Slant 6 Turbo 68Dart Project

[mopar74]

If you are running Flux core wire Home Depot sells .030 wire, make sure you are running flux core wire on DCEN(electrode negative) the gun will be hooked up to the negative terminal. For solid wire it will be on DCEP (electrode positive). the gun will be hooked up to the positive terminal. Also what type of welder is it? If it is an inexpensive welder it could only be flux core or solid not both.

 

[CichliDart]

If you are running Flux core wire Home Depot sells .030 wire, make sure you are running flux core wire on DCEN(electrode negative) the gun will be hooked up to the negative terminal. For solid wire it will be on DCEP (electrode positive). the gun will be hooked up to the positive terminal. Also what type of welder is it? If it is an inexpensive welder it could only be flux core or solid not both.

I am going to Hazard a guess that he may have picked up a Harbor Freight welder. I have read that they work great if you buy a quality wire from a different manufacturer. I am sure you can find a welding shop on your side of the Bridge, but if not there is one in Martinez, near Pacheco, almost across the street from the Highway Patrol on Blum Road off Pacheco Blvd.

I am almost neighbors with you, I live in Antioch, used to live off Blum Rd in Martinez, and have a house in Vallejo where my parents live and watch over my mopar graveyard.

I have really enjoyed reading and watching your other build projects and recently stumbled on this one. I am also working on a slant turbo project but have mostly been collecting parts. The speed at which you get projects done is amazing! Takes me five times as long to think about doing a project. Bill, Rusty, Pishta, and many of the others here on FABO have also offered me some great advice and now I am learning by watching you go to town on this.

If you see a gold 2 door 71 Swinger with a ugly bald guy driving it, that's me.

Mike

 

[Serj22]

I am going to Hazard a guess that he may have picked up a Harbor Freight welder. I have read that they work great if you buy a quality wire from a different manufacturer. I am sure you can find a welding shop on your side of the Bridge, but if not there is one in Martinez, near Pacheco, almost across the street from the Highway Patrol on Blum Road off Pacheco Blvd. I am almost neighbors with you, I live in Antioch, used to live off Blum Rd in Martinez, and have a house in Vallejo where my parents live and watch over my mopar graveyard. I have really enjoyed reading and watching your other build projects and recently stumbled on this one. I am also working on a slant turbo project but have mostly been collecting parts. The speed at which you get projects done is amazing! Takes me five times as long to think about doing a project. Bill, Rusty, Pishta, and many of the others here on FABO have also offered me some great advice and now I am learning by watching you go to town on this. If you see a gold 2 door 71 Swinger with a ugly bald guy driving it, that's me. Mike

Good guess.



I modified it. It's now a Lincoln. :glasses7:





But when I bought it I read that the wire supplied with it was garbage, so I went and picked up some Hobart wire .030 that was recommended. After I switched to that I was able to make an actual weld bead. It worked, not pretty, but the pipe's all good.


I visited antioch recently, well the area - to go to the KOA over there with my girlfriend and kids, that's where the picture with the firepit is.

I have probably seen your car around. I saw a gold maybe green 2 door on Lake Herman if you tend to drive that way.

Also Bill, I do not intend to mislead people into thinking all those 3 parts are the same - I'm just making a note that they all have similar function parts.

The deal with Big-O, is it took them 3 days to fix 2 brake cylinders, and when they gave it back to me, the brakes would not let go after a stop. I'd push the pedal and not go anywhere. They were dragging all the time, so I took it back, they supposedly fixed it. All the sudden after I got it back my left turn signal no longer functions and the brake lights stay on after you park the car. It has so far been a frustrating experience. I'll call them and deal with it, but right now it's sitting in my driveway with no brakes. Luckily once you mash the pedal all the way to the floor the tires screech and the car stops. I drove about 5 mph back to my driveway. I am going to take the wheel off this morning just to inspect. Maybe the bleed or brake nut came loose, maybe foul play - someone maybe cut the soft line. It's best I make sure their work is actually the problem. If it is, I put the wheel back on, then take it in and not mention taking the wheel off.

 

[Serj22]

I took the wheel off, and called Big-O. Sure enough that was the same one they had fixed. So after about 5 seconds of looking at the drum... and the spring sitting on top of it - I remembered my hatred for springs, and asked them what their warranty was. 1 year, so I screeched it 4 blocks down the road to them and dropped it off. They said it'd be there all day, but free is free.

And that means no turbo assembly today. Monday the AFR gauge shows up and that means EVERY SINGLE PIECE is here. I actually got an overload of parts and as such, so now I am a bit overwhelmed and have to step back and make a plan of exactly what to do in what order, so I don't wind up with a mess of stuff all over the driveway. One system at a time.

Also chichli dart,
you may have commented on my youtube video so that probably wasn't you i saw on lake herman.

 

[Bill Dedman]

Also Bill, I do not intend to mislead people into thinking all those 3 parts are the same - I'm just making a note that they all have similar function parts.

Like I said, I just talk to much.... :sad7: I know that you would never deliberately mislead anyone... your frequent and informative posts are a valuable resource for anyone starting out on an ambitious project like this, and it's to your credit that you are willing to give up the CONSIDERABLE time it takes to post them!

I am well aware of all that. Your contributions to this forum are invaluable, in my estimation.

I just thought that one point needed clarification...

So PLEASE carry on with your very interesting, well-written and entertaining photos and text; it's always fun and valuable information!

Hope your brake problems get fixed; that Big O place sounds like a training ground for ham-handed "mechanics..."rotest:

 

[Serj22]

Like I said, I just talk to much.... :sad7: I know that you would never deliberately mislead anyone... your frequent and informative posts are a valuable resource for anyone starting out on an ambitious project like this, and it's to your credit that you are willing to give up the CONSIDERABLE time it takes to post them! I am well aware of all that. Your contributions to this forum are invaluable, in my estimation. I just thought that one point needed clarifation... So PLEASE carry on with your very interesting, well-written and entertaining photos and text; it's always fun and valuable information! Hope your brake problems get fixed; that Big O place sounds like a training ground for ham-handed "mechanics..."rotest:

No worries Bill.

I agree. There's about 1 guy there who is the boss/ great leader or however its organized who I had assumed was the only guy to touch my car. I sat for two hours on the curb watching every single thing they did, and to my dismay he handed it over to a couple beginner looking people and sat them down to explain that the nuts on the left side of the car spun the other way. It took them a while to understand what he was saying.

It initially took them 3 days to do the job. On day 2 the bossman called me and said he had broken the brake line when the cylinder came free, and that it was his fault and he was having someone bend a new one, he got the new one, and it wasn't correct, so he took it back and got a different one, and then put it all back together, then I drove off the lot and couldnt accelerate from a stoplight and had to bring it back. It's been a miserable experience for a $20 part...

 

[Bill Dedman]

No worries Bill.

I agree. There's about 1 guy there who is the boss/ great leader or however its organized who I had assumed was the only guy to touch my car. I sat for two hours on the curb watching every single thing they did, and to my dismay he handed it over to a couple beginner looking people and sat them down to explain that the nuts on the left side of the car spun the other way. It took them a while to understand what he was saying.

It initially took them 3 days to do the job. On day 2 the bossman called me and said he had broken the brake line when the cylinder came free, and that it was his fault and he was having someone bend a new one, he got the new one, and it wasn't correct, so he took it back and got a different one, and then put it all back together, then I drove off the lot and couldnt accelerate from a stoplight and had to bring it back. It's been a miserable experience for a $20 part...

They are succeeding in changing "Big O" to "Big OH NO!" ops:

 

[Serj22]

They are succeeding in changing "Big O" to "Big OH NO!" ops:

Exactly. I really don't like letting others work on my car in general. You have no way of knowing what they did - or lack of things they were supposed to do.

I guess today I can lay out everything and get it ready to go. I don't know if anyone knows, but I live in a small 2 bedroom appartment and do absolutely all of this work there, and in the driveway. I have no garage. So this is true DIY. lol. My turbocharger manifold is taking up 1/4 of the kitchen, and all the other components are filling my bedroom... the only room not occupied by stuff is the kids room. I do all my metal grinding and cutting at my woodshop though.

So the sooner I get stuff into the car - the better.

 

[Serj22]

Well I put all my parts into boxes and labeled them

Oil Stuff
Fuel Stuff
Electrical Stuff
Intake stuff

so it's all organized and ready to go and I can nail one system at a time starting tuesday hopefully. Big-o locked my car in a garage till monday. They couldn't get the right cylinder till then. At least it's in a garage for once in its life.

 

[Bill Dedman]

Well I put all my parts into boxes and labeled them

Oil Stuff
Fuel Stuff
Electrical Stuff
Intake stuff

so it's all organized and ready to go and I can nail one system at a time starting tuesday hopefully. Big-o locked my car in a garage till monday. They couldn't get the right cylinder till then. At least it's in a garage for once in its life.

I admire your persistence. To do this from a 2-bedroom apartment with no alternative transportation, and no garage is awesome! That's persistence!

Calvin Coolidge said it best, a long. long time ago...

"Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “Press On” has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race."

That is some GOOD Advice!!!:cheers:

 

[Serj22]

Truly good advice.


Well, the last of it came today. Amazon now contracts with USPS to deliver on Sundays.

My innovate AFR gauge and Bosch sensor arrived, and an oil filter wrench, and 2 control cables, because I feel like somewhere down the line i may to need a cable to do something. We'll see. I wanted to be prepared as I can not really "go to the store and get something I need" as the car I'd use to do it, will be in pieces. Hopefully i can get a freindly neighbor to drive me if need be.


Don't use the sensor bung that comes with this Innovate Gauge if you buy it, it is way too long to actually work if you look at it. Shorter weld in is fine.



I also got a new coil, that should work, and a new cap and rotor, and assembled the distributor. The MSD system I decided will be the first to tackle. Hook it all up - ensure it works with the distributor with my current weber carb and NA setup, and if all is well, I can continue.



After that, I'll do the fuel pump, routed to the new regulator, and run through the stock carb and try and get it to maintain 4 psi on a naturally aspirated setup. Once that is confirmed functional as well, I'll run my oil feed, and install the turbo - then deal with all the linkages that will likely be messed up after the new components are installed. New valve cover will go on, and the intake will be removed for paint while i assemble the exhaust with the intake out of the way.

I want to contain the electrical and fuel first so that I know they function - so if a problem arises, I know my air is messed up somehow.

So still waiting on my car. Hopefully they give it back tomorrow. I could've been doing stuff to it today and yesterday, but life is life. Oh well.

Let's do a breakdown of exactly what I spent, as far as I remember. This would be the whole budget aspect of this job, and I got a lot of stuff by asking around. I suggest anyone else attempting this on a budget - put out a feeler for the stuff you want, and sometimes people want their old turbo stuff going to a good home. I went as cheap as I could but I did A LOT of research so I shyed away from buying known garbage, and I also took into account where everyone's setup had issues that they later fixed. I just went ahead and copied the "fixed" version if you know what I mean.

NEW T3/T4 Turbocharger $120 FABO
USED Blow-Off valve $20 FABO
USED Wastegate $10 FABO
NEW Intercooler/ piping $120 EBAY
USED Holley 350/hangar18 $50 FABO
USED Electronic Dizzy $0 FABO
USED MSD 6ALN $40 EBAY
NEW Accel Coil $30 PEPBOYS
NEW Exhaust Piping for J $60 JEGGS
NEW T3/T4 flange $15 EBAY
NEW 2" exhaust flanges $7 EXHAUST SHOP
NEW Wastegate Flanges $10 EBAY
NEW Downpipe Flange $0 FABO
NEW Universal Control Cables $30 AMAZON
NEW AFR gauge/ Bosch sensor $150 AMAZON
NEW Sensor bung $5 EBAY
NEW WIX 51515 Oil Filter $7 AMAZON
NEW Oil Filter Sandwich $20 EBAY
NEW Oil drain hose/AN fittings $0 FABO
NEW Oil feed restrictor $0 FABO
NEW Exhaust Header wrap $20 EBAY
NEW Walbro 255 fuel pump $100 EBAY
NEW "aeromotive" regulator $75 EBAY
NEW Fuel Line 3/8" $20 AMAZON
NEW 3" Air filter cone $10 EBAY
NEW Homemade Carb hat (parts) $35 EBAY
NEW 4ga wire for battery $60 PEPBOYS
NEW Dizzy Cap/ Rotor $14 OREILLYS
NEW Various 10an fittings $20 EBAY
NEW 2300 Holley intake adapter $15 AMAZON
NEW Trunk Battery Box $5 WALMART
NEW Battery terminals $5 WALMART
NEW Boost reference hoses $20 EBAY
NEW Various fittings needed(etc) $50 LOWE'S
NEW Electric Welder $130 HARBOR FREIGHT
NEW Welding PPE $30 HARBOR FREIGHT
NEW HOBART .030 wire $20 AMAZON

And I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting. I didn't nail $1,000 in the longrun, but I came close. I am also doing all of this with my minimal tools, and woodworking equipment. I possibly saved money by doing a lot of the welding myself. We'll see. Tomorrow night i can hopefully start some electrical stuff...

OH! And I designed these cool logos for callouts. These are subtle 4" wide ones, but I'm also having a large one made in a different style. A friend made them up for $15 after I drew them.

It's been a lot of fun so far.

 

[Bill Dedman]

After that, I'll do the fuel pump, routed to the new regulator, and run through the stock carb and try and get it to maintain 4 psi on a naturally aspirated setup. Once that is confirmed functional as well, I'll run my oil feed, and install the turbo - then deal with all the linkages that will likely be messed up after the new components are installed. New valve cover will go on, and the intake will be removed for paint while i assemble the exhaust with the intake out of the way.

WHATEVER YOU DO, Do NOT attempt to run this thing under boost (not even 4 pounds) withiout having your O2 sensor correctly hooked up to rear the oxygen content... (MIXTURE.)

To do so is to invite engine damage.

Also, I am sure that by now, you have learned that under NO circumstances, can you afford to set your total advance so that it exceeds 18 degrees under boost. That is easy to avoid.

Keep 91-93 octane in it at all times, and I don't think youll have anything to worry about.

Good luck; you do exemplary work!!!:cheers:

 

[Serj22]

I have a good baseline setup on the carb ready to go, and will hook up EVERRYTHING before the car is even started. The distributor I have has been modified and is limited to 18, so should be ok there. I have a rev limiter if need be, and we'll see how it all works out. Currently there's a weber 38/38 on the car and that's what I'm using just to make sure the fuel pump and msd system work, with a badly matched 18 degree limited distributor. I'll get really bad gas mileage for 5 minutes, but I want to confirm they both function before going any farther. It would be awful to attach everything to the car - have it not start AND THEN be left wondering why with so many variables.

Also I see where you got concerned. When I said I want to maintain 4 psi - I meant fuel pressure with no turbo or anything except the msd and fuel pump system installed. Not boost. lol

 

[Bill Dedman]

I really like your turbo slant six decal design.

Here'as mine. These will go on the rear quarter-panel just ahead of the tail-lights.

Also, my flat black fiberglass hood will have a decal that is done in the style and size of the "340 WEDGE" white-letter callout on the hood of the '71-72 340 Dusters, but it will say, "225 SLANT SIX" with "turbo" in red letters over the "SLANT SIX" lettering, and will be put on at a 45-degree angle to look as much like a 340 Wedge decal as it can... Maybe overkill... but, hey, it's a race car... LOL

 

[Serj22]

Mine are going on the tail stripe kind of subtle. The other is going to go on the intake pipe closest to the carburetor. The other one I'm having made will say "225" like the 340 callout, with the word "TURBO" in the / section of the middle 2 with military stencil font. that will go underhood.

 

[Bill Dedman]

Mine are going on the tail stripe kind of subtle. The other is going to go on the intake pipe closest to the carburetor. The other one I'm having made will say "225" like the 340 callout, with the word "TURBO" in the / section of the middle 2 with military stencil font. that will go underhood.

COOL!!! Can't wait to see it! Turbo slant sixes have been a too-well-kept secret for far too long; spread the word!:cheers:

 

[pishta]

Wow, coming right along! My motor call out sticker will be a CHARGER 225 with a tacky 80's "turbo" sticker in front of it, red in a serif font at an angle. Should fit on the side of the Edelbrock valve cover im using as a plenum.

 

[67 prostreet gt]

Very nice setup, I like it

 

[Serj22]

Wow, coming right along! My motor call out sticker will be a CHARGER 225 with a tacky 80's "turbo" sticker in front of it, red in a serif font at an angle. Should fit on the side of the Edelbrock valve cover im using as a plenum.

I love tacky 80's stuff. So I'll be a fan when you do it. Do you have a link to your build pishta? I can't ever find it on the threads you've started, just hear people talk about it.

One of the other things I want to add is a SRT6 badge on my wrinkle valve cover. Just because.

Well, got dropped off near big-o and was told they'll be done in a couple hours, so I walked home again. Turns out in the process of driving it around and testing the brake cylinder (and shoes) they replaced under warranty... they blew up my master cylinder. So... he said "it's not under warranty but we're gonna go ahead and give it to you" lol. yeah right. In the process of driving my car you break something and weren't gonna fix it? Nice try. Maybe they don't want to pull a fast one on me because I know what's going on, but needless to say, never letting anyone work on my car again.

In other news, I was changing some planer blades in my machine this morning to do some Mahogany planks, and I smartly tightened the gib bolts and slipped and sliced my thumb open on the brand new blade. My gosh was I frustrated... had to go to visit my mommy so she could stitch it back together. Luckily she's a doctor so she knows what she's doing. I now have a splint to keep my hand from getting messed up again, but I am still determined to do some work, so I will be training my girlfriend to undo the bolts I need with her hand, since I can not. :violent2:

Something else showed up in the mail today. More tubing for boost referencing. Don't remember ordering it, but oh well.

 

[Serj22]

Well, went back AGAIN, and they finally finished my car... the tech drove it around and then stopped in front of the building. The manager/ or ***. manager went out, read the mileage and said the tech says its good to go, I owe zero dollars, and thanks for your business.

I take it out, drive two blocks, go to stop GENTLY at the light and the car pulled so hard to the left it was unbelievable. At 15mph you could hit the brakes and make a left turn into a driveway that was how bad it was. I drove it right the hell back, and told the bossman, no way, and I was pissed that his tech passed it off as a safe vehicle. Manager was very willing to fix whatever is wrong, so he put it back on the rack, sat in the car, and had the tech see if he did anything wrong. He took off the front wheel, then they looked at the adjustments and then set it back down and the boss man took it for a drive. He came back 10 minutes later and said "yeah it still does it"

Basically he's not sure what to do in the situation because he believes they did everything as was said - be advised he was coaching the tech every 10 minutes on how to put the master cylinder in...

I am happy with this guy, but incredibly mad at the place.

I drive it home and he says he will talk to the other manager in the morning and they will sort out a way to make this right and call me.

When I get home, I kept hearing something knocking around in the trunk. I open the trunk and LO AND BEHOLD the ****ing battery is in the middle of the trunk. OH HELL NO. The tech passed off my car as being "done" and did not have the thought to strap my ****ing battery back in? What the hell? I called the bossman of big-o immediately and he said "yeah, that's fucked up. I agree that's just straight jenky, and I'm talking to ____ in the morning. we will handle this. I am so sorry, you have no idea how sorry I am about all this"

So yes, the management intends to do good towards me, but their employees... well. SO that's one more day down...

The whole day, just not good. Likely tomorrow will be a down day as well...

 

[Serj22]

Also, WTF is this?





Looks like a modern-*** master. It was free. And installation was free. They said that the proportioning valve on mine was putting too much pressure to the front brakes, and said the one on there was for a front disc braked car. So they replaced it with this, which is the same part number they kept coming up with. I liked the look of the old one...

 

[CichliDart]

Looks like a modern-*** master. It was free. And installation was free. They said that the proportioning valve on mine was putting too much pressure to the front brakes, and said the one on there was for a front disc braked car. So they replaced it with this, which is the same part number they kept coming up with. I liked the look of the old one...[/QUOTE]

More likely horribly misadjusted brakes. Or the right side not working at all.
Yeah, the "kids" working at the shop probably never worked on a front drum brake car before and were clueless. As for the battery in the trunk, inexcusible. That could have burned the car to the ground.

I admit I am no fan of front drums on cars but they do work when adjusted properly. I had a 65 Monaco with 11 x 3 drums up front that would plant your face on the dashboard when you tapped the brakes. I have also had misadjusted front drums and gotten myself into accidents with them. Don't accept it from them until it is perfect.

Mike

 

[Serj22]

More likely horribly misadjusted brakes. Or the right side not working at all. Yeah, the "kids" working at the shop probably never worked on a front drum brake car before and were clueless. As for the battery in the trunk, inexcusible. That could have burned the car to the ground. I admit I am no fan of front drums on cars but they do work when adjusted properly. I had a 65 Monaco with 11 x 3 drums up front that would plant your face on the dashboard when you tapped the brakes. I have also had misadjusted front drums and gotten myself into accidents with them. Don't accept it from them until it is perfect. Mike

I am not resting on this one, brakes are a big deal, and the battery... when I saw that after opening the trunk I almost blew a gasket and drove my car back there, plowed it right through their glass store front and said "ya know what..." but I would never do that.

The right side is exactly the side they fixed. Seems almost like they reinstalled the cylinder - WRONG or something...

 

[Jo Diesel]

Did the brake fluid get on the shoes? If it did they must be replaced or you will never get rid of the pull. If they can't fix it get your money back and get a disc brake conversion. Will be way happier with the brakes

The master cyl they put on is probably new, not rebuilt as remans are becoming non available.

 

[Serj22]

Did the brake fluid get on the shoes? If it did they must be replaced or you will never get rid of the pull. If they can't fix it get your money back and get a disc brake conversion. Will be way happier with the brakes The master cyl they put on is probably new, not rebuilt as remans are becoming non available.

Yeah I did some research and it looks like a $35.00 new master cylinder. I guess it functions. They bled the brakes for me this morning and the pull is gone. I guess their tech neglected to do one more thing. The shoes were replaced. There was no saving the ones that were in there.