Fresh from Storage

[stevemariott]

After 15 years of storage, I brought my buggy home yesterday.

I built it when I was a kid, and I've managed to hang onto it, less the engine. I've got a 90% of the parts to put it back together, including a 1600 longblock and a pair of Kadrons. Still looking for a clean QP exhaust. Here we go!
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1963 Manx copy
1968 Bus

[Deh Shark]

Good start!!
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AH TIYAD AH DAT DEH BAI!!!
Organize folks are just to lazy to look for stuff!!

55 3 fold Ragtop
Manx Dune buggy 2387cc

[Dale M.]

Glad you finally got over your sickness....

Dale
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“Fear The Government That Wants To Take Your Guns" - Thomas Jefferson.

"Kellison Sand Piper Roadster" For Street & Show.
"Joe Pody Sandrover" Buggy with 2180 for Autocross (Sold)
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All suggestions and advice are purely my own opinion. You are free to ignore them if you wish ...

[stevemariott]

[Wolfgangdieter]

15 years in storage! Great condition looks like you were "a kid" just last year. You'll probably appreciate it more since you've aged a bit. I regret getting rid of many cars I used to have when I was younger - especially when I see their value today!
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CMC '57 Porsche Speedster Replica and Dolphin boat tailed full pan VW MOD-T Street Buggy

[Deh Shark]

Sweet!! Steve... Long time coming. I had mines since 2002 and ain't did anything till just recently.
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AH TIYAD AH DAT DEH BAI!!!
Organize folks are just to lazy to look for stuff!!

55 3 fold Ragtop
Manx Dune buggy 2387cc

[stevemariott]

So after months selling parts to buy parts, sanding, painting, and wrenching, I can post some progress. While working on my Manx is both a hobby and therapeutic for me, it’s nowhere near the top of my regular priority list, so any progress takes some time.

Since my last post in October, I decided to go through the brakes, fuel system, and wiring before I put it back on the road. I put this car together when I was 20 or 21 years old, and while I’m still proud of the body and paint work I did at the time, some of my wrenching skills as a kid were really not that great. That, and I wanted to make a handful of changes along the way.

Job #1 - rear brakes. First off, the teardown to see what I was dealing with.

Thank goodness for the torque tool - makes removing the axle nuts so much easier.

Left rear drum comes off, and . . . oily everything. Ugh.

Right rear drum comes off, and . . . more of the same. Greeeat.

Well, I figured I'd be putting some money into the rear brakes, so I knew where I had to begin.
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1963 Manx copy
1968 Bus

[stevemariott]

One change I had wanted to make was to swap out the short axles on the trans (that had come with my ’63 trans) for ’67 long axles and tubes - I had always wanted the rear wheels to stick out more. If I used ’67 axles and tubes, I should still be able to use my stock ’63 brake drums and backing plates.

I found a guy with a set of ’67 axles and tubes on Craigslist, and after I drove the 50 miles to his house, it turned out he had a set of type 3 axles and tubes - not exactly the same setup, as the splines on type 3 axles are longer than ’67 type 1 axles, and I wouldn’t be able to easily use my stock ’63 rear brakes with them. Not only that, but these particular tubes had the welded-on Z-bar brackets, and no brake line brackets. I was initially disappointed, but I picked them up anyway after he threw in a set of ’67 Type 1 axles along with the type 3 axles, tubes, and bearing caps for a reasonable price.

Type 3 axle tubes and bearing caps, pre-strip and paint:

Type 3 axles ('68 type 1 length) vs. '67 type 1 axles:

Type 3 / long axle bearing caps vs. early type 1 short axle bearing caps:

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1963 Manx copy
1968 Bus

[stevemariott]

Now that I had the axle parts, I could focus on making my brake parts work with them. New wheel cylinders, shoes, and hardware were in order.

One change I read that other Manx owners had done to improve front / rear braking bias was to swap the stock type 1 rear wheel cylinders to type 3 rear wheel cylinders. In preparation for this, I purchased a set of super beetle front wheel cylinders (same part #), and modified my type 1 backing plates to fit the super beetle wheel cylinders. This wasn’t difficult - I just had to file the wheel cylinder mounting hole a bit and the super beetle cylinders bolted right up.

At the same time, the type 3 bearing caps I’d be using would allow me to get rid of the “slingers” that went inside of the stock ’63 drums, so I used a gasket as a pattern to drill a weep hole in each of the backing plates.

The next step was to have my stock rear brake drums turned - I brought them down to the local Autozone, and found out that both of my brake drums were wasted! Ugh. This meant new drums. Skinny, stock rear drums. Why not upgrade to type 3 rear brakes to go with the type 3 wheel cylinders, axles, and tubes? Improved rear braking, and increased rear track width = a win / win situation.

I knew that type 3 wide 5 drums were available new, but the type 3 backing plates would be harder to find. I found a local guy on Craigslist that had a set on a complete type 3 swingaxle, so I traded him a handful of parts from my bin and picked up his rear backing plates, hardware, axle nuts, and e-brake cables for a reasonable price.

While digging around his parts stash, I also spotted a pair of early bus brake line clamps that fit on the axle tubes. I was stoked on this, as I hadn't located any on the samba classifieds, and it meant I wouldn't have to use Empi aluminum brake line clamps.

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1963 Manx copy
1968 Bus

[BL3Manx]

The other option beside Type 3 for long swingaxles with long splines is 1968 Type 1.

[manxdavid]

You probably know but if you're using long spline axles and short spline drums/hubs you'll need a 14mm spacer under the castellated nut.

http://www.mooreparts.com/spacer-for-early-vw-long-axle-using-short-splined-brake-rotors-drums/

[stevemariott]

[manxdavid]

Looking good, you won't regret going for Type 3 brakes.

[stevemariott]

[Skulptorchaz]

Lookin good Steve. You're right - good therapy. (I gotta have it. )

[stevemariott]

[stevemariott]

I was hoping that my front brakes would be in better shape than the rear brakes were. Years ago, I remember going through the front brakes to some degree, but I couldn't remember exactly what I had done. At the least, I had already purchased new wheel cylinders to install this time around. The drums come off . . .

Front left - no so bad! Front right . . .

Ugh . . . hard to see, but the shoes are a bit greasy and coming apart a bit.

As for the drums, I took them into the local shop to have them spec'd out, and surprise - they're junk, just like the rears. Great.

A few dollars later, I have new drums.

Something I had not considered, or even knew anything about, was installing new bearing races in the new drums. Fortunately, it seems like there are youtube clips for almost anything these days. A quick search, and I found the following clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2oLA6--fwQ

After watching the clip a couple of times, and looking at a manual to verify information, I felt confident enough to do it. How tough could it be?

A quick trip to the local O'Reilly, and I was able to rent a bearing race driver set. They charge your credit card the cost of the tool, and you have it for a day. Get it back in time, and you get your money back. I can't say I'd use a bearing race driver enough to warrant the cost of buying one, so I'm happy they offer the service.

As I was handing over my credit card, the guy at the counter said to me, "Installing bearing races? That's a job I definitely DON'T want to take on." It only took maybe 10 minutes to install races and seals in both drums, so maybe the guy misunderstood the job. Anyway . . .

New races:

Using the tool, you tap the race in . . .

. . . and there it is.

Turn the drum over, and second verse . . .

Is the same as the first. Easy enough. Packed my new wheel bearings with grease, installed the seals, and I was one step closer to finishing.

Months and months ago I had purchased a pair of beetle rear wheel cylinders to replace the stock front units. Like I had done on the rear, I dismantled the new wheel cylinders and prepped them with brake clean and new fluid before installing them. A quick shot of black paint keeps everything looking tidy.

New shoes and hardware:

After inspecting my old work from years ago, I think I had just pulled everything apart, stripped and refinished the backing plates, and threw it all back together, crusty parts and all. Nice job, 20 year-old me! Since I had everything apart already, I pulled the now-dingy looking backing plates once more, stripped them again, and painted them again. Might as well.

Moments later, I have all-new brakes on the front to match the all-new brakes on the rear.

Up next: Front wheels, tires, and a new fuel tank!
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1963 Manx copy
1968 Bus

[Q-Dog]

I use the old race to drive in the new race. I didn't even know there was a tool for that?
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Brian

'69 Dune Buggy
'69 Beetle Convertible
'70 Beetle

[stevemariott]

[SBD]

Buggy is lookin' good!
I bought one of these on sale 3 or 4 years ago. Works great for both races & seals. Glad I have it.
http://www.harborfreight.com/10-piece-bearing-race-and-seal-driver-set-95853.html
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"Just $99 down and $64 a month for 36 months buys you a brand new Volkswagen Beetle!"