1971 Plymouth Duster 340+6

[wraith]

Sweet work so far mike! I can already picture this beauty in my head but can't wait to see it finished!

[mrmike]

Thanks guys!

The model looks good, Mike. Did you use the bright orange on the engine too? If so, it sure is bright! Actually, from what I've seen, that's a pretty good match to Hemi Orange, which, from what I understand, the hi-perf 340s/383s/440s also used, depending on year.

This will be another nice build of yours. And, guys, I've said it before, I'll say it again- I've seen Mike's work up close and personal, it really is that good. And Mike really is one of the nice guys in this hobby, too.

Charlie Larkin

Ah shucks Charlie! Such high praise. Thanks. The engine is not painted with Bright Orange, it is painted with actual Mopar Hemi Orange Engine Paint. I like using this paint on my Mopar motors when it is called for. I also have a can of Mopar Chrysler Turquoise Engine Paint for certain Mopar projects.

[charlie8575]

The engine is not painted with Bright Orange, it is painted with actual Mopar Hemi Orange Engine Paint.

Well, that would explain why it's such a good match to Hemi Orange....

I do like this, though, inability to identify correctly what came out which can not withstanding.

Heather and I will be coming to the CPMC show in September in all likelihood. Well....she'll probably poke her head in and take a look around before disappearing to Salem and that monster used bookstore there. Why not, only a few minutes away from Lawrence.

I might even have a '32 Ford or two ready for the theme.

Charlie Larkin

[mrmike]

OK Charlie, see you in September. Hey, that could be used in a song! Oh, never mind...it already was used in a song by the Four Seasons...and yes, my age is showing!!!

I haven't wired an engine in a while so this was an opportunity to do so. I drilled out the distributor and added the wires from Precision Model Works cut into lengths from 1 1/2 to 2 inches long and glued them into the cap. I fanned out the wires and added my plug boots.

I glued the distributor to the intake manifold with the wires crossed over the cap.

Since I am not using the A/C unit for this build, I searched the parts box for a single belt fan belt an pulley assembly. I also found a alternator with a mounting bracket so the alternator won't be left hanging in the air.

More to come...

[charlie8575]

Someday, I will try wiring an engine. I need to do it for me, as much as anything else. For curiosity, Mike, what size tubing do you use for your boots?

I also see our car's owner prefers Accel wires....

Unfortunately, I just found out yesterday that I won't be able to make Classic Plastic's show this year. It turns out my cousin will be getting married that day, so that kinda takes precedent, especially considering I'll probably be taking the pictures!

I guess I'll substitute with a visit to one of your meetings. I know I keep saying it, but I'll be up to Lowell at some point.

Charlie Larkin

[wraith]

That engine is looking good Mike!

[mrmike]

Charlie, the plug boots are from a piece of wire that I had hanging around in the shop. I stripped a piece of the insulation off just to see if it would go over the plugs wires that I used and they fit! I'm sorry to hear that you will be unable to attend this years CMPC Show. I do hope to see you at one of our meetings before long. this car's owner does prefer Accel wires on this car!

Thanks Darrick! It's getting there!

This afternoon I painted the wheels with Testors gloss black, waited about 15 minutes and then sprayed Alclad II chrome paint with my airbrush. I think they came out great! I am thinking about painting the wheel centers with my secondary color Tamiya TS-42 Light Gunmetal.

Since the booth was up and running, I also painted the body with Tamiya TS-31 Bright Orange. The hood didn't fare as well with a lot of dust particles in the paint. It is now residing at the bottom of the purple pond. I'll clean it up and repaint it.

I also painted the floor pan and the front sub-frame.

More to come...

[imatt88]

Mik, if this is as good as your Cuda builds were, I can hardly wait to see it finished

[Bartster]

Love the orange on the body. I think color matched wheel centers look good in most cases. When you're talking gunmetal, l don't see how you can go wrong!

Edited May 7, 2012 by Bartster

[wraith]

Looking sweet Mike!

I think the wheel centers should be Gunmetal! I think it would give this street machine a lil more bite!

[mrmike]

Thank you gents! I do think that the wheel centers painted with the secondary color of Light Gunmetal will look great! I haven't had much time available to work on the Duster. So far, I have half the engine wired, the coil has a wire but needs to be painted.

[mrmike]

The engine is complete except for decals.

The wheel centers have been painted and lug nuts detailed with chrome silver paint.

More to come...

[Bartster]

Very nice engine, Mike. I can almost smell high-test! The wheels are perfect now & they also give us a sneak-peak at the accent color for the body. This is gonna be so cool.

[hotrodblder]

Very nice inspiration. I have a version of this kit that I'm wanting to start up while I'm waiting on parts to come in for a contest build up I'm doing. I'm trying to talk myself into a Triple Black version to see if I can get it to look right.

Keep up the great work. I'll be checking in on the progress as it goes along.

[wraith]

That engine looks awesome!

[mrmike]

Thanks guys! I wish I had time to work on the Duster this weekend, but that really didn't happen. I have spent most of the weekend out of doors taking advantage of the nice weather to get yard work and other household things done. I spent about 20 minutes Saturday night rubbing out the body and applying the 6 Pack decal to the air cleaner. After that, I went to bed so I could be fresh for all I had on my plate for Mothers Day and taking the dog to the dog park for 2 hours in the morning. I even printed up a card for the dog to give to my wife! It said "Happy Mothers Day" with a picture of the dog lying on her back and "Can I Have A Belly Rub?" on the bottom of the card. Really cute and my wife loved it! Monday starts a new week and hopefully more time for the Duster. We shall see...

[mrmike]

I polished the body and just as I expected, I rubbed through the paint in a few spots. No big deal since it was just a few light coats of paint...not a wet coat. Another wet coat or two and the body will be golden!

A mock up of the rear spoiler. I like it painted in the body color so it doesn't look like a tacked on accessory.

The hood painted in Tamiya TS-42 Light Gunmetal.

Once the body paint is to my liking, I'll mask it off for the secondary color to be applied to the front fender and door tops and around the side windows.

More to come...

[bryan_m]

lookin good mike, the spoiler looks way better body color.

bryan

[mrmike]

Thanks Bryan! I'm getting excited about the secondary color. It going to look great!

[Badluck 13]

I got one of these kits in my stash,watching this build has got me to want to start on it,Mike I really like your color combination and yes the spoiler does look better body color..

[FASTBACK340]

FWIW: I was thinking how cool it would look if you flat-blacked the hood and instead of 340WEDGE being across the corner of the hood, just put 340-6. Then the blacked-out spoiler would look balanced.

Also, hard-core Mopar fanatics will tell you Hemi orange, hi-performance orange (340-383-440..) and the 6 Bbl. air cleaner lid are ALL different shades. But I think you build it how YOU envision in.

As a 6 bbl. A body owner, you have my undivided attention on this sweet build...

[mrmike]

Thanks Mike and John!

Mike, I'm happy to be an influence on your future project. Good luck on your project and be sure to post it!

John, for this build I didn't want the flat black treatment that was so commonly done on the Duster. Since this is a street machine of sorts, the Light Gunmetal secondary color with the Bright Orange primary color really appealed to me. As far as the engine block color and the air cleaner color are concerned, that was my mistake. I painted the engine block and the air cleaner at the same time not thinking about the different shades of orange for each. Since this is a street machine and not factory stock, I think the same shade of orange is OK.

[hotrodblder]

Hey Mike,

I've got my project started, too, but the triple black idea has gone so far out the window. The main color IS black, however, it's accented with Panther Pink. I would start a thread of my own, but I'm already to far into the build to post any kind of good progress pics.

Keep up the good work on your project.

[James2]

Very nice building here, looks nice.

[FASTBACK340]

Since this is a street machine and not factory stock, I think the same shade of orange is OK.

Absolutely! I can relate to bucking tradition when building something YOUR way.My non-factory 6Bbl. small block with an incorrect colored lid....

Edited May 27, 2012 by FASTBACK340