The Bumblebuggy

My original project...3+ years in the making so far.

Started as my '68 which I delivered pizzas in for a few years to make ends meet.


Broke it down and shortened the pan teaching myself to weld in the process.


The pan is done and (at one point) was clean enough to eat off of.


Fabbed up a roll bar for it.


And test fit the body.


Now all it needs is some serious body work, electric, and an engine plugged in to be a street beast.

"$400 OBO"? I'll give you $500 for it!

That's sweet! Can't wait to see it roll up at Sonic.

LOL Gordon! I have 2x that in the wheels and tires alone. Add to that every single bolt has been replaced on the pan, two + coats of POR-15, new floor pans, CV joints, all new bushings, rebuilt trany, completly new brake system (including hard & soft lines), new windshield, custom fabbed roll cage, misc steel, endless hours of elbow grease, cuts, scrapes, and loving curses. I'll let it go as it sits for $1,000,000.00 and please understand that takes into account sentimental value of a car that I've owned for over ten years and built many happy memories which makes it priceless. But, you know, times are hard so I'm willing to let it go for that rock bottom price. Call me if you're interested!

If Gordon can't come up with money, I may be interested. I need to check my bank account though and make sure my yacht payment went through first. Looks like a fun project. I'm sure it will be a blast to drive...so hurry up and get working on it.

How much did you shorten the pan? What kind of buggy body is that? this would be a good project to salvage some of my beetle.

bumblebuggy wrote:I'll let it go as it sits for $1,000,000.00 and please understand that takes into account sentimental value of a car that I've owned for over ten years and built many happy memories which makes it priceless.

fluxcap wrote:If Gordon can't come up with money, I may be interested. I need to check my bank account though and make sure my yacht payment went through first.

Fiberfab made this particular body. It's called a "Clodhopper" but most people will refer to it as a Manx style/clone dune buggy. Bruce Myers made the original Manx and many companies stole the design because of the popularity of the car. Sears even sold one in their catalog at one time.

The typical shortening measurement for a Manx style buggy is 14 1/2 inches. Your car might actually be a good canidate for a buggy build. What you need to do is check the main tunnel for the same type of rust issues as the rest of the car seems to have. Too much rust and you're just begging for problems.

What happened to the body?

rpm750 wrote:What happened to the body?

It was recycled. I took a moment of silence when they crushed it. It almost physically hurt me when they did it. I still feel bad because I've become good enough with a welder since then that I could've saved it.

What it looked like in it's Pizza delivering days.

Working on some fitting issues on the body. I'm going to build a "trunk" where the rear seat would normally be. Trying to figure out exactly how to cut out a peice of plywood I'm going to use as the lid. Its turning out to be problematic as it has a sort of "D" shape to it and I've already wasted one piece that I tried to fit the first time. I'm trying to figure out a way to make a template so I can just trace it onto the plywood.

Got a box full of motivation today.

Brand new Scat 1776.

Nice!

Managed to accomplish something that actually shows some progress The engine is 95% complete.








Broke out the shoe horn and wedged it into the car. First time I've had the engine bolted up. Feels good and stimulates the need to keep going.

bumblebuggy wrote:

Broke out the shoe horn and wedged it into the car. First time I've had the engine bolted up. Feels good and stimulates the need to keep going.

I second that, I was sitting here reading posts earlier today and was like ya know, I could be putting my engine back together, getting something done, got motivated and did it!

Looking good Glen, What make carbs you got there? I'm rethinking and my go with Weber 36 ICT's. Would like to know how those work if they are the same.

40mm Kads from AJ Sims. Tuned and jetted for my 1776.

Lets see some more pics of that buggy :Rockit: .

Nothing worth taking pics of at the moment. Maybe in a week or so.

Slowly getting work done. Finished fittting the trunk, bolted the support bar unrerneath the rear of the car, fitted a battery box, fitted the flip up fuel cap. Then took averything back apart, flipped the body upside down, glassed in some holes, attached a bunch of zip tie holders, coated the underside with Herculiner, sanded the tank, and then coated it with Rustbullet. Now I need to get in touch wth Stockornaut and discuss paint and body work.

Only took a couple pics...

Fresh black bedliner on the botom.


Clean(er) gas tank.

I declare the pan complete! Brakes reinstalled, bled and adjusted. Pedal cluster installed. Seat belts bolted up. Axle nuts torqued down and wheels installed with center caps and all lugs. Cables shortened and installed. Front and rear tube bumpers, cleaned, repainted, wired for lights (fog and license) and bolted up. Three years of dust brushed off.

Now all I need is my body back and my wire harness installed.

Awesome news Glenn

Looking good for sure!

I especially dig the 'safety tape' paint scheme on the suspension! :Rockit:
Can't wait to see the conclusion........

Got the body back from Stockornaut today. Friggin SWEET!



Now the final countdown begins. A coat of liner on the inside of the tub and final assembly and we'll be rolling.