Another Mopar Off My Bucket List - Barracuda Fastback

-
Every time I start thinking things are going together smoothly on the Charger I run into new problems that leave me scratching my head.

Yesterday I fit the fenders and grill back on the car and was relieved to see that the new radiator location seemed to be working.
IMG_8438.JPG


I started today checking whether or not our 'mini' battery was going to still fit our planned mounting spot. We had made a mock battery out of poster paper and I was pleased to see it does seem to fit.
IMG_8436.JPG


Once I passed that hurdle I went ahead and installed the new trunk lid. The fit was pretty good but the location of the latch striker was a little off. By forcing it's attachment point as far back as possible I was able to prevent it from binding against the latch. I'll still need to hog out the holes a bit to make sure it doesn't give us problems later.
IMG_8437.JPG


The new problems showed up when I decided to mount the alternator and power steering pump. I thought we already had all the brackets we needed to put things in proper alignment. DOH!! Even though things aren't firmly mounted, it's obvious that our V-belt pulleys don't line up behind the 3" blower belt. We're a mile off.
IMG_8439.JPG

IMG_8440.JPG


We may have to custom fab new brackets and possibly have to start considering different components.
 
SNKEBIT said:
I wasnt gonna haul you away, John. Just ur cars!!!!:poke::rofl:
Click to expand...

Hey, one of my sons was already searching online for ideas of funny epitaphs to put on my tombstone!! I may have to slap my mailman!
 
Last edited:
SNKEBIT said:
Isn't engineering fun?:poke::thumbsup:
Click to expand...

Almost everybody acknowledges the difficulty of finding parts for a restoration but a lot of them don't realize it can be harder to finish a build if the parts needed were never manufactured in the first place and HAVE to be custom machined. Without a factory manual to act as a guide for what you need, you're lucky if you can find suppliers that give accurate specs on pieces so you can figure out what will work. And (of course) that leads to trying to follow the lead of others that have already built projects similar - or a lot of trial & error. With the type of projects you've tackled I know you're all too familiar with that stuff.
 
Last edited:
SNKEBIT said:
I wasnt gonna haul you away, John. Just ur cars!!!!:poke::rofl:
Click to expand...

I was thinking along the same lines but was going to come by and "borrow" your MRL engine, strictly to keep it running and in good working order while you were faking it. Because that is what friends are for.....
 
SNKEBIT said:
Glad to see you back posting!!!!
Click to expand...

famous bob said:
this !
Click to expand...

I really didn't have much to post about for quite awhile. - Didn't figure you guys wanted to hear me going on about boring stuff (like me documenting bowel movements) and I didn't figure it was a good idea to write about any criminal activities I've been involved with (in case you guys decided reward money could finance one of your projects).
 
Last edited:
Last edited:
I've got a question and I probably should create a new thread for it, but thought I'd pose it here first. Have any of you guys ever had a fender tag reproduced? I started searching through threads here on FABO for options and will continue to look some more.

The car that needs one is my old '69 440 SIXPACK SuperBee. I sold it to a friend of mine years ago and somewhere over the years the tag disappeared. I know I never kept it and I assume it was on the car when I sold it. My buddy had the car restored several years ago and never knew the tag was gone until a few years back. He thought it had been on the car and speculated someone might have removed it at a car show but he's not certain.

We contacted Govier about a replacement. His website makes it sound like they'd re-pop one for around $150. After letting them know what type of vehicle we had we were told that we were in luck. His secretary(?) said he would have to inspect the car in person but that he had someone else in our area wanting the same service so our cost would be half of what it would otherwise be. That sounded great until they said the 1/2 cost was still $2500.

At this point my buddy replies to them that he couldn't justify spending that much and asks if there is a more cost effective option. It's been weeks and we haven't gotten any replies back. - Makes it feel as if they're running a racket to milk as much cash as they can from anyone that owns a Mopar worth big bucks.

One of the other threads I read referred the OP to a company called MMC DETROIT. I guess we may try them next.
 
Last edited:
1967 'cuda said:
I've got a question and I probably should create a new thread for it, but thought I'd pose it here first. Have any of you guys ever had a fender tag reproduced? I started searching through threads here on FABO for options and will continue to look some more.

The car that needs one is my old '69 440 SIXPACK SuperBee. I sold it to a friend of mine years ago and somewhere over the years the tag disappeared. I know I never kept it and I assume it was on the car when I sold it. My buddy had the car restored several years ago and never knew the tag was gone until a few years back. He thought it had been on the car and speculated someone might have removed it at a car show but he's not certain.

We contacted Govier about a replacement. His website makes it sound like they'd re-pop one for around &150. After letting them know what type of vehicle we had we were told that we were in luck. His secretary(?) said he would have to inspect the car in person but that he had someone else in our area wanting the same service so our cost would be half of what it would otherwise be. That sounded great until they said the 1/2 cost was still $2500.

At this point my buddy replies to them that he couldn't justify spending that much and asks if there is a more cost effective option. It's been weeks and we haven't gotten any replies back. - Makes it feel as if they're running a racket to milk as much cash as they can from anyone that owns a Mopar worth big bucks.

One of the other threads I read referred the OP to a company called MMC DETROIT. I guess we may try them next.
Click to expand...
the reason a guy should do something to make removing the fender tag a pain in the ***, so it couldn`t be done quickly, a pop rivet on one side, and a screw w/ a nut on the otherr side. keep posting , nice to read about somebody working on their cars instead of b.s.ing about everything but.
 
famous bob said:
the reason a guy should do something to make removing the fender tag a pain in the ***, so it couldn`t be done quickly, a pop rivet on one side, and a screw w/ a nut on the otherr side. keep posting , nice to read about somebody working on their cars instead of b.s.ing about everything but.
Click to expand...

Bob, I sure hope nobody stole that tag but now that some of these cars have become as valuable as they have it's a real possibility. - Especially while an owner leaves them unattended while looking at other cars. Ray (my buddy that owns my old Bee) has already said that if he gets a replacement - he's unlikely to leave the tag on the car at shows.
 
Last edited:
Cuda68Scott said:
You probably have seen this thread in your searches but here is one discussing aome pros/cons of tag reproduction. It discusses another source of tags at www.datatags.com
Click to expand...
Cuda68Scott said:

reproduction fender tags legal?
Click to expand...


Thanks for the links Scott. I'd already looked at the datatags website but never knew they were the ones that made the Govier tags. The one thread makes reference to a company called TRIM TAGS but it seems they only make GM tags. I think we may try that datatags company and see what luck we'll have.

I know there are a lot of guys concerned about potential fraud when it comes to high end cars but it's really frustrating to own one that's missing that tag and be told it'll cost thousands to get it replaced.
 
Last edited:
1967 'cuda said:
Bob, I sure hope nobody stole that tag but now that some of these cars have become as valuable as they have it's a real possibility. - Especially while an owner leaves them unattended while looking at other cars. Ray (my buddy that owns my old Bee) has already said that if he gets a replacement - he's unlikely to leave the tag on the car at shows.
Click to expand...
put them on, just make it a time consuming task to take it off.
 
famous bob said:
put them on, just make it a time consuming task to take it off.
Click to expand...

I guess it's up to Ray to decide how he'll handle it but when you consider the cost per ounce - that tag will be one of the costliest things on the car.
 
Last edited:
Spence has been scouring the internet for alternator and power steering bracket solutions. I guess there must not be a lot of guys running 3" blower belts with accessories. He found a few companies that had made parts but they're no longer in business. Some companies he found made setups that only accommodated superchargers driven by V-belts. I even called Hemidenny hoping he knew of a supplier but he told me he's never messed with any forced induction setups yet.

We were beginning to feel we were going to have to custom fab our own brackets when Spence found a company out of Spokane, Washington called BILLET CONNECTION. It looks like they've got a solution for the alternator but we may be on our own when it comes to the power steering pump.
Capture.PNG


I guess I haven't explained very well why we were having difficulty figuring this stuff out. The main problem is that our V-belt pulleys attached to the crankshaft are flush with the harmonic balancer in order to accommodate the blower pulleys instead of being offset out further from the motor. Any brackets similar to factory ones would locate the alternator & power steering drive pulleys out so far that they'd be in the same location as our 3" belt.

Normally the alternator and power steering pump sit so close to the motor to begin with that you can't move them back the 2+ inches we needed. That meant we were going to have to relocate them and find smaller replacement parts.

It wouldn't have been impossible to have designed our own but if we wanted some stuff cut with a CNC, it could have gotten pricey. We were just hoping for a kit solution.
 
1967 'cuda said:
Spence has been scouring the internet for alternator and power steering bracket solutions. I guess there must not be a lot of guys running 3" blower belts with accessories. He found a few companies that had made parts but they're no longer in business. Some companies he found made setups that only accommodated superchargers driven by V-belts. I even called Hemidenny hoping he knew of a supplier but he told me he's never messed with any forced induction setups yet.

We were beginning to feel we were going to have to custom fab our own brackets when Spence found a company out of Spokane, Washington called BILLET CONNECTION. It looks like they've got a solution for the alternator but we may be on our own when it comes to the power steering pump.
View attachment 1715022413

I guess I haven't explained very well why we were having difficulty figuring this stuff out. The main problem is that our V-belt pulleys attached to the crankshaft are flush with the harmonic balancer in order to accommodate the blower pulleys instead of being offset out further from the motor. Any brackets similar to factory ones would locate the alternator & power steering drive pulleys out so far that they'd be in the same location as our 3" belt.

Normally the alternator and power steering pump sit so close to the motor to begin with that you can't move them back the 2+ inches we needed. That meant we were going to have to relocate them and find smaller replacement parts.

It wouldn't have been impossible to have designed our own but if we wanted some stuff cut with a CNC, it could have gotten pricey. We were just hoping for a kit solution.
Click to expand...
any kit will probly be for Chevrolet, that will have to be highly reworked ! feel ur pain. remember the chevy dist. on ur fast 2.0 ? no doubt you`ll come up w/ something !!
 
1967 'cuda said:
I guess it's up to Ray to decide how he'll handle it but when you consider the cost per ounce - that tag will be one of the costliest things on the car.
Click to expand...
John... contact a DMV expert... AAA. quoted 604 in penalties, for California unregistered, since'04 no non op... One phone call, got me tags,for a blazing 216 dollars. Do some research, government gets enough , of your moolah...
 
Well, I have seen alternators run off of the driveshaft. And you could install electric power steering. I know... $$$
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top