1967 Spider 1600 'Duetto' restoration

[Beatle]

Ooooohh  Makes me go all tingly.  Is that CARPET I see............... That won't go well when you leave it parked at Coles with the roof down and it rains 

Have you rustproofed inside all cavities Rob?  Twice??

[pdub]

Hi Rob

i have just started restoration on a 1974 2000 spider. I was just wondering about the stand you used during the early part of your restoration. It looks like it is fabricated from steel and has castors on the legs. Could you please provide details of the dimensions so I can have a go at building one. Should be good welding practice.

cheers

Peter
AROCA SA

[Beatle]

Some additional inspiration here Peter:  http://www.alfabb.com/bb/forums/car-restoration/17920-rotisserie-construction.html

Other versions consist of a half rollover stand which affixes to one side (via suspension mount points) and allows the car to be rolled onto it's side for access to the underside (vertical).  http://www.alfabb.com/bb/forums/spider-1966-up/151944-have-you-seen-before.html

[Craig_m67]

Mine... Lets me roll the car 360deg through long axis on the spot (limited space)

Inspired by some versions i've seen over the years at thesamba.com,
... of which this is the coolest >> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzPzO6ECh8c

[RobDee]

Hi pdub,

If you were prepared to come and pick it up, or arrange transport, I would happily sell you my frame as I don't think I'll be needing it ever again.  Otherwise here are some tips for building one, from my experience.

At the front end I used the lowest of the three steering box / idler arm holes to support the chassis.  At the rear end  I used the lowest of the three suspension T-bar attachment holes.  I used 50 mm square hollow section with some pipe welded at the top of each upright to take a 10mm bolt (see pic).

I would recommend building the frame on the car.  The car was already on stands so we fitted the uprights to it, then laid the horizontal bits on the ground and welded them all together.  The bottom rectangle isn't a rectangle per se but rather a trapezium because the front attachment points are closer together than the rear ones.  We then jacked the car up and welded the castor wheels under the frame.  Buy the biggest castor wheels you can find.  You'll need to go to an industrial supplies store.  The wheels should be around 6" diameter.  I initially bought a set from Bunnings that was about 3" diameter and I immediately tore them off and bought bigger ones because they were barely up to the task.  The bigger ones cost the same amount as the Bunnings ones.

The rotisserie is a more useful setup but not essential in my opinion unless you plan to do quite a lot of fiddly detail work under the car.

Rob

[RobDee]

By the way, if you build the frame on the car like we did, you'll have a lot of fun working out how to get it off again later without destroying the frame.

[RobDee]

Some more progress on the Duetto.  I'm getting my engine and gearbox back soon, and I look forward to what will be a momentous juncture in the build - returning the heart to the body.

Rob

[pancho]

Those gauges look fantastic! If only I had a space like that to work with!

Rob - in the first picture - is the drivers door closed properly?

[RobDee]

Pancho don't get me started on the driver's door.  It isn't possible to line everything up at the same time.  There's each end of the top edge, each end of the bottom edge and each end of the top and bottom ridges of the scallop.  I think I've got it to the best 'happy medium' position that I can, giving preference to the look of the scallop.  The sound it makes when it opens and closes isn't as nice as the other door.  From most normal viewing angles it looks OK, that photo probably shows it up a bit.

[Velocemoto]

That is truly sensational...dream car

[Craig_m67]

Those gauges look fantastic! If only I had a space like that to work with!

x2, who did the gauges ??

[RobDee]

The gauges were restored by Howard Instruments in Melbourne (http://www.howardinstruments.com.au).  New chrome bezels, new glass, new globes, overhauled internals on the speedo and tacho, re-chromed rear surrounds for the small gauges, blasted and re-plated rear housings.  The cost of nearly $800 was soon forgotten!

[RobDee]

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now...

[AikenDrum105]

Money shot - right here      Brilliant Rob.    Except for the bit where I miss my duetto terribly... 

[RobDee]

FINITO...FINALMENTE :-)