You guys are too spoiled! Been installing a new home AC system and went on a dirt bike riding trip last weekend!
Jim
1963 Dodge Dart 270 Convertible for the Wife
- Thread starter Jim Kueneman
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You guys are too spoiled! Been installing a new home AC system and went on a dirt bike riding trip last weekend!
Jim
More Mopar more Mopar!
You guys are too spoiled! Been installing a new home AC system and went on a dirt bike riding trip last weekend!
Jim
Ok Summit has sent me 6 rims and not a one is the size that is stamped on the box so I give up on them for the Cragar SS's.... something is fishy with Crager or their distributor..... The engine head is almost done with the big valves and Dutra defined porting.
The home AC is now blowing cold (finished the DIY install today) so next weekend we should be able to get back on the Dart.
The home AC is now blowing cold (finished the DIY install today) so next weekend we should be able to get back on the Dart.
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Sorry guys it has been just too damn hot and without the engine done and no car shows to go to I am struggling to get out in the garage now that I have ice cold AC 
maybe next weekend.... the monsoons have started and the humidity is up but the temps should be going down.
maybe next weekend.... the monsoons have started and the humidity is up but the temps should be going down.
Interior dropped off at Baca in Tucson..... 2 tone turquoise/white front/rear seats/front door panels/rear door panels with carpet on the door panel lowers and all new backing boards for $1100.... Can't beat that... He will install the convertible top for $350 and new boot and cover for $200 when I'm ready... I am not going to mess with it.
Stopped to drop of the Oregon Cams Dutra grind cam to Dave at the machine shop... the oversized valve head is all done and in a plastic bag! The block is in a stack of 6 others ready for the machines..... another month or two... .... that guy is BUSY but the best takes time.....
.... that guy is BUSY but the best takes time.....
Spent a little time until the sweat was in my eyes (not hot just humid now).....
Always file cutting IN ONLY... if you cut out you WILL chip the paint.... NOS key lock in (spent way to much for a full set with OEM keys but they work so nice...) on the trunk and LH door. Need to pull the RH back apart a bit to get that one in... Also need to pull the ignition switch to change that out out too.
Also someone on the early A Facebook page noticed the old nasty pitted rear window cranks where not the correct short ones so I found a really nice set on e-bay off a C body.. look great.
Always file cutting IN ONLY... if you cut out you WILL chip the paint.... NOS key lock in (spent way to much for a full set with OEM keys but they work so nice...) on the trunk and LH door. Need to pull the RH back apart a bit to get that one in... Also need to pull the ignition switch to change that out out too.
Also someone on the early A Facebook page noticed the old nasty pitted rear window cranks where not the correct short ones so I found a really nice set on e-bay off a C body.. look great.
Nice cloudy day so I pushed the Dart outside so I could work on the doors.... The RH vent frame just did not want to align nicely so I had to hog out the bottom hole so it could be aligned without needed to "spring" it into place.... I tried to get nice even gaps around the vent frame and the windshield frame. The window would catch on the whisker so a few light taps to drive it forward a bit and it cleared the window rear chrome trim. Perfectly alignment with the rear quarter glass!
I had not installed the LH door glass so it was time. Note here in the vent frame mine had Allen head on the top and a sheet metal screw on the bottom. After a lot of photos of others cars it seems like this was dependent on the factory, Many had 2 Allen heads but some had one Allen and one sheet metal screw. Alway pack the springs on the regulator, door handle and hood (later A's) with grease to keep them from binding and squeaking (also a good bead blasting helps to get the rust and crude out first)... Found some nice hardware on the Facebook page a few months ago... gotta clock it right so you don't smack your knuckles with the window crank!
The LH rear quarter was way out of wack... It took a but of fighting it to get it lined up nice... All the door locks are in and function perfectly (as NOS OEM should...)..
First time with the polished front end parts are in the sun.... looks mean! The doors and quarter are done. We took the interior to Baca in Tucson Friday so when it is done (a few weeks) all I have to do is snap in the door panels and DONE!.....
I have been amazed at how weatherstrip adhesive grabs metal.. Decided to use it to reattach the DODGE letters to the tail panel. Clean it with wax and grease remover then goop them on.
The LH rear quarter was way out of wack... It took a but of fighting it to get it lined up nice... All the door locks are in and function perfectly (as NOS OEM should...)..
First time with the polished front end parts are in the sun.... looks mean! The doors and quarter are done. We took the interior to Baca in Tucson Friday so when it is done (a few weeks) all I have to do is snap in the door panels and DONE!.....
I have been amazed at how weatherstrip adhesive grabs metal.. Decided to use it to reattach the DODGE letters to the tail panel. Clean it with wax and grease remover then goop them on.
Just a cool photo of the door and trunk open from the front.... Rear trim is in along with the backup wiring. I need to buy new backup lights these are cloudy and one is cracked... Tail end is DONE other than wiring in the tail lights with some Delco connectors (I am using a '64 harness since no one makes a '63. '63 the light sockets are built into the assemblies while in '64 they went with the more common snap in socket.
SLOPAR72
Well-Known Member
I haven't looked at this in a while. You are a beast Jim. 2 cars in how many years? A rarity in my book....
JW
JW
It will be 3 cars in just about 4 years.
Took a few breaks from work at home day and got a few detail items done.... The door placards were bad... pitted and flaking.... scrape off the rust bumps with a razor blade then go after it with a wire brush to get the black paint off then a light sand with 500 grit. Quick masking job and shoot it with SEM Silver... next mask it off for the black and shoot it with SEM Satin Black.
Peal the masking and let it dry for an hour. Now mask around the high areas and use 1000 grit lightly and a bit of acetone for the large flat areas. Don't use it for the letters or you will be painting the black again... Good enough as we will buff out the letters on the buffer later after the paint drys. Did both in less than 60 minutes. The clips on the back were coming loose so a bit of epoxy will keep them secured.
Lastly I shot Kurts speaker kickpanels with OER Turquoise and installed the speakers in them... looks cool!
Lastly I shot Kurts speaker kickpanels with OER Turquoise and installed the speakers in them... looks cool!
Need to relocate the dimmer switch and washer pump on the LH side a bit to the right. Door placards polished and snapped into place.
Tough work but someone has to do it.....
My Classic Industries order came today with just a 1 day delay from normal... Ok for those looking for an authentic look without the aggravation just remember '68 B Body.... M&H did not have an original that had the solenoid wire from the starter to the relay so I gave up on them. Several questions about making me a custom harness to my specs when unanswered so I had to improvise.
The only wire not new on the car is the backup light wire in the trunk!
She will be flowing electrons through the harness by the end of the weekend! With luck the wiring will be done and tested over the next few days.... with the Out of Sight Bluetooth unit blasting tunes.
- 1968 Small Block B-Body Positive Harness has all the wires you need and looks like it is the perfect size. (measured my Coronet before ordering)
- 1968 Transmission neutral safety switch harness is perfect as the relay is exactly where the Coronets is.
- 1968 Fusable Link wire is perfect other than I need to put a spade connector on it for the '65 dash harness I used (again '63 not available and '64 did not have the alternator lugs like the '63 where '65 went back to them for 1 year).
- 1965 Small Block Underhood harness is looking like it is going to work perfectly for the /6
- 1965 Dash harness plugs right in other than you need to make a bracket to mount the fusebox to the left of the column. Plenty of room under the PB shifter and enough slack that it can come down and roll out of the way to work on the shifter mechanism. 1964 Rear harness needs connectors installed at the taillights for a '63 but other than that it is a direct plug in.
- 1965 Small Block Underhood harness is looking like it is going to work perfectly for the /6
The only wire not new on the car is the backup light wire in the trunk!
She will be flowing electrons through the harness by the end of the weekend! With luck the wiring will be done and tested over the next few days.... with the Out of Sight Bluetooth unit blasting tunes.
After 6 wrong rims sent by Summit (drop shipped from Cragar?) I ordered some slotted mags from eBay today.
Lets see how easy it is to backdate '65 harness for the '63.... The easy way to work on the dash. Roll it and wire it so you can get to everything.
Installed the restored heater cable assembly with the blower switch.
so the '63 had the fuse box right here but '65 moved it to the other side of the column (after the PB transmission when the wayside) but here is the hot wire for the heater or AC system.
There is room to make a custom mounting bracket to mount the fuse box next to the PB control and can roll it down to still get to to the mechanism if necessary.
Heater/AC was an add on so it was a separate harness (not available aftermarket) so we will remove the old one.
Blower motor wire runs through the header so just remove the connector from the header.
Split the harness to get the green wire out.
All that is needed now it to pop the power in (black/white) wire out of the switch connector
I like to bead blast the ends when I have them apart to clean up the corrosion.
Installed the restored heater cable assembly with the blower switch.
so the '63 had the fuse box right here but '65 moved it to the other side of the column (after the PB transmission when the wayside) but here is the hot wire for the heater or AC system.
There is room to make a custom mounting bracket to mount the fuse box next to the PB control and can roll it down to still get to to the mechanism if necessary.
Heater/AC was an add on so it was a separate harness (not available aftermarket) so we will remove the old one.
Blower motor wire runs through the header so just remove the connector from the header.
Split the harness to get the green wire out.
All that is needed now it to pop the power in (black/white) wire out of the switch connector
I like to bead blast the ends when I have them apart to clean up the corrosion.
Plug in the blower resistor
New dash harness has the black power for the Heater/AC run to the right area so plug it into the one we removed
Green fan wire goes in the bottom row, second from the left.
All taped up and ready to go.
Wiperswitch is different but the wiring is the same so start by just pulling the wires out of the '65 plug.
The '63 is single connectors.
Here are the field enhancement wires from the switch to the motor directly, again had to reuse this harness but I stepped on the brittle connector and broke it months ago... what to do?
The old dash harness had that connector for the wiper side so I just took it from the old harness and plugged in the wires
Per the FSM wiring harness all wired up correctly and still have not had to cut or make a wire.
New dash harness has the black power for the Heater/AC run to the right area so plug it into the one we removed
Green fan wire goes in the bottom row, second from the left.
All taped up and ready to go.
Wiperswitch is different but the wiring is the same so start by just pulling the wires out of the '65 plug.
The '63 is single connectors.
Here are the field enhancement wires from the switch to the motor directly, again had to reuse this harness but I stepped on the brittle connector and broke it months ago... what to do?
The old dash harness had that connector for the wiper side so I just took it from the old harness and plugged in the wires
Per the FSM wiring harness all wired up correctly and still have not had to cut or make a wire.
Now for the backup light power. Interesting that the '63 pulls this from the breaker at the wiper switch!? One year only thing..... Again we can use the original wire after splitting the harness.
White wire is the backup light power, the switch in in the PB mechanism.
Time to make the outside blower motor wire. Anything under the hood is shot.... New new.. Packard 56 ends with Delco covers work great and will plug into the old Mopar housings.
Custom end for the '68 B-Body fusible link and it just bolts on.
All done out here.
White wire is the backup light power, the switch in in the PB mechanism.
Time to make the outside blower motor wire. Anything under the hood is shot.... New new.. Packard 56 ends with Delco covers work great and will plug into the old Mopar housings.
Custom end for the '68 B-Body fusible link and it just bolts on.
All done out here.
Time to head for the trunk. '63 the tail light wires are part of the housing so had to cut the new '64 rear harness and installed Delco "T" connectors. Again the old Mopar ends snap into these Delco connectors.
New OER backup lenses are worth the $$$ and not cracked and broken.
We have light!
The wiper motor magnets are shot, she has no torque and won't turn over
New OER backup lenses are worth the $$$ and not cracked and broken.
We have light!
The wiper motor magnets are shot, she has no torque and won't turn over
So "Orange" = lights in the car that should dim with the rheostat on the headlight switch. That includes the light in the pushbutton shifter... It plugs into the stacker plugs on the LH side of the fusebox. Installed the stereo system for the wife (only really important thing that has to work). Retro-Sound center speaker and a Out of Sight hidden bluetooth system. Installed a series resistor between the original radio speaker wires and the Out of Sight unit since the speakers are 4 ohm and that is too low for the old radio... I am not sure if the radio works yet... I will power it next weekend..... Definitely need to replace all the capacitors at least. Courtisay light needed to extend the pink wire (pink = accessories that are aways hot no key needed). So what I have found is the M&H harnesses don't have the stacker plug for these accessories for A-Bodies. Kaelyn's Duster harness did not either. The Coronet harness did. So like the Duster I used a male end and soldered it to the back of the fuse holder (after removing it from the fusebox).
Electrical is _so_ close to being done! Just a few more minor things.
Hope this works.... If it doesn't click the arrow in the upper RH corner and just go to Google Drives.
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