jaak

I love pics like this, showing a bunch of the cars used sitting on a lot. Keep 'em coming Roth!!! Jason

I guess this counts.... Here is a pic of the front of an actual series used GL. It was one of the 17 cars left after filming that were bought by members of the Dodge Charger Registry back in 1991 or 1992. What I find interesting is how crudely some of these cars were put together. If you look closely you can tell it is a 68 Charger grille with a center piece (cut from a 69 grille) just pop-riveted or screwed into place. Having a couple of these cars, and working on them, I find some of the 'techniques' they used to slap these cars together interesting. Jason

True. Could be, I didn't think about that. Keep the cool pics coming! Jason

Looks like this car doesn't have a windshield in it. You guys ever noticed jump cars already seem to have quit a bit of damage to them. My theory is after they get beat/banged around during 2nd unit chase scenes/banging cars together, they got prepped for jump scenes (full cage installed, gas tanks removed, etc.). Another thing I noticed in the pic, see the tall guy far left, with a yellow shirt on? I wonder if that was Vance's stunt double???? Jason

Here is one I caught a few years ago. In the Season 4 episode 'Double Dukes', when Turk/Moody enter Boss' office at the Boars Nest dressed as Bo/Luke, Luke has on the solid pale blue shirt that he wears during the entire episode. Then as they are removing their masks, the do an upclose shot of Bo and Luke tearing latex off their faces, in the up close shot of Luke (at 33 seconds on this Youtube clip) Luke is wearing his normal plaid shirt. Then when the go back to the wide shot of Turk/Moody, Moody has on the pale blue shirt. The Dukes is full of mistakes, due to shots being filmed out of sequence, some scenes filmed by 1st unit, others by 2nd unit...then it all gets edited together in the cutting room. But it is cool to catch these mishaps. Back in the day when I was a kid, you couldn't rewind a scene, so I guess that stuff wasn't as noticable then. Jason

Welcome. I'm a new member here too, just joined last week. I see you are from Alabama. I live in NW Alabama, close to Florence. Anyways welcome aboard. Jason

These aren't really rare of behind the scenes, but I got a couple of screen caps I found on my hard drive, and wanted to share. These 2 are from the season 6 episode "Ransom of Hazzard County", it's the scene where Bo and Luke jump the General Lee out of the impound yard. When they take off and do a 180 to get the distance needed for the jump, you can see they pass by a white '68 Dodge Charger, I'm guessing waiting its turn to be transformed into a TV star. Just thought it was cool to catch a glimpse of a Charger in that scene. Next one is from a TV show in the early-mid 80's that starred William Shatner. The name of the show was "TJ Hooker". Well anyways check out this snap....look in the background, it appears Cooter's yellow tow truck is passing in the background, hauling a General Lee. Jason

I still haven't looked at every page, so if this pic has already been posted, forgive me. I had it saved on my old computer, its a pic of John Schneider and Al Wyatt, Jr. Looks like it was taken during season 2. Jason

Right now these are the wheels I plan on using. I know they are not the correct Vectors... I have to wait until I find an affordable set. These are Appliance Turbo Vecs, they are 13 spoke instead of 10, but the webbing between the spokes are similar to Vectors, I scored them on Craigslist for 200 bucks, so they'll do for the meantime. Probably the best deal you can get on used Vectors are going to try to buy 1 or 2 at a time...seems like they are cheaper individually as opposed to buying a whole set. I know AR reissued them again, but 800 bucks for a set of 15 x 7 wheels isn't in the budget. Jason

Finally got my new computer up and going....thought I'd share a couple of more car pics. Here is an engine pic of the 440 in my 69 R/T..... Here is an interior pic of the R/T.... I don't have this car anymore, I sold it to finish up my 69. It is a 73 Rallye Charger, it had a 360 with a Pistol Grip 4 Speed. This car was awesome, I got a screaming deal on it, installed new interior, replaced the clutch, painted the engine and engine bay. All this car needed was a fresh coat of paint. When I sold it I almost doubled what I had in it, so that help with the funds to finish the 69. Jason

This was a series used General. They used 2 ex-Generals in a Warner Brothers movie (can't remember the name of the movie) a few years after the show ended. Fast forward a few years later, they were discovered and this one was restored first (it's refered as 'The Lost General Lee'). I believe the man in the red shirt is Gary Baxley, at one time he owned or had part ownership in the car while it was being restored. Smith Brothers Restoration did all the work. The car didn't have an engine, but they did install an engine that was in John Schneider's personal General Lee. I can't recall who owns it now. The other car was later restored to as filmed condition, it was the Lee that was in Hot Rod magazine a few months ago, in the Dukes of Hazzard / Smokey & the Bandit photo shoot. I might not have every detail right, I'm going on memory of what I have read about those cars. Jason

Thanks Guys! I started a thread with pics in the Hazzardnet Garage about my General Lee Project. Here's the link.... http://www.hazzardnet.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9321 Jason

After all of the buying/selling I did, I still had a couple hundred left in PayPal, so I ordered some primer & supplies to begin my bodywork. Below is a copy/paste from the spreadsheet keeping up with my costs, so far after buying the car, various parts, all the items needed for a 69 conversion, engine/trans and a few supplies I have $ 5220 in the car as it sits right now. NOTE-- Copy/pasting from my spreadsheet changes the format, the first number is what I spent (or made on sold items), second number is a running total, and then a description of what I bought (or sold). COST TOTAL DESCRIPTION $4,000 $4,000 1968 Dodge Charger (XP29) $325 $4,325 360 Eng./727 Trans.(Used) $20 $4,345 Thermoquad Carb (Core) $353 $4,698 Floor Pans (New, 3/4 Length, L & R Halves) $20 $4,718 Ash Tray & Bracket (Used) $48 $4,766 Glove Box Door (Used) $200 $4,966 14" Aluminum Wheels (Used) $40 $5,006 Interior 'A' Pillar Trim (Used) ($30) $4,976 SOLD Small Block Valve Covers ($25) $4,951 SOLD Headrests & Hardware ($40) $4,911 SOLD Lower Dash Pad ($68) $4,843 SOLD Dog Dish Hubcaps ($25) $4,818 SOLD '68 Fuel Cap & Trim Ring ($53) $4,765 SOLD Federal P/S Pump & Brackets $19 $4,784 Weld Through Primer (2 cans) $54 $4,838 LH Trunk Extention $242 $5,080 Trunk Floor (New, L & R halves) $280 $5,360 1969 Grille Center (Used) $50 $5,410 1969 Grille Center, Trim (Used) $225 $5,635 1969 AMD Tail Panel (Used, Never Installed) $40 $5,675 1969 Tail Panel Mouldings $25 $5,700 39" x 45" 18 Ga. Sheet Metal (2 Sheets) ($225) $5,475 SOLD 1968 Grille Center ($35) $5,440 SOLD 1968 Taillights ($40) $5,400 SOLD 1968 Tail Panel Mouldings ($15) $5,385 SOLD 1968 Side Markers ($130) $5,255 SOLD 1968 Grille/Headlamp Bezels ($500) $4,755 SOLD 1968 NOS Tail Panel $20 $4,775 Fiber Glass Body Filler (Quart) $9 $4,784 Weld Through Primer $175 $4,959 1970 Charger Taillights w/Bezels (Used) $70 $5,029 1969 Back Up Light Assemblies (Used) $36 $5,065 1969 Front Turn Signal Lens (Used) $25 $5,090 Thermoquad Rebuild Kit (New) $18 $5,108 RT. Fender/Valance Splash Shield (Used) $16 $5,124 Auto Body Putty $140 $5,264 Epoxy Primer/Body Filler/Tape/Sandpaper $65 $5,329 Polyester Primer (Gal.) ($30) $5,299 SOLD '68 Rear Defroster Switch Bezel $8 $5,307 Steering Coupler Kit $8 $5,315 Motor Mounts [2] $10 $5,325 Argent Silver Paint (spray can) $20 $5,345 Glove Box Lock ($85) $5,260 SOLD Spare 68-70 Trunk Lid ($40) $5,220 SOLD Extra misc. trim pcs.

Had to snap a quick pic of the front as a 69.…Now it looks even more like the “Generalâ€. Almost looks like how it looked in the episode “Happy Birthday, General Leeâ€.

Although I haven’t restored my 69 grille yet, I needed to mock it in and take care of a problem. As you know the 68 hood latch and release is totally different than the parts on a 69. As of right now the only complete 69 latch assemblies I can find online range anywhere from 75 to 140 bucks depending on condition. I refuse to pay that much for a latch! I had a cable in my parts stash, that I installed near the front valance mount. You have to reach up under the bumper and pull it which means I can’t use the front license plate bracket (if I keep it this way). I run the cable behind the grille, trimmed it to the right length. I also had to drill a small hole in the lever on the latch to have a place to attach the cable to. It works like a charm, the only thing I need is a little clamp to mount the cable to the rear of the grille frame near the latch and do away with the zip tie you see in the pics (if I leave it this way and don’t come up with another solution). Grille center as I bought it, pretty nice shape, has a broken fin and a couple of cracks that need repairing but all in all a nice piece for the price ($280 shipped, sold the 68 Grille for $225). Pics of my 69 homemade ‘hood release’ cable….

Here is the rear of the car after everything is welded in place, and back up lights installed. Definitely starting to look like “The Generalâ€!

While doing my tail panel work, I also had bought a set of 69 Back up lights, I know most 68 to 69 conversion omits this, but I really wanted back up lights. I found this set on eBay, and I got them for a bid of $56 (plus $14 to ship) Not really a great bargain, but cheaper than what most ‘buy it now†or classifieds were asking for a set. I borrowed a hole saw set from my Father in law, and after taking a couple of measurements off my 69...the 68 now has back up lights! (**Note**, when I pick me up some new sawsall blades, those hideous round tips are getting chopped off!)

Here is a pic with the rear tail panel removed, and repair to valance completed. Now here’s a pic with the AMD tail panel temporarily screwed into place so I can do some trimming & dolly/hammer work to get it fitted into place. Here’s everything ‘mocked up’ before final welding tail panel in place. Notice the tail lights in the pic. I wound up buying 70 model taillights simply because it was the best deal I could find at the time, they came with very nice bezels, and I plan on painting the silver stripe on them, like the 69 models did. I got them for $150 (plus $25 ship) for Nice lenses, nice bezels and the housings.

Another area that needed attention at this time was a portion of the rear valance. At one time the driver’s side quarter has been replaced. Where it met the valance, it was not squared up correctly, and a section behind the bumper had a small section misssing, causing a misalignment! It also caused the left edge of the trunk lid to sit about a ¼†above the quarter, no matter how you tried to adjust the trunk lid, it would not align properly with the quarter. After grinding out what seemed like a quart of bondo, here is what the rear valance looked like (also note the missing section/miss-cut behind the bumper)…. It was misaligned, dented and the valance corner had a little rust, so I just cut this whole area out, and decided to form a patch to put back in place. I welded in my patch, I also cut and welded in pieces behind the bumper, then put a coat of fiberglass filler over all welded seams (I always use fiberglass filler over weld seams). The area will be finished off with regular filler, then primer, when I do bodywork.

Here some pics of the trunk floors installed, and seam sealed. Although I didn’t take pics, I cleaned/prepped all areas and coated them with a weld thru primer before welding into place.

Back to the trunk…. Here is some pics of the progress of installing it. (Before installing the trunk floor, I found it easier to install the tank strap mounts first)…

I’m going to stop with the photos for a moment to tell the next part of the story before moving forward. When I decided to make a GL clone, at first it was decided the cheapest route would be to ‘use what I got and get it done’. I looked online, and we all know how expensive used parts can be, and how some (like the grille) are getting harder to find. So I decided I would have a 68 General Lee. The more I thought though, I really wanted it to look like a 69. It all started one night while looking on dodge charger.com. A member had an AMD 69 tail panel he decided not to use for $175 (plus 50 to ship). Dang 225 for a tail panel didn’t seem to steep to me, so I decided it will have 69 taillights, so I bought it. Over the next month all the 69 parts started popping up, at affordable prices. I got a 69 grille center, “I†trim for grill, tail panel moldings, tail lights (actually 70 model, but had nice bezels on them), and I even bought a nice used set of back up lights. While buying all this stuff, I sold off the 68 stuff I wouldn’t be using, and the home run was this, remember me mentioning the new 68 tail panel I got with the car….come to find out it was a NOS Mopar piece, not a reproduction. So long story short, what I sold off the 68, paid for the 69 conversion. So I was tickled I was able to make it look like a 69, but really didn’t have to spend anything.

“DUMB MOMENT†When my new trunk floor arrived, I took it out of the box to take pics and realized I had bought one for a Coronet/Roadrunner, as it didn’t have the raised portion and knock out for the Charger filler neck. It was my mistake, I ordered the wrong one. Since I was off work and wanted to get started, and didn’t want to fool with having to ship it back, I decided to cut this portion off the original floor and weld it to the new one. It just so happen this area wasn’t rusty and was usable. (Pic of raised section installed)….

Now, after finishing the floor pans, now I decided to tackle the trunk floor. The original floors had rust through in various locations, and was soft in spots. At first, I thought about just patching the bad areas, but the more I looked and checked, the trunk floor would have wound up with more ‘patches’ than original material. Once again I went with Sherman’s brand, that comes in 2 pieces. For the money they are good decent parts, I got these for $242 shipped. I also wound up replacing the left extension too (bought one that was never used from a dodge charger.com member), as it had some rust issues. And I had to patch the bottom of the wheel housings on both sides. (Trunk Floor, Before)…..

(Heres a pic showing of the rusted area I cut out of the rear foot well)… (Both halves welded in, rear footwells patched, seam sealed, ready for primer. ‘Primed with some red oxide primer I had laying around the shop)…. Since the car had been sitting in the shop for a few months, and I had pushed it outside to prime the floors, I decided to take a pic of it outside of the shop….