San Diego 1963 Double Cab "Gustav"

[Lee Hedges]

In anticipation of restoring the pop-out windows I did some research on the forums to learn what others have done. I found that removing the hinge screws were tough, often rusted into the frames, and the frames themselves were tough to separate, again due to tiny screws that often were rusted. I also found a guy in the ads that took care of this process for me at a reasonable price using the original paint codes. Sounded great to me!

So I contacted Marc Hasse in Phoenix Arizona. He said he had a pair of frames that he could get started with, media-blasting & priming, then painting L345 Light Gray and that he'd buy the necessary seals from WW too. He shared a pic of the frames being painted in his shop.

I got to work removing the pop-out windows from the truck and (surprise surprise) two of the hinge screws on each side were rusted tight. Even the impact driver couldn't break them loose. So I punched them and drilled out the heads until the windows came out. I removed the latches and sent the windows off to Marc for $25.

Since the frames needed to be stripped, I got to work removing the old paint & rust along the lower edges. There were only a couple pin holes on the left side window frame, so I applied the rust-conversion chemicals and primed & painted the metal. Looking good again!

The Friday after Thanksgiving the box from Marc arrived. The restored pop-out windows were expertly packed & wrapped in paper to keep them from harm. He supplied new screws for the hinges & pop-out latch. They look fantastic & installed easily! Thank you, Marc for a job well-done!

[Lee Hedges]

Another Friday so that means more paint stripping. Today I started on the left gate that I bought from Northern California. Nasty work but important to get it stripped to bare metal & to know where all the little dings/dents are.

[Lee Hedges]

Friday after Thanksgiving I wasn't motivated like usual, owing to the full-belly & excess of quality craft beers last night. By noon I got myself outside and began work priming the left gate & stripping the right gate. By 4pm I'd finished both gates in primer, satisfied that I'd got another past another hurdle.

[Lee Hedges]

Sunday (after the Chargers came back from behind to beat the Ravens at home) I got some excitement to continue stripping the rust off the cargo bed. A combination of the drill-wirebrush with the DA orbital sander got a fourth of the bed cleaned-up & primed. My wife Kathe came out to inspect the work (and wonder what the noise was) and said "hey, that looks a lot better!". I'll take that small complement on a Sunday afternoon. I'm excited to finish the cargo bed so I can install the new wood slat set that's in the mail from Georgia.

[nlorntson]

[Lee Hedges]

Of course the new bed slat set (from Ken in Georgia) was delivered prior to the bed being finished. But I laid out the slats into their spaces to get an idea of how they look. I ordered unfinished & undrilled slats so I could mount them into their original holes. I also wanted to be able to reapply the stain/sealer over time with the same product he recommends (Australian Timber Oil, natural color from Cabot, available from Lowes or Ace Hardware). I ordered the stainless Philips-head screw set to make the removal process easier when it's time to reapply the stain/sealer. The quality of the ash slats is excellent and each has been sanded smooth with no rough edges.

I was unable to find the recommended Australian Timber Oil so I got the next best thing available Danish Oil by Watco from Home Depot. I used a soft cotton pad to apply the oil onto each slat, keeping it wet but not drippy. The oil applied smoothly & easily. Said to allow 30 minutes between the two coats then 72 hours before applying a urethane sealant.

[Lee Hedges]

One of the parts that was not included with the truck when I bought it was the spare tire, bracket, & wing nut. I researched this a bit and discovered that this wingnut & bracket were first introduced in the 1963 model year when the 1/3 & 2/3 front seats were introduced.

The wingnut is an 8mm with 1.25 pitch. The Bus middle seat clamp wingnuts are 10mm with 1.5 pitch. The Beetle "pope's nose" wingnuts are 6mm. So the 8mm seems to be difficult to find as an original part. So in order to have something that would work I bought an 8mm with 1.25 pitch wingnut from Home Depot for $0.50, in stainless steel (bottom pic).

The bracket that holds the spare tire down on the stud came in two styles. The thinner version was designed for the 15" wheels and the thicker version was fitted for 14" wheels. The thin version has two round mounting holes while the thick version has one round & one oval hole. Check out the photos of original parts to see the differences. I was able to buy the thin version for my 1963.

Still need to find a 15" 1960's rim for the missing spare tire that isn't $100 + shipping.

[Lee Hedges]

Saturday was mostly spent putting out our Christmas lights & decorations, so I got a late start on the truck bed. I got a bit more of the vertical wall done and a good section of the bed too. And just when I was applying the rust converter chemicals the postman delivered a nice large box of L345 Light Gray paint from WW. I'm really hoping this will be enough to finish the truck.

Tomorrow the Chargers don't play til 530pm so I've got the whole day to get the bed finished and the entire cargo area painted! Can't wait, as the bed stripping phase has been the nastiest task yet that has taken the most time.

[coolerthanelvis]

If you are feeling extra lazy, VW only primered the cargo area, at least for single cabs. I'm guessing that double cabs were the same. Paint would probably look better, tho.
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Shawn
SV2s member #420
'68 Westy

"Do or do not, there is no try."
-Silent Bob

[EverettB]

My '61 Double Cab is fully painted in the under-seat area, although I remember it being a little sparse in some areas.
The gas tank covers are primer.

Old pic of my dusty back seat area:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=1048969
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[squareweave]

[Lee Hedges]

I definitely plan to paint the cargo area and install the wood slat set to protect the paint. My 1963 cargo bed area, walls, & gates all had the original Tourquise paint underneath the red sprayed over it.

[Lee Hedges]

Sunday was the completion of the cargo area! What a relief! Stripping the vertical cargo wall was the most difficult place to get all the paint off. Laying on my back with the drill in my hands, grinding the last of the Turquoise paint. Painted the bed & vertical wall with the L345 Light Gray paint. And I got it all done today before the Chargers game vs the Patriots.

Next step will be to mark the holes in the wood slats and get them installed into the bed.

[Lee Hedges]

Since I reached a big milestone this weekend (completing the exterior stripping & painting) and it's been almost three months after I received the truck, I thought I'd share a before & after comparison. It's come a long way so far. I sure prefer trucks done in one color vs two-tone. The L345 Light Gray spray paint looks decent from a distance and it'll be suitable to keep in the neighborhood now without the neighbors complaining about an eyesore.

[chrismredsox1]

How about those Patriots!

[Big Bill]

Great job Lee, I like the approach you took for the DC. You now have a useful truck that you can actually use

[dawerks]

Nice work man! A little motivation from the better half always helps

Keeper' pinned eh!!
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"There is only one sin; disconnection from self."

[Lee Hedges]

I missed working on the truck on Friday (real job day) but I spent today finishing the wood slats in the bed. I drilled the 3/16" holes after carefully marking the original hole locations. Then I drilled a 1/2" half-hole just deep enough to hide the screw head. Then I applied two coats of urethane and waited a couple hours. During that time I went to Home Depot to buy #12 x 1.5" stainless screws with a flat beveled head. I had discovered that the #10 screws included with the slats were too small to hold the slats into the holes. And there were only a couple of times that I needed to lengthen the holes in the bed to allow the screws to mount.

I applied rings of clear silicon sealer on the bed around the holes then tightened the screws into the holes. When they were tightened-down, I applied silicon over the screws to make them water-tight. The slats came out great and it definitely makes the cargo area that much more authentic.

[BulliBill]

Awesome Lee!

Bill
_________________
I'm looking for these license plate frames for my fleet:
Coeur D'Alene - Lake Shore Volkswagen
Mission VW - San Fernando
Thornton VW - Stockton

Thanks for any help!

[norcalmike]

Great job. I love the wood.
Sorry if I missed it but how many paint cans did you end up using?