So much progress today - my sandblaster guy came by as did my bodyman friend. So, first things first - I knew that the chances of the door rubber causing issues with the door alignment was a distinct possibility so i installed it first. I bought it from Restoration Specialties as they were the only ones who had the light blue metallic windlace/door rubber seal. Also I HAD TO see what the repro upper rocker panel trim was going to look like - it is gorgeous with the mounting holes matching the OEM holes in the panel (both from the 4 door and 2 door addition. Many thanks to
@65dartcharger who highly recommended this restoration grade part from Layson’s as that’s what Ulf used on his DartCharger as well as their carpet holddowns - which I have on hand.
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So we got the passenger door hung and immediately found out that the door rubber was indeed causing issues. I kind of figured that by using a entirely different door (the 2 door sedan door) instead of the original 4 door was gonna cause issues. The final solution was to “adjust” the pinchweld to allow sufficient room between the door and rubber yet still seal the door. Then the next issue on the door was the window frame didn’t align worth a hoot with the upper B pillar. Again, my bodyman guru knew what to do so the door has decent gaps and aligns completely with the B pillar. Next was the passenger fender which went on well other than the hood hydraulic lift interfered a little with the fender. It took a small adjustment on the fender and relocating the bottom mounting point on the lift for no interference.
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We got the driver’s door hung and ran into the same door to door rubber interference as the bottom of the door was right up against the original pinchweld. Some “adjustments” on the pinchweld again solved the problem. I’ll leave the doors closed for a week or so and see if the rubber relaxes anymore. I knew this build was not going to be a piece of cake with all the modifications I’ve done and it’s come to pass. Pictures of the passenger side will have to suffice for now.
My ever-so-slow sandblaster guy did not fail me! Before he could even start, he had to empty the hopper as he thought he had water in there. Nope it was condensation in the hose. Them it was refill the hopper and of course sifting the sand again so it wouldn’t clog the nozzle. I swear he milks the time. Well, rant over as I did discuss it with him. So he got all the pieces of the AC part of the system blasted and painted them black for me!
The main Housing - passenger compartment side and firewall side:
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Evaporator compartment cover:
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And evaporator drip pan - bottom and evaporator side.
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I’ll be installing the insulation snd seals in a couple of days
