65 Barracuda daily driver

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Had to replace the self-adjuster cable, which had snapped in two and started making noise inside the drum. Almost all part stores have the wrong cable (the one with the springy thing) listed for 10" drum brakes. Took a while to find the right one.

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Look ma, no door(s):

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In the meantime I installed the driver side door. It was too dark to take a picture though. It still needs some more adjustment and unfortunately I scratched the fresh paint in two places. Any tips for adjusting the door and the window glass?

Hopefully this weekend I can install the passenger side door and then it's almost time to send it to the painter. Before I want to take out the windshield and the rear window to clean out the glue and silicone on the gasket. To be honest, I'm a bit scared. I heard it's a pain in the butt and the windshields are prone to break.
 
I removed both the front and rear with no issues. I did get my son to help me with the rear because of the size. Front was easy.
 
So, yesterday the glass came out. We broke the windshield, but I already have a brand new replacement. My plan for the weekend is to install the headliner, paint the dash and do the last little bit of prep work, because Monday morning the car will go to the paint shop! It's been two years since I had the car media blasted. It's about time

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You are really doing an awesome job. Can't wait to see more progress. I plan on retiring in march. Then mine should go together quickly.
 
try hemioutlaw , 2 many mopars ,zookeepr, cosig,bamacuda, 340sedan, just a few people to ask for a trunk hinge I have a lot of 65 Barracuda parts but wont get another parts car here until march because of snow and cold in wisc. try 2manymopars first I think he has a yard full of parts
 
if it goes to a paint shop ,make sure they dontloose the body line in the sail panels and roof , and make sure they know every thing is round and curved on these bodies ,there is not a flat spot on them so watch there sanding . Ive seen a few of these Barracuda"s really messed up in the sanding stage usually by kids learning the trade . By the way
Looking nice , bet you still get compliments just because people are just figuring out how Kewl these cars really are. Ive been hooked on them over 40 years 2 thumbs up.
 
Thanks, guys! Learning by doing... By the way, I already found a deck lid hinge. Today I scratched my arms trying to get the dash vents and the dash pad out. I'm planning on painting the dash while the glass is out. I think the dash actually looks better without the dash pad. Not sure what to do about the holes though. Just fill them with bondo? By the way, the paint on top of the dash is flat and a different shade. Was that original? It's not just sunburned or faded.

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Either way, I'm gonna paint it the same color as the rest of the car.

Then I went on to the headliner. I read what a pain this was going to be. And it prove to be right...

Well, first, I put in some insulation. That was easy. I'm sure there is better insulation than this stuff that I got for 10 bucks from Home Depot, but better than nothing.

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Then I started putting in the headliner. It turned out the sleeves for the bows were too long, so there was no way to get it smooth.

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I cut the sleeves back an inch and a half on each side and it got a lot better. Then i started pulling them into the hooks and it's ok now. It's gonna sit overnight and tomorrow I'll glue the rest in. Luckily it's 85 degrees here in L.A., so the heat helps a little bit.

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By the way, what do you think it will cost to get the glass installed by a pro? I have a brand new windshield and two rear windows (in case one breaks). The problem is that I have to put the glass in as soon as it comes back from the paint shop. It has to be back on the road right away- it's still my only car... Thoughts?
 
So, the headliner didn't turn out that great, but i think I can live with it

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I painted the top of the dash while the windshield is out. Unfortunately I already scratched it...

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But finally... I dropped Salma off at the paint shop! They say it'll be done either Wednesday or Thursday. Can't wait...

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Kudo's for doing all you did yourself! That's a cool photo of Salma, hope to see the "after" taken coming out of the shop. Here's a thread I found searching "butyl" because that's the sealant you must use, not acrylic or whatever else. On this thread is says use butyl tape not the liquid caulk. I bet you could do it with a helper.

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=186577&highlight=butyl
 
I think the flat finish on the top of the dash is to prevent glare. If it's glossy, the glare won't allow you to see out very well. Ever try to drive with papers or a map or something lying on top of the dash? Same effect.
 
Thanks, goldfish65 for the tip with the butyl tape. The previous owners obviously didn't know that and smeared all kinds of sealants all over the place. One of the reasons why I took the windows out.
And 4spdcuda66, the glare is what I thought it was. Maybe I'll spray some matte clear coat over it.
 
So, I got her back from the painter. I've been waiting for this moment for a long time... and unfortunately I'm pretty disappointed. You can't see it in the photos, but there are a bunch of places where there's dust under the paint. There are spots where the paint is just smeared. There was overspray on all the glass that was still in the car (I had the windshield and the rear window out). And they were supposed to finish the bodywork, but there are still little dents and scratch marks from sanding all over. I'll have to go back and get them to fix it. I had to wait a couple of days to calm down first...

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Well dang. I'm bummed, I can imagine how you feel. When I had my '65 painted, a few small issues I decided to live with, for my own mental health. But there were some things I insisted they fix and they agreed.
 
Pictures don't show everything, but you will certainly be turning heads as you cruise LA.
I have retired as of last week and am hoping the North Carolina will warm so I can get back to work on my 65.
 
I know we would like to always feel like we got our moneys worth, look at it like this. I have no idea what the paint work was, did you sand it and prime it, etc... did the shop? I know we always like t get our moneys worth, but did it cost $5000 or $1000 to get it painted?
I drive my cars, and do all the body/paint myself, i can get it perfect but I always give out of energy before, so for a driver for me it doesn't have t be 100 % perfect. I have NO spray booth, just an open open shed!

but it looks pretty good in the pics. maybe they can easily correct some flaws. congrats on your progress!!!!!!!
 
@Tadams, congrats on your retirement and good luck with your restoration.

In general I'm happy that it's not in primer anymore. I want to be reasonable with what I'm going to ask them to fix. Some of the flaws are so whack, that they drive me mad, though... If you want to know, I paid $1,200 for a single stage paint job, including remaining body work and door jambs etc. It seemed like a great deal and they painted a friend's Valiant for the same money and it looked great. But here's the thing: I told them, that if they find that more bodywork needed to be done than included in the price, I would have paid for it (within reason). Oh well, lesson learned.

This car means a lot to me, though. I'm not planning on getting another car or project. It's my only car and daily driver and I want to keep it for the rest of my life. I know many before me have said that and quickly changed their minds, but this is important to me.
 
I totally understand what your saying, and thanks for the retirement wishes. I think your car does look great, but pictures don't tell everything. I can hardly wait for warm weather to get to work on mine. As Barbee said, I'm going to do mine at home and drive it. May not be perfect, but I can only blame myself if it isn't. Have an awesome day. Can hardly wait to see after all of the chrome is put back on.
 
Not really... I was in San Francisco the last couple of days, but before I went back to the paint shop and talked to the guy. He agreed to fix a couple little runs and spots where the paint was smeared in the door jambs etc. Also, I'm going to have him color sand and buff the paint for another 250 bucks. I hope it doesn't make it worse, but it should take out some of the imperfections. I'm going to drop off the car tomorrow and I hope to get it back soon, so I can start putting it back together... I still need to paint the grille, some of the interior panels and so on.
 
I hope you can get it complete like you are hoping for. Have a great day.
 
This morning I dropped off the Barracuda for color sanding and buffing and to get a couple of smaller things fixed. Crossing my fingers. I'll (hopefully) pick it up Wednesday morning and then I can finally start putting it back together... I want at to start with the bumpers. I've gotten too many tickets for not having a front license plate and I also want to protect it from people who can't parallel park (too many of those in LA)
 
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