nest in and they've chose a Mopar for 3 years on the trot !!!

Yea I try to leave them be , but come feeding time they chirp really loud,so I get up sneak over there and have a peek then Ma an Pa see my and fly away leaving them with their beaks open .

And yea three years ,good for them ,hope they come back every year.

This is about as close as I can get with the headlights/grille so it will do