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Thu Oct 27, 2005 9:17 pm

Hello, I'm building a replica Kubelwagen and wondering if anyone else has or is doing the same thing? I'm usiing a 63 chassis with a T1 tranny and a '67 1500cc engine with 1600cc top end. I fabricated the exhaust and retro-fitted a stale air heating system. For the rear-end, I adapted a pair of '60 bus axles and reduction boxes and adapted some American made hydraulic shocks. For the front end, I took a standard king pin front-end and installed adjusters to raise it. I cut-off the shock towers and mounted some really short smowmobile shocks and moved the snubbers.

I'm building the body entirely by hand and have about 85% of the frame finished. Next will be fabricating the doors and installing them to define where the door jambs will be, then proceed with the quarter panels and the rest of the body.

I've learned alot and still have a way to go, and always look forward to swaping ideas with people doing a similar project.

Fri Oct 28, 2005 2:41 am

PM Coad, he has a link to somebody with a site thats doing the same.

Fri Oct 28, 2005 4:28 am

Hi
Go to kooblekar.com It's a 8) site!!!!!!!!!
Everything you see on there is a repro. I have a buddy that has one
and it has fooled alot of people.I hear the owner is looking into the swimwagen if he gets enough interest.

Good Luck with your project.

Fri Oct 28, 2005 5:34 am

Skim wrote: PM Coad, he has a link to somebody with a site thats doing the same.

This is the site with the repro Kubel parts:

http://www.kubelwagen.co.uk/kubelwagenframe.htm

Why do a KubleKar when you could get these replacement panels?

Fri Oct 28, 2005 8:03 am

And then there is these replicas:
http://www.intermeccanica.com/kubelwagon.html

Did you have to do much fitting and modifying to fit those later reduxboxes?

I've sourced down a complete set of Barndoor suspensionparts so I will use those parts for my T-82E replica. The rear axle with reduxboxes is a Bolt-on job when using Barndoorparts. In the front all I have to do is machine new buschings for the linkpins to fit the barndoor frontspindles. This gives the chassie the 3 inch lift without changing any suspension geometry. :D Barndoor parts are basically the same as Kübelparts. (The Volkswagen designation for the Kübel is Type-2 and Type-82 is actually Porsche designation...)

I would concider making or buying rised frontspindles instead of just turning the torsionbars. There's been topics about this on the offroad forum too. :wink:
http://www.blindchickenracing.com/How_to/Lifted_Spindles/Raisedspindles.htm

Fri Oct 28, 2005 10:33 am

Hats off to all of you that are building replicas! Back in the late '70's there was a company which built a Kuebel body kit in fiberglass. I think it was out of Buffalo NY and they also built either "Bugatti" type replicars or other racier types. Was certainly cruder looking than KooblKar's and the Intermeccanica.

I bet that if you remove the squared-off fenders from a Thing and install some rounded ones like from a boat trailer, it would come a long way at first glance to make it look closer to an original WW2 Kuebel. And get rid of those huge taillights...

Strangely enough, Germans call their Things (actually type 181) "Kuebels" even though for us Americans that name is very misleading.

Fri Oct 28, 2005 10:43 am

The front of the Thing would need to be slanted down slightly too... :wink:

Kübelwagen translated to English is "Bucketcar". Original Kübels are usually known as T-82:s too and Things got the T-181. The name Thing I think comes from US originally? :?: The Kübel name in Germany is correct also for Things.

Fri Oct 28, 2005 12:43 pm

Yeah Hebster, it was a royal pain adapting those gearboxes, but is totally do-able. If you can get your hands on a split kombi rear-end, that's the way to go. I had to press the axle tubes out, cutoff about 1 inch of the gear casing that goes around the axle tube, fabricate a "floating" flanged bracket, weld a two-peice bracket to the axle tubes, and press the gear casing back on to the axle tubes. A little tricky to get everything aligned as well. I could post a photo later.

The thing with Things :roll: is that they are based on the Karman Ghia pan. I don't know all the differences, but the pans would need to be replaced with beetle type which means the body wouldn't fit as-is. Also, type 181's are getting expensive, so if it's a Kubel you're after, it would be a big cost with little resemblence. The panels on an original Kubel are quite simple, flat peices with simple bends. The hardest part is embossing the ribs, which is actually not too difficult. Perhaps if it is easier to raise the suspension on a type 181 it would be the better chassis to start with however. ??

Fri Oct 28, 2005 12:56 pm

vintagemx0 wrote: Yeah Hebster, it was a royal pain adapting those gearboxes, but is totally do-able. If you can get your hands on a split kombi rear-end, that's the way to go. I had to press the axle tubes out, cutoff about 1 inch of the gear casing that goes around the axle tube, fabricate a "floating" flanged bracket, weld a two-peice bracket to the axle tubes, and press the gear casing back on to the axle tubes. A little tricky to get everything aligned as well. I could post a photo later.

Ok. I've seen a few pics of a Norwegian Kommandeurwagen replica that also used 60's splitty axles and reduxboxes. I asume that yours are splitty axles too? It is only the pre-55 axles and reduxboxes that are bolt-on to bug chassies though.. Luckily I've sourced up a set of those for my Kommandeur. :wink:

Fri Oct 28, 2005 1:54 pm

Yes, that's right Hebster. Sorry, I'm new to VW's... I was told they were from a 1960 specimen. You're lucky to have the pre-'55 type. Should just bolt-up with no hassle. Just remeber to turn the differential around. I'll post a picture later showing my set-up. I'd like to hear more about your plans/ideas about raising the front, and also what are the drawbacks of using adjusters? Does it just make it stiffer or does it lead to other issues?

Fri Oct 28, 2005 2:03 pm

No problem. :wink:

I'm maybe using the complete set with the tranny, so no problem with the differential in that case. :wink:

The raised front by using adjusters is used all the time by Baja offroaders so it work Ok. But as I told earlier by using Barndoor (pre-55 bus) frontspindles with smaller bushings to fit bug linkpins I get the same amount of rise as the reduxboxes give in the rear. Without changing anything in the original geometry on steeringarms etc.

The C-C measurement between the torsionbars are just about the same on pre-55 buses and linkpinfrontsuspension on bugs.

Fri Oct 28, 2005 6:36 pm

I posted a few pics of my rear-end setup;

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=234958

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=234957

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=234955

I've seen setups on other off-road applications tnat didn't look as robust, but they didn't seem to have any issues with them. I'd appreciate anybody's thoughts, experiences, warnings...

Fri Oct 28, 2005 10:45 pm

Amazing work! :D

Sat Oct 29, 2005 11:10 am

I've seen the blindchicken's procedure for raising ball joint spindles and they go on to say that a similar process can be used for link pin spindles. I was looking at my spindles and it looks like such a job would cover the lower link pin making it inaccessible. Has anyone ever done this, or seen this? Raised would be better that adjusters alone, but is it a problem?

Sat Oct 29, 2005 11:21 am

http://www.karmannghias.org/kubel.htm

Sat Oct 29, 2005 11:37 am

I wouldn't say it gets inaccessable. When you turn the spindle 90 degrees you can access the linkpin.

Here is a picture of the Kübelwagen frontaxle vs. Barndoor frontaxle.
On these too the lowerlinkpin is hidden behind the spindle.

Sat Oct 29, 2005 6:34 pm

Thanks Hebster! Which part number(s) in the photos need to be reemed?

Sat Oct 29, 2005 11:36 pm

The original Barndoor bus bushings have to be pressed out and a new set machined that fit the bug size linkpins.

I did a Photoshop on how raised linkpin bugspindles would look like and added a pic of original Kübel spindles to compare with. :D

I have to agree that the raised version would look a little weak though... :?

Sat Oct 29, 2005 11:56 pm

Nice photoshop wizardry! Does look a liitle vulnerable. I suppose one could compromise a little and do a partial spindle-ectomy and a slight torsion spring rotation.

So, do you happen to know the differences between the bus linkpin bushings and the beetle's? Are both the ineer and outer diameters different? If it's just and adaption of the bushings, sounds like an attractive alternative. Problem is that in the US pre-'55 bus suspension components are rare. I wonder what people who "slam" their vehicles do with their un-needed stock parts???

Sun Oct 30, 2005 12:29 am

vintagemx0 wrote: Nice photoshop wizardry! Does look a liitle vulnerable. I suppose one could compromise a little and do a partial spindle-ectomy and a slight torsion spring rotation.

So, do you happen to know the differences between the bus linkpin bushings and the beetle's? Are both the ineer and outer diameters different? If it's just and adaption of the bushings, sounds like an attractive alternative. Problem is that in the US pre-'55 bus suspension components are rare. I wonder what people who "slam" their vehicles do with their un-needed stock parts???

Sorry, but I dont have the measurements yet. I have not had the time to investigate the parts closer yet. I'll see if I can do it in a couple of days though.