1970 Challenger R/T convertible restoration

[K code Mustang]

I found out a few weeks ago that the shop I was working at was closing down. My boss asked me if I could stay on and restore his Challenger, a red/red, 440 auto R/T. The car had typical E body rust and some not so typical. So far the rear rails have already been replaced along with the trunk floor. The 1/4's are welded on. The floor pan has been fitted and just about welded, just waiting to finsh fitting the new front rails. All body panels have been stripped and epoxy primed so now I can start the plastic work. Here are some pictures and one of me.

[mockingbird812]

Sorry to hear yr shop is closing down. That Chally is coming along nicely and should look killer when it's done!

[njsteve]

That stinks about the shop closing. You do great work. Wanna paint my Firebird?

[KevinW]

Plenty of Classics in central NJ looking for help. I always get people looking for a good place to get thier cars painted.

[K code Mustang]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: njsteve</div><div class="ubbcode-body">That stinks about the shop closing. You do great work. Wanna paint my Firebird? </div></div>

Thank you for the compliment. I wish I could paint your car, but I am spread to thin as it is. I would love to be...even just a side note in one of your restoration threads, they have more pages than a Herman Melville novel and just as many readers. Unfortunately I have a Roadrunner in my garage now that more closely resembles a jigsaw puzzle than a 1969 Plymouth. Then there is my dad's Henry J that needs paint and my brother just bought a Model AA wrecker and he's been hinting around, not to mention MY mustang convertible that I put new rockers, frame rails, torque boxes and floors in just before the Roadrunner project came in. My wife has been good about the Mustang auto caccoon lawn ornament in our side yard, but she is staring to get antsy. HOWEVER, if you wanted to work out a deal with the Charger we could talk !

[njsteve]

Hey you got plenty of room in that schedule! <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/grin.gif

BTW, my Mom's first car was a Henry J. She said that the car was so light, her Dad used to have to put 500 lbs of sand in the trunk in the winter to keep it from blowing off of the NY bridges when she had to drive across them in the winter storms.

[K code Mustang]

More progress on the Challenger. All the welding is finished on the rear and front frame rails, floor pans and floor supports, trunk floor, aprons and so on...finally the shell is one solid structure again. The bottom has been undercoated and it's time for me to do my favorite part, paint... even if it is just the engine compartment, floor and trunk. One thing I have realized, in the last 30 years of painting Mopar engine compartments, it is getting harder to climb around to paint them...just look at the last picture.

[njsteve]

Are you sure the engine compartment didn't shrink? Maybe that's why you can't fit like you used to! <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/grin.gif

The Firebird still needs paint....shall we schedule it now? You are gettng close to fishing the Challenger.

[K code Mustang]

It's more an issue of crawling around/under the engine compartment and not a fitment problem. I refuse to admit my ass it bigger than a hemi...a small block... ok, but that's all I'll give ya.

[njsteve]

Hey, remember, those Australian Chargers had the 6 cyl HEMIs. <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/grin.gif

[K code Mustang]

Yeah, but when was the last time you saw one of those? My dad and I just got back from a car show in Allentown and in front of us in line were some guys wearing Mopar jackets, so we struck up a conversation. They mentioned a 68 or 69 Hemi Coronet in Central Jersey that is all original and needs restoration. They &quot;knew a guy that knew a guy&quot;...ya know same old story, but they mentioned racing at Englishtown and showing at the nats and Carlisle, so I was wondering if you knew anything about this coronet?

[njsteve]

No, that Coronet doesnt ring a bell.

Once the Challenger is painted, is that shop closing up permanently? He should rent it out for one-car-at-a-time, paint jobs......like mine.

[K code Mustang]

Actually, the building was rented. There will be a new bodyshop moving in and starting sometime in February. There was a stipulation made that we would be able to stay there and finish the Challenger. I am hoping to stay on with the new shop, I spoke with the new owners and they seem ok, but didn't talk details yet. They like the work I am doing on the Dodge, so that is a good thing...kind of a rehersal so to speak.

[KevinW]

Was that the Freedom auto shop on Etra rd near hightstown?

[K code Mustang]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: KevinW</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Was that the Freedom auto shop on Etra rd near hightstown? </div></div>

No, it was D&amp;J autobody in Middlesex, not sure what the new name will be tho.