1969 Dodge Charger 500

[mrmike]

I am starting to hate these little projects that turn into bigger projects.  Case in point...my '69 Charger 500.  I saw elsewhere a Charger 500 that looked really nice with white lettered tires and Magnum 500 wheels.  I have the same model on the shelf with hubcaps and steelies and redline tires.  I decided to change the wheels and tires...wrong move!  

The rear window was in the back seat having broken loose from the body, but everything else was intact.  I tried to remove the wheels and they wouldn't budge, so the chassis would have to come out.  As I removed the chassis, the rear suspension broke loose and the radiator came out.  When I was done taking the Charger apart, the interior remained all together.  I glued the rear window in and called it a night.

I am fortunate enough that the body and paint was still good.  The clearcoat still glossy and shiny and a simple cleaning was in order.  A polishing with Meguiars Scratch X 2.0 and Novus 2 Fine Polish and the body gleams.  When the Charger is back together, I'll wax it with Novus 1 Plastic Polish & Shine. The glass was unscathed and polished out nicely.  

More to come...

[mrmike]

For the longest time, I have hated detail painting Magnum 500s!  I do it, but I still just absolutely hate it.  Re-assembly has begun and so far, so good!  The AMT '69 Charger 500 kit is a compromised kit.  The hood came from another version of the Charger, possibly a 1970 version.  I'm trying to figure out a way to fix this hood.  There was a corrected resin hood for this kit, but I can't remember where I saw it or who was the resin caster.

More to come...

[Superbird McMonte]

 Very cool! I need to get back to mine!

[mrmike]

Thanks Dominick!

My '69 Charger 500 is completed and posted in Under Glass.

[mrmike]

I decided to try and fix the front of the hood.  I added a strip of styrene to the forward edge with some Tamiya Extra Thin Cement and started to file and sand the upper edge of the strip into a bevel.  Now, to see if I can match the angle I need for the hood.

[KWT]

Mike that's one sharp 500

[mrmike]

Thanks Jeremy!

I got up this morning and came down to the Model Cave, sat down and looked at the Charger hood.  After staring at it for a bit, I didn't like how the edge was progressing.  It was uneven and breaking free in sections along the hood edge.  I decided to re-engineer the strip again by removing the old strip, cleaning the edge, cutting a new strip and gluing it onto the hood.  I'll let this sit for a while to dry and then I'll start shaping the edge again.  I used a piece of Tamiya tape to help protect the hood edge from debris created during the process.

More to come...