'72 Duster "AERO DUSTER"

[Bryce]

okay, just got home from work and got the race car unloaded from the trailer. Time for a beer and some suspension planning!

[Bjkadron]

Quick update.. I was switching the tires from one side to the other last night (negative camber was getting to them so I re-aligned it too) and the beads on the tires chunked an ripped.. So It is out of commission until I get new tires. Hopefully today. Also I added a better seat belt on drivers seat. Safety first!

[Bjkadron]

Mini update- I now have it "Sorta rolling" or in limp mode. It will work until I can get new tires Monday.

Also we are making pretty good progress with the suspension design... Working out the steering and modifying the track for better cornering.

Thanks All for looking!

[Bjkadron]

Update!

I was having serious fuel problems that would totally kill the engine while going uphill or under load. So I dropped the tank fixed the pick-up, cleaned the tank while I had it out, changed the fuel filter and fixed the clogged vent. I'm getting ready to test drive it to make sure everything is right.

Also Looking for a new commuter car because I can't afford to drive this one all the time. Broke college students have it hard! haha!

Thanks again for looking!

[Bryce]

I have been slacking, Sorry. Who knew trying to buy a house was so time consuming.

I hope to pound it out this weekend. But I have the goodguys show on saturday.

[Bjkadron]

Don't worry Bryce... I was making everyone think that we had some huge secret project that we were keeping under wraps till it was done. But you kinda blew that one. haha!

In other news My daily duster is running great! And I'm putting out some cool parts in the shop at my school. Mostly stuff like adapter brackets (supercharger and brake mc) and stuff. Unfortunately I am running out of stuff to make!!! I need Ideas and I need plans! Help!!!!

[Bjkadron]

Hey everyone... We have been slowly making progress on my suspension design, but haven't had time for much else because school is keeping me pretty busy... It ends in three weeks though so I should have more time. Here is my new project/commuter car I picked up over the weekend. '87 Mitsubishi Starion GSI-R, 5-speed, already has a lot of nice mods(coilovers, new turbo, etc.) I think I'm going to like it.. Had to change the front timing cover gasket (PITB!!!!!) and Will register and insure it Tuesday.

[Bjkadron]

In case you are wondering Why I would get a car like a Starion when I am really a muscle car fan... here is a spec list of some of the stuff that was done to the car when I got it, and it was such a good deal I couldn't pass it up!

Rebuilt bottom end, new(er) steering box, new (better) head w/new valves and ported and polished, new (ported)exhaust manifold, ported and polished intake and throttle body, used 16g turbo, Tokico shocks and Ground Control adjustable coil overs w/ eibac springs, new clutch kit with extra plate, extra roller rocker set and another adjustable rocker kit, clutch master and slave cylinders, brake master-cylinder, new alternator, Turbo XS BOV and a better Greddy one, new tires, re-built cv-axles, two aftermarket fans, new(er) ceramic brake pads, Bosch super coil, ngk plugs and wires.

So I have a good starting point to work from! :D

Also I finally got a new tire for my daily Duster! What a difference it is to come back to 4 radials after running on three radials and a bias-ply spare!

That is about it for now. Thanks for looking!

[Bjkadron]

Not really any new updates right now.. End of the semester and finals are wiping me out. And I'm looking for a summer job too. Preferably engineering/Design/cars... If anyone knows of any.

the good news is that I only have one more week of classes!!! Then I can get to work on fun stuff!

I should have a better update than that soon.

Thanks again for looking.

[Bjkadron]

After much thought comparing of paint and planning I have decided that I am going to paint my car blue. Somewhat like this.

[shortrack]

love that colour....!

[Bjkadron]

love that colour....!

Thanks!! It looks close to that in real life.. but I couldn't do the pearl and slight metallic. The color originally came on a chevy cobalt but it should look a lot better on a duster! add in the flat black for the stripes and it should be amazing!

[Bjkadron]

As some of you may know I have been prepping my car for powertour. Not the whole thing, But at least one stop.
So far I have changed a bunch of ignition components such as plugs, wires, cap and rotor... A new High performance air filter, The transmission filter and fluid and while I had it out... I installed a custom transmission cooler! While I don't really like automatics, I do figure it is a good idea to keep the one I have cool and in one piece. I'll post pictures soon.

Hopefully I will have time to do some of the other things I wanted to do. Such as, Swapping out the rear-end, installing my 17's, New rear swaybar, spoilers, subframe connectors, My aluminum MC, a new graphics package and the rust repair to go with it. We will see how all that goes.

Not much progress on either of the others right now, I have been really busy with work. But I hope to make some good progress on my main build this summer.

Thanks again for looking!

[Bjkadron]

So yesterday (my birthday) I swapped out the rearend so I would have BBP all around. Also my old one was a little sloppy.
The new one was was out of a 79 Volare. Yes, I know they are not "technically" a "bolt in". I welded in centering rings so it would be lined up correctly, and the springs are pulled about 3/4" out (this could have been fixed with different centering rings). Also a nice surprise is this has a suregrip which I wasn't expecting. Also I forgot to take a pic of the new tranny cooler. Pictures:

The new rear before cleanup.


after clean-up and paint


looks empty...






Welding the rings in


Welded in, time for grinding. In my defense, it was not my welder...


new brake lines


everything in


done.


Thanks again for looking!

[Bryce]

looking good!

[Bjkadron]

looking good!

Thanks!

So how is the moving going?

[FoxGranadaChuck]

Looking forward to the finished product.....

[Bjkadron]

Note: Names changed to protect the innocent.

Wednesday June the 9th is a day I will not soon forget. It starts off with an air of excitement as it is the day that I am going to meet up with the Hot Rod Power Tour for the first time! I leave my house and drive to a nearby town to pick up my "unnamed traveling companion", who will go by the name of "Bob" for this story.
Though it is slightly wet from the on and off showers, everything goes smoothly for the first hour or so of the trip. Unfortunately, I would not be writing this tale if everything had gone according the the plans that had so firmly etched themselves in my mind. I am the kind of person who likes to plan ahead so things will all work out the way I want them. So it makes sense that I had painstakingly planned out the route for our little road trip to arrive at the destination at the perfect time, not get bored from interstate driving, and not waste gas driving out of the way. Well, that would have been all fine and dandy, IF I had known that the lovely little shortcut of a road happened to go right through the middle of Oak Ridge National Laboratory and was therefore: "Closed to through traffic". Drat! Of course, me being who I am, I figured "that just means that they don't want a bunch of extra traffic, but it is still a open road". WRONG!!! At the security office I was informed that I would have to turn my cool old car around and go a different way. On the bright side... They liked my car.
Oh well... We are still ahead of schedule so no big deal.Time for plan B! By this time, I am really close to my school, so I can stop there and look up another route. That goes well until I go up the apparently quite slick on-ramp. The back end of my "Powerful American Musclecar" starts sliding sideways like a penguin in a toboggan race, through no prodding of my own! Luckily, I have done this before (Professional driver on a closed course, Don't try this at home kids) and know how to drive with it, until it catches again. It is worth noting that as we were drifting gracefully up the on-ramp at full opposite lock, "Bob" was sitting stock still staring straight ahead. That is, until I get it straightened out and continue merging with traffic. He then lets out something vaguely reminiscent of a rebel yell and shouts "WOW! That was AWESOME!"
Having gotten this car somewhat recently, I haven't had it on the interstate for an extended period of time before. I was a bit worried about it possibly overheating, so, I brought some extra water. After about an hour of interstate driving it was getting a little hot. I pull over in this little deserted strip mall parking lot and pop the hood. I arm myself with a rag because I know the radiator is going to be hot(safety first people). I open it one click and as expected, water and steam start squirting out. I wait until it stops and the pressure is out before I open it the second click. BOOM! The radiator cap flies straight up like a space shuttle headed to the moon, followed by a geyser of boiling water! WOW! Apparently it had a little pressure left! After checking to make sure I hadn't been burned, I pour more water into the radiator. Then I pour MORE water in... Drat. I'm in the middle of nowhere and I am out of water. Then, out of the corner of my eye I spot a single car farther down the strip that I hadn't noticed before. Worth a try, so I grab my water jugs and head that way. Much to my delight, I discover that there is a small carpet store run by and older couple.
"Hello, Any chance that I could get some water?"
"Sure! come on in!"
After filling up my water jugs, twice, I thank them profusely and we are on our way again. Once we are underway, "Bob" informs me that I could have been a stunt man for "The Matrix" the way I whipped backwards in spectacular fashion as the cap blew. Personally, I don't think it was as funny as he apparently does. Yes... in case you were counting, it did drink four gallons.
For those of you that don't know, driving an old car is always an adventure because of what some may call Quirks. On my particular car, the seals that keep water from leaking in where the windshield wipers are only last 7-12 years, which would make mine about 20 years past due for replacement. However, I haven't been especially eager about tackling this particular project because it requires taking out the whole heat/AC unit. Yes, you guessed it, mine leak a little. Well, maybe a "little" would not the the word to use when driving through a mini tsunami from the sky! Torrents of water are pouring down onto the feet of the hapless chap(s) who happened to have their feet where they go... on the floor, under the dash. This is not a problem for "Bob" who proceeds to use his empty water bottle as a tool to "bail out" the water. Problem solved!
As the downpour subsides, I start to notice some cool cars here and there, and as another "Powerful American Musclecar" whooshes by with a window banner that says something to the effect of "Hot Rod Power Tour 2010", I know: We have caught up with the tour! From that point until about 6:00PM, I bask in the aura that is created when you mix high compression, large displacement engines with crafty nut-balls called "hot rodders!" Just for the record, there were supposed to be "over 2000 registered participants with that number again expected to join through the tour" and I would say that was a conservative estimate. Wow! Amazing experience and a blast to meet a bunch of people that I have heard about and check out their amazing rides!
About 6:00 ,however, people start leaving at an alarming rate! The party couldn't be over yet! Or could it? What a relief it is when I find out that everyone is just going downtown to the cruise-in that Coker Tire had set up. So grab a map and lets roll! We then cruise through beautiful downtown Chattanooga with the rumbles of yesteryear radiating through the dusk air. Coker Tire is nice enough to open up their museum, store and showroom to all the participants of Powertour. Amazing!
By about 8:45 the dark clouds are looming closer and closer and the wind is picking up... Signaling me that it is time to go! Driving out of Chattanooga is relatively uneventful, other than a slight mis-communication with Bob who was handling the navigation duties.
"turn RIGHT here"
"there is no RIGHT here, this is a bridge"
"Hmmm"
I soon take over the navigation duties as well as the driving. We are rolling along with traffic when suddenly I hear a strange thumping sound. Thumping is never good. When the left rear tire seems to sink into the pavement and the thumping gets louder at a somewhat alarming rate, my suspicions are confirmed: we have experienced a blowout. Blowout sales are good, tire blowouts are not. Oh look! That is the entrance to the college where everyone met! Lets turn in there! Great idea! Except that with the blown tire, I can't stop extremely quickly and miss the treadle. After the third light change, with no sign of getting a turn signal any time in the near future, I decide to just go for it... into the entrance, to the side of the road, Perfect! As many of you are probably thinking by now, that was too easy! Well, you are right. It seems in my haste to get ready to go, I neglected to include a spare tire in my car, as well as a jack. I do have a lug-wrench, though! 1 out of 3 isn't bad, right?
Luckily, my "network" is far reaching. I have a friend who lives really close. We will call her "Wonder Woman" or "Jane". Whip out the phone... Perfect, she has a jack! While we are waiting for "Wonder Woman" to swoop in, "Bob" has a great idea! He says THOSE words!!!! "Well, at least it can't get much worse" NOOO!!!! The pain, the agony!... The sky opens up and it starts to rain. Perfect!
"Jane" pulls up and I discover that her jack is one of those lovely little ones that raises the height of two small ants for every ten turns. Always the optimist, I decide to go for it. Just then, one of "Jane"'s friends shows up. He will go as "Smith". Now, lest you think that these friends are just hanging around to watch me slide across the wet ground and contort myself into strange positions trying to get the jack to work under the car, let me set the record straight! " Wonder woman", "Bob", and "Smith" spring into action trying to find a tire shop that is still open. Current time: 9:12pm. If you have never watched, from inches off the wet pavement, three people standing by the side of the road in the pouring rain with their cell phones, calling someone with a phone book, typing the numbers into a text screen, and calling the shops, respectively; let me tell you! It is an amazing feat of teamwork! I have some awesome friends! Guess what?! All the shops close at 9:00pm.
The last valiant effort on our part is a quick trip back downtown to Coker Tire where the cruise in was, maybe someone that can help will still be there! Nope. The soonest we can get a tire is 7:00am. Did I mention that we are 3.5 hours from home and "Bob" has to be at work at 8:00 am? Nuts! It was at this time that "Jane"'s family is kind enough to offer their couch and sofa bed to us for the night! "Bob" calls his boss and explains the situation. Verdict: Get there as soon as you can.
Well, after Pizza at midnight, a somewhat restless night, and a wonderful breakfast we have a new chauffeur, "Joe", who takes us to a tire shop where I proceed to stand with a flat tire in my hand for like 15 minutes, while the people rush back and forth doing other things... "oh, I didn't know you needed help.. I thought someone else was working with you". Wow. New tire on and a relatively un-eventful trip back home, during which I ask "Bob",
"So, will you ever go any where with me again?"
"Yes... ... Fishing."
As we are driving back, "Bob" decides to take a nap... Leaving me alone with my thoughts, and the wonderful lope of an American made V8 covering ground at a steady clip. Well, that and the other traffic which honks, beeps, waves, gives thumbs up and shouts, "I like your car!" Which reminds me why I like driving these "old cars". They have character, and are just plane cool!
Well, the good news is that "Bob" got to work and I got home and nobody got hurt. What a Day! Er... Two?

[Bjkadron]

Looking forward to the finished product.....

It might be a while.. But I am working on it!

[FoxGranadaChuck]

It might be a while.. But I am working on it!

That is the important thing.