1963 Dart 170 2 Door Post Resto

[Scamp Rhonda]

Made my trip to the antique wrecker yesterday. Managed to pick up 3 sets of the headliner bow retainer wires. 2 sets are almost the same and one is a lot longer. The shorter set is still 3 1/2 inches longer than the ones in my car so either way they will need to be shortened. At least I have 3 sets to "experiment with". Plan is to take the longest set and cut off the end and use the cut off to heat and bend to make sure I have my method down. Then I plan to make a set 1 1/2" longer than the ones in the car and try them. If still too long I can either shorten them again or make another set 1" longer and try them. Shouldn't take much to find the "sweet spot" that the headliner looks the best. Just really glad I didn't go ahead and try to install the headliner as it was. I wasn't really happy with how the front section looked all droopy due to the bow position.

Didn't get much else done. Got a good deal on brake drums so I ordered all new for the car. The ones on it were OK but not perfect. Had little grooves starting to show. Probably would've passed safety, but getting new Raybestos drums for a good deal I couldn't pass up. Plan to put the gear oil in today after work and possibly flush the engine again to get all the rusty crud out. I picked up a male and female hose attachment to put on the heater hoses (bypass the heater core) and put a supply on one and drain on the other and run it out the garage door to thoroughly flush the engine before finally hooking up the new heater core and filling it with coolant for the final time. Thens it's bleed the brakes and mechanically it should be ready to drive...finally.

So nice to finally see it coming together. Still lots of little things to finish or work out but finally seeing the finish line.

The plan for the bows sounds really good to me. I'm not a metallurgist, if that's what it's called, but taking the temper out of the spring steel in that area shouldn't cause a problem in my opinion. Your practice pieces should tell the story pretty quickly.

 

[mygasser]

if you get them 'nearly' there you could slightly 'dog leg' them in the middle with pliers to shorten them just a bit. i've done this in the past and it works.
neil.

 

[Mineallmine]

So, a little more progress last night. Got the headliner wires made up and installed. I wound up using the set that was 1 inch longer. I think any longer and the other headliner bows start to get "unhappy". Using my cut offs I tried bending it without heat and it bent pretty nice. Just used needle nose pliers and went slow. Came out pretty nice. I used the same method and made both sets.

I was looking at the headliner and came up with another idea. I know it wasn't factory but it will help keep the front bow in position during install and help keep a little tension on the headliner to keep wrinkles out. I am going to use my 3rd 'spare' set of wires and make a set that will hook into an unused hole in the front brace up by the visors and hook onto the front bow. I double checked and it won't interfere with the headliner at all as the wire will angle up to the front bow.

What I am still trying to decide is attachment at the front and rear. I know these cars have the sharks teeth to hold the headliner in place, but I was thinking as I have the glass out I might also wrap it around the window opening and glue it in place with contact cement like many other automakers do. It'll give me extra holding strength this way. Thoughts?

Got a couple night time glamor shots of the rear. Wish I had gotten a couple during the day as it is really looking nice. Also got the new rear tires installed.

Also I might be returning my new brake drums. Got a great deal on a brake lathe over the weekend. I have been keeping my eyes open for one for a while. It is difficult to find anyone to turn them nowadays. Got it cheap and it even came with the brake shoe arcing machine grinder to match new shoes to a machined drum. All AMMCO brand. I really scored on this one. Already have the AMMCO drum caliper so I can measure to make sure there's enough meat to machine them. Car only has 60,000 original miles so I am confident they are good. With the other cars I have to do next I am sure the lathe will pay for itself fairly quickly.

 

[Scamp Rhonda]

So, a little more progress last night. Got the headliner wires made up and installed. I wound up using the set that was 1 inch longer. I think any longer and the other headliner bows start to get "unhappy". Using my cut offs I tried bending it without heat and it bent pretty nice. Just used needle nose pliers and went slow. Came out pretty nice. I used the same method and made both sets.

I was looking at the headliner and came up with another idea. I know it wasn't factory but it will help keep the front bow in position during install and help keep a little tension on the headliner to keep wrinkles out. I am going to use my 3rd 'spare' set of wires and make a set that will hook into an unused hole in the front brace up by the visors and hook onto the front bow. I double checked and it won't interfere with the headliner at all as the wire will angle up to the front bow.

What I am still trying to decide is attachment at the front and rear. I know these cars have the sharks teeth to hold the headliner in place, but I was thinking as I have the glass out I might also wrap it around the window opening and glue it in place with contact cement like many other automakers do. It'll give me extra holding strength this way. Thoughts?

Got a couple night time glamor shots of the rear. Wish I had gotten a couple during the day as it is really looking nice. Also got the new rear tires installed.

Also I might be returning my new brake drums. Got a great deal on a brake lathe over the weekend. I have been keeping my eyes open for one for a while. It is difficult to find anyone to turn them nowadays. Got it cheap and it even came with the brake shoe arcing machine grinder to match new shoes to a machined drum. All AMMCO brand. I really scored on this one. Already have the AMMCO drum caliper so I can measure to make sure there's enough meat to machine them. Car only has 60,000 original miles so I am confident they are good. With the other cars I have to do next I am sure the lathe will pay for itself fairly quickly.

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Nice job on the bows. Maybe they're not spring steel? I don't know about wrapping the headliner. I may have done it when I was younger but It still doesn't feel right to me. Following your build, I know you like to do things the right way. So……

 

[mygasser]

yep, pull the headliner tight, dribble a little superglue along the panel's lip (outside) and hold the material in place 'til it dries. you could hold it with bulldog clips but i just do a bit at a time by hand as i enjoy glueing my fingers in place
neil.

 

[Mineallmine]

Well, guess I should have expected it... Two steps forward, one step back. Got the rear diff filled last night. Took just under one liter of oil before coming out the fill hole.

Found my missing dart emblem I bought and installed it.

Here comes the backwards...

Bled the brakes. Rears went super easy. Very little dirt before nice clean fluid. All rubber components are new. Metal lines were nice and clean so I ran with them. Blew out the rear lines when it was apart and they were good. No signs of corrosion or dirt. Didn't do the front... Big mistake. Drivers side went perfect. No dirt and bleed nice. By this time I had a solid pedal. Figured I shouldn't be solid quite yet as I still had passenger front to do but didn't think too much into it. Went to bleed it and couldn't get fluid to flow. Got a dribble at best. Tried for a while. No dice. Then decided to crack the line at the rubber flex to crossover metal. Pretty much same deal. Tiny bit of fluid. No where near what I should have gotten. Then I cracked it at the distribution block. Seems like I am getting decent fluid here. Not full flow but it was only cracked a quarter to half turn at best.

I guess I am replacing the front metal crossover line. Gonna be a pain as all the wiring and linkages are hooked up now. Surprised that it would be plugged for how clean everything else was. Arizona car so super dry. I guess I'll find out for sure when I pull it apart to replace.

Anyone know what size the fittings are and what size and length the crossover line is? Want to reproduce it as exact as I can.

Hopefully this resolves it. This is the last step to be 100% complete mechanically.

 

[Mineallmine]

Brake issue all resolved. Removed the crossover line and measured it. 60" exact... Bonus. Went to my local auto parts store and bought a 3/16" x 60" copper/nickel line. Bent it to match the original. Got it almost perfect. Only difference is the original has the spring around it where it comes under the subframe to the flex line. Not a big deal as this car won't see as much use as original.

Installed it and my son helped me bleed the brakes again. Went perfect this time. Nice clean fluid all around and no more air. And we have brakes!! Even started the car and moved it back and forth under its own power for the first time since I've owned it. Super good feeling. Only mechanical left is a good flush of the engine to get all the rusty crap out and a final adjustment of the timing and valves.

Headliner is hanging ready to install too. Made wires out of my spares to hold the front headliner bow forward and it seems to help. Can't wait to get it installed.

 

[Mineallmine]

Cooling system flushed. Used the heater hoses and picked up a male and female hose connection and put one on either hose. Then I booked up 2 hoses... One from the supply with a shutoff (to much pressure would push past the rad cap... Trust me I know), and the other out the door for run off.

The run off hose was still a little frozen do it took a bit to clear out but then nice rusty color water started to flow. As it opened up I opened the valve a little until I got a nice stay flow. Ran the car for about half an hour until the water was pretty much clear, or add good as it was going to get.

Disconnected the hoses and drained the rad one more time. Finally filled it with coolant. Gotta wait overnight for the heater core to fill and bleed out all of the air.

Next is to do final adjustment of the valves and confirm the timing. Then it's 100% complete mechanically and electrically.

 

[Mineallmine]

Valves adjusted. Adjusted intakes to 0.011 hot and exhaust to 0.022. Only had a couple that needed a little adjustment. I did them all rough cold when I lapped the valves when I had it all apart so I knew it would be close. Quietened down a bit. Still have to check the timing to be sure its right. Ran it for about half an hour. After topping up the coolant I wanted to be sure I had heat and that it was working good. Boy do I ever. Blows really nice and warm (only really going to be for use in the early spring and late fall before snow as this will not be getting driven in snow any more.

Took a picture of the gauges when running to have a record of where it is running.

Got the one piece of stainless off the rear today as well to be ready to replace the broken clip. Only broke one other clip during removal and no damage to the trim so that's always good. Once the replacement clips show up I can finally install the trim for the last time and move on to the headliner and glass install.

Have one more thing to look into now though. When I pulled the gas cap earlier in the week it released pressure as if it isn't venting properly. Have to pull the vent line to make sure it isn't plugged somewhere. While I'm at it I need to reroute it as I have it currently on the wrong side of the wheel well seam.

 

[Mineallmine]

It was like Christmas today. Got my trim clips for the stainless and the replacement piece of stainless. Went out and installed all but the passenger drip rail stainless.

lower stainless went great. Clips fit perfect (guessed based on measurements as I couldn't find any listings for specific clips for the Dart 170). Got the rear window stainless clips replaced and trim installed. Went OK except for the passenger piece. Got a couple dents where the trim wouldn't go on right. Not much I can do about it now and it isn't horrible, just disappointing as it went so good up to this point. Also have a couple dents in the rain gutter trim. They were there before and didn't want to make them worse by trying to straighten them. I can live with that though. Still looks good.

Also got the new Raybestos rear brake drums wiped down and sprayed. The one original drum was in spec and I was able to turn it down fine, but the other was way over before I even started so 2 new drums it is. They will go on tomorrow once the paint has ample time to dry. Should also get my new mirror and antenna tomorrow too. Hopefully the mirror is decent. Had trouble finding one that would fit the holes and look proper. The nice repop original was way to small to fit the holes and I'm not filling holes at this point.

Will try to get the other rain gutter trim cleaned up and installed tomorrow too. Just need to find where I can get the small stainless clip that covers the join between the 2 pieces. Will have to post a wanted thread if I can't find one local.

Then hopefully this weekend, on to the headliner.

 

[B-i-n-g-o]

Man, that looks awesome!!!

 

[Mineallmine]

Headliner pretty much installed. Never came out too bad considering it's only my third ever. A few wrinkles in the rear but not bad. Hopefully most come out when the sun hits it a few times. Still have to trim the front and rear window openings then onto glass install.

 

[mopowers]

That turned out nice! Did you use any type of adhesive on the edges?

 

[Mineallmine]

That turned out nice! Did you use any type of adhesive on the edges?

Only in a few spots where it wouldn't grab the Sharks teeth. Going to put some along window edge and wrap it around like a lot of other models did for double grab before setting the glass. Have to wait to get the glass setting compound Monday when Napa opens. Only one tube available so hopefully that's enough for 2 glass.

 

[mopowers]

Only in a few spots where it wouldn't grab the Sharks teeth. Going to put some along window edge and wrap it around like a lot of other models did for double grab before setting the glass. Have to wait to get the glass setting compound Monday when Napa opens. Only one tube available so hopefully that's enough for 2 glass.

Stupid question, but is the glass setting compound even needed? Do you put it between the glass and seal, or between the seal and the pinch weld.

 

[Mineallmine]

I've read both. Some use it, some don't. Some have had good luck without. I didn't use it when I put new glass in my beetle with no leaks. Others say they've had leaks. From what I've read you use it on the seal, install the seal on the body. Install the glass, then add sealant by lifting seal and putting it between glass and seal, then install the lock strip.

This is what I've read to use. Got this picture off here.

 

[Mineallmine]

So, this is becoming a broken record type of bad joke. Once again, two steps forward, one step back.

Finished cleaning up the window openings for the headliner install. Came out pretty good overall. I can live with it. Got the door weatherstrip/windlace installed. I really like the fit and quality of this material. Looks really nice too. Even put the pinch weld windlace around the rear side windows (wish I could find the fabric covered pinch weld strips like original but oh well).

Here's where my one step backwards comes in. This time it was entirely my fault. I went to install the windshield weatherstrip (test fit) and discovered it was 3 inches too short on the sides (that was as far as I got). What?? Took down the numbers and checked online to discover I had a 61-62 dart/lancer windshield weatherstrip. Checked my emails with National and yup, that's what I asked for. No idea how I messed that one up. Don't know if it was a previous mistake on their old website or my mistake all the way. Probably the latter. Either way, called them up and ordered the correct one. They are great to deal with as they will take back the old one and credit me for it minus restocking despite being opened. (never got it dirty or modified it in any way, nor did I apply the sealant to it luckily. Good thing I test fitted it.) In the end I'll only be out $30-$40. Biggest thing I'm disappointed about is I wanted to install the windshield tomorrow. Hopefully it will show up by friday as I took the day off. Be nice to get that all buttoned up by the weekend and focus on the interior.

Also received my radio I purchased on ebay. Not a Mopar specific, but looks almost the same. Only difference is the knobs, while the same shape, are black, as are the push buttons, and it doesn't say dart on the dial. Also the bezel is a little different, but won't be really noticable. The nice thing is the bezel is actually metal, not plastic, which I like. Just need to get it cleaned up and tested. Got it nice and cheap so I took a chance. Funny thing is after I bought it I was surfing the internet on 63 Dart 170's for pictures for ideas/references and found a 63 Dart 170 in unrestored condition with the exact same radio in it. Must have been a dealer option I guess.

 

[Mineallmine]

A bit more progress today. Got the rear glass installed. First time this car has had a rear glass in it since I've owned it and for many years prior due to it being broken when the car was brought up from Arizona and the rear roof damage as noted previously in my thread.

It wasn't overly bad to install. With lots of help from my wife we had it installed in about an hour. Hardest part was getting three lock strip in. Got too stubborn to go look for my lock strip tool..lol. only one spot on a lower corner doesn't seem to have the proper groove for the lock strip to fully seat into. Even put the package tray in and the rear seat divider. Did the package tray originally have a couple clips hold them in place? I remember reading that somewhere in here. I have a couple clips that look right in a bag but the package tray I got doesn't have any holes in it

Windshield tomorrow.

 

[mygasser]

my valiant had 2 clips through the package tray into the panel below. stops them jumping about or lifting when driving.
neil.

 

[Mineallmine]

Windshield done. Thanks in no small part to my wife. She was responsible for pushing the seal out around the glass from the inside while seating it and she did the entire lock strip with the exception of the middle where she didn't want to lean too much into the car to reach.

Even test fit the rear seat. Needs a little adjusting as it was sitting with stuff all over it for the last couple years. Looking nice though

 

[Scamp Rhonda]

Windshield done. Thanks in no small part to my wife. She was responsible for pushing the seal out around the glass from the inside while seating it and she did the entire lock strip with the exception of the middle where she didn't want to lean too much into the car to reach.

Even test fit the rear seat. Needs a little adjusting as it was sitting with stuff all over it for the last couple years. Looking nice though

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It might not be a bad thing that you couldn't find your locking strip tool. The way your wonderful helper did it should keep it from stretching too much and then shrinking back again and being too short. Nice job, both of you!

 

[Mineallmine]

Still moving forward. Got the service covers made and installed on the doors and rear seat area. Was going to buy some but figured that since I had some nice heavy vapor barrier laying around may as well put it to good use. And it was cheaper overall too.

Not really happy with how the upholstery did the door panels. Quality definitely isn't there. The lines aren't really straight and how he finished the backs was a mess. It was going to hold the panels away from the car and have a bunch of gaps. Instead of trimming the corners so it all laid flat, he just over-lapped everything and stapled it to hold it down. I wound up trimming a bunch so they would sit better. The back panels were better than the fronts but still needed a little work. Also, he added foam behind the vinyl to make it softer (something I didn't ask for), and while it looks nice it interferes with the window cranks a little. Also where he wrapped it over the top of the panels they no longer fit in the stainless trim. I wound up taking them apart along the top, trimming back the foam, and gluing them back down and clamping them overnight while the glue set. (used heavy duty contact cement to ensure good adhesion). This worked pretty good. Only issue I ran into was on the first one I did I got clamp marks that show up on the top edge. Hopefully they will steam out. On the rears I used pieces of wood to keep even pressure and leave no marks. Worked much better.

Overall the look is good. Time will tell how they hold up. Love the material we chose. Just wish the fit and finish of the workmanship was there. Won't be very noticeable once it's all finished and in the car though. Just bugs me. Will NOT be using him again, nor recommending him. Got 3 panels done and installed. Still have to finish the last panel modifications.

Then onto carpet trimming. Getting down to the final touches now. Still have to take the front 2 wheels off and repaint them where they were damaged during tire install (used the wrong shop). Also have to repaint the headlight bezels and a few small interior parts I wasn't happy with. Then I can do final install. Parts boxes are getting nice and empty now. Good feeling to finally see the end is getting close.

 

[Mineallmine]

Bit of a stall for a few days but trying to get back at it. Think I may have torn a rotator cuff or really bad pulled shoulder muscle. Sore as heck but gotta keep moving. Not gonna finish itself (was hoping it would but no luck...).

Bought new stainless wipers and spare refills for it as well as recieved the new licence plate clips and rubber bumpers.

Got the bumpers and clips installed. The bumpers I ordered were perfect. Really tight going in but once in they for the hole perfect. For anyone looking they came from rubber the right way past number 30-016B. They are made by Steele rubber.

Ran into my usual one step back with the wipers. The new ones have a different mount than what was on the car. I must have messed up when I was ordering them. Fortunately the originals are ANCO as well so I just polished them up and used the refills. (Red dot anti lift style).

Even got motivated and installed the trunk weatherstrip.

Think tomorrow will be the door weatherstrip or maybe some sanding and polish on the door sills... If my shoulder holds up that is.

This week I think I'll be prepping the panels that needed work and hopefully do the final paintwork so I can do final reassembly of all the metal panels. Can't wait to get to the finish line. Getting really close now

 

[abdywgn]

take care of that shoulder now before it gets worse. maybe just physical therapy and you'll be as good as new.
you are doing an outstanding job on the car!

 

[Mineallmine]

Not too much progress as of late due to the shoulder injury. Feels much better now than it did.

Got the sill plates polished and reinstalled. Started sanding the few small parts that had defects I wasn't happy with in prep for a respray. Just have the 2 rims and the 2 inner rear seat panels to sand then I can cover everything and finally get them done once and for all.

Even fixed the gas tank vent line. I noticed the tank seemed to be building pressure so I figured the vent or the nipple from the filler to vent must be plugged. I had the vent line in the wrong spot and it was bugging me so I pulled it to check. Found the vent plugged solid. Tried tapping it out and blowing it out with no luck. Used a bit of brake clean and it got enough out that it was no longer fully plugged but still not great. I decided to try a trick I learned years ago. Took a piece of mig wire and bent the one end to be able to chuck it up in my hand drill. Then slid it into the one end that I suspected was blocked as far as it would allow and turned on the drill, slowly at first until the wire went all the way in and then sped up the drill to essentially auger out the blockage. First try was not bad, then I put a very slight bend on the very end of the wire and did it again to get a better cleaning job. Like new now. Lots of crap came out. Reinstalled it correctly this time. Installed the upper clip and just have to reinstall the lower once I find it in the remaining parts.

Even got the sun visor brackets repainted as well as the rear view mirror (dart 170 didn't have chrome here) and got the new sunvisors and mirror reinstalled. Dome light is in too. Closer to done every day.