Projects 41 plymouth coupe 392 hemi build thread

Thanks for the kind words robleticia! For a start, the concerned piece is not available off the shelf, as far as I know. Fabricating a piece that finally fits the way it should is a lot more satisfying. I'm sure there'll be more parts I need to make, however small. There's nothing like fabricating you're own stuff!

 

if the car in your avatar is yours... then that is a huge compliment, because that thing is fucking insane.


Farmer, you DONE yet?? I'm chomping at the bit over here!!! ha. looking great man!!

 

Got to work on the trunk today. After lots of measuring I bent a long piece of steel as a guide and welded it into place. Next I grinded the support off and sprayed some rust sealant on there. Next I fabricated a piece to follow the inner fender brace contour by shrinking it slightly and hammered a lip onto it as a support for the main flat trunk area.

 

Thanks octobeak. I've been working on the car flat out for the last three days, it's all coming along the way I want it to, even though being concious about the small details does have its drawbacks. It just unbelievable how the time flies while I'm designing, fabricating and getting my hands dirty.

 

Wow, nice build now I can go back to sleep..........

 

Thanks for the compliments! The car in the avatar IS the car in question. It's the way the Plymouth was before I started rebuilding it completely. (but you already knew that because you read the whole thread of course.)

 

Had some time to work on the car again today. I cut away the old support and sprayed some anti rust primer on there. Then fabricated the left rear of the trunk. This time it only took me a few hours, considering I gained experience from making the other side earlier on.

 

I've just finished fabricating a piece that will help support the flat trunk metal. I bent a long piece of 1 mm steel, creating a step profile and shrinking/stretching it until I got the required shape. Came out looking good.

 

That is really nice piece,which reminded me of that i need to buy a shrinker/stretcher..

 

While thinking about how to finish the trunk, I started smoothing out the dash and clean up some of the welds.

 

Thanks Finnrodder. Those machines are great to work with, not sure what the price will be though. Just by practising you'll be able to fabricate some great stuff!

 

The initial plan was to to do the trunk floor today, but after some grinding I found out the rear body supports were a little rusty. So I cut them out and decided to fabricate some new ones. I started with a flat piece of metal and used a die to hammer it into shape, with the necessary shrinking during the process. I haven't completed the first one yet but hope to finish both of them tomorrow.

 

Eric, how bad was the panel that runs along side of your inner wheel well? My rear body mounts were also bad must be common on these year mopars. Are you planning on making a flat trunk floor or are you going to recess it like the factory floor? thanks, later shawn

 

Wow Eric! It was very nice meeting you at Rosmalen the other day; I'm sorry it took me a while to get around to catching up on your build thread! I spent the last two nights reading the entire thread and am totally stunned now... Car is turning out awesome. You're gonna make waves in the scene here I'm sure... Your humble attitude throughout this whole build is very refreshing and inspirational to me. Respect man! - Ger

 

Shawn,

The panel along the inner wheel well is good, whatever was left of it, considering the previous owner cut out most of the trunk. I've cut it back to 1 inch to act as a support for the rest of the trunk.

The rear body mounts on mine were rusty, both the top and the support underneath. I think once water got into those spots, it couldn't go anywhere. The supports underneath are spotwelded in 3 places, and once the sealant dissappears, it's a perfect place to collect water.

I'll be making a flat trunk, not a recessed one like it was done originally. This will give me the required clearance so as to mount the mufflers. The exhaust system will be routed from the headers to underneath the running boards, through the c-notch and then to underneath the trunk. Exiting points will more than likely be in the rear of the fenders. Let me know if you have any more q's.

Thanks, Eric

 

Hey Farmer, looking good! I am too lazy this morning to go through the whole threadwhat gas tank are you considering and why?

 

Thanks Frankie47! With regards to the gas tank(s), I'm looking into RCI fuel cells at the moment. It really depends on the space I have once I've found a place to mount the airride system. I may even end up with two gas tanks if needed, space wise. I should have a definite answer for you in Januari. Eric

 

Got Peter (one of Martin's employees) to sandblast the inside of the rear trunk support. He did a great job blasting the surface rust, it's now ready for some primer.

I then finished off the side trunk supports with Martin doing the final Tig welding. I cleaned the right hand support, the left one I'll finish off tomorrow. The holes will be drilled later, once I've worked out the correct position after welding them to lower rear trunk support.

I'm happy with the outcome, even though it did take me quite some time to figure out and fabricate.

 

Thanks for the kind words Ger! It was also good meeting you at Rosmalen, you took your time to talk to me. I was very impressed with the artwork you produced and displayed. Once my car is finished, perhaps we can talk about you doing some artwork/drawings of my Plymouth.... thanks, Eric

 

After 3 days of thinking and fabricating, I finally finished the lower trunk support. It came out looking great, fits perfectly and I'm very happy with the end result! Luckily I only have to build just one...I'll be welding it into place next week. Merry Christmas everyone! Eric/farmer12

 

Took a while to catch up on the build, your fab skills are great! What's next in the near future?

 

Thanks deathbound! Near future plans are to finish the trunk area. Then I want to fabricate the floor below the parcel shelf and around the c-notch. Hope to get most of this done before the end of the year, time permitting. How are you doing with your 38 Plymouth?

 

Recently installed an offy dual carb mani & split exhaust on the flat 6, still need to run the pipes, new fuel line & a few misc items to fire it up. Got into the wiring (lots of broken orig wiring) & replacing with a nice orig harness from another 38 Plymouth. Nothing compared to what you're doing.

 

Damn, Eric it seems the more you dig into this car, the more you need to repair! From what I've seen some of the stuff you had to make is not reproduction stuff. I'm thinking you could start your own catalog, make & sell some of these parts & recoup your build costs. Keep up the great work, I'm looking forward to more progress. Aloha and Merry Christmas!
Eli

 

Thanks OahuEli! When you start a project like this you can expect to come across the unexpected, no matter how thoroughly you did your homework. It's part of the challenge I guess. Nothing would bug me more than knowingly taking a short cut because you think it's too difficult. Where there's a will, there's a way. Even for a first timer like me. In the end it will all be worth it. (I hope) Merry Christmas to you too Eli!

 

Great project! I can't wait to see it in real life. Keep up the good work!

 

thanks wouterftw, hope to have it on the road this coming summer. Still lots of work to do, but the thought of driving in the sunshine is one of my motivators.

 

Wow, looks good. That is a lot of work!

 

I cleaned the lower trunk support and sprayed it with a anti rust primer. After positioning correctly in both corners, I used the original bolts to keep it in place. Welded it all and then ground down the welds. And treated it again with the red primer.

 

Next on the list was to weld the rounded support for the trunk floor in place. Then I stamped the side panels with a die. This caused some distortion leading to more hammering,fabricating and grinding. They're in the correct position now, ready to be welded.

Next was a cross member behind the axle to lay the front of the floor on. I notched either side, so it moved up half an inch, giving some added clearance for the exhaust later on.

Going to fabricate the floor tomorrow and hope to have that done by the end of the day. Progression at last, after fabricating all the required parts for so long.