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another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully
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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 7:38 am    Post subject: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Hello to all..I have finally decided to post my own dune buggy memories. I have viewed the wealth of knowledge here for several years. I received my first dune buggy from my boss over twenty years ago. I really loved driving the old worn out vw, around the local town during summer. I kept it for maybe 5 years,not really doing any work to it. Like many I got a divorce and thinned out many of my possessions. So my true story starts july 27/2013...the day I purchased a second buggy. I have completed much work to this buggy. I will start with the past and continue until the present. I have decided this year to do a entire chasis rebuild, the frame hors have been welded with angle iron, the floor pan has some sever holes, I have patched, so it is time to fix her up. I live in Michigan , but I drive my buggy year round. I last year installed heated seats and I installed a small heater from harbor freight I use as a defroster. I drove my buggy just this last sunday, even with the mi weather. It was quite sad to drive it into my pole barn for the resto. Not quite sure if it will happen but I hope to squeeze in enough time to have it on the road for summer. I plan to cut off the frame horns and install berien frame horns, a complete new chasis build and a new front beam. If on tear down I find the rust too extensive I plan to take the easy route and purchase a berien frame....again hello to all...and thank you for the vast knowledge I have gained from this site...


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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 7:57 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

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Here is a photo of the way I purchased my buggy. It was in pretty bad shape, as it had sat outside for many years. Non running, wheel bearings were all locked up, but I was happy to trailer it home. It is a 1974 fiberfab clodhopper on a 1966 chasis.
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Q-Dog
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 8:00 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Welcome. They are addicting aren't they?

I also am able to drive mine almost year round. Winter is usually cold and wet enough here to keep me from driving it much in January and February, but with stretches of warm enough days. It hit 80° a couple days ago and could be in the mid 70s for at least another week. Time for a ride.
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'69 Dune Buggy
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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 8:29 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

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Hello...
I did not take me long to take the minimal vw experience I had from my first buggy and change the points plugs , filters ect and have that old 1600 twin port running...not good but running. I went through the bearings. rebuilt the old holly bugspray carb and before you know it I was driving it around my property dreaming of taking it on the road. I soon replaced the mouse torn seats with some 98 mustang seats, not knowing enough to choose smaller seats, but they are still in there, and quite comfortable. I put on some mirrors , new headlights, bought some hubcaps, even a car seat for my son, and felt it was running good enough for insurance and a short road trip. It was loud from the dual canons, far too aggressive rear tires, but I really enjoyed taking it out during good weather.
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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 9:16 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

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I drove my buggy the first year without a top. It was disappointing to only drive on days I knew it would not rain. One day my wife and I took it out on a sunny day, we got out maybe 45 mins from home and it started looking dark I wanted to continue, but the threat from my wife...." IF IT RAINS" made me wisely turn back. She was right it did rain quite hard and I then determined to enjoy my buggy to its fullest extent...a top was necessary. It did not come with a top supports or anything. I started googling pictures, making sketches and had a good idea of what I wanted done. I called and found out a top with no pattern was not very easy and quite costly. I finaly found an upholstery shop that sounded good, price not too bad so I went on his waiting list. On the waiting list I stayed until I had enough...I started all over again on the hunt for a top, I finally contacted a boat fabric lady that agreed to take my design and her mfg. knowledge and make a top. She agreed to do it for $600.00. I showed up and was amazed...all of the windows zip out, the quality of the work was great. When I talked to her she said she would never do a top like that for that price again. I thankfully gave her $750.00 and was on my way. She has since made a cover for the whole top to roll into for the nice sunny days.. since I was new to the top design I made a few design mistakes and have had her change a few things, now I have the top exactly as I want. We have enjoyed the buggy in all weather now, so it was a smart choice.
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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 10:01 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

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So as time went on, I decided with the new top, I could justify "More Spending!!$".....Read tons of money!!.... because afterall it now wasn't just a toy but a REAL vevicle that could be used full time. I was short on garage space so off I went to harbor freight for a garage in a box. The "duney" now had some run time under its belt and was worthy of its own home. The mud tires and severly bent rims from the PO jumping in the dunes had to go, this dramatically improved the drive. Christmas was coming so I asked my wife to purchase dual carbs, this has made it run fantastic. My wifes complaint of "too noisy" was fixed with a new trimil exhaust. storage for anything ...even a wallet was lousy, so I designed and made a simple oak armrest/console. Now that it was quiet....hmmm...maybe too quiet..I installed a simple car stereo, mounting a couple speakers under the dash and found a couple small housings off of ebay that fit just in front of the seats for a couple more speakers, which did not use any necessary room at all. Added some soft cup holders, gauges,switches ect. and I was now able to enjoy the duney on longer drives.
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Wetstuff
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 10:25 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Chris... Nice to see you enjoying it as much as you do. I envy you who can incorporate it into real life.

Jim
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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 10:56 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

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Hey...thx for the input.
So now I have Really Justified my spending afterall look at the photo we can even take it shopping..lol..Cant help buying those great clearance items, two huge planters, beach roll ups another planter...even eggs up front.I told my wife as we were purchasing it...."No problem getting it home" as im thinking "No Way" So I have added front and rear disk brakes, a oil filter, a nice chrome 90 amp alternator, clutch, , a set of berien side pods...had to do a little constructive and mounting engineering...but I LOVE the look of those, new floor pans using sheet metal I purchased and cut to fit. I knew the frame horns ect were not unsafe but needing to be addressed. I did not currently have a space large enough to do a rebuild so I kept it going and had a great time until I could do a complete tear down. ohh don't mind my sons goofy popeye impression...lol.
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heywebonya
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 11:21 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Great story and definitely appreciate the financial creep of buggy ownership. I have two spare engines and two swing axles: just-in-case

I noticed the front bumper in your top picture is mounted upside down; that might be an issue with a curb or steeper inclines.

Great job and thanks for sharing.

Jeff
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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 11:49 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

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So I am enjoying my buggy, but probably like everyone else there is times when "things break" I am driving it quite often but when I depress the clutch I hear a "twang" I know is not right so my many hours of previous lurking in the samba leads me to realize the clutch tube welds are failing and it is just a matter of time. One night I am out at and a final "twang" the pedal drops a bit and I am hmmm...shall I say screwed..lol.. I am not too far from home so a little over revving...power shifting... a bit of grinding and I am successfully home. Happy but...realizing my buggy is not drivable. I sift through the samba experience, look at the great welding and think...wow that looks tough. I put on my engineering hat and try to plan a strategy. through looking at tons of fixes I have tube measurments, locations ect. I design up two aluminum blocks that can firmly hold the tube and have the correct radius to be mounted to the inside of the tunnel. After all my samba research I know to use a hole saw for the hole....I measure...I cut and bam I was right where I wanted to be....the second cut was not as critical...just needed to properly mount the clutch tube mounting bracket. I drilled the necessary holes through the tunnel Put a slight bend at the rearward end, slid it exiting the tunnel at the right length and it has performed correctly.
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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 12:23 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

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So My buggy is running good but short on available rebuild space, I decide I need a building. Being the cheapskate I am I say " I can do it" so I plan out the building.. because the kit I choose only has sides that come down 36"..no windows no doors at all, lots of planning is needed. With some hefty planning I think I have a game plan. I get everything together and take some vacation time. I now have the proper space for an unavoidable chassis rebuild. At this point I was continuously doing improvements, but I really was enjoying the time with my buggy.
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chriswitvw
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 1:25 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Hey thx for the reply...
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For those swift people that noticed the color scheme change....don't ask why I can tell you to NEVER have the gas filter in the back of the car and why you need a on board fire extinguisher!!......Well this summer I was at the pinnacle of success...the Duney is looking, running and driving better than ever before. Nice summer evening, wind in my hair, me and the family out...I am cruising on the freeway... faster than ever...clipping along at 80...get off when somewhen says is that smoke I smell...I was at someones house with a hose...but I could not put it out...I REALLY could have cried as I watched it burn. A policeman showed up and with a quick blast it was out. By that time it was dark. I really did not know how bad the damage was. I begged the defiant tow truck driver to tow it to my house rather than a impound lot...for some extra money he complied, but he absolutely would not take me home...My wife took a taxi and I started walking after my buggy finally left. I called her and said take your time ...I really NEEDED the walk. I walked for about an hour before she picked me up. I covered up my buggy and left it...I had figured it was absolutely ruined. I had a true desire to fix my buggy but very weak on this type of repair. I started googling fiberglass repairs and through my research determined that I would have a bonding problem from the burn. After 3 days I got up the nerve to uncover my buggy...the smell...the soot....everything burned up. I had decided that I really did not want another buggy...we had had such great times... I would at least try....If I failed at least I tried...I marked off the complete back end where I was going to sawzall off the bad fiberglass...I was ready....My neighbor was out and he is a very knowledgeable car guy and asked to look. He said that's not too bad... I thought he was crazy. He said start grinding down to good fiberglass and it will look much better. I got out on a Saturday and hoped he knew what he was talking about. Well after a couple hours I had a big hole but it did look much better. I wont give all the details as I am sure many of you have way more fiberglass knowledge than myself. But I worked very hard and itched for a month straight... I had the body fixed with a quick spray can paint job, the motor fixed with carb rebuilds and almost everything new...After one month I had it back on the road. I learned a lesson about never giving up. ohh....and I have all steel gas lines now, gas filter up front....and yes I have a fire extinguisher handy. I have enjoyed my buggy the rest of this summer.
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 2:03 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Popcorn
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mark tucker wrote:
I wouldent waste $ or thyme on building a small motor. build it big so it dosent have to work hard.remember it's only as fast as your foot alows it to be unless you build a small turd then it just stinks as it squishes up through your toes when you step on it.
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57BLITZ
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 5:00 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

NICE SAVE!!! Very Happy
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 5:35 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Looks great - again! Besides the fuel filter, you might want to look into replacing "all" the rubber fuel lines with Gates Barricade hose or equivalent. The current gas blends wreak havoc on regular rubber fuel hose. And the cheap plastic fuel filters - got to go! Too many other inexpensive metal filters readily available to even consider one.

Your buggy sure has been a transformation - always like the Clodhopper style bodies. Stay with it!
Jeff
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rubenski
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 7:28 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Popcorn

top story!
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joescoolcustoms
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 7:55 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Very nice save. Good to see you did not give up.
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Looks like it was painted with a live chicken,polished with a brick and buffed with a pine cone
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heywebonya
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PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2017 10:54 am    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

Wow, nice recovery!
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911pickup
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PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2017 12:31 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

There's nothing like the smell of burned fiberglass. Blah!
I originally owned with 356 replica, then sold it. Three years later I got a phone call from the owner who asked me if I wanted to buy back my old 356, which had suffered a major engine fire.
Here's a photo of the car just after I bought it back.

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Here's a photo of the car after its restoration. I spent WAY more on it than I intended to, but it did turn out nice. The car was restored by the company (Intermeccanica) that originally built the car.


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joescoolcustoms
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PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2017 1:01 pm    Post subject: Re: another buggy tale..with a good ending..well hopefully Reply with quote

By chance, did your 356 have a hard top, pearl white even? And was it in Georgia, maybe the Augusta area?
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Bad News Racing 2018 NORRA 1000 3rd in Class
Best Day Ever Racing 2022 NORRA 1000 2nd in Class and first All Female team to complete the race

Everyone is gifted. Some just do not open the package.

Looks like it was painted with a live chicken,polished with a brick and buffed with a pine cone
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