Picked up my '71 Single Cab today

[dpeters71single]

Picked up the Single Cab today. :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

All it took was a battery swap and after 30 seconds of cranking she fired right up and ran like a top!! I had been warned by the previous owner that they had turned up the idle like Crazy because it had a tendancy to stall...so I was prepared when it roared to life and raced for two minutes before we adjusted things a little to bring them closer to normal.

We pumped up the left front tire and with a quick check of the brakes and brake lights - off we went!!

My brother David shot video of me pulling out of the back-alley where it had lived. With a little more confidence than I should have had... I took off and drove it away like it was any other vehicle...and it drove pretty good. The cab-over steering took only a little adjustment and the extra large steering wheel was welcome in the parking lot speed maneuvers that I had to do earlier.
The Single Cab has a very up-right driving position and offers a commanding view of the road ahead. So far so good...right?

Well, Starts.... Check!
Runs..... Check!
Steers... Check!
Working Brake lights... Check!!
Brakes.......
Well, sorta.... ( oops! )

The first long straight-away went smoothly enough with one or two minor gear grinds because the shifter is quite vague and I couldn't find second gear right away.

When I came to the first set of lights and the stopping part...things didn't go quite as planned. Yes, the brakes work...
BUT...( and there's always one of those ).

When I pressed on the brakes...they didn't have a ton of stopping power...and I was coming up on the rear bumper of the car in front of me faster than I had liked... Press Harder on the brakes and
SCREECH!! ....one of the rear brakes locked up.... I still needed to stop so...again... SCREECH!!! I locked up the brakes a second time...
Fortunately, the car ahead of me turned the corner and cleared the way for me to swing into the intersection and round the corner myself without a collision. <WHEW!!>

I reminded myself that maybe I should take it a little more easy on the throttle AND the brakes. Once I was a couple of blocks further down the road I approached a second set of lights.
This time, I was a LOT better prepared and stopped smoothly and without incident.
BUT...

( and there's always one of those....)

Now, I couldn't find first gear... It was there a minute ago...now all I had was a mushy gear-less / gate-less shifter in my hand. Try as I might...no gears. I looked into my rear view mirror at the growing line of cars backed up behind me...and frustration started to grow. Deep Breath... one more time... this time...it slipped right in...and off I went through the intersection...and into the 7-11 Parking Lot. This wasn't the end of my challenges though... The parking brake lever works...but they don't operate the brakes. ???

I left the Bus in first gear and Dave and I bought Slurpees.

As I was backing the Bus out of its parking spot..It wouldn't go into reverse gear. ... So, now a bunch of yahoos...seeing me struggle with the old truck start yelling "If you can't find 'em...Grind 'em! " at me... and I ignored them.

The rest of the drive went smoothly...as I was finally getting used to the idiosyncrasies of this "new to me" vehicle.

I took some time and photographed some more details of the truck..Vin Plate, M-Code Plate... VIN Sticker on the door jamb.
Shots of the headliner, interior, dash, front floors etc...

We took a closer look at the drop gates ( which have some bad sections...but generally pretty good ).

This bus needs a SERIOUS clean-up... and It'll happen...a little at a time.


PHOTOS!!

N.O.S.

Don't know what happened to the video... it uploaded...it just doesn't show.

Anyways...it runs and drives.
It was a lot of fun today..

- Doug

 

[Justin &amp; Muttley]

That's a really sweet looking SC you've got there - congratulations!!

Looking forward to more updates...

 

[easy]

nice 8)

 

[gninnam]

'Tis cool 8)

Where ya based :?:

And what plans have you got (would love a single or double cab as my other car...)?

Looking forward to seeing the changes

 

[dpeters71single]

Thanks guys...

This was a deal I couldn't pass up. It used to be my Boss's Dad's truck. Unfortunately he passed away a few months ago and the truck has been sitting ever since. It wasn't getting any use...so they decided to sell it.

I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time when it became available. I don't have any "need" for a truck... I have a Karmann Ghia project that's pretty nice.

I managed to pick this up for ( are you ready for this ) 362.520 EUR or 308.417 UK Pounds.

As for where I'm based and what my plans are... I'm located in Western Canada. My plans for this are pretty simple.

Clean it up, remove the surface rust, and re-paint with some "Tremclad" Rust Paint. Like these guys...
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/vi...&start=0&sid=0aaab5f0f6066539021df4f058f02d78

The paint scheme will be like this

This is going to be one of the -very- low budget builds. I actually don't consider it a "project".
I do plan to make it a safer driver... Brakes are my #1 priority followed by tune-up and maintenance that has been ignored for a little too long.
I just want to save it...clean up the rust...and cut-out / replace some of the rusty panels as time
and as few dollars permit.
I've never welded before...so, I plan to do some learning. I mean...If I replace the rusty floor section
with an ugly patch job...it's still better than the rust...and nobody sees it under the mat. And it could always be
replaced with a proper repair panel later in life.

This truck originally came with the canvas top and frame-work ( tilts and hoops ?)...but sadly those were thrown in the trash years ago because they weren't being used..and were taking up space in the garage.

I plan to update this topic with more photos as I go along...but Winter is just about here. When that happens, it means I won't be working on it until April of next year.

Stay tuned... and if you have any questions...Just ask.

- Doug

 

[gninnam]

Like your paint job idea 8)

I managed to pick this up for ( are you ready for this ) 362.520 EUR or 308.417 UK Pounds.
- Doug

Like WOW :shock:

 

[dpeters71single]

M-Code Details...

Started working on the Bus tonight. A little CLR ( Calcium, Lime , Rust - Remover ) on some '00' grade - steel wool and did some cleaning on the paint. The nose was where I started...and I am quite happy with the results.
No more orange spots were the stone chips are, the rust stains that used to cover the front have all but disappeared.
The paint on this truck is a poor quality re-spray that is seriously faded. When I started rubbing the paint...is was coming off like chalk. The end result is much cleaner..somewhat shiny paint. I'll keep working at it little by little until it all looks better.
It's a big job..but it costs me practically nothing except my time.

I did take some photos...but I haven't dumped them from the camera just yet. I'll see how it looks before I post 'em up for you.

- Doug

 

[dpeters71single]

This past weekend I did some more work on the truck. Not a lot of work...but anything is something.

BUT, what I DID do...was put the truck to work!!

My brother ordered too much landscaping rock...and needed to get rid of it. I could use a gravel driveway to
park my Single Cab on... so we compromised and did both.

I also swapped out the original Solex 34 PICT-3 for one that I've been saving for a number of years. The original one had gummed up and wouldn't idle...so, 30 mins later... a replacement carb installed and now she purrs like a kitten.
Turn the key, fires right up..and idles.

I've also done a little work with a chemical rust converter...and I'll seal up some of the rusty spots so that I can paint it later on. In the second photo, the stuff on the ground near the front tire is Fiberglass Home insulation that was stuffed into the bulkhead to keep air leaks out.

- Doug

 

[gninnam]

Looking good and nice to know it earned it's keep (as in started to pay for itself)

 

[71dormy]

sweet bus dude, keep it low budget and dont respray it
just slam it do the worst of the welding and enjoy it :mrgreen:

 

[dpeters71single]

Hahaha... Thanks.

My plan is to keep it as low-budget as I can. I do plan to re-paint. But, rather than re-spray...I'm planning to use Tremclad Rust Paint which I can use a roller to apply. Lots of good examples of this type of paint job can be found on THESAMBA.com

I have the paint already...just need to take care of the surface rust and other details. It might not see any paint until next year as my workshop is as you can see... outdoors and it's practically winter here now.

As for slamming it to the ground... it's not going to happen. Low Trucks look cool...but since this is a Budget Build...I'm not going to spend money on suspension... just brakes and safety items for now.

Eventually, I'll make a canvas top and frame....and I have a friend who re-manufactures correct Bed Slats...

But that's pretty far in the future. I have a '60 Ghia Coupe ( Cal Look ) that takes higher priority...
This is definitely fun...and I'm going to use this to do some learning about welding and fabrication.

It's a better life for this bus than sitting in a scrap-yard... I'll update my (very slow) progress as I get a chance...

Thanks for the comments...

- Doug

 

[andymac]

Congratulations looks great fella
I bet you end up spending lots
more on her than you are planning now!!

I reckon you're gonna love driving her
more than the ghia before long!!

I did...........Have fun

 

[dpeters71single]

* BUMP * :mrgreen:

It's been a while since I updated. There's not a lot to report since we got the first blizzard of the season and the snow and cold stopped my progress on the truck.

I did start with some Tremclad ( rust paint ) painting. I started with the flat black on the Belt-Line up portion of the bus. It turned out decent actually. I do need to get into all the nooks and corners for complete coverage. I also need to tape around or remove things like washer nozzles and wiper arm bases so that everything gets covered.

I've slowly done some work on the exposed metal sections...where a bump or scratch exposed the metal and some surface rust had started on the drop gates and doors. I learned a little bit about how rust creeps underneath clean paint and how a coin sized spot of surface rust can actually have 5 times the size of rust-creep underneath surrounding paint...so it all has to be cleaned up.
I've used my grinder to gently clean up the metal surfaces...then I hit them with a rust neutralizer chemical and then touched up with rust paint to seal it up for the winter.

I also dived into the Treasure Chest and the Nose. These two sections had THICK applications of body filler that was cracked and would retain moisture. I decided to stop this with some creative work with the grinder. What I found, shocked me....although - really..it shouldn't have. I found that the treasure chest door had either rusted or metal fatigued to the point that it needed to be "repaired". My guess is that the lock cylinder had seized in the closed position and was pried and cut out - to be able to open the door again. Then, my good friend "brass" was used to solder the panel back together and then a thick layer of body filler was applied to cover up the "repair". Looked Good from Far..but Far from Good.

The nose was next, and looking at the large crack in the repaired body filler...I decided that it should come out. The Grinder was a BIG help with this...but, amazingly, my 4" cutting disc would frequently sink up to the motor-hub and still not make contact with any metal.
I cut out a section that is approx. 5" tall...and 18" wide...and about 3 1/2 inches thick in the middle. WOW.. That's a lot of body filler.
I exposed a large section of original nose metal...and it's been bent...but not crushed..and not rusted through. I expected worse.

There's lot more to do...but the recent warm weather has come to an end. I'll get back to it again in the spring time.( April / May )

I'll post up a couple of photos in the next day or so. It ain't pretty, ...but it's getting better in very very small steps.

- DP

 

[vjffwd]

great lookin` SC

cheers!

 

[slugmobile]

me likey a lot

 

[dpeters71single]

Here's an update that falls into the "Better late than never" category. Back about a month ago, we got some unusually warm weather for one weekend. It melted much of the snow that had been dumped previously and was actually warm enough to get back to work on the truck.

My focus at this point became the large and ugly crack in the body filler on the nose of the truck. There was only one way to get to the end of this mystery.... Cut It Out!!

I took my 4" grinder and started cutting into the body filler... it was like it was snowing again... white powder everywhere.

Eventually, I was able to remove the filler and get a look at the reason that the filler had been put there in the first place...
a GIANT dent in the nose...

Here's some photos for you to enjoy...

First up..the crack in the filler...close up...just beside the right hand side front turn signal.

Next, this is what it looked like once the filler had been removed... UGLY!

THIS shows the depth of the dent...and how thick the filler was. The keys are from my MK IV Golf to show the size.

Here is a far away shot so that you can see how large this actually is. ( there's also more snow covering it now...)

I saved the large chunk of filler that was removed from the nose...a keepsake of the bad repair that had been done previously. I've also been in contact with a number of friends who say that I can have access to their "parts busses" so I can salvage some of the body panels that I'll need to fix this.

Hope you enjoyed this update... It probably won't see any more attention for the rest of the winter...
It took me too long to get this update online... Thanks for your patience.

- Doug

 

[dpeters71single]

* B - U -M -P *

Well friends, I promised an update once I started working on the Bus again.

This winter was long and nasty. It didn't end until just recently...and as soon as winter ended, the Flooding began... only recently it has been dry enough and just warm enough to get back at my fix-er-upper.

I don't have any photos yet...not much to show anyways. But, I started with a simple upgrade and the first "custom" part that I've installed.

It's a shifter knob from my first Karmann Ghia. It's a Wooden handle knob with the Wolfsburg Castle crest on top. A nice dress-up item that looks much nicer than the original black plastic unit. Don't worry though, I'm keeping it safe just in case I decide to put it back to stock.

The other bit of news is that I've decided to start working on the drop gates again. This time on the insides, rather than the outsides. I bought myself a new "wire brush/cup" style end for my grinder so that I can strip off the surface rust and loose paint. It works very nicely...and once things were cleaned up, I put a fresh coat of paint on the panels ( the passenger side drop gate - Driver's Side in the U.K. )

I also started with some basic maintenance, since I don't know much about the service history on this truck.. I did pop the valve covers off and check the valve lash. Surprisingly enough, they were all close enough to 0.006 that I didn't need to re-adjust them. I replaced both valve-cover gaskets with new ones and closed up the covers until I do some more driving this summer. I'm planning to change the oil and replace the usual maintenance items ( ignition points, spark plugs, distributor cap / rotor, ignition wire set )

I will be posting more as the next few weeks go by. I'm hoping to get a Mig welder in the next 30 days, and hopefully some replacement panels can be purchased, fabricated or cut from a donor. It's going to be an exciting year.

Thanks again for the warm welcome here...and I'll update with photos next time I make some "visible" progress.

- Doug

 

[Rich]

Lovely dent :|

Good luck with the rest of the work.. will be watching!

 

[dpeters71single]

Hello again...

I've been working on and off on this project as time and weather allow.

Basically, I've been using a wire wheel to attack the surface rust and clean things up a little. I also use the wire wheel to scuff up the 'good' paint a little bit, so that my new rust paint has better grip.

Here's an updated photo. The "primer" grey didn't seem to be working out for me, so I went to a "gloss" grey. It's not the color I wanted...but it applied well and did a great job covering up the exposed metal and old paint.

I still have a little bit more finishing to do on the paint...then some replacement metal will arrive...and we'll see where it goes from there.
I have replacement brake hoses all around and I'll be doing an oil change and tune-up once I can drive it down to the shop where I work.

- Doug

 

[dpeters71single]

Again, not much to report. But, I'll keep updating for you when I have some news. Even small news is some news.

So, the body panels have arrived. This particular order included the lower nose section and both rear wheel arch sections.

For me, it's exciting to get replacement panels. It means progress and soon I'll be cutting all the rusty,awful mess out and making things much better. I do plan on doing this myself...and I'll be buying a welder next. In the meanwhile, I have new fuel line, fuel filters, and tune up parts ( Cap , rotor, spark plugs etc... ) I did put a battery back into it now that winter is behind me...but, for whatever reason, it won't start. It doesn't even turn over. The truck has power, and the oil light comes on when I turn the key...but no starter solenoid and it doesn't turn over. It "feels" like a dead battery...except it's not.

I will be checking the starter and starter bushing to make sure they're in good shape. Then I can get back to driving this again.

Also on my "to fix" list is the shifter. I bought all the shifter bushings and couplers. I will also be replacing the shift plate below the shifter itself. So much to do...it'll be exciting though. No more pictures of the paint...but I have most of it completed and it looks pretty good.

Here are the photos of the panels. For what it's worth the panels are Klokkerholm panels. Very affordable if I do say so...

Left rear wheel-arch

Right rear wheel-arch

Lower Nose panel

( and my cat who thought I was snapping photos of him )

- Doug