(Or, Glen's '69 1/2 Dodge Super Bee Restoration Page)
Well, its been a while since this site went down because
of something goofy I did while attempting to upload an edit, but I have finally gotten the time to sit behind
my computer and begin the new page. For those of you who have followed links
to or found me through a search engine, you may have seen my temporary page
with my '69 Coronet 500 on it. Yes, I still
drive the Coronet, and continue to improve it's condition, but the 500 has taken a backseat in my interest lately because, finally,
MY 'BEE HAS COME HOME! - Oh, I forgot, it's been a while since my last page
was up detailing how and why I came into 'Bee-ing. So let me start from
the bee-ginning...
Several years ago, I decided that
I wanted to find a SuperBee that I could restore, or possibly restify. The
pickings were slim to none, to say the least, but finally in the local Auto
Trader, one came up in the price range I wanted. I went to look at it with
my friend James, and found it sitting in some guy's backyard with about
7 other vintage cars, though none Mopar, and it was in pretty miserable
shape. It had a front clip from a green '69 Coronet 500 on it , the black
vinyl top was missing, the paint was an orange color and severely oxidized,
the two rear quarter panels and passenger door had some pretty good dents in them, and the rear showed the scars from being pushed around by a forklift. Oh yeah,
and someone had sprayed the entire engine compartment including the core
support, with turquoise engine paint.
On the plus side, the car was about
99% complete on everything that counted and had only the tiniest spot of rust by one corner of the rear window. It is a
383 HP ram air car, R4 Red with Black Vinyl top, black interior, buckets,
stripe delete, and has all original gear, including the ram air ducts. Tic
Toc Tac, rally cluster, 727 console shift, 8 3/4 rear with 3.23 gearing, pedal dress- up, road wheels
and exterior trim package. The guy who owned it said it had a salvage title
on it because it had come in to his uncles salvage yard with a bundle of
other cars for scrap, and had been pushed to one corner of the lot. He bought
it from his uncle planning to restore it but had too many projects and now
wanted to sell it . I could tell that it needed a huge amount of work, but
I'm a sucker for a rescue story, and thus, the
'Bee beecame mine.
They say a picture's worth a thousand
words, so I'm gonna save a few thousand of them and show you what I bought.
So there it is.
I paid the man cash,
and James and I loaded 'er on the trailer and took her to the side of his
house where she sat for the next 18 months while I got married, bought a
new home, and attended to the birth of my daughter. Oh sure, I would visit
my Bee every now and then, and I DID manage to pull out the Pontiac Trans
Spam buckets that some hoser had put in her, but nothing much happened for
a long while. I spent a lot of time going to local salvage yards looking for clean parts. I got hold of a perfect rear bumper ($75.), a straight decklid ($35.), a really nice set of rear lights, and a variety of trim and interior pieces that I knew I would need. When I wasn't at the auto yards, I'd get on the net and work on tracing down the numbers that filled
the broadcast sheet
that
I had pulled from the rear seat. I found out some very interesting things
about this particular Bee. For one thing, the production date code on the
build sheet shows the scheduled production date as being July 2nd, 1969. That's within two weeks of the
assembly line shutdown (July 15th) for retooling for the new production year. Considering
that July 2nd that year was a Wednsday, and probably the facilities where
they were built were shut down for the July 4th holiday on Thursday the
3rd for a four day weekend, IF production was behind only one day, this
car wouldn't have been finished until Monday the 7th, which really takes
it closer to the end. (Okay, maybe I'm stretching a bit here). But records
do indicate that approximately 1200 '69 SuperBee's were built, but not shipped,
and that, once again, moves this car closer to the end of the line of actual
sold and delivered SuperBee's. Anyway, she's worth keeping around.
In September of 1998, I buckled down
and lined up a body shop for the Bee to go to and once again enlisted the
help of my good friend James to help with pulling the motor and trans out
of the car. We did, and once again put her on a trailer headed for the body
shop where another friend of mine Kevin, promised he was going to meticulously
massage the metal skin back to it's original form. He cringed a bit when
he first spied the car coming in, and told me it would take a while to fix
her up, but he was game for the job. And there the car stayed for the next
year. During that time I peeked in on the restoration from time to time
and was highly impressed with the bodywork
that he was doing. He got the sheet metal nearly
perfect - without drilling any holes, and had to use minimal filler only
to smooth out a few tiny ripples. Then, the whole car was given a coat of
epoxy primer and finally, PPG Concept 2000 R-4 Red color was applied. (Kevin
cussed me on that a bit, because I chose the paint and that Concept epoxy
dries so hard that you MUST color sand and buff THE NEXT DAY after applying
the paint or you cannot buff the scratches out. The stuff is tough as nails
though, and is said to last forever.
So, almost a year to the day, I got
a call from Kevin telling me that the 'Bee was ready for pick-up. Once again
James and I headed out with a trailer and brought the car home. I've had
lots of practice with my 1969 Coronet 500 on rebuilding front ends and redoing interiors, so I'm
starting on the car now. I've built some racks in the garage to hold all
the parts that have come off the car and also for the new parts that are
to be installed. The tranny goes out for freshening next month and the motor
is mounted on the stand and beginning the rebuild now. I'm planning on building
the 383 a little stronger than factory, but she'll look original from the outside.
12/99:
Here's a look at the car wearing it's new coat of paint. Kevin will be coming over soon to finish shimming and fitting all the fenders and doors. I'm not concerned with doing the hood right now, 'cause it'll be coming off again to drop in the fresh 383 (Pics of the motor soon!). The fresh red on her looks really good. Definately a big change from the way I first saw her. I also put the original Styled Road Wheels back on the car. Sooo much better...
Bought a small pressure washer (MacFrugal's - $79.!)last weekend to scrub down the stripped interior. Work on it is progressing slowly, due to too many other commitments, but thankfully it continues steadily, with something, even the smallest thing, being accomplished every week. Also, I just ordered my second set of '69 B-Body side marker reflectors from Bill and Rose Evans (you know - from MCG ad pages). The first set I bought went on the Coronet 500. They are NOS lenses with an aftermarket backer and doublestick tape, and they look perfect when installed. As soon as the new ones come in, they'll be goin' on. I'm repainting a pair of tail light assemlbly's that I picked up at the salvage yard. The paint was faded on them, but the chrome and lenses were like new! Also, just picked up a NOS front grill Super Bee emblem ($40.!) from Arizona Parts (www.arizonaparts.com). Martin is the head cheese over there and he has a LOT of Mopar parts. I just picked up a 1969 Mopar Passenger Car Parts book from him as well. Check him out online, then give him a call. Lucky for me, his business is a five minute walk from my front door! And I just met Fred, who is a neighbor of mine just around the corner. He has a '69 Charger R/T that he has owned for the last twenty something years and he offered to loan me his '69 Mopar Passenger Car Service Manual should I need it when rebuilding my 'Bee. Also, about 15 minutes away in Mesa, I purchase parts from Tom at R/T Specialties for both my cars. He has an extensive inventory for Mopars and you can download his entire inventory list from his website (better load your printer with LOTS of paper - you'll need 30 - 40 sheets for the entire list). I must bee in Mopar Heaven out here... :-)
Well, this is all I have time for now, but I'll return
and continue putting up new pics and sharing some more sources I have
found for parts and repairs.
01/01: NEW STUFF!!
The New Year started off with a bang for the 'Bee! In the past few weeks I've
managed to get a lot of work done with a little help from my friends. I don't have time to tell the whole story right now, but I've got a neat little slideshow that I've put together to show you some of the highlights! I'll write more about progress soon, but for now, check out the pics! Happy Moparin'!!
06/01: I've been busy taking care of other stuff, including starting a new business, so things were going slow for a while. Here's where I'm at -
I found all the parts I need to do the disc brake conversion. I'm using the spindles, rotors and proportioning valve from a '76 Duster, the caliper adapters from a '78 Volare (they are identical to the '76 Duster's ), reman'd calipers from Car Quest, and new brake hoses for a '79 Diplomat. As suggested on Moparts.com, I CAREFULLY removed the mid-hose bracket before installing them. I picked up a remanufactured master cylander for a disc brake equipped B-Body from Checker Auto for something like $35./ea. All in all, I got everything I needed for about 175 bones. Not too bad...
I also purchased a complete front end kit from Performance Suspension here in Phoenix. One of the owners is a big Mopar guy and was extremely helpful in getting me the parts I needed and giving me some instruction on installing them. He was especially helpful in detailing the process I needed to follow to replace the old anti-sway bar bushings with the new poly set. Using his directions, I was able to accomplish that task in one night, without too much trouble.
For those of you doing this, remember, you must be sure to put the mounts on the correct side as they are not reversable. Before you re-weld the clamps, I suggest you place it up against the frame to be sure they are correct.
I decided to go with the poly bushings for a firmer ride. I've also decided to replace the steering box. Better to do it now before I bolt everything together and get it on the road only to find it's worn out! I took off the lower control arms to do the bushings and in the process decided to go ahead and drop the k-member for a total cleaning and painting, inside and out. Hmmm. It seems the more I do, the more I find to do. Oh, well. I guess that's the way it goes the first time you do a complete resto...
02/02: Why does everything take about a hundred years longer to do than you originally plan for?!! Well, finally, I have done everything that I outlined above. The
k-member got pulled and blasted and then coated with POR-15, the Power Steering box and pump were sent out for a rebuild, and the all bushings, bearings and seals were replaced on the front end. Thanks again to the guys at Performance Suspension in Phoenix for giving me all the correct parts the FIRST time! Try that at AutoZone... Made a call to Rare Parts in California for a new pitman arm. Then I find out Martin at Arizona Parts a block away has one in stock! I installed a pair of brand new Mopar Performance torsion bars, too. My local Dodge dealer got me those for about 80 bucks, but couldn't get new boots or clips for them. Once again, Arizona Parts and R/T Specialties to the rescue! They had 'em in stock. Disc brake conversion is completed, the rebuilt steering box is installed, and 'bout now I'm getting ready to drop in the motor and trans. While I'm waiting for the day when a few of my buds can make it over to help woth the motor install, I'll be doing more undercoating of the body, and putting the grill/headlights back in the car. I'm being fairly meticulous about all this, but like I said before, I don't want to have to go back and redo my work once I finish a section. (I did that PLENTY on converting to the disc setup!)
I'm gonna take some photos and add them to the slideshow. I've got some more Beelievers to post too! See ya soon!
10/02: I'm Baaaaack. It's been a crazy 8 months here. Just after my last post, I got a call from my 94 year old grandmother ( Nana) living in New Jersey. She had decided that she was tired of living alone in her home with Hospice coming and visiting her, and had decided to take me up on my offer and come to live with me and my family here in Arizona. So we moved her out here and got her settled in. We celebrated her 95th in August together, but she passed away soon afterward. No regrets though - she was a very cool and classy lady, and was always full of laughter. We were lucky to have her brighten our home for her last 6 months. She knew it was time to move on with her life's journey and was at peace with that. And so are we.
But what about the CAR??? Okay, here it is.
In the last 4 months I've gotten a ton done on my Bee.
I still suffer from the curse of inexperience in the art of a complete resto - you know, three steps foward and two steps back - but here's where I am:
Front end complete - new everything, and disc brake conversion perfect (finally
after 3 tries - yes, even after my last post!). Rear end complete, new shocks, brakes, lines, tank. Taillights finished and mounted. Tail finish panel straightened and painted. Engine and tranny in. All fresh. New engine wiring harness installed, with conversion to electronic
ignition. New MP Orange box, and picked up a Electronic Distributer from a mid-70's 400 in the boneyard for - check this out - 5 Bucks! Installed the lightweight springs in it ($4.95) for a faster advance. HP exhaust manifolds checked, coated and installed. Power Steering pump,
dual-field alternator and all pulleys mounted. All new hoses. Used (gotten from a 68 Satellite
in the junkyard also for 5 bucks!) front light harness cleaned and installed. Headlights (halogen)
with all new mounting hardware installed. The front grill with headlight bezels are out having the brightwork polished. Driveshaft spin balanced and installed with new Heavy Duty U-joints.
Whew! It does seem to take a really long time to track down every correct part,
new or used, then clean, paint and mount them. Thank goodness R/T Specialties is
right down the road from me and I can run over there to pick up needed parts! Tom over there
has been a great help to me in this project! I'm waiting on a few more things such as a new vinyl top, and some Ram Air gaskets, but the outside of the car is nearly complete.
I've got almost all of the interior parts I need now. I ordered new upholstery from
Legendary, and it looks fantastic, but it's still in the box. I will attempt to recover
the seats myself from the frame up, so they will also be like new. The dash is still
apart, that is the next project for me to take on. Everything that goes in it has
been refurbished or replaced, so it's just a matter or reassembling it now (yeah,
right!). The window assemblies have been stripped out of the car and are being completely redone. Everything is being cleaned and repainted and regreased as needed. I'm getting the glass tinted - vital for survival out here in AZ - before it all goes back in.
There are more pics coming soon. Stay tuned, and thanks for looking!
12/02: Yeah! More parts are in! Picked up the new vinyl top from Legendary, and also the new door panels also from Legendary. Luckily, though my old door panels were in pretty bad shape, the metal trim on them looks great, so I can reuse them.
I am in the process or re-assembling my dash now. New dash pad is on, and I've dropped the steering column about an inch to facilitate the installation of the instrument cluster. While I was working on the windows I found that the small brackets at the bottom of the vent window assembly/main window channels have broken off, so I'm getting them welded back in place before I proceed. Another delay. What's new...
Fred came over last Sunday morning and helped me re-install the hood. The hood scoops are all mounted, and I've started test fitting the ram-air setup. Of course, now I'm off to find a few of the body screws I'm missing... By next weekend, I should have the wheels that I have purchased on the car. I picked up a set of nice mag slotted wheels, vintage early 70's. I really like them, and they will look great with the car. 10's in back, and 8's up front. They came off of a 73 Roadrunner that I picked up a couple of months ago. That car is my next Big Block project. It's a 318 car, auto console shift, that I want to turn into a GTX Clone. Do I never learn?!?!!
4/03: Vinyl top is on, everything in the engine compartment is hooked up - I just need a good radiator and a battery to fire her up!! While I'm waiting for the $$ to do that , I'm working on the interior. The windows are all completely redone, new seals, rollers, and white lithium grease make everything smooth and tight. The dash is in and wired, and the painted interior pieces have a fresh coat of gloss black. I have discovered that for the painted portions of the door and quarter window panels that appliance epoxy does a really nice job. For the painted parts of the dash, I used SEM Landau Black spray dye, and it really looks factory!
Next week I am dropping off my seats for recovering with the new Legendary seat skins that are in my garage. YEAH!!
And while all this is progressing, I am doing a quickie resto on a really clean 76 Duster I picked up out here for my nephew Danny in New Jersey. He wanted to buy a decent starter Mopar for his first car (he's almost 18) but couldn't find anything in his price range (low) that didn't have a ton of rust or need a great deal of work. Uncle Glen to the rescue! What I found was a rust free 318 Plymouth, 90,000 miles, that ran great! I'm getting it ready to ship to NJ in a couple of weeks in time for his birthday. Here's a pic of it.
The resto is done on the Duster, and it's outa here and in New Jersey with its new owner, Danny.
My brother and his son are having a blast with it, doing the small repairs to bring it back to 100%. Before it shipped out of here in AZ, I managed to repaint the car black and dye the top black to match, reupholster the seats in black, and put in new black carpeting. I fixed the locking mechanism in the steering column, and replaced the ignition switch, fixed the windshield wipers (arm disconnected under dash), replaced the ball joints, shocks, wheels and tires, oh, and replaced the broken drivers side window and the front grill, too. Due to a leaking power brake booster, which caused a major vacuum leak (new one on me!) the engine had a miss that I could not locate. Some one I know suggested it was a burnt valve, so I took the top half of the motor apart on the first day it hit 107 degrees out here. Not fun. What I found was an extremely clean motor, but no sign of any burnt/worn anything. 14 hours and 80 bucks later, I still had the same problem. Thanks to a suggestion on Moparts.com forum, I found the vacuum leak and, once plugged, the motor ran great again.
Here's a picture of the Duster just before it left to Jersey.
SUNDAY 08/03/03: Just a quick update on progress here. Work has slowed again on the 'Bee, as I was waiting for the last of the interior parts to arrive from R/T Specialties. The new headliner just came in, so I can now replace the interior. The seats have been recovered and look fantastic. I've got to hunt up some decent seat belts for the car, as it was missing some when I bought it. The top I put on months ago has bubbled up, due to using the wrong thinner with the glue. Now I'm gonna have to replace the top again. Oh, well. If a jobs worth doing, it's worth doing twice, right? Something like that anyway...
I hooked up a battery to test the lights, and found out I had mounted the headlight assemblies switched from right to left side (Yes, it DOES matter). What that did was rotate the headlight bulb 90 degrees in the socket and made the light beams vertical, instead of horizontal. 2 hours later, all the hardware was switched around and the headlights are correct now. Found I have issues to deal with with the dash wiring. Some of the gauges are not not wired correctly. I have to get under there and start switching wires now... Today I have my wife's Swinger up on jack stands. I was going to replace the upper ball joints, but can't seem to find the 'smaller' size the A-bodies with drum brakes used. All anyone has is the larger ones that were used with disc brakes. Of course, after buying what I thought were the correct parts, and getting the car up and dissassembled, I find out the mistake. And also yesterday, my sister's Mazda MPV van that I had borrowed to get parts with, blew a hole in the plastic top of the radiator as I was driving it on the freeway here. I hear this POP! and intantly see a vapor trail behind me in my review, so I shut down the motor and coasted to a stop on the side of the freeway. That saved the motor, though, so repair costs are down to a minimum. Since I've offered to replace the radiator for them , I've got to pull the broken one out today, as well. I'm rambling here. I gotta go. I've got work to do...
That's it for now, I'll get more up later.
Try back soon! You can e-mail me with comments or suggestions here!
Thanks for stopping by, and especially for the cool e-mails I've gotten from all you MoparHeads out there! Send me more pics of your Bee's! If I get enough, I'll create a special 'Beeliever' section for them!
