Cinnamon 75 Duster \

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Here's the headliner. FYI - took this out the passenger door with window down. Otherwise all glass is still in the car. Also, back seat is out but front bench is still in, seats laying forward. Would not have made it out the drivers side because the seat hit the steering wheel. I turned it so front came out first. Right side all the way down at rocker, left up at window level over the door. Slight flex up in center and eased it out...

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zkx14 said:
I've continued to search for leaks in the cowl area and have found a couple more. The worst was where the flanges of the side panel come together with the cowl and firewall. I had gone over all of these with seam sealer when the dash was out, but I never dug the old stuff out from between the flanges, just cut the gobs from corner. The main spot was right under the cowl drain. Resealed it with Blackjack neoprene this time. I checked it again after Really heavy rain and the side was good, but I think I have similar problem near center of cowl. I might try digging sealer out and replacing from the engine bay side if I can do it without trashing the paint.
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I really have not seen any more water, but i knew there was still some getting in near center of cowl lip arount the wiper motor (which has a new seal). So, i went ahead and resealed it all the way across. Used dental picks to clean out the seam sealer under the cowl edge in the bay. . I cant get between the layers as it was originally done with the seam sealer, but the picks got it pretty clean. Then put a little neoprene caulk on the end of a putty knife and buttered the bottom side. Smoothed it in with a gloved finger and wiped off excess/ smears with mineral spirits. Got the whole underside of the flange covered even though its only the lip of the metal that matters.

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Went over the underside of roof with a scotchbrite and hosed it down with a can of rust reformer.
Also put the glove box and vent hoses back together (again) earlier this week.

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Put the gauge cluster back in today with new speedo cable. Plastic end on old one was cracked. Got my cable at Napa as suggested by Sireland67. They call it a 68" but actually measured 69" tip-to-tip - original was 63". The extra length makes it stick out past the master cyl lines where the old one came in just behind the back line. I might secure it to the inner fender to keep it off the brake lines, but not a big deal. Not sure what they expect you to do with the 80" cable that supposedly is for these cars? Only issue with the cable was that they don't include the seal for the firewall. Tried puting my old one on over the end, but was too much of a stetch. Even with some spray silicone it still tore the center of the seal. I used it anyway, just packed a piece of windshield rope seal into the inside once in place. ( cleaned the silicone out with brake cleaner)
Everything in the cluster appears to be working. The speedo worked, but jumped a few times. I'm thinking it was not seated right at first. I also repainted the top of the column after I scratched it all up...

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Glad you got the speedo working, was the price still decent on the cable?
 
I re-used my original.
Dropped it in a pan of boiling water to make it soft.
 
Just goofin off.
Not figuring on anything getting done on her till spring now...
:(

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You made me shiver with the icicles.

Put the grill in her she looks naked!
 
Yup the icicles send a deep chill up your spine. Great job getting that headliner out the side window without mangling it.
 
sireland67 said:
You made me shiver with the icicles.

Put the grill in her she looks naked!
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That wont go on for a while . The original grille has some damage. I got another one that needs to be cleaned up and maybe painted. Both are in the trunk

DusterDaddy said:
Yup the icicles send a deep chill up your spine. Great job getting that headliner out the side window without mangling it.
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Not sure if i will be able to use the headliner. It has some water damage. I may try to cover it if i can flatten the bubbled areas
 
You can fix the headliner. Is yours cardboard?
The previous owner glued some really thin fabric on mine, it looks so good that I am not changing it, even that is not original.
Check local fabric shops for ideas, and most fabric is pretty cheap.
 
Thats what i want to do. However, if you look at the pic i posted,- in the top left (passenger side sail panal area) and following down the bend- you can se where the layers are lifted and distorted. I need to get these areas glued together and get rid of most of the distortion
 
Nobody will see that area, trim cut, build it back up.
Throw some fabric on it and roll with it.
Nobody will not notice it, plus the money you save you can take the misses out to a nice dinner......
 
zkx14 said:
I had done some repairs to the cluster previously. Most of the places the screws thread in were cracked up pretty bad. I used plastic epoxy to rebuild them. When I replaced the fuel tank, I figured out the fuel gauge wasn't working. I picked up another cluster at a yard last fall. Mostly for the gage, but was considering using the whole thing. It has a chunk out from somebody trying to get it out without dropping the column. Decided to just use the gage in my old cluster for now, so did some repainting. I had a can of spray chrome but was sure I would just make a big mess if I sprayed it. Instead I sprayed it in a puddle and brushed it on. I think its a little better than the silver model paint I tried first. Also did the black and the orange needles and touched up the brown.
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That looks really good Keith:glasses7:
 
DusterDaddy said:
That looks really good Keith:glasses7:
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Thanks
And, last I checked its all working... which is more than I can say for my Magnum's cluster. Sometime on my trip out your way the RPMs quit reading. I ran a self diagnostic on it and it's the gauge. Only way to fix is apparently to change the whole cluster. $$$. Did that once already a while back cause the backlighting on the gauges quit. If only the newer stuff could be as simple as the Duster.
 
Spent a little time on the Duster today. Finally getting back to the leaf spring bushings. Got the correct ones for the 2" eyes a couple months back. The driver side came apart easy, but passenger side was like one solid mass. The rubber was stuck to the metal and the bolt and sleeve were rusted together. Sawed both sides of the bolt and pulled it free. Then drilled most of the rubber out and used a chisel to loosen the can from the eye. Wire brushed and painted.
Now for the next problem. I'm thinking I need to replace the hanger brackets. Especially the passenger side, the area where the rubber contacted was worn/ rusted away so it's thin around the bolt hole, No holes or cracks, but don't think I trust it. So, I guess I'll be looking for replacement(s)...
I did find 9/16 x 5" gr8 bolts at true value I can cut down( originals are 4-1/4" long. They didn't have the type- c locknut in 9/16, but found them at Ace. Haven't located replacements for the 3/8 studs, but won't matter if I find good replacements.
 
Check Mancini for the brackets, they are pretty cheap price wise.
 
Took a ride up to see FABO member mrdodge last weekend and got a pair of front spring hangers from a 69 Valiant he is parting. The holes in them were only half inch and not exact location, but very close. After all that effort to get the original oddball 9/16 bolts and nuts, I decided not to use them. The sleeves in the new bushings are 5/8, so why not upsize the bolts? So, I enlarged the holes in the hanger brackets to 5/8 and got the new hardware to match. 4.5" bolts are a stock item at TrueValue. Originals were 4.25, but extra 1/4" doesn't cause any issue. Wire brushed, replaced one broken stud and painted.
Got them and the shackles replaced today. Shackles were an ebay find. The bushings that came with them were a loose fit in the holes, but I had intended to use ones that came with the 2" eye Energy Suspension bushing set anyway. Also installed the pretty new red (Gabriel Gaurdien) shocks seen in the pic. Too dark under there to get a good pic of the front hanger brackets.

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zkx14 said:
Took a ride up to see member mrdodge last weekend and got a pair of front spring hangers from a 69 Valiant he is parting. The holes in them were only half inch and not exact location, but very close. After all that effort to get the original oddball 9/16 bolts and nuts, I decided not to use them. The sleeves in the new bushings are 5/8, so why not upsize the bolts. So, I enlarged the holes in the hanger brackets to 5/8 and got the new hardware to match. Wire brushed, replaced one broken stud and painted. Got them and the shackles replaced today. Shackles were an ebay find. The bushings that came with them were a loose fit in the holes, but I had intended to use ones that came with the 2" eye Energy Suspension bushing set anyway. Also installed the pretty new red (Gabriel Gaurdien) shocks seen in the pic. Too dark under there to get a good pic of the front hanger brackets.
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It's great you got out to visit another FABO member
 
It's been cool watching your progress on your Duster. I've got a '75 Scamp that's the same color (cinnamon) and it appears yours also has a parchment interior? What was the build date of your Duster??
 
H22A4 said:
It's been cool watching your progress on your Duster. I've got a '75 Scamp that's the same color (cinnamon) and it appears yours also has a parchment interior? What was the build date of your Duster??
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Thanks for checking in! Don't know how I missed yours, there seam to be so few T4's. Interior is parchment. Build date 8/5/75
 
DusterDaddy said:
It's great you got out to visit another FABO member
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It truly is one of the best parts of being on this site. There are so many members around. It's great to meet them, see their cars and talk about what we're working on. This year has been especially good so far. Besides yourself, I met AIV ( on the way back from your place), l had lunch with MOPARMITCH and halifaxhops last month and helped hops put front and back glass in the Popmobile a couple weeks ago. Then last weekend, up to mrdodge's place for a parts run. I expect to make it to Carlisle and add a bunch to that list in July.
 
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