1963 VW Convertible Build

[hotrod 80]

Sounds great , awesome build

[NONHOG]

Thanks for the vid. Sounds great! Cool car.

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by duallyjams

Another job well done.

Originally Posted by flashed

Very nice and it sounds great too.

Originally Posted by hotrod 80

Sounds great , awesome build

Originally Posted by NONHOG

Thanks for the vid. Sounds great! Cool car.

Thanks dudes!! It's been raining non stop this week so I haven't been able to drive it yet. Hoping the rain holds off tomorrow so I can take it to the local McDonald's cruise in.

[theastronaut]

I've put about 450 miles on it so far. No suprises at the first oil change or valve adjustment, that's always a relief on a fresh engine build. It's a little too low for our roads (2.5 fingers at the convertible support rails) so it scrapes in and out of driveways but it's not undriveable. I just got a new phone with a better camera so I need to take better pics of it now that it's "finished". I still need to button up a few small details like paint matching the window handle buffers and dash grab handle, adjusting the ebrake handle, and swapping out the floor mat padding with something that doesn't allow the mats to slide as easily.

[flashed]

Very nice .

[mikec4193]

Very nice looking VW right there...we had one last summer and fall just to cruise around in...folks always told me about the VW's they had back in the day...

thanks for sharing...

MikeC

[plainred65]

So cool, love convertibles on summer nights.

[Zoomin]

Beautifully done!

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by flashed

Very nice .

Originally Posted by mikec4193

Very nice looking VW right there...we had one last summer and fall just to cruise around in...folks always told me about the VW's they had back in the day...

thanks for sharing...

MikeC

Originally Posted by plainred65

So cool, love convertibles on summer nights.

Originally Posted by Zoomin

Beautifully done!

Appreciate it!!


I haven't been able to drive it this week with all the rain we've had, but I did drive it all last week and it's up to nearly 1,000 miles on the odometer. In true daily driver fashion, it's been to Walmart, Tractor Supply (100 pounds of horse feed in the back seat), fast food drive throughs (it's a bit loud for that ), and I haven't vacuumed it out since I started driving it. I did wash it to clean off the really excessive brake dust from the pads/rotors breaking in, but other than that it hasn't been pampered.

[theastronaut]

I finally dusted this thing back off a couple months ago to fix the engine. The rings went bad at 2400 miles, right after getting back from Goodguys Charlotte 2017. It's back together now and I've put another 400 miles on it over the past few weeks.

I also took it back to let the previous owner see it for the first time now that it's back together.





Last month's Cars and Coffee with a few VW friends.

[jhrusk]

That is such a cool car.

[dug224]

Beautiful job!! Takes me back to my VW Beetle & Porsche 914 days. Thanks for sharing.

[LT7A]

Thanks for updating. That's why I found your thread, and enjoyed reading the whole thing. I really like the details and the explanation of things that you had been saving and decided to include in the build.

[theastronaut]

On to the next version of the car... I've always wanted a slammed VW on Fuchs so this car checked that off the wish list. I'm eventually going to sell it though, so I thought it would be best to go back to stock wheels/tires/suspension for that. I already had a set of stock smoothies so I blasted them and have them in epoxy primer, ready for a slight amount of bodywork and high build, then paint. It took awhile to figure out the correct color combination for a vert since most paint info I found was for sedans. I also found a really nice set of original VW/Lemmerz anodized aluminum trim rings that would've been stock on a vert.


This is what it'll look like when it's all done (this one isn't mine). The wheels will have a darker red center and black outer lip. I've bought a stock front beam and have it torn down for rebuilding/repainting. The rear suspension is already back to stock.








It's also going to get a Judson Supercharger. These were available in the 50's-70's so they're a period correct add on. They only make about 5 psi on a stock 1200cc, and might only make 3 psi on mine since it's a 1500cc now, but it'll be a cool addition. I found 36hp and 40hp versions posted on Marketplace right after they were posted and luckily was the first to message so I was able to buy them. I've restored the 36hp version and will be trading it for a complete 40hp kit to use on the vert. The second 40hp compressor will be traded in to one of the Judson restoration specialist for parts to restore the other 40hp compressor.

[67C10Step]

Man, this is cool. Period correct supercharger? Cool x10!

I wish I could win the lottery and retire right now. I could get more than enough inspiration here to stay busy for three lifetimes.

[made2drag]

Great build!

[theastronaut]

I've got a bit done although it's been on the back burner for awhile. The transmission popped out of third gear ever since I originally had it rebuilt, so I took it out and back to the shop that rebuilt it for them to check over. I discovered another problem taking the axles out... swingaxles don't like being run as low as I had it with that much camber. The axle ends have seen enough friction and heat to gall the surfaces and pull chunks out of axles, fulcrum plates, and side gears.










Got the wheels painted the correct two tone colors, black and L457 Cadmium Red, masked in the correct location for a convertible- under the trim rings instead of at the edge of the center.






I ran across a set of Diamondback Radials in the correct size on marketplace for $400 back in December. A local guy had bought them and never used them.








I found a stock front beam and tore it down. The arms and spindles are blasted and painted, ready for reassembly. The beam is blasted and I've fixed a bit of rust in the shock towers and is ready to repaint.

[mongocanfly]

Never knew vw had their own tires...that's cool

[LT7A]

I went through this build again. It's even better the second time. I know I said it before, but I really like your attention to detail. Just a cool mix of old and new and sometimes making new look old, etc. That supercharger is fantastic. I have a couple of questions. Please understand, questions not challenges. When you did your touch up on the body, I noticed that you taped off a hard line for your priming, etc. I didn't see that showing when you did your paint work, so how did you get rid of that ridge at the edge of the primer? Also, is what you used to knock down the sheen in the clear coat a standard type of product? I want to use that approach for a couple of things I'm working on. Thanks.

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by mongocanfly

Never knew vw had their own tires...that's cool

They're from Diamondback, they're just normal radials that they shave, add a whitewall to, and stamp the logo in.

Originally Posted by LT7A

I went through this build again. It's even better the second time. I know I said it before, but I really like your attention to detail. Just a cool mix of old and new and sometimes making new look old, etc. That supercharger is fantastic. I have a couple of questions. Please understand, questions not challenges. When you did your touch up on the body, I noticed that you taped off a hard line for your priming, etc. I didn't see that showing when you did your paint work, so how did you get rid of that ridge at the edge of the primer? Also, is what you used to knock down the sheen in the clear coat a standard type of product? I want to use that approach for a couple of things I'm working on. Thanks.

The tape is rolled back to create a softer edge, and I try to not spray as heavy near the tape. Then I use a thin and flexible plexiglass block to cut down any primer edges. The hard face of the block really helps to level an primer edges/high spots/texture. Normally I wouldn't tape off areas that small, it makes for more work knocking the edges down flat with the surrounding paint but I wanted to keep as much of the old paint as possible.

The flattening agent was from Southern Polyurethanes and can be mixed in with clear or single stage to adjust how flat or glossy you want the finish to be. This was around 7%. They've discontinued it but PPG sells a similar product that works the same way.

[LT7A]

Originally Posted by theastronaut

They're from Diamondback, they're just normal radials that they shave, add a whitewall to, and stamp the logo in.




The tape is rolled back to create a softer edge, and I try to not spray as heavy near the tape. Then I use a thin and flexible plexiglass block to cut down any primer edges. The hard face of the block really helps to level an primer edges/high spots/texture. Normally I wouldn't tape off areas that small, it makes for more work knocking the edges down flat with the surrounding paint but I wanted to keep as much of the old paint as possible.

The flattening agent was from Southern Polyurethanes and can be mixed in with clear or single stage to adjust how flat or glossy you want the finish to be. This was around 7%. They've discontinued it but PPG sells a similar product that works the same way.

Thanks, that makes sense. I am painting areas on a truck where the previous owner put filler on some dents and sanded it down. And then covered an area that was 40% bigger than the affected area, using a contrasting primer. It makes sense to limit the spray.

[FleetsidePaul]

Wow. That is going to be too cool in stock form with a supercharger. It's a beautiful car.
I like the attention to detail on the wheels. I just slapped some chrome wheels on my Type 181. I'm not sure if I like them. They look a little small. But the car had off road wheels and tires when I got it. I may have to dial it down a bit to make it look right. I'm going for the stock look as well. I have a 63 Bug as well. But that's a project. It's pretty roached.


After 30+ years sitting in the desert. It'll buff out.