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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2013 2:59 pm Post subject: SCRAF 1968 body off restore |
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Hi all,
Starting this thread to document the restore of my '68 bug.
Been a lifelong Beetle lover, had my first one [a Baja] at 14, learned to drive in it. Its now at the bottom of my parents garden and will be given the treatment once this one is finished.
I learned everything I know from my Dad, who can turn his hand to anything that needs to be done. Most important lesson: you can do anything you put your mind to. And short employment in a couple of garages when I was a much younger man. Been a long time since I picked up a welder.
Now I have a house and some space I can get to work.
Picked up a compressor:
Stripping:
Luckily I have a garage to store my bits:
Moved it round the back of the house onto the patio and under gazebo:
engine out, doors off etc:
Braced body:
Patches patched to patches and rust beyond rust - think this would have been destined for the scrap heap depending on who got it next. 15 Dremmel cutting discs and a bit of heavy duty persuasion... and...
LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL!
Hope to get some saw horses made and raise the body off tomorrow.
Jim |
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Glenn Mr. 010
Joined: December 25, 2001 Posts: 76760 Location: Sneaking up behind you
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Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2013 3:04 pm Post subject: |
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Nice... keep the pictures coming. _________________ Glenn
74 Beetle Specs | 74 Beetle Restoration | 2180cc Engine
"You may not get what you pay for, but you always pay for what you get"
Member #1009
#BlueSquare |
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2013 3:05 pm Post subject: |
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Modified the washer switch with the button for the electric pump so that I don't have to have another hole in the dash:
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james74sb Samba Member
Joined: May 04, 2013 Posts: 73 Location: Saint Albans,WV
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Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2013 3:30 pm Post subject: |
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Looks like you are off to a great start! Lovely to see another bug saved from the breakers yard.Keep up the good work! |
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 7:47 am Post subject: |
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One saw horse just about done. its a little high at just over 3ft but I can always make it shorter.
Will add a brace between the legs and close to the ground.
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2013 12:19 am Post subject: |
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A little help from the missus and the body is off.
Now the repairs can begin. Heater channels first. |
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Cage44 Samba Member
Joined: January 16, 2012 Posts: 197 Location: Robinson Ranch, CA
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Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2013 7:45 am Post subject: |
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SCRAF - Keep up the good work. I am in the middle of my resto on a 68...looking forward to your progress and looking at a right hand drive 68. I already noticed a few differences that were cool (other than the steering wheel of course). Keep the pics coming!
Cage44 _________________ '68 Bug
Build thread http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5...p;start=20 |
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2013 7:47 am Post subject: |
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1st channel is out:
Lots of making good to do in this corner before I can think about getting the new channel in. Time to order some [badly fitting] repair panels.
Must have been half an inch of filler at the bottom of this panel... |
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2013 7:51 am Post subject: |
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When I say this is a 'resto', it is but I'm not building a show car here btw, this will be driven [just about] daily when its done. |
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2013 7:54 am Post subject: |
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Cage44 wrote: |
SCRAF - Keep up the good work. I am in the middle of my resto on a 68...looking forward to your progress and looking at a right hand drive 68. I already noticed a few differences that were cool (other than the steering wheel of course). Keep the pics coming!
Cage44 |
Thanks for the encouragement Cage, how long have you been at yours? People keep asking me how long I think this will take me and I have no idea! Do you have a thread somewhere of your progress?
Cheers,
Jim |
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djkeev Samba Moderator
Joined: September 30, 2007 Posts: 32433 Location: Reading Pennsylvania
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Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2013 8:04 am Post subject: |
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SCRAF wrote: |
Cage44 wrote: |
SCRAF - Keep up the good work. I am in the middle of my resto on a 68...looking forward to your progress and looking at a right hand drive 68. I already noticed a few differences that were cool (other than the steering wheel of course). Keep the pics coming!
Cage44 |
Thanks for the encouragement Cage, how long have you been at yours? People keep asking me how long I think this will take me and I have no idea! Do you have a thread somewhere of your progress?
Cheers,
Jim |
I found that the actual rust removal and repair panel installation along with paint progressed quickly. The real time sink was all of the little details putting the unit back together!
You will find that making poor repair panels fit becomes easier once you've installed a few! A little snip, a little heat, a few swings with a BFH and viola'! Done!
Sourcing little bits needed, adjusting items, repairing items, lubricating things, etc. all sucked up and continue to suck up countless hours.
Mine is just shy of 2 years........
Dave _________________ Stop Dead Photo Links how to post photos
Ghia
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473
Vanagon
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6315537#6315537
Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert
Last edited by djkeev on Sun Jun 09, 2013 9:20 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Cage44 Samba Member
Joined: January 16, 2012 Posts: 197 Location: Robinson Ranch, CA
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Mon Jun 24, 2013 10:45 am Post subject: |
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One long weekend and massive help from my Dad and the channels are in along with a couple of quarter panels.
Like I said, this is no show car. Some filler and graft, I hope, will cover those seams once I'm done. There will certainly be much less filler than there was before!
Once I have the quarters on the other side sorted out I will have a solid base to begin the rest of bodywork.
Feeling pretty enthusiastic about it at the moment. Hope the doors will fit when I put it back together... |
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bandi Samba Member
Joined: August 24, 2005 Posts: 1063 Location: Campbellford, Ontario, Canada
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Posted: Mon Jun 24, 2013 6:17 pm Post subject: |
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SCRAF wrote: |
Modified the washer switch with the button for the electric pump so that I don't have to have another hole in the dash:
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You just automatically won at everything. This is brilliant. _________________ '60 Canadian Standard, '64 Bug, another '64 Bug, '66 Bug, '69 Sunroof Bug, '69 GT3 Bug, '71 Super, '72 Super, '73 Canadian Custom, '74 Love Bug, '83 Mexi Bug, '85 Cabrio, '94 Mexi Bug, '99 New Beetle, '02 New Beetle Turbo S, '03 New Beetle VR6. And some Fieros. |
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Tue Jun 25, 2013 12:38 am Post subject: |
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Thanks Bandi! What do I win? Hope it doesn't foul on anything when I go to put it back in. |
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Hyperspace Samba Member
Joined: January 03, 2013 Posts: 1166 Location: South Africa
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TryToBeOriginal Samba Member
Joined: July 23, 2012 Posts: 266 Location: Georgetown, Texas
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Posted: Tue Jun 25, 2013 6:35 am Post subject: |
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SCRAF wrote: |
One long weekend and massive help from my Dad and the channels are in along with a couple of quarter panels.
Like I said, this is no show car. Some filler and graft, I hope, will cover those seams once I'm done. There will certainly be much less filler than there was before!
Once I have the quarters on the other side sorted out I will have a solid base to begin the rest of bodywork.
Feeling pretty enthusiastic about it at the moment. Hope the doors will fit when I put it back together... |
Do you happen to have any pictures of the process it took to replace that back corner under the wheel well? I have the same rust on my 69' but It just looks so bad and there is so many layers of metal from bad patches from my PO I don't know what is original and what is not. I've been watching build threads on here hoping someone would have the same problem. |
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SCRAF Samba Member
Joined: December 16, 2012 Posts: 137 Location: UK
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Posted: Tue Jun 25, 2013 8:35 am Post subject: |
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Is the heater channel good? The bottom corner of the body work was cut out and a replacement panel cut to size and welded over the top BUT only once the heater channel was replaced to have something good to weld to. The fit is good enough but it will need work to get looking decent.
Like you I have so many layers of bad repairs over the years. It wasn't really viable to do anything other than cut the whole lot out and replace it.
It is a lot quicker and easier to cut out the bad all the way back to good metal and replace than try to patch and weld to crap rusty metal.
I think that mine would have been in the scrapyard if I wasn't prepared to take the body off and get the welder out. |
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TryToBeOriginal Samba Member
Joined: July 23, 2012 Posts: 266 Location: Georgetown, Texas
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Posted: Tue Jun 25, 2013 9:25 am Post subject: |
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No mine looks just like yours. I already removed the heater channel but that corner is gone along with part of the parcel shelf and rear wheel wells. My only problem is I only have a flux core welder and don't have a 240v plug in my garage. |
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NewTechnicIan Samba Member
Joined: May 28, 2013 Posts: 367 Location: Burlington, VT
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Posted: Tue Jun 25, 2013 11:10 am Post subject: |
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Hey SCRAF,
That rear wheel well looks like both of mine as well! That and my heater channels are gone and some front end wheel well issues as well. I just got the car off the frame this past weekend so the body repairs are coming up quick.
What panels/parts did you buy from which sources to do your repairs? Did they fit well/feel like real metal and not tinfoil?
I only get to work on my bug a day a weekend maybe and if I don't have what I need, I'm stuck waiting again, so thanks for any help!
I'm working on a 73 but the 68 looks great.
Ian |
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