Waiting for things to happen is usually very frustrating. As you compete with your eagerness, your impatience grows until you break down and can't wait any longer, or you continue to bite the bullet. Frank Maynard had to wait nearly 25 years before he could own his dream car.
Frank started his career as a technician at a Chrysler maintenance depot in the late '60s, where he continued his dedication for 43 years. During that time, he never once owned a muscle car because he tells us that he could never afford it. Well, around 1994 Frank said enough was enough and jumped on the exact car that filled his thoughts since late 1969, the '70 Dodge Challenger R/T.
The car he found to begin the project was a dilapidated Top Banana R/T that Frank found locally from a tip given by a friend. It even ran, albeit poorly, and its original 383 and automatic transmission was replaced with a 440 and four-speed. Frank talked the seller down to a modest $500 and drove the Challenger home. It was spitting and sputtering all the way-the car, not Frank. Being a veteran maintenance man, he easily revived the car into running order and started accumulating miles on the odometer.
Not long after, Frank had devised a plan and he decided to turn his dream car into the vision that was rumbling in his head, a blown big-block Challenger with a massive supercharger erupting from the hood. He worked entirely out of his own two-car garage at home. "I did everything on the car except for the front alignment," he says, jokingly. This took the car out of commission for more than four years, but having waited 25 already, he was ready to get started.
Frank began smoothing the car's metal. He took the original hood and set it off to the side so that it may be called upon once again-should he decide to return to stock. Taking its place is an AAR fiberglass hood that was cut to accept the new powerplant. Once he had the bodylines nailed, he closed off one of his garage bays at home and entered the makeshift paint booth ready for business. After a healthy application of primer was dried, several coats of PPG Scarlet Red basecoat were misted onto the car, followed by three coats of clear.
Underneath was entirely rebuilt with mostly stock parts. Frank then installed a set of 2-inch drop spindles and super stock springs to deliver a dropped-to-the-floor profile. Once the new components were in place, a set of Mopar Gas Shocks were bolted in to absorb any road imperfections. To accentuate the stance, Coy's C-5 wheels were bolted on in a staggered fitment of 18-inch fronts and 20-inch rears. Inside, the black interior was restored back to stock but Frank tossed the bench in favor of buckets and a console. A Secret Audio paired to Jensen speakers was wired in to deliver more modern sounds while Frank cruises. A defunct company out of Florida rebuilt the gauges and Ultimate Rides recovered the dashpad.
Originally, Frank rocked the 440 with the Weiand 6-71 blower, but he blew the engine a few times. After that, and the benefit of shock value, a Hemi engine was next to find its way between the shock towers. The burly big-block was treated to a .060-inch over bore to clear the way for 8.5:1 compression Keith Black forged pistons. The slugs are connected to Mopar I-Beam rods and a Mopar forged steel crankshaft. After wiping out two flat-tappet cams, an Isky .524/.507-inch lift 248/248-duration hydraulic roller camshaft was slid in and has proven to be more reliable.