1969 Dodge Charger Daytona; 426 Hemi : Openin' the QTP electric dumps...

[hemi68charger]

Well, it's mine.........  

Got some things straightened out on the ole Elephant. Sounds good, but have some tweeking to do. The main concern is an ever-so small coolant leak out coolant passage at the lower front driver's side head gasket. I can see coolant leaking in a very small amount. So, in lew of pulling the whole dang thing out again ( had a head that was 20-thousands out which caused an internal coolant leak ). SO, I will try this product Blue Devil or Bars Copper Head Gasket sealant. Can't hurt. The alternative is to pull the motor and have the deck surfaced......... Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Here she's at about 15 degrees before with a spring kit in it. Total degree comes in about 32. MSD-6A ignition with a Chrysler Electronic as a trigger. Eventually I'll have a Prestolite dual-point that's been converted to electronic pick-up as a trigger for the MSD to give it a sort-of OEM look.



http://youtu.be/pXYsk-t8sfM

[Dave Kanofsky]

Cool!

So when do the Hemi badges go on the doors?

[daytonalo]

Very nice !!! Please get rid of all that crap along car or move to safer location .  By the way what compression is that Hemi ?  To the other reply you must not have watched the video , the badges are on

[hemi68charger]

Cool!

So when do the Hemi badges go on the doors?

What?, like this?  

Albeit, they are temporary now, but I will eventually make them permenant.

Very nice !!! Please get rid of all that crap along car or move to safer location .  By the way what compression is that Hemi ?  To the other reply you must not have watched the video , the badges are on

The compression is about 9.8:1, which is fine by me. This is because I have a '69 440 HP rotating assembly thus bringing the OEM HEMI pistons down in the bore a wee bit. Don't have much choice in the location. I'm glad I have a 4-car garage giving me more room than normal.

[nascarxx29]

ride by teds and andys and rattle there windows 

[hemi68charger]

ride by teds and andys and rattle there windows 

Spoke to Janak Saturday, it's already on my calendar to do that.. 

[djcarguy]

       hope ya get it all sealed an get some run time an enjoyment on you awsum tona this year.



     seems i was reading bout other things acting up with the modern ,new hemi an crate hemis  from ma mopar or someone???   but cant seem to find the treads now? but what are some of the common concerns with new block,casting or crate hemis??

      i have made a offer to a mopar friend that got new block an short block parts an intake an misc,no heads. he got block an part from a buddys estate,, but seems the alum heads walked away or maybe out at a shop no one can remember,is the tale the son is telling!

info or treads,helpful thanks  DJ out west------   nice ride love the black wheel track look

[nascarxx29]

http://www.thehemi.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=471

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=90873

[tan top]

  great stuff !!  sounds good       AB & E Troy    

bummer about it still leaking 

[Redmanf1]

Sounds Great.....

[FJMG]

Coolant leak again?
My hat is off to you for not going berserk! (maybe you are but certainly does not read that way to me)

I wonder if you just try a lower psi rad cap and just keep a closer eye on the temp gauge?

On the plus side.......
You could make money pulling Hemis for others!

[Aero426]

Troy is not the first person to have some teething problems with a Hemi.

[hemi68charger]

Coolant leak again?
...
I wonder if you just try a lower psi rad cap and just keep a closer eye on the temp gauge?

On the plus side.......
You could make money pulling Hemis for others!

Well, I'm not happy. But, it is what it is. I have gotten some other possible solutions and will try that this week.  As of last night, after running the engine for nearly 20 minutes in the garage, the leak seem to all but quit. So, I may be onto something. Sure, I would have rather not put the Copper Liquid Bars stop-leak in it, but heck, what do I have to lose? I believe if I get another round of good outcome tonight, I will begin the process of putting the front suspension back together and get her ready for a drive next weekend. Regarding the temperature, this puppy seems to be running real cool. Granted, I have the thermostat out now for the sealant.. But, just sitting there with no wind going through it, it has been remarkably cool. After 20 minutes, I can place my hands on the valve covers no problem...

[odcics2]

cc'ing the #88 Daytona heads revealed a factory 'wave' on the deck. And these were original from 1969. 

[hemi68charger]

I believe I have the situation under control. As of the last two times I fired her up and ran it for about 30 minutes, no leak. Sooooooooooo, I know "Blue Devil and Bars" isn't the proper thing to do, it'll do for now and I'll monitor the area. The alternative is to remove the motor, again, and tear the whole thing down to deck the block. Sooooooooooooooooo, with that said, this weekend I will put the suspension back together and take her out hopefully...

Thanks for the support everyone... Hopefully the next video will be me cruising down the street in open headers !!!!   

[1970Moparmann]

Can't believe all of the issues you have had with the Hemi.... I hope your leak stopped at this point!     

[lukedukem]

is the engine builder to blame on something like this.... 

luke

[hemi68charger]

is the engine builder to blame on something like this.... 

luke

Well, yes I guess. I did buy it and the builder's in a completely different State. The problem is, without pulling the motor for the 2nd time ( which would involve installing it back for the 3rd time ), one would never know exactly the root cause. At this point in the game, I'm more willing to go down the road with no leaks and just monitor it and the oil as opposed to pulling the motor and having to tear the complete thing down to a bare block. I'm not wanting to do that at this time. If there comes a day when I want to freshen up the paint job on the ole' girl, I would investigate the motor since I would have had to pull the complete drivetrain out anyways...

[nascarxx29]

I have read similar problems on crate motors. Dont they run test them  I  had 1 68 426 car issue after issue[.H]eartache   [E]xhaustion     [ M]ental
Insanity   

[Mytur Binsdirti]

Can't believe all of the issues you have had with the Hemi....

And to think that a perfectly good 440 was shelved for what reason again? 

[odcics2]

I believe I have the situation under control. As of the last two times I fired her up and ran it for about 30 minutes, no leak. Sooooooooooo, I know "Blue Devil and Bars" isn't the proper thing to do, it'll do for now and I'll monitor the area. The alternative is to remove the motor, again, and tear the whole thing down to deck the block. Sooooooooooooooooo, with that said, this weekend I will put the suspension back together and take her out hopefully...

Thanks for the support everyone... Hopefully the next video will be me cruising down the street in open headers !!!!   

I meant the deck of the heads, not the block.  You don't have to pull the engine...   

[hemi68charger]

....

And to think that a perfectly good 440 was shelved for what reason again? 

Because I, me, Troy, have always wanted a Hemi Daytona. I asked Tim Wellborn to trade his Hemi Daytona to me for my T/A, but David Spade won out.... Oh well....

...
I meant the deck of the heads, not the block.  You don't have to pull the engine...  

The heads just got done. That was what I did when I pulled the motor two months ago. Water had leaked into the oil pan. Took the complete drivetrains out, separated the motor, removed the heads. They were 20 thousands out and shaved/decked 30, magnafluxed and pressured tested. I believe this recent gremlin wasn't apparent the first time since thicker composite head gaskets were used. This time we put OEM steel head gaskets on and thus happened. The block is a new block... Now that I have asked around, not all new blocks are flawless. Some castings in the past apparently came with instructions to check deck flatness.

[dodgepaul1969]

question for you, did you drill your door for the emblems or find some "stick on" ones. I've been working on my '68 Charger for awhile putting off drilling the doors for the emblems. The holes didn't get done before paint and I'm sweating drilling them now. I haven't been able to find anyone who makes these "stick on". Nice car by the way. Is that a 500 next to your Daytona? I think we spoke years ago about the possibility of it changing hands.

[Hemi Runner]

The heads just got done. That was what I did when I pulled the motor two months ago. Water had leaked into the oil pan. Took the complete drivetrains out, separated the motor, removed the heads. They were 20 thousands out and shaved/decked 30, magnafluxed and pressured tested. I believe this recent gremlin wasn't apparent the first time since thicker composite head gaskets were used. This time we put OEM steel head gaskets on and thus happened. The block is a new block... Now that I have asked around, not all new blocks are flawless. Some castings in the past apparently came with instructions to check deck flatness.

The surface finish on those blocks may be an issue too, especially with a steel shim style of gasket. The composites will seal up a rougher finish than a steel shim which likes a very smooth finish.

[daytonalo]

question for you, did you drill your door for the emblems or find some "stick on" ones. I've been working on my '68 Charger for awhile putting off drilling the doors for the emblems. The holes didn't get done before paint and I'm sweating drilling them now. I haven't been able to find anyone who makes these "stick on". Nice car by the way. Is that a 500 next to your Daytona? I think we spoke years ago about the possibility of it changing hands.

lets keep things simple , why not simply use cut off wheel to remove studs then use dark grey 3M VHB tape and your done . Send me the emblems and ill handle it for ya . FYI They use 3M VHB tape to attach veneers to the side of buildings , super strong stuff . I use it all the time and prefer to heat up a little with heat gun and trust me its not moving . and and all side trim today uses VHB tape

Larry

[nascarxx29]

This is the simple route to a 426 hemi  http://www.stagev.com/pages/hcheads.html

[Aero426]

This is the simple route to a 426 hemi  http://www.stagev.com/pages/hcheads.html

A lot of money for a the look of, but not a real 426 Hemi.     It is not a bolt on proposition.

http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Number=7443484

[odcics2]

This is the simple route to a 426 hemi  http://www.stagev.com/pages/hcheads.html

A lot of money for a the look of, but not a real 426 Hemi.     It is not a bolt on proposition.

http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Number=7443484

Lots of guys don't care if its real or not!   

[hemi68charger]

Well, I have fired up the ole Hemi every night for the past week and let idle for about 30-40 minutes each time. The seepage has stopped and she purrs very well. I have her idling smoothly at about 850-900 and in gear at around 750-ish. She draws a consistent 13-14 inches of vacuum. So, today I will start putting everything back together to get her back on the road...

[moparnation74]

Great news, Troy!  Glad to hear all is coming together well.

[Lord Warlock]

Before you put her back together and get it on the road, you may want to inspect the water pump.  I had a local shop recommend blue devil as a possible solution for an overheating motor that wasn't showing signs of head gasket problems, but they said that a usual by product of using it is that the water pump fails soon afterwards.  I followed the directions and blue deviled my Miata motor and within two weeks the water pump failed as they said it might.  still don't know if blue devil did good or not, my motor seems to run fine, although the temp sensor still makes the gauge read hotter than it actually is.  even after replacing the sensor found out the gauge was bad...shame since I replaced the entire cooling system on the car trying to eliminate cause of overheating. (never actually boiled over). 

Anyway, blue devil does work in sealing small leaks for anyone that is wondering, but it also kills water pumps.  I'd throw in an new water pump after draining and flushing the system.  Blue devil says you can leave it in the motor but once it seals up I'd carefully drain it out and replace it.  If it leaks it will leave white trails on whatever the water touches, I found white residue underneath the whole front of the car I was working on, and my garage floor still has traces of white residue where the water missed the catch bucket.  When blue devil gets hot it forms the white residue that seals small leaks.

Now if I can just get the Miata to stop smoking on the first start of the day, I can get rid of it and start getting the stealth turbo out of the way so I can get my charger r/t out of the garage its been stored in for the last 10 years.

[hemi68charger]

Before you put her back together and get it on the road, you may want to inspect the water pump. ...

Good point. After everything's buttoned up, I'm going to be draining the coolant system to reinstall the thermostat. At that time, I'll look at the pump and remove the sending unit and inspect for any scaling or buildup due to the leak fix.. Thanks for the insight.. 

[hemi68charger]

Now, I'm back to reinstalling everything that I took apart or removed to facilitate the fix.

1. Before Friday picture

2. As of this weekend...

[hemi68charger]

Well, got her all together and drove her out to a test spin within the neighborhood... I'll venture out further soon...

[moparnation74]

Troy,

Damn beautiful!  I know you are smiling from cheek to cheek!

Congrats my friend

[cdr]

LOOKIN very good !!!   

[tan top]

     great stuff 

[nascarxx29]

Good to go cruising congrats Troy

[2592 creston]

    Your a lucky man..Nice :

[hemi68charger]

    Your a lucky man..Nice :

Thanks... But if you knew the 30+ year journey to get here you might run !! 

[hemi68charger]

Video from yesterday... Next time weather is better I will take it out....

http://youtu.be/Bj-4zjGEZNQ

[wingcarenvy]

Glad to hear you got it worked out. Looks awesome next to that beautiful T/A!

[hemi68charger]

Glad to hear you got it worked out. Looks awesome next to that beautiful T/A!

Thanks.... The yellow goes well with the orange.. But, I am probably going to use the T/A to get another Charger at some point...........

[Mopar John]

Glad your back on the road Troy!

[hemi68charger]

Finally !!!!!

I was able to get her out and drive to a show ( local Nifty50ees Saturday Night gathering place in Northwest Houston area ). Got there a little early to give myself time in the event something would happen. Drove her all the way there, regular stop-n-go traffic, lights, etc. She didn't get above 190-ish it appears. RIght now I have no thermostat in it. Did that initially to promote the leak sealant solution to work through the system. I will change out to a high flow 160 thermostat from JEGS soon. I still have some tweeking to do of course, mostly on the distributor and its timing characteristics. Other than that, she did great. I was pleased...... Crowd loved the car and the open headers... Love the QTP electric dumps... 

[hemi68charger]

Some more... she drove home without any hitches... 

[nascarxx29]

Congrats 

[wingcarenvy]

Very cool!!

[tan top]

Some more... she drove home without any hitches...  

good to hear its all sorted      good pictures , thanks for posting  

Well, I have fired up the ole Hemi every night for the past week and let idle for about 30-40 minutes each time. The seepage has stopped and she purrs very well. I have her idling smoothly at about 850-900 and in gear at around 750-ish. She draws a consistent 13-14 inches of vacuum. So, today I will start putting everything back together to get her back on the road...

Troy  , not trying to hijack this thread in any way ,  quick question if I may ,  how good does the power brake booster  work with  13-14 inches of vacuum , I ask this because long story short  , since the advent of the repoped bendix boosters & parts , thinking  of adding power brakes to my drums , for now , till I get all the planets / ducks in a row for discs & hydroboost one day  

I have 10 -11ish inches  , idling in gear 900 - 950  , with current cam set up  , thinking my  vacuum is a bit low for a booster , but drums don't need as much psi compared to discs , so may be ok   still got to be better than the manual set up , I would of thought  




thinking about it  , perhaps I should of started my own thread  ,  but seeing yours had similar vacuum in gear to mine , thought I would ask here  

[hemi68charger]

... bendix boosters & parts , thinking  of adding power brakes to my drums , for now , till I get all the planets / ducks in a row for discs & hydroboost one day  

I haven't noticed much if any difference in braking ability or effort.

[billssuperbird]

 

[tan top]

... bendix boosters & parts , thinking  of adding power brakes to my drums , for now , till I get all the planets / ducks in a row for discs & hydroboost one day  

I haven't noticed much if any difference in braking ability or effort.

 thanks for the info Troy  ,  given me something to think about now , fitting a bendix booster 

Appreciated  

[Daytona Guy]

This is the simple route to a 426 hemi  http://www.stagev.com/pages/hcheads.html

A lot of money for a the look of, but not a real 426 Hemi.     It is not a bolt on proposition.

http://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Number=7443484

I think this is a great idea - but I have never found Stage V wanting to sell them anymore. 440 are plentiful and HEMI heads would be awesome. You really can't tell the difference. I think the HEMI is a crime (I own one) for the cost.

Dane

[hemi68charger]

Crankin' the 426 Hemi up: https://youtu.be/fA_UlCW07Eo

[tan top]

wow     , finest sound know to man , a uncorked V8   

sounds awesome !!

[Aero426]

Troy, how are the race wheels working out?   They look very nice.   Did they balance?

[hemi68charger]

Troy, how are the race wheels working out?   They look very nice.   Did they balance?

Not very well... Not sure how Steve drive with them. I may have to take the tires off and see which one is not true. Otherwish, I will purchase the version BART makes that look similar to the '70-earlier "Steelie". That way too I can get something with a backspacing of 4.25 or 4.50. The 4.0 I have on there now will cause the front tires to rub the wheel lip and that's not good. I prefer the lower stance of the car. If I get the other wheels, then they won't do that since I can have them made 15x8 with a 4.25 or 4.50 backspacing. But, the race look with lugnuts is the way I like it. I doubt I'll ever go back to the magnums on this car...........