Introducing 'Manfred'

woval56 · Post by **woval56** » Thu Jun 21, 2012 10:03 pm

looking good Kent,
coming together nicely,
willwood clutch? how does that work, any mods needed inside the bell housing?

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Mon Jun 25, 2012 9:25 pm

Clutch set up.

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Mon Jun 25, 2012 9:34 pm

Things are progressing nicely. Cruised down on Sat. Thanks to Al and Steve for letting us hang out and put in some hours. Valla is still the target and time is ticking. Starting to think about details but still a lot to be done.

Clutch Reservoir

Front and rear seat belt mounts.

Custom shift rod. The old one was rusted which gives an idea of how bad the underside was. Custom made by DAS.

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Mon Jun 25, 2012 9:41 pm

Custom oil cooler tucked away.

Trial fit of front safaris

New fuel tank fitted.

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Mon Jun 25, 2012 9:55 pm

A few more Red9 shots. Fitted the 17" smoothies up for a look. Offset is ok and they are phat but will stick with Empi's.

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Mon Jun 25, 2012 9:59 pm

New tank

Rear end

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 10:00 pm

The paint and panel plan was to cut back the dodgy 80's aqua repaint and find the original sea blue lurking somewhere underneath. A bit of hard work but do-able. A sort of rat / original look with the van making its statement on the underside.

Unfortunately, after all the rust repairs to the lower half, a new (old) front door, the nose being stripped to metal, the roof having no original paint left, the aqua and primer forming a good bond and previous body work, it was tough going getting a decent finish. We sanded back a few spots and the sea blue was there in patches but not the look we were going for. I probably would have settled for a top coat of ankor wax but after a chat with Al, the Minister for War and Finance was not having it.

Plan B? Manfred will be given a once over with the 240 orbital in preparation for some satin sea blue. An original look in the original colour highlighted by a deluxe trim and chrome bits and pieces. Shiny Empi's will compliment the satin paint. Maybe even some sign writing....

Shots show some before and after.

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 10:16 pm

Tried out the wheels and tyres with the current suspension set up. Still plenty of height available either way and fine tuning will determine exactly where it ends up. Rims a 15x5.5 Empi's with 185/65 tyres. this will allow plenty of clearance at the front but the rears look a little under tyred so might try to squeeze some 205 or 215's under the back.

Frogsta · Post by **Frogsta** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 10:53 pm

MMMmmm...satin sea blue.
You still need a rear door mech?

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Wed Jun 27, 2012 7:40 am

Yep. Got one?

FrankenCab · Post by **FrankenCab** » Wed Jun 27, 2012 8:37 am

gettin there , but rear arch should be closer to the centre cap

how much lower can it go ?

Frogsta · Post by **Frogsta** » Wed Jun 27, 2012 5:42 pm

No doubt, how soon is it needed?.

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Wed Jun 27, 2012 9:57 pm

Couple of weeks. Happy to come up the hill and grab it. Let me know.
K

Frogsta · Post by **Frogsta** » Wed Jun 27, 2012 10:37 pm

Come for a visit on the weekend if you like.
I've got all the same running gear exept they did not have the rear red 9 so I went 69 irs.
Looking forward to seeing Manfred on the local streets soon.

thebear · Post by **thebear** » Sat Jun 30, 2012 1:43 pm

A little more body prep required before a quick spray. A deluxe trim will be fitted so the belt line has to be fixed in a few places including the front door. Lower section also done - DAS don't do things by halves! It should be noted that its my choice to do minimal prep and a quick spray. The many imperfections will be all part of the character and are not a reflection on the painter or shop. It's still way more than colour than i thought i'd see on this bus.

Belt line repaired from the inside.

A little filler and presto...

Introducing 'Manfred'

clutch pic

Update

cooler and safaris

Red9 shots

Rear end

Paint and panel

Hows it sit?

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Body prep for paint