440 duster weight, 3440 LBS

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sbh126

sbh126

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Just got back from the scales. the Duster weighed in at 3440 Lbs with half a tank of gas and no driver. Front end weight with 170 LBS of driver in the seat was 1970 LBS. Rear was at 1650. Thats not too bad of weight distribution for a big block car. Especially for a 4 speed.

Here's my set up.

74 duster, no fiberglass parts
steel bumpers
77' 440 block with steel crank
833 4 speed with steel bell housing
8 3/4 axle
15 X 8 aluminum wheels in front
17 X 11 aluminum wheels in rear.
aluminum pistons
aluminum heads, intake, waterpump, and wp housing
schumacher headers
manual brakes
manual steering
heater box but no AC
full interior with bench seats
Battery is in the trunk.
aluminum rediator.

I'd imagine that an all steel slant with power brakes, power steering, and AC would weigh similar. Anybody else want to post their set ups and weights? where else could I shave a few LBS?
 
Big block 1" torsion bars as well.
front and rear disk brakes.

I think thats everything.
 
mine weigh 3250 with me it and i had to add 200 pounds couldnt get it to hook. After that it went from spining to pulling the front wheels off the ground. The motor is 440 car is tubbed with ladder bars
 
My 75 was under 3100 without me, It had an all iron 451 except intake, 8.3/4, glass bumpers, aluminum brackets, all else was steel, aluminum radiator, 2 race seats, pulled out the AC assembly from under the dash, but it only weighed 38 lbs. Bumper assembly F&R weighed 186 lbs.
 
JoeDust451 said:
My 75 was under 3100 without me, It had an all iron 451 except intake, 8.3/4, glass bumpers, aluminum brackets, all else was steel, aluminum radiator, 2 race seats, pulled out the AC assembly from under the dash, but it only weighed 38 lbs. Bumper assembly F&R weighed 186 lbs.
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Wow, I didn't realize the bumpers were so heavy. I guess I should look into some fiberglass ones. what kind of weight difference could I get with glass hood and fenders?
 
sbh126 said:
Wow, I didn't realize the bumpers were so heavy. I guess I should look into some fiberglass ones. what kind of weight difference could I get with glass hood and fenders?
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They got a lot heaveyer around 73/74. 70/72 are only around 50-60 lb for both. 74 when they changed to the shock mounts they went to arund 80 lb each!

Hood will shave 40-50 depending on if you go with lift off or keep the hood springs.

So around 200 lb with glass hood bumpers and mounts.
 
Burntorange70 said:
They got a lot heaveyer around 73/74. 70/72 are only around 50-60 lb for both. 74 when they changed to the shock mounts they went to arund 80 lb each!

Hood will shave 40-50 depending on if you go with lift off or keep the hood springs.

So around 200 lb with glass hood bumpers and mounts.
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thats a quarter of a second :cheers: where's a good place to buy?
 
.................My 74 duster has a 71 front end with both 71 bumpers, has a 12 point cage, subframe connectors, hood is gutted, no inner fenders......interior is gutted.......3040 lbs....w/o driver........440 with a performer RPM................kim...........
 
sbh126 said:
thats a quarter of a second :cheers: where's a good place to buy?
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There is a place in Fla. thats pretty good, just whatever you do, "DO NOT" buy from Unlimited Fiberglass out of Cal. They treated me good the 1st. time i bought from them, but tried to screw me the 2nd. round 2 yrs. later & treated me like s*it. NEVER again, others will worn you too.

What year is your Duster? If its a 73-76 the stock hood weighs 63 lbs.. I wouldn't worry about glass fenders, You can do these few things & shave off some weight.

Glass bumpers/homemade aluminum brackets.
Save around 160 lbs.
Glass lift off hood, around 55 lbs.
Remove hood hinges, 10-12 lbs.
Aluminum rad. around 15-20 lbs.
Pull front seat & install light weight race seats.
Save around 55-60 lbs. if its a full bench.
Take out back seat, around 20 lbs.
Glass trunk lid, they are alot heavier then you may think, i'd say a solid 40 lbs.
Light weight front calipers, the factory ones are heavy, call it 20 lb. savings

The list can go on & on, But you can put these A bodies below 3000 lbs. with iron BBs, lets add it up, of coarse you want to keep the original stuff.

I calculated on adverage the glass stuff you would put back. Its a roundabout figure but close.

160
55
10
20
55
20
40
20
= 380 lbs.

Your car is now 3060 lbs. :glasses7:

Let me add, Another surprize is how heavy an A body "stripped" door weighs, they are friggin heavy, You can save money & weight, find a pair of decent doors, gut them, cut the inner side panals, install thin aluminum plate or tin, install latches so you can open them from the inside, install none scratch lexan for the windows, now this is something you may not want to do to a nice driver, but i'm sure it'll save a solid 75 lbs., this will put the car below 3000 lbs.
 
I had a well loaded '74, /6 Duster, A/C, P/S, P/B 4 wheel drums. The reggie said, and unbelievably it said 2,9xx lbs.
 
Is it getting crazy to go to a K-frame removal for a lighter set up? Like a Alterkation or similar set up?
Windows are window for the street. Has anybody done lexan for the street and lived with it everyday, long term?
 
This is just an example of how weight will effect thinks, A guy i knew out in texas had a 74 Duster, had it for 15yrs., raced brackets almost every week for a solid 10 with the same engine & never tore it down, Over the years he lightened it up with everything you could get at the time. His race weight was just shy of 2800 lbs., like 2796, this was the combo & what it ran.

.030" 383, steel crank, 12.5 compression, 915 heads, mild port, stock sized valves
I forgot what intake i'm thinking a Team-G Single, the carb was a basic 850dp, 4.56 gears, 5K stall, .590 cam.

In Amarillo, Tx the track altitude is 3700ft., Car ran consistant 11.20s, ran a few times in the teens, he went to an event in Dallas once, rolled it off the trailer, didn't touch a thing, Ran 10.6s, One time he went down to baytown, On the 1st. run it left so hard it twisted the DS & snapped it in 2, Now this was just a little ol'e 383 old school.
 
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