Man Alan, you are a one-man assembly line!
@Alan Merklin posted:Never said I was color blind, I am shade color blind...depending on the lighting..... blues and purples, greens and browns, browns and black are difficult to distinguish unless I have a strong light and use a white index card behind the wires to be able to tell the difference...... it works ~
I worked with a guy with the same thing. Orange and brown and yellow and red were his issues. And we were splicing colored copper pairs....he was good though with proper lighting.
Project Outlaw update: Last Thursday I went to pick up the driver's side roll bar "hoop" from the powder coater, wasn't all that happy with the appearance, ( too dark) so they were gracious enough to re do it in spray on "New Chrome" finish got that back the next day and turned out great looking similar to the aluminum windshield frame. The pedals were a continuing saga as the space between the 4-1/2" wide tunnel & brake pedal was too narrow for it to be safe so I cut the clutch and brake pedal foot pads off their arms welding them 3/4" to the left and 1/2" down, that solved that issue. Getting the fiberglass tonneau, top, the padded helmet fairing and hoop to all align in a way that would make it quick and easy to remove was a full day's event but it all looks like it belongs there and takes just two minutes to remove if you choose to have the StayFast top accessible. With no carpet kit made for the Berrien tube chassis & CFM Speedster body combo, so I did cardboard patterns transferring those to black carpeting over a full two-day period, it came out looking great. The leather door panels and door top rails are installed and key fob controlled remote battery cut off was a thirty minute job and works well. The fuel tank is in, plumbed and the quarter panel intake tubes are done. Today, I installed the seat tracks, seats & Crow belts. Tomorrow I'll rig the external oil cooler and remote oil housing.
.......I still have to fabricate some sort of chassis brackets to the bumper T' brackets, install those and the shaved bumpers, driving lights, aluminum heat shield panels around the engine, rear view mirror, adjust - raise the rear coil overs a bit, set the initial 1/8" toe in, fire the engine and dial it in.
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@Alan Merklin Can’t wait to see some more pictures Alan!!!
Updates like this make me want to go out and work on my car right now - - - past my bed time!!
Will it be in Carlisle?
@Alan Merklin Alan it Looks Beautiful!!! I’m so Happy you took over the Build! That’s what I always pictured it would look like but I knew I didn’t have the expertise or talent to do it. I cant say enough! WOW
Excellent! When you take the next pics, could you do one focused on the finished side vents?
I've yet to tackle that project on my car.
Also, thanks again for the photos and measurements you sent me earlier.
@AlanMerklin - where do you have the upholstery done on your seats? They are magnificent!!!
@30West posted:@AlanMerklin - where do you have the upholstery done on your seats? They are magnificent!!!
Rafael at CFM Mexico....
Do you have Raphael’s contact info handy? Those seats are awesome!
@30West posted:Do you have Raphael’s contact info handy? Those seats are awesome!
@Panhandle Bob posted:Excellent! When you take the next pics, could you do one focused on the finished side vents?
I've yet to tackle that project on my car.
Also, thanks again for the photos and measurements you sent me earlier.
Friday I will need to fix a loose stud in the intake grill I'll take some pics then.
Looking awesome, Alan!
Excellent hinge and installation on the engine compartment deck lid, Alan!!!
Outlaw build photos ... A few gallons of gas and it fired right off & idles. A couple of short burns down the street and all is well. The 2165cc is strong engine for sure. Will dial in the carbs tomorrow and retail it.
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Looks great Alan! Did you keep track of how many hours it took you to build it?
@LI-Rick posted:Looks great Alan! Did you keep track of how many hours it took you to build it?
Isn't the answer always "40 hours"?
That is one of the nicest builds that Alan has done IMO. I could see myself driving that in the winter snowbird season... if I had a house in Naples right @Marty Grzynkowicz Gee Alan, you should PM me the ask when you decide on the price. Awesome and GLWTS !!
Very nice build indeed. Congrats on getting the car finished Alan.
Looks great Alan. I can’t believe it’s already finished!
The tunnel also looks very real 
@LI-Rick posted:Looks great Alan! Did you keep track of how many hours it took you to build it?
Thanks for the compliments..... @Li-Rick There are a number of differences in the body vs VMC / VS / CMC etc that had to be addressed. Somewhere in the low 300 hour range, a lot of it was one step forward and two steps back.
@IaM-Ray posted:The tunnel also looks very real
Tunnel is only held in place with the two 13mm shifter bolts, it's 11 gauge steel and is heavy. The rear 7" wide coupler cover piece & both lift off to gain access to all the tunnel under-pinnings.
Nice driving lights.
They look like older aircraft landing lights?
Can’t tell if they are fog lenses or not.
Oh, and the rest of the car is wicked awesome, too!
@Gordon Nichols posted:Nice driving lights.
They look like older aircraft landing lights?
Can’t tell if they are fog lenses or not.
Oh, and the rest of the car is wicked awesome, too!
I found the driving lights a guy on a dune buggy site was selling new at $55 a pair, I didn't know the quality was as good as they are or, I would have bought a dozen more to offer.
Is the shifter a stock version? Looks to be just a bit longer (and love the bend) -
And I know there has been much discussion over the years regarding steering wheels, but still think that one is one of the nicest for these cars . . . . . .
@Alan Merklin Alan, I LOVE IT!!!!! How’s it handle with that suspension? Great Job my Friend!!
@30West posted:Is the shifter a stock version? Looks to be just a bit longer (and love the bend) -
And I know there has been much discussion over the years regarding steering wheels, but still think that one is one of the nicest for these cars . . . . . .
Shifter is 1.5" Vintage Speed. 14" flat Steering wheel from Ebay seller with 3.2" Billet VW 40 spline hub and an additional 1" Billet extension. P' button from seller on here.
@Arden posted:@Alan Merklin Alan, I LOVE IT!!!!! How’s it handle with that suspension? Great Job my Friend!!
Despite that I only did two laps around the block ( no tags) it feels smooth and like it's on a track. Should be done Wednesday....There were some challenges and alterations but was able to work through them, I blew up the budget a.... long time ago ... & thanks for selling to me.
Really excellent build, Alan.
I agree with the rest Alan, I love the car. It is truly a dream build, well done! This should bring the big bucks if you can part with it.
"There were some challenges and alterations but was able to work through them, I blew up the budget a.... long time ago"
Famous last words of a die-hahd cah guy.......
Just outstanding!! When Doc Clock hisself says this is his "Dream Build", you know its something special. There is a lot of Merklin the Magician secret sauce in here, and the real "specialness", IMHO, is the suspension. Same sort of set up as the one Rich Drewek put in his K-Ghia body-off refurb. And I have good reports that that set up (Mendeola??) is very sweet indeed. And I Love, with a capital L, that steering wheel. Pls keep the thread alive and report about its sale and relocation data, if plausible.
@Alan Merklin Hey Alan how’s that engine run Ihave been itching to knows? Ihave been laid up with a couple surgeries one cancer scare thank God it wasn’t and now rotator cuff surgery. Just wondering how everything tuned out My Friend!!!!
@El Frazoo and @Arden ..... Outlaw Speedster update: It's been done for three weeks now. I only have three miles on it because of not having a valid tag or insurance. The trans was built to match the HP of the 2165cc . That engine has a lot of low and torque with shifting at around 25, 45 and 62 mph and The quirk is I had put Marvel mystery oil in the engine as I didn't know how long it would sit as it already had sat plastic wrapped for a couple of years and that small amount of oil is now in the bottom of A1 Muffler and I need to burn that off . Another two weeks and it's on Bring A Trailer... the market is somewhat down but this is a one-of-a-kind build, so we'll see where it goes. Arden I am glad you have passed that bump in the road, I've been there too a number of years ago. This is the link to the Outlaw ad I left up on the Samba, it has all the details, photos and walk around video. TheSamba.com :: VW Classifieds - 1955 Porsche Outlaw Speedster Replica
Short shift video https://www.facebook.com/12510...os/3116547905313667/
That’s certainly a beauty Alan. GLWS.
Let us know when it hits Bring a Trailer, Alan. I'll be happy to chime in about the builder and the build. Absolutely beautiful car and my favorite of your builds.
@Lane Anderson posted:Let us know when it hits Bring a Trailer, Alan. I'll be happy to chime in about the builder and the build. Absolutely beautiful car and my favorite of your builds.
Yes I'll let you now , thanks !
Favorite build? There are so many to chose from. Having never actually seen the car for real, I still will have to hold Alan's Candy as #1 in my heart. Maybe this one could be #2. Nah, ... how about #1.5?? This really is a very special build. I am unaware of any chassis/suspension combos like this anywhere. But there likely are others somewhere. Wherever it goes I hope we do not lose track of it.