My 63 Deluxe Build

[Chalklinedetail]

Not anything too interesting lately...Except for I finally got the front end aligned today! I started out at Fred's Garage in San Carlos, Fred said his "alignment bar" was out of commission (whatever that means). Fred sent me to Speedy Oil and Tune Up. I dropped it off this morning to find out a few hours later that their machine wont fit on my 165 45's. He sent me to Big-O tires where they were finally able to get the job done Great guys, he topped off my grease fittings and checked all my new nuts to be sure that none of them are coming loose, all included in the cost for the alignment. Good experience.

Finally got to rattle canning my windshield wipers today. It was a little drizzly earlier this week and I had them off, realized I should probably get them back on the car

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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

I've been reading up on what it'll take to get my fog light finally hooked up, so on the way home I picked up the hardware I think I need to get it to light up; Inline fuses, switch, relay. Will post more pics once I get some light

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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[grandpa pete]

Why are you grinding on wheels to get "earlier"hubcaps on? ...Please explain......Safety note from the "old guy"who used to work on an ambulance......after working an accident where the suicide knob was stuck IN a drivers skull I would suggest reconsidering having one in your car
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63 two fold rag
66 sedan delivery Type 6

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=569619&highlight=sedan+delivery

[Chalklinedetail]

[Chalklinedetail]

I decided to try to tackle the fog light now that I have all the parts I think I need...

Started by connecting some 14 ga. wire to the fog light

Fed the wire through the housing

Fed the wire through a tight hole in the bumper, under the bumper bracket and tight up along the hood pull housing to the location where the relay and switch will live

Here is the final look from the front

I reused a couple of existing holes at the underside of the dash to mount the switch and the bracket for the relay

Here's the switch from the inside, I am going to switch attachment of the relay bracket so that the allen head is in the cab and not the nut.

So I got this far and was going to try to wire the rest of it up until I got to the switch and realized that I got a 6 terminal switch. I have to figure out what goes where before I light the car up, the wrong way.

If you have any of the same issues I do, follow this thread. I've gotten some great advice and wiring diagrams here:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=563189&highlight=
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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

Did a little work on my wheels to get them finished up. I really wanted the 66-67 only wheels with the early caps. I didn't like the color that I had the fronts powder coated, so I ended up just rattle canning the fronts over the powder coating and rears after sand-blasting them.

I have to say, I've really become a fan of a stainless steel spray paint called "Steel It". It's about $20/rattle can, but it goes on so thick, so evenly and does not run. It also has stainless steel powder in it so the sheen on it is unmatched. Really a cool product.

Here is one of the rear wheels before sandblasting

Post-sandblast

Painted. Only required one coat, but I did a second light coat, just to prevent future headache

Drilling for early clips

I will say, it was a bit of a touch and go for me. I bought two different clip types on ebay; long, thick stainless clips that i installed in the front and shorter, thin metal clips that I installed in the rear. The clips in the rear failed miserably at the most inopportune moment. I ended up losing a couple of hub caps in the process. I finally realized that the clips were the culprit and got some long, thick stainless clips for the rear. They have been working great.

Here is the finished product. I also added some lemmerz beauty rings so the chrome ended up being a bit more overpowering than the "Steel It", but overall I'm happy with the look.

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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

Replaced the (3) fuel lines last night. Moved the fuel filter to the front (under the tank), figured it would be a good location so I could replace the fuel filter and check the brake fluid at the same time. Also added a shut-off valve.

Word to the wise if you try this setup, try not to kink the line when reinstalling the tank, kinda prevents fuel from getting to the engine. Took me a few hours to figure out why the car wouldn't start

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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

A few weeks ago I decided to refresh my roof rack. Here's how it went:

First I removed all the slats and prepped the frame

I used my favorite rattle can paint that I've praised in the past (see rim restoration a few posts back). It covers so nicely and is super durable

I was going to buy new slats, but they priced out at about $70 for the set. I realized that I could just sand down the clear coat that's applied. An orbital sander did the trick to remove the pathetic thin coat of clear

Picked up some Minwax Ebony to darken up the slats a bit

And the rack reassembled with some brass hardware (subtle, but complimentary)

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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

An upholstery wheel wrap I made a few weeks ago:

Started with some nice, smooth to the touch upholstery material that I cut to size and had the edges finished (sewed)

Alot of hand stitching later...

Feels really good to the touch.
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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

Next project, to finally get those fog lights hooked up...just picked these up from Clay (thanks Clay!), can't wait till they ship!

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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

Hey all,

I still have an old transmission (see the free transaxle I got on page 1 of this thread), the one that I was told was rebuilt.

Is there a diagnostic I can run on the transmission (besides just putting it in the car) to confirm that it was in fact rebuilt, or at least to see if it has any major problems? Any visuals I can check, like what the gaskets will look like if their new? The tranny doesn't leak at all, that may be a good first sign

Thanks.
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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

Lights came in today...got the front and rear installed with some custom bracketry, the rears hooked up to the brake light by simply tapping off of the black wire in the tail light housing...thanks to this samba thread...http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=260178&highlight=

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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[Chalklinedetail]

Finally...with alot of help from VOLKSWAGNUT, I got my front fog light hooked up! Thanks VOLKSWAGNUT!

Helpful thread if you need to hook up a fog light:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=563189&highlight=
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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[ballbag]

Great thread dude, love the car and the work you've done.

I was considering putting some beauty rings on my 356 steels.
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I never learned that much at school, but i've taught ladies plenty!!

[Chalklinedetail]

[sportin-wood]

Just read your thread from the beginning. Nice work!
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Paused 66 project bug
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"Relax, all right? My old man is a television repairman. He's got this ultimate set of tools. I can fix it." --- Jeff Spicoli

[Chalklinedetail]

[Chalklinedetail]

Here's a little trick to modify day-night mirrors to fit.

Picked one up after wanting one for a while....came home to fit it up and here's what it looked like...

Took it apart and figured I'd run to tap plastics for a replacement...Notice I kept the rivets after drilling them out. We'll need these later...

Tap quoted me $25 for a single, $35 for two. I decided instead to find a piece from the scrap pile. It was $0.55, but when I said "do you take Visa" she just gave it to me! So here's what I did...

Made a pattern from the mirror

Rough trim with a peanut grinder and finished it off with a belt sander

Fitted up the bracket without acrylic. The new acrylic was just a few hairs thicker than the original, so I had to grind down the two tabs at top that engage the mirror, for clearance.

Dry fit the acrylic for hole locations...

Drilled out the rivet holes. The acrylic ended up being just a little bit over-sized in order for there to be a little bit of meat around the mounting holes.

I used the rivets removed earlier, de-burred drilled out end so they'd fit back through the holes, but left them a bit rough.

Mixed up some JB Weld, popped the rivets back in and back-filled the holes with the JB Weld mix via tooth pick. This actually looks great, better even than the original rivets did.

Here's the finished product!

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My 63 build thread - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520975&highlight=

[subgraphic]

Great thread!

[pdowty68]

I'd kill for your car as it was when you first got it. Minimal rust!