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Thu May 26, 2016 7:32 am

Hi Lee - I'm a little late to the party here but have just enjoyed reading this thread - it's a little under a year since the last post - has there been any progress?

Did you find cab door escutcheons?
Did you resolve the passenger door handle issue?
Any pictures of using it for family outings?
Any metal work happened yet?

Cheers,

Dave

Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:12 am

As is typical with life ... things got in the way of the truck restoration work. Since my last post (three years ago) we relocated from Sabre Springs to north Poway. Bought a 1.25 acre home with space to build my dream workshop. Spent two years building the 1400 sq ft workshop with space for 9 vehicles. In 2017 I bought the world's oldest T34 in Arizona which changed my focus for a while. Then in Feb 2018 I bought an unrestored Gulf Blue 1963 Variant with 60K-miles and have spent my spare time getting it cleaned-up & reliable. The truck was moved into the workshop & patiently waited for the Variant to be completed.

Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:30 am

In October 2018 I decided to focus on getting the truck driving. It had been parked outside the workshop for a year and the left-front brake drum had rusted onto the shoes preventing me from rolling it. My long-time buddy Jason Weigel came by and broke the rusty drum loose and we were able to push it into the workshop.

The engine was dropped so it could be rebuilt. The engine that came with the truck is a Feb 1961 Beetle motor. I'd found an Oct62 case that matched the VIN range so the truck would be authentic. Another buddy Gary Haughley (B&R Buggies) came over to help me drop the motor. Then my daughter Tessa (11) helped to break the motor down. Fun times!

Wed Oct 24, 2018 10:36 am

The plan for the engine is to make it look stock but have more power than the original 1200cc 40hp one. Buddy Ron Smith has built many motors for our San Diego group so I reached-out to him for his advice. He suggested we build the Oct 1962 40hp case with the original 64mm crank & install the Big Bore kit from Wolfsburg West to give the desired result. Going to give the 1.25 ratio rockers a try for a bit better breathing. Power will feel like a 1500cc which is great for my needs as a shop truck. Original air cleaner, manifold, heads, tin, & exhaust will be used.

Wed Oct 24, 2018 5:37 pm

Cool. I have a 1500cc in my '61 Truck.
If it has the same power it will feel really peppy around town

Thu Nov 01, 2018 2:09 pm

Saw this beast today...sweet rig, excited to see it hit the road again soon! Nice to meet you Lee!

Sun Nov 18, 2018 2:13 pm

Update from Ron Smith today on the engine build. The case work was done & the WW big bore kit went together smoothly. The heads were rebuilt and have a 8.0:1 compression, perfect for the type of driving I do. When he assembled the heads to the long block he was able to confirm the original 40hp intake manifold would fit. Very nicely done!

Sun Nov 18, 2018 2:19 pm

i think the 1,25 ratio rockers are going to make the difference. I had a stock 40hp motor with ratio rockers in my 59 beetle. ran like champ. could wind it to 65mph (speedometer) in third, cruise at 80mph all day, and hit 100mph (speedometer) down hill. i bet you will love 3rd.

Fri Nov 23, 2018 8:13 pm

Heard from Ron today that the longblock was finished! Ratio is at 8.0:1which should allow me to run quality gasoline & get the most from this 1385cc engine. Pedro dropped the tin parts off at his trusted powdercoating shop. Can't wait to put the freshly powdercoated tin pieces back on in a week & get it running.

Fri Nov 23, 2018 8:36 pm

Looking good Lee 😊👍

Fri Nov 23, 2018 9:29 pm

I missed the recent updates, Lee. The garage/shop looks great! In my first VW, a 63 bug, I rebuilt the 40 horse with the 83 mm cylinders. Even with a stock intake and 28PICT carb the difference was amazing.

So now 2 years later, and with the single cab living outside, how is the spray can paint holding up?

Sat Nov 24, 2018 11:53 am

Lee Hedges wrote: Buddy Ron Smith has built many motors for our San Diego group
Can you tell more about him?

Sun Nov 25, 2018 1:21 pm

The intent of the spray paint in 2015 was to change the nasty body look into a clean smooth one. It was never intended to be a final paint job, just a placeholder while the work was going on. Surprisingly the spray paint has stood-up to time with no issues. It has not flaked-off and despite being stored outside under an overhead shade cover, it looks the same as it did when it was applied.

If you want to talk about Ron Smith, please call me at 760 845 8447. He's a local San Diego guy that has decades of experience with VW motors and is our "three amigos" go-to source for engine builds.

Sun Nov 25, 2018 4:19 pm

Lee Hedges wrote:
If you want to talk about Ron Smith, please call me at 760 845 8447. He's a local San Diego guy that has decades of experience with VW motors and is our "three amigos" go-to source for engine builds.

I did not know we had any reliable engine builders in SD County. This is good news.

Wed Dec 19, 2018 2:48 pm

December is here and Christmas is only a few days away. I wish all our Samba friends a very Merry Christmas with their family & friends. 2018 has been a great year for me: bought 1963 Variant, many events around Southern California, & continuing our restoration of this 1963 Double Cab truck.

After the engine was disassembled & the long block rebuilt, the engine tin went off to the powder coater (Quality PowderCoating in Chula Vista). They baked the parts for two days to remove all the residue, then sandblasted the parts, and finally powdercoated them in semi-gloss black color. Thanks to my long-time amigo Pedro Sainz for his help with this process.

Tue Dec 25, 2018 5:25 pm

One of the parts that did not come with my truck was the original engine & air cleaner. So I bought an early 1960 one and decided to restore it. I had the snorkel & bracket pieces powdercoated. But the two-piece oil bath & three brackets I did myself. Stripped them on a wire wheel & painted them gloss black. The brackets were stripped & clearcoated. Since I couldn't find a decal I decided to use one that I'd reproduced for the 1964-65 Type 3 models. Fits great and comes in four languages too.

Tue Dec 25, 2018 5:34 pm

Nice work Lee 😊

Tue Dec 25, 2018 6:28 pm

Great looking double ,its the right color to! lol I have the big bore in my 40 hp to. I have a stock squish (comp ratio) , valves and modded valve pockets. Air cooled lawn mowers had a better factory exhaust port design. But with a bit of work they cleaned up nicely, and I'm sure it will cool better . Im interested to know just how your's will run with the higher compression ratio. Keep up the good work,awesome double man!!

Sun Dec 30, 2018 8:19 pm

With the longblock built & the engine tin set powdercoated it was time today to complete as much of the assembly process as possible. My best buddy Pedro Sainz volunteered to help me with getting things done right. We began at 9am when the workshop was a chilly 35F. Laid-out all the parts on a blanket to keep things organized and got to work. Pedro said he had not worked on a upright engine since 1981, thirty-seven years ago! By 2pm we'd completed as much as we could. Made a list of items to search for & additional painting to do. Next week should be the final session.

I was fortunate to be able to recycle many of the original parts from the old motor. German oil pressure switch, generator & regulator, oil filler & stand, oil cooler, 28 PICT carb, and the large hoop dipstick. These all got cleaned & painted if needed. Other parts I had to buy including an NOS early intake which was repainted Light Gray L345 to match the truck's exterior. The grimy engine compartment was also stripped & painted & new seals fitted.

A freshly rebuilt fuel pump (Dec64) dropped into place, a black 6V coil installed, and a fresh set of Bosch plug wires were threaded through the two-hole rubber holders fitted to the fan shroud. Pretty cool design! I cleaned-up the German 6-spring clutch & pressure disk and everything went together pretty easily.

Next step is to find the metal tubes for the vacuum line & carb line, accelerator return spring set, fan belt, & the paper hose connecting the air cleaner to the heater box. I've got a freshly restored 4R2 distributor being sent from Tim, my trusted source.

Sun Dec 30, 2018 10:25 pm

Looking good!