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Mon Mar 30, 2015 8:11 am

Stuartzickefoose wrote: Hankook makes a great load rated tire, the RA08.

He has 15" rims, and they do make a RA08 for 15" rims, but they are not for sale in the US sadly. Nice work on the hubcaps, I want to find out if all commercial buses had the white logos because my 61 has one grey hubcap and it has no logo painted white.

Mon Mar 30, 2015 9:25 am

Red Fau Veh wrote: Stuartzickefoose wrote: Hankook makes a great load rated tire, the RA08.

He has 15" rims, and they do make a RA08 for 15" rims, but they are not for sale in the US sadly. Nice work on the hubcaps, I want to find out if all commercial buses had the white logos because my 61 has one grey hubcap and it has no logo painted white.

All up to a certain year (through 1963)

From the hubcap painting thread in the Bus FAQ

Edit: I just realized they don't list the Truck model #s above but as far as I know there is no difference for Trucks.

You can see painted logos for 61 and 63 here in these press photos
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/pressphotos/

Fri Apr 10, 2015 3:55 pm

Another Friday so it's time for more work. Since the front cab was looking good I decided to work on the rear cab. I stripped the rear seats, pedestal, & cargo mat pieces.

First I cleaned the entire cab with Simple Green and primed it. Next I applied the L345 Light Gray paint. The divider panel came out really nice, then I ran out of the paint and had to order more from WW. Tomorrow the WW box will arrive and I'll finish priming/painting it.

Sat Apr 11, 2015 9:28 am

Lee, my fellow Charger fan, your DC is coming along. I decided to paint mine a lil different. I call her my "Fauxtina"!!!!! Keep up the good work!!!

Sat Apr 11, 2015 9:50 am

Rastaguam - what paint did you use on the DC?

Sat Apr 11, 2015 1:46 pm

Very nice to see a different style of restoration, Rastaguam! I bet it gets LOTS of looks rolling down the road.

Today the WW box was delivered by noon so I got to work painting the rear cab L345 Light Gray. The blue painter's tape unfortunately pulled a bit of the original headlining boards off (I should have anticipated that!), but the solid Light Gray looks fantastic. Next step is to strip & paint the rear seat pedestal. I've ordered the rear cab panels from Clara but they are 3-5 weeks back-ordered.

Sat Apr 18, 2015 1:41 pm

The rear cab panels from Clara were delivered on Friday but I was working up in LA so the installation had to wait for the weekend. I have to comment that Clara's packing & preparation of the panels is top-notch! Gets my highest recommendation!

There were three gray panels for the rear cab area. The door panel went on first, then the small inner right panel, then the large left panel. I did a much better job of installing these than I did the first time with the front cab panels. Entire job took about an hour.

Next I stripped the rear seat pedestal, primed & painted it L345 Light Gray to match the rest of the truck. Bolted down the pedestal with the three wingnut bolts, and installed the seats. What a fantastic difference the truck interior is to be painted all Light Gray and have beautiful stock interior panels! Can't wait to go for a ride!

Sun Apr 19, 2015 1:09 am

wow I am so glad to find this thread I love pickup owning a 65 SC our next purchase will be a dc to help in family business

your pickup is inspiring can we have a update of exterior pics now with all the trim and paint inside must be ready for roadworthy ?

Thu Apr 23, 2015 7:35 pm

As requested, here are the current exterior photos, as of mid-April. Still need to get the windshields & rear window installed. Not registered yet, engine not built yet, electrical not sorted yet, seat upholstery not done yet.

Fri Apr 24, 2015 8:35 am

Sheesh! Isn't your finger sore from all that spray-canning? Do you still have your killer Deluxe?

Fri Apr 24, 2015 11:58 am

BarryL wrote: Sheesh! Isn't your finger sore from all that spray-canning? Do you still have your killer Deluxe?

You don't have one of these?

Fri Apr 24, 2015 12:13 pm

The process of stripping panels, priming, & painting has been a long one, working on one panel at a time over several days. I've used the spray can sprayers and didn't like the lack of control vs spraying the old fashioned way. I've been through about 20 cans so far at a cost of $260 in my attempt to get the truck in one solid color. It's a temporary solution until I'm able to get the metal welding process done & get it professionally painted. With my 1st daughter's wedding in August (big bucks!), it's going to take longer than anticipated to get the truck dome.

In addition to the truck, our collection includes three T34s (1962 Cabriolet, 1965 RHD Sunroof, & 1968 Automatic Sunroof) & my daughter's Sea Blue 1964 Beetle. "Friedrich", our Turquoise 1964 Deluxe Microbus was sold in the late-90's to help pay for our first home.

Mon Apr 27, 2015 12:25 pm

The rusty original headlights were looking at me as I entered the garage, so I decided to disassemble them and clean them up. Looked like they'd been repainted before. There was surface rust & flaking paint on the main bulb holders (with the parking light). I'd researched the right color for the 1963 truck and found the Rustoleum Stone Gray satin-finish spray paint for $4/can at Home Depot. I sanded down the many parts, primed, & painted them over the weekend.

Once the lights were disassembled, I found a couple of the small parts were broken. There's a C-clip & rubber seal that secures the headlight bracket to the metal ring that has a round stud at the top. Anyone have a source for the C-clip & seal? I tried WW but they have neither.

And here's the reassembled headlight back on the truck. I'm not sure if I like the mix of grays (Stone Gray & Light Gray). Bits coming from EDragnDean, thank you! Some more bits expected from WW tomorrow.

Mon Apr 27, 2015 1:14 pm

Lee PM me for a set of seals. I have some rubber washers that I used on mine.

Tue Apr 28, 2015 3:24 pm

Reassembled the painted parts with the fresh parts from Wolfsburg West & the seals from Dean. Connected the parking lights & headlights and both worked just fine.

Not sure why there are three spade connections for the parking light. Anyone know? I connected the parking light power wire to the main spade directly off the light bulb.

Here are the detailed pics.

Wed Apr 29, 2015 10:55 am

Trying to discover if I've got authentic headlights for the Oct 1962 truck or not. I could use your help.

LENS: SB19 SB20 SB21 lenses with Hella logo were fitted to late-1963 through early-1980's. This is what I have fitted now. But the authentic ones for the late-62 should be the E1.0671.01 lenses with either Hella (on top) or VW logos that were fitted from 1956 through 1963. Additionally the 25484 lenses were fitted from 1959 through 1963. Looking at the ads I've seen the SB19-21 lenses listed as authentic for 1961-67. Which is the right date range for these lenses?

RINGS: I have the 5 & 7 o'clock rings fitted now. I couldn't find anything on the Forum about authenticity vs the "later model rings using the opposite adjustment screws".

Sounds like I should be on the lookout for a pair of the E1.0671.01 or 25484 lenses. Anyone have a spare set (or want to trade for the SB19-21 lenses)?

Wed Apr 29, 2015 10:09 pm

You absolutely should have E1 lenses for a USA truck in 1962.

My 7/63 Bus has the original headlights. They are still the E1 lenses even for that date.
Your screws are in the correct locations.

Pics
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=1073017
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=1073016
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=1073014
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=1073015

Thu Apr 30, 2015 9:22 am

Thanks Everett for the confirmation of the rings & lenses. Now I'm on the hunt for a pair of the E1 lenses.

Thu Apr 30, 2015 8:17 pm

One of the extras I've been wanting to add to the truck are dual engine compartment lights, in case of breakdown at night. I could have used them on our 1964 Deluxe Microbus in Baja California when the engine stopped, forcing us to wait until the next day to work on it.

I'd researched the right way to do this task on the Forums. I bought three original dome light bases, an original bakelite VW logo'd in-line fuse from the ads. I bought two repro lenses & fresh 12V bulbs from WW. Today I bought the 3M sticky pads to hold the wires in-place. I installed fresh wire from the B+ on the voltage regulator to the first switch. Tonight at dusk I tested the switch with the original cover ON and then OFF to see if there was a significant decrease with the cover in-place. I'd prefer to have them covered, as they are inside the cab.

Here are the two images, covered & uncovered. The uncovered has slightly less light but not enough in my opinion to consider LED bulbs (in the ads). Tomorrow I plan to mount the second switch and get the wiring all dialed into place.

Fri May 01, 2015 9:54 pm

Very much enjoyed reading this entire thread, your DC looks really nice so far for a temp job!

I'm looking to do a temp resto on my 74 Brazilian Split until I have the $$ to get her painted professionally. Can you tell me exactly what paint you are using with a link to the product?