1960 Double Door Panel

[OTO X58]

We just traded our 1958 Chevy for this Panel about 3 weeks ago. Even though my wife loves the Bus, she really misses the Chevy. But it went to a great guy, who has great plans for it. I'm just dreading the day that we see it at a local car show, because she's going to be pissed at me for not fixing it up for her like that!

The bus was driven on the last Shasta Snow Trip by Jason, which is why it's got the knobby tires and Bice bumper on it, and a "Shasta snowtrip" badge on the back! It's also got a Bay Window bus beam on it, which I was told makes it sit up a bit higher. When I first saw this bus, I was thinking that it needed to be lowered immediately.... but it's really grown on me. At this point, I wouldn't dream of lowering it!

The engine is a 1776 with dual Kadrons, and it runs pretty well. It's got a baywindow rear seat in it, some ugly linoleum on the rear floor, a few decent looking homemade wooden panels on the interior, and the only real rust I have found is in the rain gutters. They were slathered with body filler, so I've got to grind all that out with a wire wheel and weld in metal wherever it needs it. The gutters themselves have rotten clear away where the feet of a roof rack used to sit.

Even though it's supposed to be really cool, I really dont' like the Bice bumper. I am trying to decide if I want to sell it and get a pair of stock overrider bumpers (my M code plate says that's what it came with. Code 360, overriders and front blinkers.) Or maybe get a pair of fiberglass pressed bumpers. I love the look of pressed bumpers, but I know they're not correct on this bus.

Eventually, I'd also love to paint it PGSG, even though it should be all Grey. I think a PGSG bus, raised with knobby tires, would be awesome. I'd love to add front and rear Hurst bumpers....and raise it some more with banana plates and an adjustable raised beam...maybe a Subaru engine conversion like I have on my 58 Bug... and on and on... I've got more ideas than I'll ever have time or money to do a quarter of them. So don't worry.


For now though, first thing is to tackle the rain gutter rust, and repair the driver's side rear quarter panel. I guess the bus had been t-boned at some time in its life, and it shows in the cargo door frame. I'll get more detailed pics of the problem areas, because I need advice on how to repair it. I have some general autobody experience (even took two semesters at the JC back in the day), but I'd like the advice from people who know buses. Does Gerson or anyone else make repair panels for the driver's quarter panel of a double door?

Please let me know any thoughts, opinions, insults, suggestions, or anything else that pops into your head. And I'll work on getting some more detailed pictures of things I have questions about.

[OTO X58]

I almost forgot to add this. Last weekend, we took it on our first family camping trip. I have to admit, I have NEVER been a bus guy. I've literally mocked buses in the past. Heavily. And gleefully blown past caravans of buses on the way to car shows, in my 2270 type4 powered Ghia going 100mph+.


But I got a glimpse of the joy that vintage buses can be on this trip.

In order to camp in it, I built this little coffee-table sized platform to hold up the front of our futon mattress, then folded the Baywindow full length rear seat down. It didn't want to lay flat, but with the coaxing of a ratchet strap,the cushions compressed enough to make it work out great:

It's obviously not very refined, but it worked great. I liked being able to stash all our camping stuff underneath the platform. And we loved being able to use our futon mattress instead of a foam mattress. I think I will make a new platform out of bent emt conduit, which can bolt down to the front seat mounting bolts, so that it's bolted down while driving and out of the way of the rear passengers. Cheap and effective.

My daughter is only 2, so she had plenty of room on the front bench. But a child's cot might be going up in the near future:

And here's the baby waking up to the sunrise over the lake:

[JonAllenRizzo]

Looks great, I love the double door buses...

Here is mine, I have a early bay window camper kit in the back.

I like your plans/dreams for the bus except the subaru conversion. PS/SG is a great combo, and i agree on some busses the Bice bumpers look heavy. and to much.
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1985 Sunroof Vanagon

[mg6770]

[Sidbus]

Great pics. Enjoy the camping. I just got home and found two safari windows (the macbook kind) open to camping reservation sites. Looks like my wife is ready for another road trip in the bus.

Thanks for the thread.
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57 Panel http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=453943
62 so34 http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=533160
76 Westy http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=520076

[tirekicker]

TK Was here!
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DhK
Phuckancer


(16:45:42) Russ_Wolfe: TK, you are like a Maytag washer
(16:46:44) tirekicker: and what's a maytag washer?
(16:47:35) Russ_Wolfe: If you are not agitating, you are not working right

[bcampagnolo]

I noticed your mountain bikes. If mountain biking is like a classic Chevy then single speed mountain biking is like a VW bus.

My Niner fits nicely inside my bus. Gonna have to get a rack or bumper mount for the entire stable for the whole family.
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Paul
67 Walkthrough 13 Window

[volksfahrer.nl]

Cool bus.
I'd love to do some camping trips in my panel but the wife prefers hotels
Where does your daughter sit in the bus?
My 2 year old sone sits right behing the bulkhead but I think he's gonna want to see some more when he gets a bit older.
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www.volksfahrer.nl
www.theundutchables.nl

66 panel

[OTO X58]

Thanks for the comments!

[goldilocks]

I think you got the best part of the deal.
Great Van.,enjoy it.

[OTO X58]

Thanks for all the comments!

Some more close-up pictures from today:


The rain gutter rot:

As you can see, someone buttered it up pretty good in the past. I am going to get all that bondo out of there with a wire wheel, but I just wanted to ask for advice on how to fix this correctly? I have replaced a few panels, and I can weld just fine, but those rain gutters have got me a little concerned. I could make a piece and weld it into place, but I am afraid it won't look right.
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RIP HBB 10.10.84 - 12.25.09
Autocrossing the 58 Rag - Subaru Swap!
1957 Gazelle Beige Ghia
1957 Dove Blue Kombi field find

[OTO X58]

I got that 360 was a code for overrider bumpers and front turn signals, and UA is los angeles. But what is the 215?

Someone fiberglass matted over the vent holes in the rear sometime in the past. I want to take this off, but it's really stuck on there. I'm going to have to be careful and not bend the vents.

Got some wiring cleanup work to do, but everything works just as it should. Aside from the rear cargo light switch on the dash. that has no wires going to it, so I am going to wire that up.
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RIP HBB 10.10.84 - 12.25.09
Autocrossing the 58 Rag - Subaru Swap!
1957 Gazelle Beige Ghia
1957 Dove Blue Kombi field find

[OTO X58]

And finally, the driver's side cargo door area. The PO said that the bus was lightly T-boned in the past, which messed up the rearmost cargo door pillar, and really did a number on the lower hinge:

I am not in a huge hurry to fix the cargo door pillar, because it works fine and looks OK when the door is closed. But I need to look and see if that panel behind the cargo door is available from Gerson, otherwise I'll have to find something in the classifieds.

Were those reinforcement plates on the belly pans installed by someone? They don't seem factory, but they line up with the seat mouting holes perfectly.

The bus definitely has a good amount of bondo on it. I guess it also had a camper window installed in the past, and someone welded the hole back shut. I haven't even looked at that panel yet, because it's under the birch.


I am very happy with the bus overall, and after fixing a few of the bigger issues shown above, I'll be even happier with it.
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RIP HBB 10.10.84 - 12.25.09
Autocrossing the 58 Rag - Subaru Swap!
1957 Gazelle Beige Ghia
1957 Dove Blue Kombi field find

[OTO X58]

I got a chance to do a little bit of work on the bus today. Brake adjustment, valve adjustment, and carburetor adjustment. I also stripped and sanded the wheels, and painted them with Krylon Dover White:

I am thinking of bombing the bus in Krylon River Rock this spring, because I can't stand the baby blue two tone, and I can't afford to use real paint yet. Does anybody know if River Rock comes in a gloss finish, or is it just satin?

I've also got a deal brewing for a pair of stock bumpers that need a little work, in exchange for mine. Looking forward to getting those repaired and installed!
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RIP HBB 10.10.84 - 12.25.09
Autocrossing the 58 Rag - Subaru Swap!
1957 Gazelle Beige Ghia
1957 Dove Blue Kombi field find

[Busryder]

This used to be an Old Volks bus... I spent some time in this bus at Madera last year (?).



Personally, I think that this bus deserves more that a rattle can bombing job. But that's just me... it's your bus now man; good luck with it.



I liked the gangster 58' Chevy, but would have traded just the same, OTO X58.
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[OTO X58]

[kombisutra]

Amen to jettisoning the Bice, I can't stand those things or any other half-baked attempt at engineering. I gave a set away once and was prepared to pay someone to take them. Looking forward to your new bumper and L-345 look soon. Keep motivated... and you know there's a pre-Shasta Party with your name on it coming up in December right??? Don't miss out on it!

[OTO X58]

[DrummerDaveB]

[OTO X58]

I just stumbled upon this video on YouTube, and I'll be damned if that's not the homemade rear bumper on my bus:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LK0brMNGq1c

Skip to 1:15 for a good view of it.

Unless this was a custom Cal Look type nerf bar that a company used to make, I believe that's the same bumper.
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RIP HBB 10.10.84 - 12.25.09
Autocrossing the 58 Rag - Subaru Swap!
1957 Gazelle Beige Ghia
1957 Dove Blue Kombi field find