I've had this 55 oval for a while now - acquired as part trade for my 63 ragtop...(thought this was a 54 but chassis number turns out to be 55)
It served as a daily driver for quite a while with a 2in beam, BRMs but otherwise pretty standard...
It did a stint with my Type IV upright converted motor before that was sold....
A few years back I decided to give it a freshen up for the Warwick VW drag meet which included a repaint in Savannah beige:
Rod R kindly loaned me his 1916 type I for the Warwick meet but despite a few all nighters to get the car finished, I managed to sieze the motor on the line before even one pass!
So after being stored for the last couple of years I've decided to give it a more comprehensive repaint (body off pan....but not bare metal as the paint has remained very stable and a lot of the bodywork was done first time around).
I want to put some focus into my 54 barndoor and hence have decided to get both the body and pan into paint and then sell the oval....if someone wants us to complete it of course we can do it, but for now I just want to get the paint on, and body back on pan and go from there 🙂
5lam ·
Wow, nice!
Dasdubber ·
First order of business was to replace the bent and rusty rear H-apron....picked up one off AVD (repro'd in Europe) and whilst it was better than what else is available, still needed a fair few tweaks
The lower edges didn't line up with the guards however this was easy to rectify:
The big problem was the top edges not lining up with the body, despite the seal retaining strip (for engine bay seal) being in alignment
Basically had to cut and shut the curvature both in height and in width to get it to sit right
Given the oval is not dead original (don't have OG engine or beam etc), I opted for a removable rear apron setup in case someone wants to go big in the engine deparment down the track
Thats about it to date, the rest of the resto will be in real time....I'm going to push this one pretty hard so hopefully progress and updates will be fairly rapid 🙂
Al
Turbo54 ·
Hi Al,
Great to see it being done, sad to hear your selling it. Can the new owner have any colour they like except silver? Maybe a good selling pitch?
Can you tell me where the repro apron is from? Just bought one, hooping it fits better.
Thanks
Heath
T54
Craig Torrens ·
Will look nice next to the Ragtop........😂😘
Dasdubber ·
Let me know what colour you want Craig, just not allowed silver 🙂
Heath I bought the repro apron from AVD - will have to go back through old pms to find out supplier (was eastern europe possibly?)
66deluxe ·
Can you
66deluxe ·
Can you please just keep it and put that turbo engine in it. You gotta have some vw for yourself.
Dasdubber ·
Damo......barndoor bus + 2442 turbo = fun (but lots of $$$) 👍
This was a custom olive mix I came up with for a 56 that recently went to sydney....probably won't go as dark this time
Dasdubber ·
This was the 80s-inspired "Rad Bug" we built for the same year at Warwick running my brother in laws 2110 engine.
And the oval with Rod R's type I 1916 that I siezed before a run
Area under the rear side window seals were very slightly pitted so it was taken back to bare metal, any pits zipped with the mig to ensure the metal wasn't too thin, then dressed back and acid treated
Front apron is nasty and will be repaired properly
Work starts on that today/tonight
Cheers
Al
Pumba ·
Dasdubber wrote:Damo......barndoor bus + 2442 turbo = fun (but lots of $$$) 👍
This was a custom olive mix I came up with for a 56 that recently went to sydney....probably won't go as dark this time
Damn thats a nice colour al 😂
Dasdubber ·
That must be a pretty familiar hue to you Shane! Hope the reassembly is going well.
Bit more on the 54 today....front apron was a little hammered as they (almost) all are (esp when lowered)
After cutting out the rusty/poorly patched wheel well, some hammer and dolly work was far easier to get the major dents out
Small spot of rust on the left side was an odd spot (perfect on teh right side) so this was welded up today (forgot to get a pic)....more tomorrow
Cheers
Al
Pumba ·
Im slowly getting there al ,the pan was a little more crusty than i thought so im changing the pan halfs,motor started and compression tested at 125 on all cylinders,looks like its had some work at some point its very clean in the heads etc.
Its ready to go back in,im going for the vintage speed look.
cheers shane.
gerggl ·
FANTASTIC WORK ........!
Dasdubber ·
Looks great Shane - will be a perfect compliment to the 56.
Back onto the 54 today...
Pan is in excellent shape - couple of holes (urgent battery clamp) to weld up but otherwise just needs some prep before it goes onto the rotisserie for two pack paint. External larger diameter fuel line was for the type IV engine....will be removed before paint
After cutting the bulk of the old wheel well out, the next step was to carefully drill out the spot welds
Wurth spot weld removal bits are effective
After some tweaking the spare wheel well went in and was plug welded from the underside and welds dressed
Craig Torrens ·
Are you going to leave the fuel line under the car or move it to inside the tunnel ?
Dasdubber ·
After a thorough sand then acid treatment (deoxidine), the bare metal was given a couple of coats of two pack epoxy primer. Next seam sealer will be applied along with some minor filler work
The metal on the front roll was worked as far it could be without thinning it out excessively - very little filler will be required
small spot at front repaired
Dasdubber ·
Craig Torrens wrote:Are you going to leave the fuel line under the car or move it to inside the tunnel ?
The one under the car will be removed Craig. Unless otherwise specified by a potential new owner, I'll just leave the stock one in situ (still functional)
Dasdubber ·
Front valance now ready for primer after a thin skim of filler
Rear guards are back on for some tweaking to align better with rear valance and fix a crack in lower left guard edge
Door hinge pins will be replaced next along with some rust repair on drivers side lower a-pillar....then body will come off the pan.
Al
ColonyVW ·
Looking good Al!
Dasdubber ·
Cheers Clint 😘
Left rear guard had a split on rear lower edge - since the metal was fairly thin, a weld would have resulted in the crack reappearing
So a small repair section was welded in
One thing that annoyed me was this area of the left rear guard - the beading hides some variances in the body to guard tolerance, but this gap was too big for my liking
I had the choice to build up the edge with welds, or cut the guard, close up the gap and reweld (chose the latter option)
This pic shows the cut size grew once the gap was closed up
I didn't want to do a double long butt weld (by welding a piece in) so the slow process of building up the tacks, dressing them, and welding some more whislt controlling heat ensued
Some mild planishing and then welds dressed smooth....small amount of filler to come and the bad gap is gone
tar76 ·
Loving this, nice work man. what type of carbs and linkage setup were they on the motor you took a pic of ?
Dasdubber ·
Cheers Tarin, the carbs on my type IV motor were 40mm Dellortos with CB Performance linkage....teh latter photo with type I engine were Webers as far as I can remember wiht same sort of linkage (was a borrowed motor so can't remember the specs).
Al
benny_acko ·
wow great build thread!
Congratulations the Oval is looking great..
What kind of price range are you going to be asking in when moving it on?
Dasdubber ·
benny_acko wrote:wow great build thread!
Congratulations the Oval is looking great..
What kind of price range are you going to be asking in when moving it on?
cheers Benny, not 100% sure what the figure will be - it is highly dependent on how much time I invest in the oval and how complete (or incomplete) it is at time of sale (re. beam/gearbox etc etc).....and most imporantly what the market is willing to pay.
Al
Dasdubber ·
The lower edge of the front right guard has annoyed me for a while now as it tapers away from the valance
Initially I was going to pie cut it and reweld, but it needed to be tweaked a little too far for a single cut
So a section was cut out, new piece fabricated and welded in
Tacked and tweaked....
Its these little things that you don't notice when the car is finished....but if not rectified end up standing out....all time consuming niggly stuff 🙂
cam070 ·
This really is a quality build. Love your work Al.
annosL ·
I appreciate your posts and pics, great motivation for an amateur like me to try and emulate your work, never will though but it's the inspiration that counts!
I am doing little "niggly" bits on my '69 body now for an EV conversion and love seeing what can be achieved as per your '54
benny_acko ·
Thanks Al
Its great to see someone who takes pride in their work and wants it to look as good as possible...
Ive always been told "Do it once,do it right".
Ill definitely be following this build thread!
Goodluck
Aussie ·
Nice work Al - look forward to the thread progressing. Shame you can't hang on to the car after the work you will be putting into it. How far are you going to take the resto before selling?
Dasdubber ·
Ian, at this stage I want to get it to fully painted stage (body off - both body and pan painted on rotisserie)....then remated with guards and doors etc rehung with new beading and seals etc, get it rolling on stock (unrestored) running gear and sell at that stage. That way someone can take over to do the fun stuff (fitting new shiny bits!)
Unless of course someone commits to purchase before reassembly in which case I'd be happy to finish the car (separate transaction to purchase) to whatever stage new owner wants......if someone commits before paint, they can even choose their own colour 😁
Work continues - not very exciting pics though as guards are now bodyworked and ready for primer as is rear apron. Now to get to those door pins!
Al
Special Air Service ·
looking good Al, you working with MIG or TIG with the welding?
Brendan
Dasdubber ·
G'day Brendan, working with MIG on most of our repairs at this stage.
Dasdubber ·
Body is just about ready to come off the pan - just some lower a-pillar repairs, then do door pins and rehang doors to check gaps.....then it can come off.
Guards have been bodyworked and now into high build primer
Dasdubber ·
Blasted the engine bay today back to bare metal - time consuming with the little blasting gun, but better than hand sanding it
Layed down a bit of epoxy primer so any imperfections would show up and enable me to fill them before high build primer goes on
Only little detail work to go on the front valance then high build
More progress next week
Al
Mr Bubble Head ·
Watching this closely great attention to detail as always. Keep it up Al
zoofish ·
This is looking GREAT!
Dasdubber ·
Started on the lower A-pillar repair on the drivers side - crusty area was cut out first to inspect the inner area:
After cutting away the rusty metal, the inner area was sandblasted clean to reveal rust in top of heater channel
Fortunately bottom of channel was rust free, just the top had some rot so it was replaced first
As is the norm with a lot of the crappy repair panels available, they are very inaccurate and poor fit - lower hole dimple was pressed in the direction and no hole for top screw being an early beetle
Lower hole was in wrong position and didn't line up with actual door screw so it had to be cut out and rewelded in the correct spot
After welding the top hole was drilled then dimpled using a quick, rough buck made from hardwood
It's little things like this that add hours to what should be a fairly simple repair
After a lot of alignment, the pillar repair was welded in, the inner area will be hand formed next and welded in
Another example of a crap repair panel - unfortunately Klassic Fab don't do these repair pieces just yet
Cheers
Al
Dasdubber ·
Due to some stone chips and a few dents I decided to take the bonnet back to bare metal to ensure there was no rust creep under any of the chips
Only a thin wipe of filler will be required to take care of any low spots after any dents were knocked out
Dasdubber ·
Valance is in primer finally
and the bonnet
Lower drivers a pillar repair almost complete
Still a bit of tidying to do
hopefully a bit of progress over easter
Al
zoofish ·
Inspiring stuff. Love it!
Dasdubber ·
After blasting around the lower left a-pillar, I found a bit more work to tackle
Under bonnet all looks good apart from some repair work required to return master cylinder res holes back to single stock hole
Weeds ·
I am looking to buy my first beetle in the next month or two, but judging by the quality of this work (not that that's a bad thing!!), this will be well out of my budget, but inspiring to watch just the same :-)
Dasdubber ·
Thanks mate
Left side A-pillar needed the same repairs as drivers sdie - given how crappy the repair panels are off teh shelf, I ended up fabricating it from scratch - easier in two pieces for teh outer and same for the inner (just one last bit to do on the inside)
Cheers
Al
Stanley ·
Top work Al.
One question though. Aren't you worried that the rust in the A pillar might be just the tip of the iceberg so to speak.
Is there a chance the rust has travelled from the heater channel and might show up later.
Dasdubber ·
Hey Stanley, cutting open the A-pillars during the repairs enabled me to perform quite a comprehensive inspection through the heater channels. Whilst there was minor pitting in the bottom around the a-pillars there was nothing extensive fortunately, otherwise I would have replaced them entirely (Klassic Fab do a 54 correct heater channel now - being the Australian distributors, it would have made sense for me to do them if necessary).
So yeah, I'm confident the oval will have good longevity after I treated the minor pitting then painted the inside of the channels where accessible (and will flush with cavity wax post paint).
Unfortunately you can't stop the rust forever, but certainly try our best 🙂
Cheers
Al
MrsBahBah ·
Wow - I love the progress so far, I can't wait to see more - great job Das!
cressy75 ·
wow nothing has changed with you das
i watched your rag build over the years as you did it
seem you still are going crazy but not at home doing it anymore hehe
beetle_nut ·
Dam thatz good resto work.nice car nice job mate.
Dasdubber ·
Progress has been continuing however being flat out with customer's cars means I haven't had as much time to devote to the oval as expected....few milestones reached however.
First up a quick mockup of what could be some new shoes....Short axles and type I rear brakes (not type III) means the rears should fit under the stock guards no probs.
Beam and box are not original so both will be replaced...maybe narrowed beam, will see what transpires
Few more small repairs required on the body before it gets blasted on the inside and remainder of under bonnet/wheel arches etc
Cheers
Al
ian.mezz ·
geeess mate you are makig a lot of work for yourself.😊
Mr Bubble Head ·
Al loves nothing more than getting it right first time
Dasdubber ·
Yep, more work but worth the effort in the long run. Sorry Craig.....missed your chance on this one, a new owner has snavelled it up and has a few ideas 😉
Slowly but surely progress continues. The pan will be sent away for blasting whilst I am in the US.....and will blast the inside of the body and under the guards etc. So things will go on hold for a month or so, but work resumes end of June 🙂
cheers
Al
5lam ·
I would love a set of those smoothies!! So sick
Dasdubber ·
The oval has sat idle for a while after being sold to a customer and some of the finer details worked out....but I've been chipping away at the pan getting it ready for a show quality lick of paint. So lots of time on hammer and dolly straightening out the dents/scrapes etc then some fine filler work to get ready for primer today.
After its in high build primer, it will sit for a while again whilst the body is prepped for paint. No point getting the pan painted nicely only to sit for several months collecting dust whilst the body is done.
Al
Dasdubber ·
Nothing too exciting - spent a full day yesterday block sanding the pan top and bottom and fixing any imperfections...now its ready for its final coat of high build primer.
Al
CSP dual circuit master cylinder was trial fitted to ensure there were no clearance problems - as you'd expect with CSP products, there were no problems 🙂
h ·
wow looking good 😵
when al was baby sitting my SC on the trailer recently when i had some T5 issues
(many thanks once again for helping me out in my spot of bother)
n when i came late that evening to pick it back up,
I saw this man busy sanding away at it.
he looked like a demon possessed working hard 👍
good job mate
nice one 😉
Dasdubber ·
Pan is now painted though and looking shmick ...
Wet rubbed and seam sealed
Base coated
Cleared
Body is going to take longer than expected (more rust after I had it blasted)...have to wait for some heater channels from Klassic Fab and then I'll be back underway.
pete wood ·
👍
Bizarre ·
man, there is something erotic about these pics 😍
Dasdubber ·
After far too long a hiatus, it is finally time to get back onto the 55 resto.
There were a few very minor little niggly patches required after blasting showed a few areas of weakness/rust
Heater channels were next on the list so after some body bracing the originals were cut out
As is the case with so many beetles, the front lower corners of the firewall/bulkead will need repair as well
Plasma cutter makes the removal a lot quicker
Only one very small pinhole was present in the rear reinforcing plate near the torsion housing, so to be safe it was removed
This is why you can never estimate accurately the time to restore these old things - the associated repairs around the heater channels will add another day at least. Given the quality and attention to detail that will be imparted on this oval, I didn't want to leave any stone unturned
Donor pan allows accurate alignment of new Klassic Fab channels along with body to ensure hassle free reassembly post paint
Cheers
Al
Turbo54 ·
Sweet work mate, Love the attention to detail.
Heath
vassy66T1 ·
Great to see it Al
TommyS ·
Nice work. Very extensive
Dasdubber ·
Back to work - heater channels bolted up nicely and bracing cut out so pillars can be tweaked to get alignment correct. Still a bit more to go before everything gets welded back up
Dasdubber ·
I've been very lax with both the progress on the oval and the updates but motivated to get it done as soon as possible now! Quick update re. where things are at:
Right rear quarter repair - previous accident damage and lead loaded at some stage in the past along the swage line….donor section cut and prepped to replace damaged original section:
Due to limited access on the back side of this area, studs had to be used to bring the steel out to the required position during welding
Dasdubber ·
Welded and ground, thin wipe of filler post epoxy primer will tidy it up nicely
Swage line remained nice and tight
Left side lower repair
Dasdubber ·
New front valance...
Front bonnet gaps were miles out in all directions so some porta powering on the front inner quarters got them back into shape and alignment
Front inner arches were next on the agenda
Dasdubber ·
Left b-pillar is wrapped up
Both sides of the lower firewall required replacement as well just to add to the list
vduboy ·
Awesome work, I love seeing panel work done by a actual panel beater, looks great!👍
adlbeetle66 ·
Wow.... very nice... about the stage i'm up to doing in my 1966 bug... Fire wall and heater channels 🤖
Dasdubber ·
With time ticking by faster than ever, progress has been still slow but steady:
Next up was a big hole in the roof:
Dasdubber ·
Rear bumper mounts were rusty underneath and had a slight crease so they had to be replaced and the surrounding metal repaired as well
Bonnet seal channel was next up to be refitted
Metal work is finally almost over.
Flintstones ·
This kind of work brings back memories......👍
adlbeetle66 ·
Top work as usual Al ❗
Can you give me some tips on doing the Firewall / bulkhead section?
Thanks,
Denver
Dasdubber ·
Denver, sorry I missed your reply earlier this year! You've probably done it already but the lower bulkhead/firewall area is pretty straight forward compared to a pillars and heater channels. Being able to drop the body back on the pan after everything is tacked in place is a big help before final welding to ensure everything aligns correctly but other than that, it should be fairly simple.
Going back a couple of months now but finally got all the metal work completed and the body into epoxy primer!
Dasdubber ·
Now to body work, lots of block sanding, more priming, more sanding and more priming!