Slant Six Forum :: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project

I took about a week off of working on the Dart and went to Fargo, ND for the birth of my 2nd Great-granddaughter on the 21st. My 1st Great-granddaughter was born 11 days earlier here in Illinois, and she has a 2-year-old brother. My great-grandson likes cars, especially Papa's cars, and I will be taking him to car shows within the next few years. Got to keep the hobby alive!
The caliper I ordered for a '73 Dart worked perfectly! Got the leaking brake line repaired, bled all 4 corners, and pedal is nice and firm. Haven't taken it for a test drive yet as have to adjust the brake light switch on the pedal (brake lights stay on). Next week we are going to pressure wash the differential and figure out what year it is. We know it's an 8-1/4" (10 bolt cover), and a friend has a set of 3.23:1 gears we can have for free (our favorite price). That will be a big improvement over the 2.45:1 gears in it now.
The disc brakes for '72 were the 4-piston style, harder to find and more expensive. While we were bleeding the brakes, we took one of the wheels off of my '70 Satellite and test-fit it onto the lugs on the Dart, so we have 4-1/2" bolt circle on all 4 corners, wider selection of rims!
Not many good days left this year, but we'll get done what we can before putting it away for winter.
Chuckster & Logan

Author:	Rick Covalt [ Tue Oct 18, 2022 3:28 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
You are correct , they look like the 73-76 A body calipers. Many 72's still had drum front brakes. Doctor Diff has the powder coated calipers, with brake pads and all the hardware for $165. Great place to get parts from! No core

Author:	Chuckster [ Tue Oct 18, 2022 12:01 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
Quote: You are correct , they look like the 73-76 A body calipers. Many 72's still had drum front brakes. Doctor Diff has the powder coated calipers, with brake pads and all the hardware for $165. Great place to get parts from! No core I think you are correct! I was doing some research online and found a picture of 73-74 A-body calipers that look identical. I just got back from buying the one we need from Car Quest for $31.99 + tax (and a $20.00 core charge). It should be in tomorrow morning. I'll have my daughter and Logan pick it up. I'll compare it with the old caliper once I'm back in town. Thanks for the help, Chuckster

Author:	kesteb [ Tue Oct 18, 2022 3:21 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
Those calibers look to be for '73 and later A-Bodies. But then, those calibers were used on all of the rear drive cars until the K-Car came along. Just ask for parts for a '75 Dodge Dart and the counter guy at the parts store will be happy.

Author:	volaredon [ Tue Oct 18, 2022 3:58 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
My dad, and then my brother, had a 76 duster that had drums all around and small Bolt pattern wheels. As I remember it was an early model year build and my dad used to have the 76 factory service manual and the book of TSBs and I remember seeing something in that book of TSBs that there was a before and after date (either 12/1/75 or 1/1/76) after which all remaining a bodies built after that, would be disc brakes on the front. I think there was something about "federal law". (Was supposed to have been "my" 1st car but my brother did something to his car at the time, and needed something " right away" for his work and so he ended up getting the duster and I got screwed.) And I think they used the same calipers on the late a bodies as they did on the F/M/J bodies.

Author:	hank2 [ Tue Oct 18, 2022 8:37 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
I could be wrong and the memory is 50 years ago. I seem to remember that Chrysler made a lot of noise about their entire line up having standard front disc brakes for the '73 model year. The '72 A body might have been the only '72 available with optional front discs? I think the corporate mandate made for some parts bin shuffling.

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Author:	volaredon [ Wed Oct 19, 2022 6:44 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
If that was the case they dropped the gun on that one. I definitely remember that particular duster my family had, for one thing it came with a cat in the exhaust which weren't out yet In 73.

Author:	hank2 [ Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:05 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
Quote: If that was the case they dropped the gun on that one. I definitely remember that particular duster my family had, for one thing it came with a cat in the exhaust which weren't out yet In 73. You previously were talking about a '76. No way that had front drums unless they were retrofitted. No '73 or ' 74 had a cat converter unless retrofitted. Pickup cats came much later . 1/2 tons, '78, 3/4 tons '80, and one tons about '83-84.

Author:	Chuckster [ Fri Oct 28, 2022 6:57 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
I took about a week off of working on the Dart and went to Fargo, ND for the birth of my 2nd Great-granddaughter on the 21st. My 1st Great-granddaughter was born 11 days earlier here in Illinois, and she has a 2-year-old brother. My great-grandson likes cars, especially Papa's cars, and I will be taking him to car shows within the next few years. Got to keep the hobby alive! The caliper I ordered for a '73 Dart worked perfectly! Got the leaking brake line repaired, bled all 4 corners, and pedal is nice and firm. Haven't taken it for a test drive yet as have to adjust the brake light switch on the pedal (brake lights stay on). Next week we are going to pressure wash the differential and figure out what year it is. We know it's an 8-1/4" (10 bolt cover), and a friend has a set of 3.23:1 gears we can have for free (our favorite price). That will be a big improvement over the 2.45:1 gears in it now. The disc brakes for '72 were the 4-piston style, harder to find and more expensive. While we were bleeding the brakes, we took one of the wheels off of my '70 Satellite and test-fit it onto the lugs on the Dart, so we have 4-1/2" bolt circle on all 4 corners, wider selection of rims! Not many good days left this year, but we'll get done what we can before putting it away for winter. Chuckster & Logan

Author:	Rob Simmons [ Sat Oct 29, 2022 8:18 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
I wish I had a grandfather like you growing up.

Author:	hank2 [ Sat Oct 29, 2022 11:55 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
Quote: I took about a week off of working on the Dart and went to Fargo, ND for the birth of my 2nd Great-granddaughter on the 21st. My 1st Great-granddaughter was born 11 days earlier here in Illinois, and she has a 2-year-old brother. My great-grandson likes cars, especially Papa's cars, and I will be taking him to car shows within the next few years. Got to keep the hobby alive! The caliper I ordered for a '73 Dart worked perfectly! Got the leaking brake line repaired, bled all 4 corners, and pedal is nice and firm. Haven't taken it for a test drive yet as have to adjust the brake light switch on the pedal (brake lights stay on). Next week we are going to pressure wash the differential and figure out what year it is. We know it's an 8-1/4" (10 bolt cover), and a friend has a set of 3.23:1 gears we can have for free (our favorite price). That will be a big improvement over the 2.45:1 gears in it now. The disc brakes for '72 were the 4-piston style, harder to find and more expensive. While we were bleeding the brakes, we took one of the wheels off of my '70 Satellite and test-fit it onto the lugs on the Dart, so we have 4-1/2" bolt circle on all 4 corners, wider selection of rims! Not many good days left this year, but we'll get done what we can before putting it away for winter. Chuckster & Logan Very good darts! I do hope that I'm wrong about this, but I believe that if you have the 2.45 or 2.56 rear diff in the 8 1/4, then nothing lower can be fitted.

Author:	kesteb [ Mon Oct 31, 2022 3:47 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
You need to change the carrier, then you can use 2.73 and steeper gears. Since you need to change the carrier, why not install a limited slip differential!

Author:	shortmort37 [ Sun Apr 16, 2023 7:48 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
Quote: While the pan was off, I changed the rear main seal as a precaution. Ooh! Can you tell me more about that? You were able to successfully thread the top half of the seal in place without removing the trans/clutch? Did you have to loosen any bearings to wrap it around the crank? Hi to Logan! Dan

Author:	Chuckster [ Sun Apr 23, 2023 4:52 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
Quote: Quote: While the pan was off, I changed the rear main seal as a precaution. Ooh! Can you tell me more about that? You were able to successfully thread the top half of the seal in place without removing the trans/clutch? Did you have to loosen any bearings to wrap it around the crank? Hi to Logan! Dan I bought a kit to change the rear main, didn't work very well. It had a threaded wire you screw into the upper rear main seal but wasn't strong enough to move the seal, pulled out easily. I used a wood deck screw, about 2-1/2" long and screwed that into the seal. I had my grandson rotate the engine using an 18" braker bar and 1-1/4" socket (all spark plugs removed) while I pulled on the screwhead with pliers...came right out, no issues. Be sure to drive the screw in about 3/4" and rotate the engine the same direction you are pulling the screw. Do not pull on the screw unless the engine is being rotated or it may pull out of the seal. Only had to remove the rear main cap. The new upper half seal started in but then we had to rotate the engine while I pushed it into place. I lubed the seal before installing, and once in place clean the ends and dab a bit of RTV on the ends to help seal the where the upper and lower seal ends meet. Hope this helps. Chuck P.S. Trans & clutch were not removed.

Author:	Chuckster [ Fri Oct 06, 2023 5:12 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
I know it's been a while since my (our) last post. We worked on the Dart off and on throughout the spring and summer, but nowhere near as much as I wanted to. I was sick with various ailments from the spring until about a month ago when I got out of the hospital (Bronchitis, Covid, A-Fib, & Congestive Heart Failure). Logan was also busy with school and baseball (a lot of baseball). We got a carrier for the 3.21:1 gears, hope to get it installed before it gets too cold. The power steering box we picked up at Mopar Nationals last year didn't work out. We had to change the Pitman arm and I think we put too much heat into it trying to pull it off as the bottom seal started leaking. I did some digging in my shed and found a manual box (from a '68 Dart GTS I once had) and put it on using a power-to-manual adapter from Mancini Racing. The manual box should free up a few HP (needs all the help it can get). We got the instrument lights working, bad dimmer on the headlight switch. We also found a split in the rubber gas line from the tank to the metal line. The gas would drain out and we'd have to crank it a lot and run it on starting fluid for a while before gas got to the carb and run on its own. We were planning to drive it down to the Holley Moparty in Bowling Green, KY. and we were leaving the Thursday morning before. The day before we were leaving we had an appointment to get 5 new tires put on (Cooper RWL) and a front end alignment performed. As long as the alignment was good, we were driving it down to the show to get it up on the dyno. I went out Wednesday morning and it wouldn't start, dead battery. Put my charger on it set to 150 amp boost, would only crank very slow, not enough to start. I tried another battery and got the same. Couldn't get the tires/alignment done, and couldn't drive it to the show. Logan's 16th birthday was the Sunday of the Moparty (the 17th) and a buddy of mine gave him a used, but very strong Optima red top battery. We also bought a new mini-starter...man that thing cranks over better than I've ever heard it before, starts right away. Guess our plan is now to keep it basically stock to get it on the dyno at next year's Moparty and after that we'll work on the headers and 4bbl. intake for the following year's dyno challenge. I haven't taken many pictures but I will get some more and post them in the next few days. Chuckster & Logan

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Author:	Dart270 [ Sat Oct 07, 2023 12:30 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Grandson's '72 Dart Swinger project
Sounds like good progress, all things considered. Best laid plans of m&m... Glad you are doing better now, health-wise. Keep at it, and you can have a nice bday partay next year. Slant on, Lou