One of my HS friends (Rick, who now lives at "Surf City" in Huntington Beach, CA) got a '62 Chevy SS as a graduation present. Pale yellow, black interior, set of ET Mags and lots of that engine-turned "bling".
And the Rompin', Stompin' Cheby straight six and Power Glide. 
Still, it looked VERY cool, attracted it's share of chicks and got him through college and into his first job.
He now hangs out with a bunch of retired firefighters and drives an F/250. Times, and us, have changed.
61 Impala SS Convertible, blue and blue, 348 3x2bbl, with the Hurst 4 speed between her knees.
Fellas, the eagle has landed. I immediately did a few spins around the neighborhood with my wife, then of course with each of my girls who I think we're more excited then me. She's in her new home now, going to head out to tag/title place soon and will report back on progress, or lack thereof...
Welcome to the Brotherhood of the Silver Speedsters. Back it out into that green background and take a million photos.
Congrats, Sam!!! It's been quite the wait but now she's home. Enjoy.
Beautiful! Congratulations on finally getting it on the road. I'm sure it will be worth the wait!
"Fellas, the eagle has landed. I immediately did a few spins around the neighborhood with my wife, then of course with each of my girls who I think we're more excited then me. She's in her new home now, going to head out to tag/title place soon and will report back on progress, or lack thereof..." - @Sam Brown
WOO HOO! What a beauty. Here's wishing you many miles of top-down driving enjoyment! 
@wrkinprogress posted:Back it out into that green background and take a million photos.
On the list, have no fear. We're slightly sidetracked by some mechanical troubleshooting, so photos will be delayed but hopefully not for long.
Tag & title shop wasn't able to get it registered on the spot, but they got farther than I or they thought was possible initially. I have the temp registration through mid-October, so it won't slow down my initial enjoyment. And hopefully the wait won't be more than a week or 2 for them to get it through the system.
Will upload a bunch a pics as soon as I'm able.
Hmmm, Brotherhood of Silver Speedsters? BOSS? I like it! @wrkinprogress when will you start selling T-shirts? Or better yet, a grill badge?
@Jon T posted:Hmmm, Brotherhood of Silver Speedsters? BOSS? I like it! @wrkinprogress when will you start selling T-shirts? Or better yet, a grill badge?
I'm in for one!
me too!
@dlearl476 posted:Can I play?
Maybe, maybe not. It does say Brotherhood Of Silver Speedsters and that is clearly a Spyder. A meeting of the Brotherhood of Silver Speedsters will have to be convened first and if we have a quorum we can take a vote. The Brotherhood prides itself on inclusivity so there's good chance you can still get in. The same goes for everyone else regardless of the color of your Speedster or Spyder.
After careful consideration I vote we drop all references to color and still call it BOSS but it will mean Brotherhood of Speedsters & Spyders.
Ok, now I've gotta protest the lack of inclusivity for Coupes. Howzabout "Brotherhood of Speedsters, Spyders, and Sedans," or BOSSS?
You forgot the Roadster. BORSSS.
What does that sound like?
It looks stunning Sam! And a favor- when you have it outside taking pics, could you take 1 or 2 without the hubcaps?
And @Lane Anderson- that S word is not to be said here- go wash your mouth out with soap right now!
Maybe, but BOSSC just doesn’t work and BOSSCR is kind silly.
THBPHHT!!!
Very Nice enjoy
WAIT!!! I’ve got it - Brotherhood of Coupes, Speedsters, Spyders, and Roadsters. BOCSSR - sounds like boxer. C’mon folks, work with me here.
Well if we’re trying to be inclusive, brotherhood ought to be changed as well, right? Also, clown car seems to be an acceptable term to encompass speedsters, spyders and coupes within these forum halls while avoiding the somewhat controversial term replica. So I give you Family of Clown Cars. FOCC. Or if somebody insists on including replica, may I suggest FOCCR. Your pronunciation may vary.
"Has anyone ever driven both a Beck Speedster and a VW Beetle based Speedster? I’ve always wondered how they compare." Question posted in BaT auction ending today for another silver speedster, that one on a 1980 (mexican?) beetle platform.
I have owned both. The Beck is a totally different feeling of enhanced stability compared to a pan based one. It also has more room in the cockpit.
Sam, where you at?
@edsnova posted:Sam, where you at?
Sorry guys, I had hoped to be regaling you with dozens of pictures and tails of twisty country roads by now. We have encountered some mechanical challenges that are delaying launch. Carey, Mike and all of team-Beck have been really wonderful, including several (several) weekend calls, texts and videos. There is a part on its way that will be here on Monday, and then hopefully we're off to the races.
I'm not going to go into details right now, it doesn't really matter and I'm refusing to let it be a cloud over my party. Carey's been great, they're doing everything, and those treelined county highways are only about 36 hours away. I promise to update as soon as there's an update worth sharing.
Hang in there, Sam. Sorting issues on custom, hand-built cars are to be expected.
Sorry for the false start on Friday, but here she is! Build quality is amazing, I couldn't be happier. I've only put in about 50 miles so far, but planning to stretch that out quite a bit over the long weekend. She's also fully titled and registered! Thanks again @chines1 for all the help in the last week (and weekend...), that level of support is incredible to a newbie like me.
Check out the custom shifter and wheel hub, 2 of the things that really make me smile and Carey went the distance on to achieve. Also wanted to highlight the electronic e-brake button on the switch plate under the dash. It cleans up the center section so much without the traditional brake handle in the way and works very smoothly.
Let me know if you want to see anything close up or are curious about anything specific, happy to answer questions about the car (shocker). Many adventures to come!
Beautiful, Sam!!! They did a nice job. Hopefully I'll see it in the flesh before too long and we can trade some stick time.
@Lane Anderson posted:Beautiful, Sam!!! They did a nice job. Hopefully I'll see it in the flesh before too long and we can trade some stick time.
Ummmm?
That doesn't sound quite right.
Get yer mind outa the gutter there, Danny! 
Really beautiful Sam! Congratulations! Lots to look at and incorporate as I think through parts of my build! I don't want to wish time away - but seeing your Speedster just makes me wish the two year build time would fly by! You made great choices - this is your 356 and it is spectacular! Enjoy the new ride and the long weekend!
@LI-Rick posted:@chines1, tell me more about the electric e-brake. Is it a stand alone motor that pulls the cables, or something built into the caliper?
standalone motor hidden inside the tunnel on brackets welded to the chassis.
wired so that it can only be released while the engine is running and cannot be set, preventing someone from accidentally pushing it while driving.
also wired to a park brake indicator light on the dash so you cant forget about it and try to drive off with it set, although it pulls so damn tight, you'd know for sure...
we've been testing it for a little while and Sam's car is the first standard build with it. As long as it doesn't prove to be problematic it'll be standard on speedsters and coupes moving forward.
I think I have forgotten the E-Brake on a lot of cars, fortunately never without consequence except the first time on a 69 VW beetle. Smell burning do you 
For what it's worth, I had an Electric switch E brake on my 2019 Jetta DD, it was not my favourite. This car was very base DD so when I traded that thing in for a 2020 Golf GTI, it came with a real hand brake, honestly, that is more to my liking. I have the umbrella brake on my Roadster but for true usability the mid seat location with a real E-Brake handle is my preference. Just saying.
Ebrake sounds well-thought-out and well-implemented, but I was taught to drive stickshift using the emergency brake as a hill-hold feature, even in cars where it was clumsy to reach (e.g. Corvair, VW vans, rental cars in UK). I'm glad to have it where it belongs in my speedster.
@wrkinprogress "where it belongs" in a speedster would be umbrella under the dash, and even Porsche stopped doing that because the geometry in our cars sucks for that type of hand brake. It works, but not great. "where it belongs" (as far as Im concerned) as a general automobile, is between the seats, and I too was taught to use them as hill assist, but so many don't want to see the tell-tale hand brake on a replica. Fortunately it's easy to do either way so someone could request it either way and it's all the same to me. Plus with the standalone pedal in our speedster/coupe, heel-toe is very easy and I can hill assist that way almost as easily.
@IaM-Ray I am on the fence about it. For someone who doesn't want to see a hand brake and wants something that functions better than the umbrella, its a good solution, but not without its drawbacks too.
@LI-Rick yes and it would take a different upright/spindle to integrate it (we looked at it for the 904 also) so we were looking at roughly $2k in upright changes and then a little over $1K for the wildwood set-up, so $3k in e-brakes didn't make sense. this solution isn't cheap ($500 plus a few hours labor) but was the better choice for us...
I've got the umbrella hand-brake. It was a $350-$500 option with IM 15 years ago. It is in no way worth $500. I was hung up on "the tell" of a tunnel-mounted hand-brake - but at this point I don't care who knows it's a replica or what they think about it, and a tunnel-mounted brake is 10x more useful than the umbrella.
Do as you wish. Your mileage may vary.
@Lane Anderson posted:Beautiful, Sam!!! They did a nice job. Hopefully I'll see it in the flesh before too long and we can trade some stick time.
All for it, would gladly trade for a bit and a shot behind the wheel of the coupe! Once I'm through my first 1,000 miles learning and settling the car in, a long trip may be in order...
