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beetlenut Samba Member
Joined: May 27, 2009 Posts: 2980 Location: RI
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Posted: Mon Sep 09, 2013 10:46 am Post subject: |
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danno627 wrote: |
Closing date is September 27th. We had to renegotiate with the sellers after the appraisal came in 10K low. Hopefully done jumping through hoops and just waiting now. When I get the house you can come by and see the bug, but it's not moving until a couple of weeks after we get settled in. |
Always fun dragging a dead Beetle around from house to house. This was the third house I transported my car to/from not under its own power. Swore I would drive it out of this place. Good news on the lower price. Maybe that garage floor can get done now before the car fills it up! Just finished a refi myself. Pretty sure I forgot how to even sign my own name after the 80th page or so! _________________ scrapyards are for quitters
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Wetstuff wrote: |
... I spend more time shaking it than directing it?! I get a pretty decent blast for 8sec. then have to shake it again. |
- Words to live by right there!
My 74 Super rebuild thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6507104#6507104 |
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dubjeep Samba Member
Joined: December 24, 2011 Posts: 354 Location: Rhode Island
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beetlenut Samba Member
Joined: May 27, 2009 Posts: 2980 Location: RI
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Posted: Tue Sep 10, 2013 5:36 am Post subject: |
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The first two times I rented a tow-dolly from U-haul that puts either the front or rear two wheels on the dolly, and the other two just roll along. The last time I had a roll-back wrecker or flatbed just pull the car out of one garage and put it into the other. It didn't cost all that much because of the short distance I was moving the car. Turns out the flatbed driver was a bug owner and took extra care getting my car on and off the truck. _________________ scrapyards are for quitters
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Wetstuff wrote: |
... I spend more time shaking it than directing it?! I get a pretty decent blast for 8sec. then have to shake it again. |
- Words to live by right there!
My 74 Super rebuild thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6507104#6507104 |
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dubjeep Samba Member
Joined: December 24, 2011 Posts: 354 Location: Rhode Island
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rdwood Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006 Posts: 175
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Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 6:22 am Post subject: |
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I'm restoring a '74 Super in the same color ; very cool to see all the work you have done. Fortunately, mine didn't need this much panel work.
This color is called Tropical Green L60A and is a one year only. I got the body, decklid, and doors painted ta few weeks ago and have started the reassembly over these winter months and then I will finish the body work and paint on the fenders and front hood next Spring. The original interior color was called Bamboo and I was lucky to get a donor car that has reusable interior pieces in this color. My local paint supplier was able to find a vinyl/plastic paint color in the SEM line so I can color match the few replacement pieces I need.
Looks like it won't be long till you are back on the road. |
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beetlenut Samba Member
Joined: May 27, 2009 Posts: 2980 Location: RI
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Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 6:13 pm Post subject: |
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Wish I was operating off your schedule!
Maybe next summer. I went to an auto paint shop and had them computer match the current color of the car because it was resprayed back in the 90's by the PO. I know that because when I went to color match the gas flap, they told me it was a Urethane 2 stage. It's still a tropical green. I painted the body including the doors with a 2 stage urethane in September. I just got finished color sanding that body and doors with 1000 then 1500 grit today. I will finish with 2000 and then start compounding. Like you, I'll finish up the deck lids and fenders in the spring. I like the color and think it looks good in the sun. My interior is a two tone charcoal Grey and light Grey. Hoping to get the body back on the pan once I finish the body. Where are you located? _________________ scrapyards are for quitters
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Wetstuff wrote: |
... I spend more time shaking it than directing it?! I get a pretty decent blast for 8sec. then have to shake it again. |
- Words to live by right there!
My 74 Super rebuild thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6507104#6507104 |
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rdwood Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006 Posts: 175
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Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 9:14 pm Post subject: |
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I live in Indiana, near Indianapolis. I've had my car since 2008 so I've been working on it for a while. I tried to paint it myself this fall in the garage but the paint came out with too much orange peel. My buddy who has access to a paint booth over the weekend agreed to paint it in there after I wet sanded with 800 grit the orange peel. The paint came out beautiful and flat so we didn't have to wet sand or buff.
I used Limco single stage urethane paint. Limco had a formula for L60A but it turned out to have too much yellow. The shop then used a color scan read off the backside of the original decklid but the color still wasn't right. So the paint shop slowly added more blue until we had the right shade. |
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beetlenut Samba Member
Joined: May 27, 2009 Posts: 2980 Location: RI
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Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 10:39 pm Post subject: |
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Hmmm. I also used Limco, but a two stage urethane. I was going to color match the parts of the car I didn't intend on repainting, but ended up painting the whole thing. I had issues with the clear, hence the wet sanding, but it's coming out nice. My car got totaled by a drunk in 1999, so I've been at it a while too. I have cousins that live in Nobelsville just outside of Indianapolis. You'll have to get some pictures up of your paint job. _________________ scrapyards are for quitters
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Wetstuff wrote: |
... I spend more time shaking it than directing it?! I get a pretty decent blast for 8sec. then have to shake it again. |
- Words to live by right there!
My 74 Super rebuild thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6507104#6507104 |
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rdwood Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006 Posts: 175
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2013 4:29 am Post subject: |
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If you know where Noblesville is then maybe you've heard of New Palestine which is east of Indy; that's where I live.
I wanted single stage because I thought it would be less effort and cost than basecoat/clearcoat, and closer to the "look" of the original paint. But in the end it really comes down to having someone who knows how to lay down paint. Having the best possible environment (real paint booth) helped enormously. I was lucky to have both with the help of my friend.
I'll post a photo here, but I don't want to hijack your project report. Keep up the good work. |
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rdwood Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006 Posts: 175
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2013 4:42 am Post subject: |
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Question: you mentioned in one photo that you installed a refurbished steering box - did you buy it redone; if so where? |
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rdwood Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006 Posts: 175
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2013 6:35 am Post subject: |
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Here is a pic of my '74 just out of the paint booth.
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beetlenut Samba Member
Joined: May 27, 2009 Posts: 2980 Location: RI
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2013 8:44 am Post subject: |
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/\ /\ Wow, that came out nice! I'm working on getting mine that glossy! As for the steering box, I just rebuilt mine. I know you can get rebuilt and even new ones, but they're close to $500 dollars. Once apart, they're easier to adjust. I don't know if they were originally filled with oil or grease, but I cleaned out mine and repacked it with a good grease. Much smoother operation than before, so we'll see once I get it on the road. _________________ scrapyards are for quitters
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Wetstuff wrote: |
... I spend more time shaking it than directing it?! I get a pretty decent blast for 8sec. then have to shake it again. |
- Words to live by right there!
My 74 Super rebuild thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6507104#6507104 |
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rdwood Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006 Posts: 175
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2013 10:10 am Post subject: |
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Interesting. I never thought you could rebuild the SB boxes yourself. Did you find worn parts or did it just need an adjustment? |
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rdwood Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006 Posts: 175
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2013 1:58 pm Post subject: |
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Do you know how many headliner bows your car has? Most websites like, Wolfsburg West, say that '74 is a one year only because it has 5 bows where the '73 and '75 models have 6 bows. However, my car had the original headliner and it had 6 bows. It has an Oct '73 build date so I suspect this was a change somewhere in the model year but for some reason VW switched back to 6 bows for the '75 model year. |
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beetlenut Samba Member
Joined: May 27, 2009 Posts: 2980 Location: RI
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Posted: Sun Dec 01, 2013 7:19 pm Post subject: |
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rdwood wrote: |
Interesting. I never thought you could rebuild the SB boxes yourself. Did you find worn parts or did it just need an adjustment? |
I just took it apart and cleaned it up. I might have added a washer. I think bench adjusting it, and repacking it with a good synthetic grease made the real difference.
I'll have to check my headliner the next time I work on it to see how many bows my car has. _________________ scrapyards are for quitters
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Wetstuff wrote: |
... I spend more time shaking it than directing it?! I get a pretty decent blast for 8sec. then have to shake it again. |
- Words to live by right there!
My 74 Super rebuild thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6507104#6507104 |
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beetlenut Samba Member
Joined: May 27, 2009 Posts: 2980 Location: RI
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Posted: Mon Jun 16, 2014 7:06 am Post subject: |
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Low and behold, some progress. Finished wet sanding the body and compounded and waxed about half the car this last weekend. Half more to go, then back on the pan.
_________________ scrapyards are for quitters
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Wetstuff wrote: |
... I spend more time shaking it than directing it?! I get a pretty decent blast for 8sec. then have to shake it again. |
- Words to live by right there!
My 74 Super rebuild thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6507104#6507104 |
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rnsdiesel Samba Member
Joined: September 08, 2013 Posts: 32 Location: Sun City, AZ
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Posted: Mon Jun 16, 2014 8:41 pm Post subject: RE: 74 SB Rebuild |
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Great job on the resurrection of your SB. I also have a 74 SB. I've Replaced 3 rusted areas on the passenger side of the floor pan. Only other rust areas I notice on the car are beneath the vents behind the rear window, thanks to the foam. May fill mine in like you did but on the other hand, I'm in AZ where rust isn't really an issue. Your pictures have inspired me about what can be done with my bug.
Did you have much experience doing body work prior to digging into this project?
My bug was involved in an accident at some point during its lifetime. The area involved was between the front of the passenger door and strut area. The door was replaced from a loaner and they grafted a replacement section in between the door jam and strut tower. Repair was blended in well overall. I did notice a stress fracture napping just in front of the strut tower area. This is apparently where the donor and original sheet metal were joined. Seems like some of the metal was too thin where the two were joined. It was difficult not to blow through the metal even with the welder on its lowest setting. Ended up creating a panel to weld over the fatigued area and the crack. It will be underneath the fender and not noticeable when done. I even found a couple spots that, whoever did the repair blew threw withe welder also. The covered these holes around the repair with body filler instead of correcting the issue.
Your article has been an inspiration to me.
Thanks! _________________ '74 Super Beetle w/ 1915 power plant |
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beetlenut Samba Member
Joined: May 27, 2009 Posts: 2980 Location: RI
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Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2014 5:34 am Post subject: Re: RE: 74 SB Rebuild |
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rnsdiesel wrote: |
...Did you have much experience doing body work prior to digging into this project?
My bug was involved in an accident at some point during its lifetime. The area involved was between the front of the passenger door and strut area. The door was replaced from a loaner and they grafted a replacement section in between the door jam and strut tower. Repair was blended in well overall. I did notice a stress fracture napping just in front of the strut tower area. This is apparently where the donor and original sheet metal were joined. Seems like some of the metal was too thin where the two were joined. It was difficult not to blow through the metal even with the welder on its lowest setting. Ended up creating a panel to weld over the fatigued area and the crack. It will be underneath the fender and not noticeable when done. I even found a couple spots that, whoever did the repair blew threw withe welder also. The covered these holes around the repair with body filler instead of correcting the issue.
Your article has been an inspiration to me.
Thanks! |
Thanks. The only experience I had before diving into this was that I built a baja bug out of a 72 Super, but that was all fiberglass work. Since I wanted to learn to weld, what better project than this rusted-out NorthEast car? I learned an awful lot about welding, bodywork and paint doing this one.
When you fix that crack, even though you're going to weld a patch over the existing metal, make sure you drill a hole at the end of the crack to keep it from spreading. Better would be to cut-out on either side of the crack the length of the crack, back into solid metal, and butt-weld in a patch. Either way it will stop the crack from spreading. _________________ scrapyards are for quitters
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Wetstuff wrote: |
... I spend more time shaking it than directing it?! I get a pretty decent blast for 8sec. then have to shake it again. |
- Words to live by right there!
My 74 Super rebuild thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6507104#6507104 |
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rnsdiesel Samba Member
Joined: September 08, 2013 Posts: 32 Location: Sun City, AZ
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Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2014 5:29 pm Post subject: Re: RE: 74 SB Rebuild |
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beetlenut wrote: |
rnsdiesel wrote: |
...Did you have much experience doing body work prior to digging into this project?
My bug was involved in an accident at some point during its lifetime. The area involved was between the front of the passenger door and strut area. The door was replaced from a loaner and they grafted a replacement section in between the door jam and strut tower. Repair was blended in well overall. I did notice a stress fracture napping just in front of the strut tower area. This is apparently where the donor and original sheet metal were joined. Seems like some of the metal was too thin where the two were joined. It was difficult not to blow through the metal even with the welder on its lowest setting. Ended up creating a panel to weld over the fatigued area and the crack. It will be underneath the fender and not noticeable when done. I even found a couple spots that, whoever did the repair blew threw withe welder also. The covered these holes around the repair with body filler instead of correcting the issue.
Your article has been an inspiration to me.
Thanks! |
Thanks. The only experience I had before diving into this was that I built a baja bug out of a 72 Super, but that was all fiberglass work. Since I wanted to learn to weld, what better project than this rusted-out NorthEast car? I learned an awful lot about welding, bodywork and paint doing this one.
When you fix that crack, even though you're going to weld a patch over the existing metal, make sure you drill a hole at the end of the crack to keep it from spreading. Better would be to cut-out on either side of the crack the length of the crack, back into solid metal, and butt-weld in a patch. Either way it will stop the crack from spreading. |
Thanks. My brother-in-law had me drill holes at each end of the crack like you suggested. Still need to do some welding from the inside of the trunk to finis repairing the crack. I may cut out or place some solid material into the two smaller holes as you recommend. I've got the Weld pak 100 also but don't have the gas tank on it so I really need to be careful welding the thinner metal. I'll post some pictures when done. _________________ '74 Super Beetle w/ 1915 power plant |
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dubjeep Samba Member
Joined: December 24, 2011 Posts: 354 Location: Rhode Island
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