A bus (and vw) newbie....

[Longboardluv]

wow!~ That is nice you're killing it!

[chgrec]

After a bit of a break and a trip to the beach, I was able to use the day off today to make a lot of progress. And I got to use my spot welder, what fun!

I figured I needed to get the substructure replaced and then do the surrounding body panels. That way I have a frame of reference, even if it is rusty, so I can then cut the sheet metal out have someplace to reattach it onto....

I took the time to add a length of 1" square tubing inside the rocker and tied it to the chassisto give the sill a bit more strength. I was then able to get the driver side rocker in place and that side sub-floor replacement is done! Well, except for the front jack point which I forgot to order...sheesh.

On to the passenger side next!

[60vwnewengland]

Look'n good!


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77 Westy - Cape Cod Sage
LLAP

[chgrec]

Thanks...So much fun to do that I find I cant wait to get back to the garage. I am getting the hang of the spot welder and the timing to make solid welds. Best sub $200 tool I own. The only downside is that it is really heavy and a bit cumbersome to handle.

I got the passenger sill work done including adding square steel tubing to add more stiffness. It works well especially since the inner rocker is welded to it. Makes for a very solid feeling cargo area.

My forgotten forward jack points arrive tomorrow from Wolfsburg West & I ordered my first classic fab green panels yesterday. So far very happy with the quality of parts for ww & look forward to when the "funky green" parts arrive!

[Pinetops]

Nice progress. Are you going to put the belly pans back in?
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"A rolling bus gathers no rust."

[chgrec]

That is the plan...It will likely be one of the last body parts I install before I finish up the paint & body work. That and I have to get the stuff it will cover all sealed up and painted first....

I am tempted to pick up a bead roller, some 16/18 ga steel and then see if I can make my own. There are enough photos online to get pretty close and I have always wanted to try that. And since they are $700 for a full set, I can likely spend the same amount and end up with a cool tool when finished.

Chris

[chgrec]

I think my bus needs a nose job! I started picking its nose apart and as expected, it's full of crud. I was concerned that once I cut all the rust out, there wouldn't be anything left to hold the top up so I put in some temporary bracing just in case....

I also got the bus mounted on my recycled rotisserie from my MGB project after I got all the suspension removed. The suspension came off fairly easily once I found articles here to show me how. Never pulled the bottom off a VW, fun to learn new stuff and it was about the same level of difficulty as the B, just lots of different parts!

I then got to cutting and playing with my new green parts. Nice quality and remarkably fast shipping, especially since they come from Columbia. (I just wish getting a shipping cost didn't require a separate email though).
Very nice quality parts none the less!

More to come and the project moves on!

[Hansolo99]

[chgrec]

I will post once I get it flipped over on its side. I want to get the nose metal replaced first to avoid any flex.

I tried lifting it up and was able to get it on the radius and start to go but since it is heavier and has a lot higher center of gravity than the convertible, I didn't want to take it all the way over by myself. Or at least not without something to slow the roll down and avoid having it land hard...(or land on me!) I may add a lever arm out of some extra steel tubing to control it better. We will see once I get to that point...

Either way, I'll post my experiences....

[mandraks]

just be careful, or at least record a video...

Link

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regards

Uli

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'53 3-Fold Oval, L35 Metallic Blue, looking for a narrow hatch panel

[chgrec]

Yeah, that's not gonna happen. My wife would kill me if I got hurt working on one of my projects......

(Guess I don't know why let go wasn't the first thing through that guys mind when it started to go....)

[chgrec]

More cutting, welding, & grinding....and then a little more welding and grinding, and then a little more...well you get the idea. Making progress however.

The lower valance below the nose and what will be behind the front bumper has all been replaced. Next will be the nose skin itself & then I'll work my way back. You can see some of my steel reinforcements in the square metal tubing. It really makes the front end feel so much more solid.

Here is a series of photos showing each step. And a before & after of the rear lower rocker behind the passenger cargo door as well...

[Pinetops]

Man, you aren't afraid to get in there and get it done! Bravo, I always enjoy the updates.
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"A rolling bus gathers no rust."

[chgrec]

Thanks, posting updates gives me a way to keep myself accountable as well as helping me track my progress.

One more gratuitous door gap check photo with my new dogleg lower section & crusty old door...

Chris

[chgrec]

I got the new lower nose skin on and I have finished up the basic leading of the weld seam for pin holes, etc. (I'll do the detail & finish work later after I get the rest of the bodywork done.)

I still prefer body lead (actually 70/30 lead/tin) over plastic (bondo) as I think it behaves much better over the long run. I have found that when I stripped bondo off cars, there were always signs of moisture getting trapped underneath. I assume it's because plastic tends to expand / contract with hot and cold. I have never seen that beneath leaded repairs.

You just have to be a lot more careful with leading. Use of respirators, only hand filing/ NOT power sanding, etc to avoid making airborne lead dust....But then there are tons of things in projects like this that are bad for you. So safety is always first!

Chris

[Pinetops]

That's quite a facelift on your bus in a short time frame! The lead work looks good too, much better than bondo.
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"A rolling bus gathers no rust."

[Pinetops]

Any news on this bus?
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"A rolling bus gathers no rust."

[DONGKG]

The progress of your restoration is so stunning, and, I can say, fast too! So inspiring!
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'67 KG Cabrio (Mickey) ;
'66 Type 3 (Sharky 2)
'72 Type 2 Homey
'67 Splitty Bus
'65 beetle;'69 Country Buggy; '44 Kubelwagen (replica) TOOB MEMBER #20

[chgrec]

Thanks, it has been fun. Had a bit of a slow down due to a trip to Fla (love the beach) but still cranking along.

It is now time for the VW bus purists to look away....This wont be a straight forward restoration but a resto-mod. I have always wanted to do some thing with fabrication and metal work and my wife thought this would be a cool end result. So I am making a convertible bus out of a rusty panel van....Yes I know, a lot of folks here will be unhappy but hey, at least it's not a multi-window rare edition. And besides, the roof on this panel was toast already.

So far, I have gotten the nose metal all repaired and the sub structure reinforced with a combination of 2x4 1/8" & 1x1 1/8" steel tubing. So it was time to chop the top, the very, very rusty top. I re-hung the front cab doors on it to make sure there was no sag and they closed nicely with all the proper gaps. Even when pulling down on the doors I didn't get any sag in the nose. It was a lot of work & welding and there is still a lot more chassis re-enforcing to do once I roll the bus over, but so much fun.

I needed to relocate the hinges on the cargo doors as they are above the line where I want the sides . I was really dreading that part as it seemed like it would be very hard to do. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly it went. I was able to do one body mount & one door per night so it only took me a week to do all 4 doors.

So the plan is to get it rolled over on its side next week so I can get the welding & grinding done underneath. Then I can roll it outside and give the garage a very good cleaning. Such a messy phase.

[pondoras box]

Well I must say I didn't see this coming I was hoping back to Turkis and logos applied. But to each his own. It will be interesting to see where you go from here, you are very motivated and seem to have the skills to follow through on this.
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Looking for anything from Hal Casey Motors out of Hamburg New York, from license plate surrounds to matchbooks.

1961 23 Window (Bobo)
1965 11 Window (Zelda)
1965 13 Window (Lucas)
1957 Oval ragtop
1988 Cabriolet VR6 conversion
Plus a lot of other rusty junk