74 Cuda Restomod

[fulofsteel]

Hey all,
My name is Taylor and recently I purchased a 74 cuda with a 360. My father and I have always been mopar guys (He raised me well) and we love to work on cars in our spare time. My dad and I have been working on a 47 dodge canopy pickup and now I thought it was time for me to start a project to call my own. About a month ago I bought the cuda torn apart and with the intentions of building it a numbers matching car. Once I started laying out what I needed to do (with prices included), I figured I will just build the car to what I exactly want (tremec 5 speed, rallye dash conversion, stiffened steering/suspension). I'm about one month into the project and I'm to the point where I am fitting the front end metal. This is a ground-up restomod, so I am sandblasting all parts and starting from scratch. I look forward to using this forum for questions and to update everyone with my progress. I may need some help/advice with the setting the rear quarter panels and rear end, because it seems like the guy who had the car before me didn't take the time to align the inner fenders properly :/

Condition when I bought it




Where I stand right now (Grille repainted, front metal fitted and set)



Here is the link to my photos as I go:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/111261164755947133215/albums/6008820657761634513

 

[340challconvert]

Chrysler produced only 4989 Plymouth 'Cudas in 1974. They are only original once. Keep all your original parts. When you go to sell the project down the line, it does affect the resell value. It is always a personal choice to make it into something that you will enjoy. Good luck with your project.

 

[fulofsteel]

Chrysler produced only 4989 Plymouth 'Cudas in 1974. They are only original once. Keep all your original parts. When you go to sell the project down the line, it does affect the resell value. It is always a personal choice to make it into something that you will enjoy. Good luck with your project.

That's exactly what I am doing, thanks for the tip! Plus I am going to keep as much original as possible.

 

[moparleo]

Welcome. Your links didn't work. Try again or Ramenth can help you with your posting.

 

[fulofsteel]

Welcome. Your links didn't work. Try again or Ramenth can help you with your posting.

They should work now!

 

[moparleo]

You should probably do all of your rust repair/replacement before you start to install and fit the sheet metal.

 

[fulofsteel]

You should probably do all of your rust repair/replacement before you start to install and fit the sheet metal.

All of the rust on the front end is removed. Now I will be replacing the rockers. I set the fenders, valence and hood to make sure the front inner fenders/firewall area were welded properly and square. I also need to do some plastic repair on the grille (passing time as I wait for parts), which is why the grille is mounted. The guy who had it before me did an iffy job with welding, so I want to make sure things are fitting as I go.

When I get to the point where I will be tackling the rear end and the quarter panels, does anyone have good documentation on measurements on where exactly these pieces need to be? More importantly, the rear inner fenders, since I have a feeling the one side was mounted too low. I did a quick search on the forum and had no luck. Luckily I do have the 74 parts manual, but it doesn't give fitting requirements.

 

[moparleo]

Approach the total cars rust repair first. Unless you have done panel replacements before, since the parts were removed before you got the car it needs to be leveled and firmly mounted to some kind of jig. Then all of the remainder of the car can be properly checked, squared as needed and you can then begin to properly attach items like the rockers, inner and outer fenders, quarter panels etc. You might consider having a body/frame shop do the hard part first and then you can do the non critical things to save money on. The guys welds are much more than iffy. It looks like this is the first time he ever tried to weld anything. Looks like bubble gum. The welds that I can see are barely holding anything together. Judging by his welding skills I wouldn't trust any repair work that was done before you bought the car. I would start from the scratch. Just trying to save you a big headache later.

 

[fulofsteel]

Approach the total cars rust repair first. Unless you have done panel replacements before, since the parts were removed before you got the car it needs to be leveled and firmly mounted to some kind of jig. Then all of the remainder of the car can be properly checked, squared as needed and you can then begin to properly attach items like the rockers, inner and outer fenders, quarter panels etc. You might consider having a body/frame shop do the hard part first and then you can do the non critical things to save money on. The guys welds are much more than iffy. It looks like this is the first time he ever tried to weld anything. Looks like bubble gum. The welds that I can see are barely holding anything together. Judging by his welding skills I wouldn't trust any repair work that was done before you bought the car. I would start from the scratch. Just trying to save you a big headache later.

Thanks for your advice!!

 

[Bill]

Very nice and welcome aboard. Nothin like powder coating cookin brake drums in the oven and fixin up a little dash on the counter in the kitchen. Adds flavor to the biscuits (lol). Nice Trianco Maax direct vent boiler with a Beckett AFII burner. Good luck with your project!!

 

[fulofsteel]

UPDATE

Thought I would stop by and give an update: After 4 months, all the metal work has been completed. I just finished spraying an epoxy coat to begin working on sanding/blocking before polyester. Here is a link to my progress: I have taken extensive photos of all of the metal/rust I have replaced - https://plus.google.com/photos/111261164755947133215/albums/6008820657761634513