... and can't break away from the family & work long enough to get my sh!t together and make any progress.

I'm feeling drawn & quartered by EVERYTHING... and the car's hit the 5-year mark for being off the road again.

The shortblock basically needs nothing but the new oil "system" (new crank scraper, new windage tray, modified new pan, pump) installed.

The top end needs to have new pushrods measured & ordered, then verify sufficient clearance (I've already ground a good bit on the heads and hope to have that covered already).

The heads need to be assembled, which is nothing major except the time to do it after I verify the spring coil bind & installed heights.

The rocker assemblies need to be set up for proper alignment over the valves & side-to-side clearance.

The new S-60 will need to installed before I can get the correct length for the driveshaft that will need to be ordered. Switching to the 22" CalTrac config at the same time, since I'll have the rear axle out anyway.

Once the new driveshafts installed, I'll need to set the pinion angle for the new axle, etc. This also means my previous suspension baseline will probably be hit-or-miss when the car hits the track again.

Oh, need to R&R the fuel tank while the axle's out because it's likely corroded all to He11 over the years. At least I've anticipated that and have a replacement tank on hand. Hmmm... the fuel sending unit wasn't working properly when I hurt the engine, so that's another item to trouble-shoot.

The CSR shield is expired and the retaining strap is melted, so I guess I need to drop the trans to change that. And the replacement shield I bought may already be expired now since it's been waiting so long for me to install it.

Just a BUNCH of stuff like this, and it always takes freakin' longer than you expect, and you gotta have time to sort through the b.s. to get things right.

And my friends are always asking "Why isn't your car back together?"

Grrrrrrr...

Have a nice freakin' day!

Here's the combination that's going back into the car:

I. Bottom end
- OEM 440 block
- Pro-Gram cross-bolted main caps on #2-4 w/ re-honed 4.380" bores
- Ross flat-top pistons & Eagle rods
- Eagle 4340 crank 3.75" stroke
- Conventional" ring set w/ Napier 2nd ring and 18# oil rings gapped @ .020"/.024"
- Milodon "Street Hemi" pan modified w/ directional tabs & center-sump baffle, a new Milodon full-length windage tray modified with additional baffles & drainback holes, and a new I-J crank scraper

II. Hughes' CNC'd 75cc chamber Victors w/ their "Standard" (not MW) CNC porting program. IIRC, Hughes says the intake runner is ~ 310 cc after this work.

Lift -- Int / Exh / + Tube
.100 --- 72 / 54 / 54
.200 -- 154 / 105 / 108
.300 -- 222 / 162 / 167
.400 -- 273 / 200 / 211
.500 -- 310 / 219 / 239
.600 -- 336 / 236 / 263
.700 -- 346 / 247 / 275

- CR = 10.9:1

III. Valve train
- Jones Racing Cams (Mike Jones)

295/297 @ .020"
259/261 @ .050"
178/180 @ .200"
130/130 @ .300"
56/54 @ .400"
.424"/.421" Lobe Lift

Rocker 1.6 I / 1.5 E
Gross Lift .678"/.632"
Lash .018"/.018" (per cam card)
LSA 109 + 3

- Hughes Engines 1.6 / 1.5 rockers
- RAS shafts
- PAC 1243 springs w/ ti retainers

IV. Induction
- Heavily modified MP RB M1 intake
- Baseline carb BG Race Demon RS w/ 1.425" venturi sleeves and 1.75" throttle body

V. Exhaust
- TTI 2" headers
- TTI 3" E-body X-pipe system and Dynamax Ultraflo mufflers

VI. Chassis
- '73 Challenger
- 9.5" 4500-flash Dynamic converter,
- DOT 275/60R15 radials
- 4.10 gears
- Estimating closer to 3800# car w/ driver
- CalTracs

Runs on 93 octane / 10% ethanol blend pump fuel.

Nothing else I can add at this point.

hire someone to put it together for you if you can.

Buying parts "ate" the $$$ that might have been used to pay someone else to do the work.

Besides, there aren't many people I'd be willing to have do it, after having paid enough "professionals" over the years to do things like assemble my engines... and still having to deal w/ issues that cropped up w/ their work.

That's when I bought the tools necessary to do it myself, so that I KNOW how it was done, rather than have to trust someone else not to do a half-a$$ job on my dime.

Ill be back in DC in two weeks with nothing to do

Instead of spending time on moparts, typing lengthy complaints about not having any time to wrench on your Challenger, you could actually be getting something done!!!

I would hope to assume he is at work typing those lengthy posts because it would take me hours to type all that

Well I have the time and the inclination to work on our '74 and iron out all the bugs, but a busted arm is stopping me

Brain-break at work: some stuff was cut-n-paste, and I type really fast, too.

I haven't turned a wrench on my '65 Coronet for a couple of years but then a few weeks ago I started working on it again. I just bolted one part in place and then grabbed the next part and bolted it on and that got the ball rolling. I had to mentally tell myself that I wasn't trying to get it running that day, I was just bolting one part on. Once you trick yourself into working on it then it gets easier.

I make a list of things to do some small and some larger but break it down into smaller increments. Then if you come home feeling tired, you can do one of the small items on the list, even if it only takes a few minutes it's another thing off the list and it's progression.

That is what I do, After I get started if things are going well and I get more interested I will do a little more on the list while I am already working on it. But a lot of times I just say I will do it later.

Wow, couldn't have a better "mechanic".

See if he takes beer as payment?!!

That is exactly how I operate when building a car. Having a written plan and staying focused on the plan is absolutely vital to the successful completion of a major car project. Without a written plan (notice I keep saying "written", a plan in your head is not the same), you're like a ship without a rudder. It's perfectly normal to have to continually re-organize or modify the plan. For some older folks ( and those that are scatterbrain due to adult A.D.D., and those with low T ), without a written plan and the discipline and drive to execute it, they'll never get that big car project finished. I have a friend that is a textbook example of that.

I always have a detailed project plan / task list to work from, even if it's subject to ongoing revisions.

I also have a wife of 17 years and three kids aged 14, 11 & 7 competing for my time at home, which is a tough balancing act outside of work demands.

So, the thread is part vent, part whine, and part staus report.

Get your kids out in the shop to help you.. thats 2 things
in 1.. time with the kids and getting work done... I get my
projects done along with the other stuff.. but I dont mind staying
busy.. like the other day, I just finish welding up my front
suspension stuff and while it was cooling for paint I went out
and fertilized the lawn(3 acres) then went back in and painted
the suspension... when I was working, my evenings were longer

I think most of your problem is a nonsupporting family. Get those spoiled kids out in the shop and put them to work. I see way too much in the way of parents placating to their children's every desire these days. Playing multiple sports, driving them all over the place, etc. We had none of that. If you wanted to be in the house you were doing homework, cooking, or cleaning. Time to crack the whip! (I'm saying this half serious but you know what I mean).

I assembled the aluminum, face plated 4-speed for my red car over the weekend. Some parts needed to be cleaned, threads bottom tapped, etc. I had all hands on deck to get everything ready to assemble during a flurry of activities over the always too short weekend. Anybody gives me any guff I remind them who is in charge around here. You support your family...they need to support you. Besides if you keep up with these depressing posts I'm going to come over and start working on your car lol.

I had thought about putting that idea out there, but I don't know Brad's family circumstances, and how old his kid(s) are.

Jeez Brad, I remember when you were expecting your first, and it was 14 years ago!!?? Now I feel old! Don't feel alone though, I have a block on the stand waiting for me to assemble into another 493 6-pack, and then I am going to pull the 528 Hemi out of the 69 Satellite and transplant it in my wifes 70 Cuda and then putting the wedge in the Satty. Not to mention finishing the resto on my 70 GTX. I'm gonna have to retire just to get caught up! Good Luck with the Pig!

Is that a factory 68/69 B body handle? And did you make the shift rods yourself?

Fixed it for you.