I am new, and I know my truck doesn't fit in with the other ones but the info will help me. I am 31 years old. I do collision repair for a living (I have done this since I was 12 years old,19 years total). I will help in that area as much as possible. I own a 1998 Dodge Dakota that I am working on. I am chopping the roof 4 inches.I also put a power sliding moon roof from a Honda Accord. The kind tha drops down inside then slides back.I am also going to suicide the doors.And many other body mods that I will tell you about as I go along.The biggest thing I need info on is getting all the glass cut.
Oh yeah I forgot to mention I am also putting the back window out of a 39 Ford in the truck, the split window type
Welcome to HAMB. I hope if you stay long enough. Someone here will convince you NOT to touch the Dakota and find a traditional hot rod or custom project instead. But i guess you gotta start somewhere eh? good luck.
I already had the truck so I decided to add some old school items to the customizing (39 ford back glass) I cant afford a classic rod right now so i am doing this one.Plus I like to different and nobody has ever put a 4 inch chop on a Dakota so that is why I am doing it.
Fuck this happy feely love shit! It is a gawd damn Dodge Dakota!!!!!! Has no reason to be here other than haul home a real car.
Tman,You don't have to like it. I am not building it for you so you do not need to reply to any of my posts. And I probally have more experience on building cars than you do. I have built cars as far back as A 29 firetruck A 38 Buick hearse A 33 Ford A 36 Ford A 38 Ford many Mustangs many Camaros And and even A 66 Mercedes A 53 Chevy truck A 54 chevy truck A Chevy Cameo truck (I forget what year) And many others. So I don't give a shat what you think.I know a-lot more than you think. So before you go judging why not check out your opponet first. so if you don't like what I got, go look at your own resume. And see if you can stand up next to me (or do you want a wheel chair?)!!!!!!!
well i can understand your knowledge being of some help on the board even if your wasting money on a dakota. but as far as not being able to afford a 'classic car' im preety sure i could by quite a slew of 'classics' with the money from a new truck. if you can aford a newer truck you could have aforded a 'classic'. but youve built an endless slew of cars so i guess youd know that already, never mind.
A DODGE DAKOTA? WTF? THATAIN'T TRADITIONAL ..... but your right..... it's more than my ass can do. WELCOME.
I origionaly bought the truck as a daily driver but 1 thing led to another.Plus you can't find a rod at a dealer to get financing.Also I will not buy something that someone has already started on because I want all the work to be my own
Good place to learn, but this IS A TRADITIONAL CAR BOARD. Your not going to get much sympathy about the cost of a tradititonal car, because many of us brown bag our lunch or skip altogether to afford are passion. Which is TRADITIONAL CARS. Did I mention this is a TRADITONAL CAR BOARD hope you got the point.
The only interesting car I have on the road now is my 48 Plymouth coupe. Engine,transmission,and suspension are all out of a 78 Camaro,but the body is dead stock other than the paint.
Most project cars don't require financing. I don't want to break any rules here,but I have a 47 Plymouth coupe that I bought for a parts car for my 48 that is worth fixing,and I'll sell it for $750. And that includes a rear steer Nova front clip. As for not buying projects or cars that somebody else build because you want all the work to be yours,don't worry about it. I have yet to buy one that I didn't have to redo damn near everything that had already been done. You won't be any different.
What's going on DragKota98 ??? Welcome to the board. I'm new here too. Been here only a few days. In addition to my 1953 Pontiac 2DR HT, I also have a 1998 Dodge Dakota Club Cab Sport 4x4 with the 318ci V8. It's all white with the door and tailgate handles and front and rear bumpers color matched. It has a black leather interior with a power sliding rear window. My best and most prized addition to it is the Profinish/Proglass Shaker Hood which is all white and the shaker is gloss black with the Chameleon flames on the shaker part. Rhino Liner spray in bed liner, Flowmaster 2 chamber muffler with dual Stainless baloney tube pipes, mopar performance parts chrome differential cover, clear front corner lights, stockland brand flat hard tonneau cover, tinted front windows, rhino lined black side step bars, full skid plate package added by me (not avail on sport models). auto meter phantom series trans temp guage in the pillar pod, white aluminum guage overlay, custom Hurst T-Handle shifter on the 4x4 handle. Since mine is an automatic I still wanted a Hurst shifter :O) The list goes on and on. I do have a quick question for you, do me a favor ond pop the hood and look inside each fender right below where the unnecessary holes for the engine size badges are and tell me if those flat areas which appear to have an "X" pressed into the metal are rusting out. Check out www.billetpro.com for some really neat billet knobs for the interior. Later, Mike
Welcome, First thing first, Great hav'n ya here with all your experience but you've hurd how people feel about your truck, it's kind of a turd in a punch bowl on this sight...Louver Dude
This is funny man. I just jump on to see what's up and I see this. I just heard a story from my dad today about a Dakota. It seems he was drivin' down the road today and saw one in his mirror, the front tires toed out (/ \) so bad they were smokin' He tried to stop the guy and tell him, but all he did was smile and wave back. Well anyway, the front tires are smokin' from bein' tilted out and my ol' man figures, since he won't stop he'll just keep on truckin' and let the other guy worry about it. About that time, he looks up in the mirror, and the drivers side front tire lets loose, wheel and all, and comes barreling down the road, into a parked school bus. No kids on it at the time, thankfully. Meanwhile the dude is tryin' to control the truck now, with no front tire. He gets her stopped, no worse for wear and tear, but maybe he'll pay more attention next time. Anyway, welcome from another Fuzzy Naval Goomba (FNG). Those side windows won't cut, they're tempered,. They will just shatter, if you can get away with flat glass on the sides a glass shop will cut and temper it for you. Build what you want, it's yours. That bein' said, this forum is a board for spreading the gospel of traditional hot rodding. Sorry, no matter how hard you try your Dakota will never be traditional, ever. No matter what you built before, your Dakota won't be traditional. And before you give other guys shit about how good you are and what great experience yiou have over him, you should look to make sure. You're right, he doesn't know your skills, but, you don't know his any better. You could be baggin' on like Jesse James or Billy Lane or someone, you don't know. Talk about steppin' on your dick. I think you should build what you want, but don't build a lowrider and expect fourwheeler guys to stand at attention. We don't care. I joined this board to help spread the word, and this being said, I really don't care much about the Dakota. You should, it's yours. I would love to see some of those old "traditional" cars you built though, they sound killer. Again though. welcome to the board. It sounds like you have some real talents that could help a fellow rodder out. If you look through the tech section it should have some threads on choppin' tops. You could probably find out more about your glass there.
Okay, after reading this thread, I don't feel so bad saying this. A Dodge Dakota isn't a traditional rod, it's just an everyday run-around truck, and marginal at that. The reason "nobody's ever chopped a Dakota 4 inches" is because it's a stupid idea. Not only is the glass work a bitch, but the end result isn't worth the trouble. And I don't even want to think about what it's going to look like with a '39 Ford back window. I like my Bronco, but you won't hear me talking about it here unless I'm talking about what I towed home with it. If you've built all these other cars you mentioned, why not talk about them? You talk about doing collision work, but custom work takes imagination and talent. And what kind of collision repair were you doing at 12 years old? Handing daddy the tools doesn't count. Bottom line is, there are plenty of import, tuner, and newer car so-called "hot rodding" sites for young guys with a credit card and a Summit catalog to discuss what they just screwed onto their tin can, so why did you come here??? And before you say that we "old guys" don't understand you, I'm only a year older than you are. Sorry to everyone else if I've crossed a line, but these idiot kids with their know-it-all attitudes really piss me off.
QUOTE: "You can't finance an old car from a dealer" Yeah, so fucking what? Who the fuck would want to finance a project car from a dealer anyways. Man, this board is filled to the rafters with regular guys who build stuff from nothing with no budget. This board is NOT tainted with that sort of "gold chain" mentality you seem to have. Sell the Dakota, and buy something worth working on. Otherwise, make it "bling bling" and get the hell off of this board. Whatever you do, DON'T mention the Dakota again. We're a bunch of elitist assholes here and none of us appreciate the "ol skool" styling people are slapping onto minitrucks these days. (actually, I kinda like it....but I go to other boards for that) ooops, did I just say that out loud. Get something pre-1964 and then hang around.
"Who the fuck would want to finance a project car from a dealer anyways." Me. Maybe not from a dealer,but I have sure as hell financed building a couple of Harleys by bank or credit union loans,and I even financed buying my 32 Ford coupe and my 48 Plymouth coupe with credit union loans. The 32 is already paid off even if it isn't finished yet. Guess I didn't borrow enough money. (G) Almost have the 48 paid off now,and when it is I will probably borrow money on it to put heat and AC in my workshop. One hand washes the other. <P> Man, this board is filled to the rafters with regular guys who build stuff from nothing with no budget." What is this "budget" thing I keep hearing everybody talk about? I always end up spending it all,regardless of how much I have coming in. If I win the lottery I will have XKE,Duesenberg,Auburn,and Cord project cars littering my yard,but still won't have any money. "Sell the Dakota, and buy something worth working on. " Yup. Still no shortage of decent late 40's and early 50's pu's out there at reasonable prices.
Sounds like you got the skills and we can all benefit from your experience. It's already been said though. The HAMB may appreciate the work you put into your Dakota but it is still a Dakota. Please don't waste a '39 Ford window in a ROCKERIFFIC (TM) Dakota. I have a mini truckin past myself. Alot do. That's not why we come to the HAMB though.
I didn't know they made model kits for a '38 Buick hearse and a '29 firetruck. Were they plastic or diecast??? You'd better go back now, I think Nurse Ratchet has your meds ready.
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