68 GT convertible project

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So is the rear one the same size as the front or is it bigger?
 
My Challenger was at the bodyshop for a couple weeks getting a couple things fixed. That let me really tear into the Dart. However, now it's back and I have no room to work. I'm going to have to find a place to store it this winter so I have some space.
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I started working on cleaning up the backing plates that came on the 8 3/4 I got. Unfortunately, they aren't in very good shape. I don't think I want to use them. It might not be that much more money to put a rear disc kit on the car by the time I get new backing plates, drums, shoes, wheel cylinders, hardware and spring kits.

The plate on the right is heavily pitted on the bottom. I cleaned up the left one tonight and the inside is very rough. A few of the contact pads are almost eaten completely away.
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Do the rear disc kit from Dr Diff. Good setup. I know he has a few but one is a few bucks more and you get a bigger disc.
 
Last time I checked, the website said the rear kits were out of stock. I'm going to focus on restoring the front end and worry about the rear later.

Anyone have any tips on taking apart the KH calipers...or should I just buy remans? Rockauto has some decent prices but I'd have to ship the cores back.

I've also been looking at PST suspension kits. Why don't they supply the inner tie rods in the standard kit? I guess I can buy the inners locally.
 
burdar said:
Last time I checked, the website said the rear kits were out of stock. I'm going to focus on restoring the front end and worry about the rear later.

Anyone have any tips on taking apart the KH calipers...or should I just buy remans? Rockauto has some decent prices but I'd have to ship the cores back.

I've also been looking at PST suspension kits. Why don't they supply the inner tie rods in the standard kit? I guess I can buy the inners locally.
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Here is the Dr Diff rear disc setup awesome fit, I may have a front disc setup from a 73 duster, if you are going to big bolt pattern!

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I've heard the 73+ setup increases the front track. I want to get the front as low as possible and I'm afraid I'll need all the clearance I can get. Besides, the KH's just look so cool. I was going to run the Mustang rotors to get the BBP.

Summit or Jegs lists a rear disc kit also.
 
The headlight buckets cleaned up nice. A 20 minute soak in EvapoRust and a light buff with 0000 steel wool did the trick.

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You haven't said which tranny you are using and you seem to be making this a driver not a racer. Might wanna stick an overdrive tranny in it. A GM 200R4 will fit without cutting the tranny tunnel of the car.
 
I have a 360/904 that will be going in the car. I can always upgrade to an OD down the road. I won't be racing it but if I did, it should be a mid to low 12 second car. The 360/904 was in a much heavier 82 Cordoba and ran 12.71@106.
 
I'm not sure exactly what you call this...brake pedal assembly, steering column mount...but I cleaned it up tonight. A soak in muriatic acid cleaned it right up. Then I coated it with RPM so it won't rust. There are a few pieces that need to get zinc plated so those will get set aside for now. The brake pedal needs to finish drying before I RPM the pivot end.
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I cleaned up the gas pedal assembly. I thought I had a before picture of it off the car but I don't.
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The end was rubber dipped to protect the plastic gas pedal so I reapplied some.
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I've got most of the zinc fasteners stripped and ready to be re-plated. I still need to strip some engine fasteners as well as the coil bracket and kick-down linkage.
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Thanks

I'm also working with James Fillmore from Detroit Muscle Technologies to put together a convertible gasket kit. I'm documenting all the gaskets I find while taking apart the convertible specific parts. I'm sending pics, dimensions and samples of those gaskets to him so he can include them in his kits.
 
burdar said:
I've heard the 73+ setup increases the front track. I want to get the front as low as possible and I'm afraid I'll need all the clearance I can get. Besides, the KH's just look so cool. I was going to run the Mustang rotors to get the BBP.

Summit or Jegs lists a rear disc kit also.
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Very little. If you buy after market rims, you just pick the right backspacing.

With 73 disks on my 68 GT vert, I can run factory 15x7 rims (cop/rallye) that have 4.25 and a 225/60/15 tire. With the car low, I can barely fit 245/60/15 on 15x7 with 4.25 backspacing with small bolt pattern. With the thicker flanges of a LBP rear axle, you the drum face pushes out like 1/4", IIRC (maybe someone can confirm actual measurement).

I would suggest rolling the top of rear fender lip a little now before paint.

A rear disk has a thicker plate that mates to the flange, so you the rim will get pushed out a little more also.
 
Yep, I figured that. The rotor flange is a lot thicker then a drum flange. A fender lip roll is most likely in the future. I still need to make up my mind which direction to go. I should really find the wheels I want to use and then have the rear cut to make them work.
 
burdar said:
Yep, I figured that. The rotor flange is a lot thicker then a drum flange. A fender lip roll is most likely in the future. I still need to make up my mind which direction to go. I should really find the wheels I want to use and then have the rear cut to make them work.
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Or get the right dimension rear rims and not cut the rear. That decision might factor on what rear end you plan to use. Does it have a A-body 8 3/4 in it now? I wouldn't cut that.

Do you want the front and rear rims to have the same offset and look to have the same depth?
 
I was given a C-body 8 3/4 for free. The car has a 7 1/4 right now. The front/rear don't have to have the same offset but I really don't like the look of the front face being right out at the outside of the wheel. I like there to be some dish to it.
 
burdar said:
I was given a C-body 8 3/4 for free. The car has a 7 1/4 right now. The front/rear don't have to have the same offset but I really don't like the look of the front face being right out at the outside of the wheel. I like there to be some dish to it.
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So you can cut the rear to give about whatever dish you want in the rear.

In the front, most any disk conversion is going to push the rim face out ~1/4". Is a 1/4" of less dish going to change the look a ton for you? The rim design itself can give a rim a deep look or not so deep look even with the same dimensions. Design choice will be a big factor.
 
How do you get your parts zinc plated?
 
How do you get your parts zinc plated?
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Just look up Electroplating in the yellow pages. I'm sure there is someone close by that does it. I had my Challenger fasteners replated at Key City Plating in Dubuque. They had a base charge of $40 for barrel plating. If I would have been organized, it would have only cost me $40 to get every zinc plated fastener for the entire car done. I ended up having to do two batches. Hopefully the Dart is a different story.

I actually brought the fasteners with me today to drop off. I found a place in Cedar Rapids so that's a lot closer then before.
 
Still just working on small parts. I've got a few assemblies torn apart...just waiting on the fasteners to get back from plating. Of coarse I found a couple fasteners that I forgot about. I'll clean them up and swing by the platers on Monday.

Here's a before and after of the hood latch. I'd like to send these out to be profetionally done but I have to save money where I can. The after picture didn't turn out very nice but they look good in person. They have a slight brownish look to them.
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safety hook...
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Looking good!!! It does'nt have to be high dollar or perfect, just neat. Great job,
Martin
 
I picked up the zinc fasteners yesterday and I'm not happy. When I picked them up, the guy said "These are going to have a little yellowish look to them because our solution is stronger. It resists a 100 hour salt spray vs the normal 40 hour spray."

Some things will be OK. I'm not going back stock with this thing anyway...but some things in the engine comp are going to look like crap next to other things I have planned. I sorted everything out today so I didn't forget where anything goes and I'll deal with the engine comp stuff later. You can really tell the difference when you hold a silver zinc part up to them.
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