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Post by Volktales on Oct 18, 2014 11:49:02 GMT -8
As found in a field....
This is yet another project I didn't need but couldn't say NO to... Thanks to Ron and several friends who didn't talk me out of it...
Both cars are 1959's and have been sitting outside in a field for years. The black one hasn't seen the road in 35 years!
Despite appearances, the black car is far worse then the rusty one and will be used for parts for the other.
Black car has cool fuel gauge... will be transfered to other.
Would like to restore to original someday but will probably have some fun with it first. Why project "pootina"? My wife says it is a piece of S**T!
With the forever ongoing garage project, I haven't had time to do much with this project. Managed to aquire a decent fuel tank for it (thanks Raegh), and I have removed the special fuel gauge from the black car. This fuel gauge is unusual as it is neither mechanical or electrical. It works by measuring the pressure of the weight of the fuel above the sensor in the tank. The button below the gauge forces air into the sensor, thus allowing the gauge to register the pressure acting on this air. These gauges are matched to the tank and are said to be very accurate. Amazingly this one still functions! Destined for the other '59, eventually...
It was a slow afternoon at the shop today so I dragged this in to have a peek underneath.....
I wanted to see the state of the chassis.. The central spine and frame head all seem good. The front axle is not rusty at all and the transmission is still the original split case type. Obviously the floors are terrible...
The Titanic might be in better condition than what you see here!
The rear apron wasn't too bad until someone tried to drag car by rear bumper, and this is the result....
Amazingly this engine still turns. It is a 1962 40hp 1200cc with a mixture of 36hp parts on it. Just for fun I stuck a battery in it. The dash lights lit up and it cranked over well. Taking a file to the points yielded a spark. Squirting in a little flammable brake cleaner caused some spectacular fireballs out the remains of the exhaust system. Will this thing actually run after sitting more than 30 years in a field??? To be continued...
It was not to be.... The next step was to check compression, and unsurprisingly the plugs have seized solid. I removed the valve covers and they revealed several stuck valves. The first one unstuck with ease with a couple of hammer taps, the second one launched itself revealing that there wasn't actually a head on the valve anymore, this likely being the reason for the car dying all those years ago! Anyway I cleaned out the crap from the remains of the interior to a least slow down the deterioration while I decide what to do with this project. The cars rear body structure was worse than I thought, this likely due to a long ago owner "repairing" some rusted areas with expandable foam! The inner rear fenders are in very poor conditon. However...
The other '59 was later dragged in for a better look... This car has had modifications over the years and spent its final days as a low buck offroad machine. The original fender lips where rolled out to accomodate wide rims and tires and features Skyjacker air shocks and camber compensator spring. The rear apron and decklid where cut away for more clearance too. This car was last used in 1977 in the Port Alberni area, anyone remember it??? Anyway it spent years under a tree with the fuel tank removed. Condensation buildup under the hood has caused massive corrosion from the dash forward rendering this car a non-viable project. The rear end was raised up very high in the air on some logs when found, so the rear of the car faired much better. In fact the rear quarters are in very nice condition beneath the undercoat with limited rust. So a make one out of two project could still happen, but this will wait until my welding skills improve!
I have not forgot about this project... It is still a long term one though... I have been acquiring bits and pieces from here and there to try and make a viable project out of the combination of the two of them. Have got together some not too bad fenders, a proper steering column and signal switch, some bumper irons, etc. But today I received a nice surprise from an occasional customer at the shop. He asked if I was still doing up old VWs and would I like a vintage radio for one. And this is what it was...
This Blaupunkt is likely from the early sixties but will look just fine in my '59. And not only that, he fully tested it and it is in full working order too! Probably going to sit on the shelf for a while as the car is hardly ready for it!!!
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Post by Volktales on Oct 18, 2014 11:59:04 GMT -8
This car is still quietly rotting under a plum tree, behind the garage. It would best be used as a "field find" display some day... I hope to get my hands on a more solid '58-59 project car someday... But please don't go and buy one for me!!!! (semi-inside joke)
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Post by Volktales on Jul 10, 2017 20:42:16 GMT -8
So I go to add to this old thread, and find out Photobucket has killed this album. But pictures have been restored again...
So I was thinking about having a little fun with the old '59 for some time. A week before the Victoria show, I decided to do something about it... I originally was going to repair the tired old 40 horse in the car just enough to run, but just did not have the time. Plus I was trying to do this without spending ANY money whatsoever... In the end it was much simpler to ask Reagh if I could borrow the 36 HP engine that I knew was sitting on his shelf... This was OK with him, so the nasty 40 was yanked out of its resting place...
Both trans mounts were completely broken, so I installed some new ones I had "in stock" (couldn't find any good used in my shed, and too much effort to remove them from the other '59...
And there is the "new" engine ready for install. Used a clutch disc from my old '66, a muffler was added that I picked up for my old departed '58 project. Discovered that the generator on this engine was wrong, so substituted a 36 horse unit that I didn't even know was in my stash. The distributor turned out to be missing a lot of internal parts, but a very rusty unit I salvaged from a dumpster years ago contained what I needed. The engine was installed without too much drama, except making a throttle work was difficult without the correct return spring assembly.
I only wired up just enough to run the engine, and verify it had oil pressure. There was no chance of using the original fuel tank, so one from my Dad's old 1959 lawnmower worked just fine when plumbed directly into the carburetor. Did it start right up? Damn rights it did! Even idled fine without any fiddling. Later I changed the oil, but that was it...
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Post by Volktales on Jul 12, 2017 21:19:57 GMT -8
The interior required a bit of work. The floors were missing large sections, and what remained was very fragile. This problem was solved by tying rope around the body to hold the floors in place! The one remaining front seat was reinstalled on the greased up tracks, and it slides buttery smooth. The park brake was made to work again by replacing the rear shoes. These had shed their linings due to rust. Luckily I was able to use the old part worn shoes from Peter's '64 Beetle. So basically a rear brake job was done and the park brake now works just fine. Peter also gave me the old bias ply tires from his car, so I transferred these to the original rims. So now it would start, stop, but would it move? Only one way to find out...
And it did! The original split case trans did go into gear, although the clutch pedal was very stiff. First gear was pretty quiet, reverse was howling loud however! I was not quite finished yet however... I wanted to fill the gaping hole in the dash, and installed the Blaupunkt as shown earlier. Finding the original antenna under the hood was the incentive to make it operational as well... The last job to do was cleaning decades of filth off the windshield so I could see where I was going. Brent suggested making it look like the long dead wipers did the job, and this was a good idea. So now she was show ready...
And it came to pass. Don unloaded the pile in the parking lot, and I was able to drive it onto the show field like I hoped. The looks it received as I pulled it next to my original '62 was priceless. Even more funny was the first person who looked at it was originally from Australia, and the song playing on the radio happened to be "Down Under"! The car received WAY more attention then the '62 and many wanted to know its history, and why it was there...
Well it apparently was rotting away in a field in Nanaimo around 1980 when the previous owner (Ron) acquired it. Ron put it in his field where it sat some more. It had not moved under its own power for approximately 40 years! So how was it to drive? Very difficult due to tricky throttle, park brake only, seat falling through floor, gear lever popping out of gear (reverse), funky clutch, and suspension seized causing an extremely bouncy ride on the ancient tires! It was scary at 5 MPH, so I didn't even try for second gear... It was FUN however...
So what are the future plans? If my welding/fabricating skills improve substantially, then maybe it can be saved. It would be done for the experience, certainly not cost effectiveness. But it sure would be fun to fix it up just enough to safely drive it on the road, wouldn't it???
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Post by PICTUP on Jul 13, 2017 6:34:49 GMT -8
Quite the sight at the show this car was! Potentially the "most photographed" if there was one, lol! Before my PB account goes belly-up here are a couple of pics of the lead-up.... Russ and son Victor preparing to pull the engine after we had pushed into the "shiny car" garage Plop! I am talking about the engine! After driving onto the trailer, the Zombeetle was show bound! It even made it to Chek News later that day for a few seconds
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Post by Wongai on Jul 13, 2017 9:56:22 GMT -8
That's the spirit! I like seeing a guy make a decision like that. Russ is going to be doing some welding! B
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Post by tony on Jul 13, 2017 12:54:14 GMT -8
Yabba-Dabba-Doo!!
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Post by stude on Jul 13, 2017 16:20:38 GMT -8
Now there is a guy who is not afraid to show it like it is and what people really want to see good on you. T
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Post by Volktales on Nov 4, 2017 17:33:02 GMT -8
So due to a wide variety of reasons, I have not been able to post up many pictures. Time for a change... The "ZomBeetle" finally had a purpose: Why not use it as a decoration for Halloween? First step was drive it to the front yard. Next was to make the headlights work (cleaned the fuses and bypassed the damaged light switch). And this was why. Wish I had a zombie for the front seat. Now that would have been cool. Mwah Hah Hah!!! If only I could drive it on the street like this...
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Post by Volktales on Nov 4, 2017 18:50:54 GMT -8
Forgot this picture...
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Post by Wongai on Nov 4, 2017 19:33:36 GMT -8
HA! AWesome. Love that car!
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Post by Volktales on Mar 12, 2018 20:57:26 GMT -8
Sooo, it is decision time. Maybe as I am quickly approaching the half century mark, it is time to rationalize some of my projects... As much as I would like to restore the ZomBeetle on the right, it just ain't likely to happen. I don't think I have a resto of that magnitude in me, and if I do, then my first car, the '70 green Beetle would be the no-hoper project that might get done. I really hate letting go of a dream, but maybe some wisdom does come with age... Both these cars need to be moved, because the part of the yard they are parked on is going to be leveled out this week so I can put up one of those extra large Costco shelters. What to do??? I can still imagine it when it was shiny Migonette Green with fatty whitewalls...
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Post by Volktales on Mar 14, 2018 20:32:13 GMT -8
Continuing to clean up the back yard. Re-attached my mickey mouse fuel tank to the '59, charged up a battery and used jumper cables to connect it up. Sprayed a bit of fuel in the carb, and was rewarded with instant starting. Actually seemed to run better then it did before for some reason... Too bad that will be for the last time as the engine is coming out tomorrow... My moss collection is doing nicely however... The other '59 also needed some attention before it could be moved. I had to replace the missing rear brake drums, and put in a steering column and wheel. Given the fact that it has no brake linings whatsoever, it rolled easily out of place. Amazing how some of the tires hold air for years... Think the other Beetle is rusty? So is this one in weird places. Cowl is very rotten, yet the rear body behind the doors is almost rust free. This is why the original intention was to make one car from two. Won't be happening by me anymore, unfortunately...
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Post by Brenticon on Mar 14, 2018 20:37:08 GMT -8
tony needs one of these in his front yard for a lawn art.
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Post by tony on Mar 14, 2018 20:46:23 GMT -8
My property taxes went up again this year , if I put those beauties in my yard I might be able to help all my neighbours lower their taxes!
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