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First time Dune Buggy/VW project.
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tcmia
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 9:36 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

Very cool project.
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Q-Dog
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 10:11 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

Slot mags ... cool! I'd still like to find a nice set of 4 lug wide/skinny slot mags.
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gridmark7
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 11:19 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

rayjay wrote:
"Baja Bugs and Buggies" by Jeff Hibbard and "Baja Prepping VW Sedans and Dune Buggies"


Ill be sure to check those out thanks.

oprn wrote:
fresh oil, pull the coil wire off until the oil light goes out
I am very surprised that the floor pans don't look like swiss cheese! That must be very dry country.


I checked the oil in both motors it was perfectly clean and level was fine which I was surprised to see, should we change it anyway we have Shell 15-40 some off brand 15-40 and Mobil 1 10-30. And what oil light pretty sure we dont have an oil light. As for the pans I was surprised by that as well but i dont think they are original.

slalombuggy wrote:
Mount the headlights on a more stable part of the body
Build a new cage or figure out a way to attach it better. Those small tabs on the floor aren't going to support anything if something happens.
Are the back wheels aluminum or steel?


We'll be putting the headlights back in their inteded location between the hood and fender, why someone put them on top of the fender ill never understand. I agree that the cage has gotta go however the main hoop behind the seats looks like it might have come with the kit and was added to, we're thinking cut it free from the rest of the cage and just keep the main hoop until we can get a proper cage sorted out. The rear wheels are steel the center is welded to the barrel and the screws are just for looks.

Q-Dog wrote:
Slot mags ... cool! I'd still like to find a nice set of 4 lug wide/skinny slot mags.


Yea they are wish I had some wider ones for the rear but definitely keeping the fronts.

We're gonna kick the other projects out of the shop and try to get it started then start dissembling it for bodywork and paint we got some bright traffic cone orange paint from the bargain shelf at the paint store for $50 so might as well see how that turns out.

Thanks for all the help and info guys I'm off to get started.
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slalombuggy
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 12:04 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

I've pulled the dipstick on engines and the oil looks pristine. Then I'd pull the plug and drain it and it would look like crap. I assume these things have been sitting forever so what happens is all the sediment and crud settles out of the engine and collects on the bottom of the case, water, being heavier than oil also sits on the bottom of the case. This is why you should ALWAYS change the oil on an engine that has been sitting for a while. Run it on some cheap oil for a while and then change it again.

brad
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gridmark7
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 12:09 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

will do thanks brad.
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oprn
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 6:07 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

^^^ this!

Your speedometer has the oil and generator lights in it already... if they are hooked up that is.

slalombuggy wrote:
Don't worry about the missing tins on the engine , on a buggy you can get away with a lot more than an enclosed car. If you are offroading a lot then you should worry about protecting the pushrod tubes but on a street car, that fan shroud and head tins will cool more than enough.


Actually the engine does not know what kind of a car it is mounted in. I was not thinking of it running too hot, more about it running at a consistent temperature not only over all but hot and cold spots on the cylinders from the missing lower tins. An engine running at the proper temperature is so much easier to keep in tune and lasts longer too.
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gridmark7
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 9:01 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

oprn wrote:
Your speedometer has the oil and generator lights in it already... if they are hooked up that is.


Well they might have been hooked up there was no speedometer cable but we started disassembling the body anyway. We haven't tried to start it yet I think we'll wait till the body is off which we should get done tomorrow.

So far the hood and lights are off and the cage is out.

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^yes those are U bolts.
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Also got it on the lift to look underneath, while the floor is solid the welds are pretty bad.

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Our next big step is getting the body off and start patching all the small holes and the few larger ones and fixing all the poor fiberglass work thats already been done. We're gonna replace the wood body lift with square tubing and try to build something we can attach a proper cage to. We need a new gas tank because Im not a fan of where the filler neck is on this one id like it either in the center or at least towards the windshield. Also need a new windshield and seats and to figure out how were gonna support the steering shaft without a cage, those are the big things at least for now. We'll see what happens when we try and start it.
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Busted Knuckle Garage
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 17, 2020 8:51 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

Good deal for what you paid. Lots of work ahead of you. Good luck.
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slalombuggy
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 17, 2020 10:12 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

I always put big warning lights on the buggies I build. Those 2 little lights in the speedo are impossible to see especially if the sun is behind you. I look for nice looking side marker lamps and use those and mount those as close to my line of sight as possible.

brad
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rayjay
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 4:58 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

There is something up with the rear suspension. There should be a lot of positive camber when the car is off the ground. I will have to check my previously mentioned dune buggy books to see what they recommend for rgbs and a bug chassis.
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GS guy
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 5:54 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

Looks like it may have Bus reduction boxes? Axles look to be well above wheel CL. All the chassis "patching" looks like it's in need of some major "correction".
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slalombuggy
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 6:22 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

It has reduction boxes which are great for offroad and hill climbing, or so great for a street car.
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rayjay
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 6:26 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

the rgb's are oriented in the down position which should really jack up the back end. I would be checking that the axle trunnions are not be abused when the rear suspension bottoms out.
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rayjay
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 6:27 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

It's almost like the spring plates are hard against the down stops when the car is unladen.
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gridmark7
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 10:36 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

It does have reduction boxes and something is definitely up with the rear suspension. We also drained the oil and pulled the sump cover off it was pretty nasty in there, it was pretty dry under the valve covers also. lots of fiberglass work to do lots of cracks, holes and previous repairs.

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We got the body off and the tank out, I guess we plan on modifying the tank to move the filler neck to the center. I also started trying to fix the fuel gauge as the needle broke off and luckily it was still in there. Just need to polish the faded lense now.

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Busted Knuckle Garage
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 9:04 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

When you get ready to build a fire in that thing put some oil on that rocker shaft assembly. It won't hurt to get some lubrication there before you start it.
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gridmark7
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 10:31 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

The spring plates are indeed hard against the down stops and its not getting any ride height gain from the rgb's because the spring plates are attached to the bottom of them with a 1 inch thick aluminum adapter. Question is what can we do about it, Ive heard about the John Johnson No-hop kit but no one seems to make anything like it anymore and I haven't been able to find anything used.

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I got the carpet out and put the slotted mags we got with it on the rear. we've been sanding the body down so we can start fixing the fiberglass and filling holes and we started modifying the gas tank and drilled a hole in the hood for the new filler location.

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Now we're mostly just waiting on parts and materials which wont get here till Monday night unfortunately

Busted Knuckle Garage wrote:
When you get ready to build a fire in that thing put some oil on that rocker shaft assembly. It won't hurt to get some lubrication there before you start it.

Absolutely, we were thinking the same.
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Rome
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:49 pm    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

Auxiliary oil cooler?! Probably can easily do without that. I suggest to disconnect and remove it along with the feed and return hoses, and put plugs in where the hoses were attached to the engine. Buggies are so light that the engine load is much less than on a Beetle, and the engine gets plenty of cooling air just by more open bodywork.

And no emergency brake? Probably hacked out during the frame shortening process, and the cable ends were too difficult to adapt to the bus RGB backing plates... I'd think that a mechanical stand-by brake would be needed to pass state inspection.
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oprn
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 19, 2020 5:21 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

The stock oil cooler appears to be missing. It will need some sort of oil cooler.
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rayjay
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 20, 2020 8:32 am    Post subject: Re: First time Dune Buggy/VW project. Reply with quote

Re RGBs. I looked in the 2 books and the norm is to make the thick adaptor plate so that the drive axle CL is vertically centered in the spring plate just like the original sedan swingaxle. The output axle that the wheel mounts to is then well below the spring plate. In the OP's buggy they made a simple straight adaptor plate which makes the output axle in the center of the spring plate.

The RGBs are notorious for wheel hopping is says in the books. Various ways to combat it but none of the kits are going to be available nowadays I would think.
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