TheSamba.com :: View topic - Remove beetle body by yourself and still have it be rolling?

Sat Jan 02, 2010 5:19 pm

Id like to devise a way to remove the body of my bettle, by myself and be able to roll it afterwards. Theres plenty of instructionals on doing it by yourself but the body remains on blocks or sawhorses afterwards. Theres got to be a solution with either camper jacks or something like that that can be used to do this.

Sat Jan 02, 2010 5:21 pm

Moving carts attached to your sawhorses?

Sat Jan 02, 2010 5:24 pm

Yeah you just described a camper jack and Im thinking this is the way to go

Sat Jan 02, 2010 5:39 pm

D_M_S wrote: Id like to devise a way to remove the body of my bettle, by myself and be able to roll it afterwards. Theres plenty of instructionals on doing it by yourself but the body remains on blocks or sawhorses afterwards. Theres got to be a solution with either camper jacks or something like that that can be used to do this.

I removed 73 Super body single handed. Raised body, dragged chassis out from under.

Here is pic of body (bare metal, straight from media blast before primer)on movable cart at body shop.

Sat Jan 02, 2010 7:43 pm

Detroit73super wrote: D_M_S wrote: Id like to devise a way to remove the body of my bettle, by myself and be able to roll it afterwards. Theres plenty of instructionals on doing it by yourself but the body remains on blocks or sawhorses afterwards. Theres got to be a solution with either camper jacks or something like that that can be used to do this.

I removed 73 Super body single handed. Raised body, dragged chassis out from under.

Here is pic of body (bare metal, straight from media blast before primer)on movable cart at body shop.

I've built a similar roller frame for my Beetles & buggy bodies -

Hard part is that the chassis/pan from a Super Beetle doesn't roll around like a Beetle chassis/pan does, unless you tie the Super's top strut mounts together & create some angle braces to keep the struts up...

bnc

Sat Jan 02, 2010 7:49 pm

Hard part is that the chassis/pan from a Super Beetle doesn't roll around like a Beetle chassis/pan does, unless you tie the Super's top strut mounts together & create some angle braces to keep the struts up...

bnc[/quote]

Or just build a much smaller version of the above or a furniture dolly for the front only or entire pan if rear is stripped.That's what I did for mine and chances are that if you are pulling the body off a super, you're removing the struts for new inserts, lowering, disc brake conversion, etc. but yeah, not quite as easy to roll the chassis around such as a standard. Supers are still way cooler though 8)

hard to tell in this pic, but there is a furniture dolly under the front pan head, allowing me to roll chassis around.

Sat Jan 02, 2010 8:48 pm

didget69 wrote:
Hard part is that the chassis/pan from a Super Beetle doesn't roll around like a Beetle chassis/pan does, unless you tie the Super's top strut mounts together & create some angle braces to keep the struts up...

You assume it's a Super, I bet it's a standard because he's using the pan to build a speedster.

To the original poster, a wood dolly like the one pictured above is your best bet. Cheap and easy to build. If you need to move it on uneven ground, get bigger wheels.

-jeffrey

Sat Jan 02, 2010 8:49 pm

Detroit73super wrote:

Or just build a much smaller version of the above or a furniture dolly for the front only or entire pan if rear is stripped.That's what I did for mine and chances are that if you are pulling the body off a super, you're removing the struts for new inserts, lowering, disc brake conversion, etc. but yeah, not quite as easy to roll the chassis around such as a standard. Supers are still way cooler though 8)

hard to tell in this pic, but there is a furniture dolly under the front pan head, allowing me to roll chassis around.

Don't know 'bout Supers being cooler, even though I do have a '71 Super convertible...

bnc

Sat Jan 02, 2010 9:25 pm

jhicken wrote: didget69 wrote:
Hard part is that the chassis/pan from a Super Beetle doesn't roll around like a Beetle chassis/pan does, unless you tie the Super's top strut mounts together & create some angle braces to keep the struts up...

You assume it's a Super, I bet it's a standard because he's using the pan to build a speedster.

To the original poster, a wood dolly like the one pictured above is your best bet. Cheap and easy to build. If you need to move it on uneven ground, get bigger wheels.

-jeffrey

I was replying to didget69 comment about super chassis.

Sun Jan 03, 2010 12:37 pm

jhicken wrote: didget69 wrote:
Hard part is that the chassis/pan from a Super Beetle doesn't roll around like a Beetle chassis/pan does, unless you tie the Super's top strut mounts together & create some angle braces to keep the struts up...

You assume it's a Super, I bet it's a standard because he's using the pan to build a speedster.

To the original poster, a wood dolly like the one pictured above is your best bet. Cheap and easy to build. If you need to move it on uneven ground, get bigger wheels.

-jeffrey

Clicky-heart for you today Jeffy for pointing out the pan info!

bnc

Tue Dec 02, 2014 7:03 pm

How long it could take to remove the body? because I plan to put air bags!

Wed Dec 03, 2014 5:00 am

I made a 2-wheel cart to sit body on(after underneath done) I could move around by hand or pull outside with mower if I decided to do the dusty sanding & less inside mess. I removed/replaced all the bodies by myself. Body removal was my own method of raising ends up a bit at at a time until chass would roll out.

Wed Dec 03, 2014 5:41 am

here's my dolly using boat trailer type wheels at the corners. it also can be flipped on its side:

I put the pan on 4 individual wheel dollies, had my son's friends lift the body and another guy pulled on the straps tied to the pan and out it came, then set the body down.

here it is just before pulling the bottom out:

Wed Dec 03, 2014 7:55 am

goualon69 wrote: How long it could take to remove the body? because I plan to put air bags!

It could take forever.

Wed Dec 03, 2014 10:03 am

Volks Wagen wrote: goualon69 wrote: How long it could take to remove the body? because I plan to put air bags!

It could take forever.

it only seems like forever :lol:

especially if you include stripping the body shell to nothing, no doors, glass, wiring, etc.

But just to unbolt the body to pan bolts and get it off is easily a less than one day job if you plan it out. Probably a bunch of bolts will shear off and stuff, so if you plan to fix all that as you go it ads time too. I'm not including trips to the ER for any crushed limbs or amputations. :shock: