I remember when the Earl Scheib mantra was: "We paint any car, any color, $29.99!"
And worth every penny as long as you could live with massive overspray, quarter inch deep orange peel and paint peeling within 12 months.
Norton Abrasives (actually owned now by St. Gobain, from France) is a local company for me, so I get to visit the factory store to get whatever I want. Here's their current catalog:
https://www.nortonabrasives.co...a-330-bookmarked.pdf
The aforementioned coupe with the Beck MSO did come through my shop, but I was only a broker on those 7 cars. They were produced by a friend's company in China, and were intended to be electric, but did not get approval in China for an electric vehicle, so they had to sell them. We had them shipped to the states and brokered the sales and provided invoices and MSOs. That was the extent of our involvement in this coupes.
chines1 posted:The aforementioned coupe with the Beck MSO did come through my shop, but I was only a broker on those 7 cars. They were produced by a friend's company in China, and were intended to be electric, but did not get approval in China for an electric vehicle, so they had to sell them. We had them shipped to the states and brokered the sales and provided invoices and MSOs. That was the extent of our involvement in this coupes.
Thanks for the info.
I sold a lot of fixer uppers back in my NJ days ...worked my tail off doing 40 - 50 cars a year part time to save money for a decent down payment on my first home purchase. Some went through the magic paint tunnel at the Duke of Earl Scheib's for $99. I always handed the painter a $20 bill asking him to bend down to do the rocker panels ...always worked and he would do a decent job. When the local MAACO came to town it was a bliss full experience many times over . Again, I always gave the painter the $20...worked wonders ! Now days I haul a speedster body 4 hours back to PA to a friend's " I love cash and beer shop "prep door, bonnet gaps, block sand, epoxy prime, sand and then shoot base and clear with scuff and buff it costs me between $2,000 to $3,500 and that's a super deal as the same work here in West Virginia I've had quotes of $6k - $7k !
One of my friends had his car painted by an Earl Schieb shop back in the 70's. They painted right over the mashed bugs on the front of his car! The masking job was really funny too. There was even fresh green paint on his tires! What a joke.... we could have rattle can and roller painted it with a better outcome. When he saw one of my old VWs that I restored with DuPont base coat/clear coat, he wanted me to re-shoot his nova. I told him I couldn't even buy the bondo or primer for $99. I told him that bug removal would certainly be extra! LOL!!!
Years ago I had old VW bug painted by Earl. I prepped it but while waiting to go inside for paint, a bird pooped on it. Guess what poop got painted over. They painted wheel rims - but with the spare still in the car and when other wheels turned 180 degrees, there was bearly any paint on what was top edge.
chines1 posted:The aforementioned coupe with the Beck MSO did come through my shop, but I was only a broker on those 7 cars. They were produced by a friend's company in China, and were intended to be electric, but did not get approval in China for an electric vehicle, so they had to sell them. We had them shipped to the states and brokered the sales and provided invoices and MSOs. That was the extent of our involvement in this coupes.
@chines1
Do you know if the frames were stainless steel, chromoly, or something other than mild steel?
edsnova posted:chines1 posted:The aforementioned coupe with the Beck MSO did come through my shop, but I was only a broker on those 7 cars. They were produced by a friend's company in China, and were intended to be electric, but did not get approval in China for an electric vehicle, so they had to sell them. We had them shipped to the states and brokered the sales and provided invoices and MSOs. That was the extent of our involvement in this coupes.
@chines1
Do you know if the frames were stainless steel, chromoly, or something other than mild steel?
That didn't work Ed but I did it for you.
they were stainless
Thanks!
Does anybody know what the purpose is for the two slots in the seat back?
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Todd M posted:Does anybody know what the purpose is for the two slots in the seat back?
They're for equalizing front-to-back water pressure.
They coincide with the water level in the cabin during a heavy rain.
Come on Mitch, My water lever never got that high. 
You roadster drivers just love rubbing our noses in it, Marty!
I'll bet you've got fold-out picnic tables and a champagne chiller in that thing, too.
I believe the slots are to allow for air-cooling of one's back.
One for butt venting would be handy too then!
Are you suggesting another exhaust vent, fan or suction assisted?
Does anyone know what Emory has to do to the body/chassis/pan and suspension in order to fit 225/45 ZR17's in the front and 255/40 ZR17's in the rear?
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Do drum skins have a functional purpose or are they only for looks?
As far as I know, never having had the Drum Skins, they are great covers for wide 5's .
As to the wide wheels, with low profile tires you can use 17 inch wheels but you have some limitations to the width of the rims... Often times modifications to the rims have to be done in building the width towards the inside of the car which then means possibly reducing the front beam width and do the same for the rear. Not for the faint of heart. Some manufacturers add flares, cut pie shapes and stretch the fenders and the list goes on.
Just for looks - and to keep the drums/rotors from cooling off after hard braking (Not so good). They do make it look like you have the huge OEM aluminum skinned finned drums with the steel contact surface.
Those are probably 7" wide rims on the front which isn't that tight --- even 7" would be tight in the rear though.
@WOLFGANG said- "Just for looks - and to keep the drums/rotors from cooling off after hard braking (Not so good). They do make it look like you have the huge OEM aluminum skinned finned drums with the steel contact surface."
I think you'd be better off not bothering with the drum skins and painting the hubs/drums a plain, not too metallic silver but that's just my opinion...
Wolfgang,
Sorry, but I don't understand your post above. Maybe you are being satiric? You seem to be saying that cooling the drums and rotors after hard braking is not so good. Please explain.
Sacto Mitch posted:Todd M posted:Does anybody know what the purpose is for the two slots in the seat back?
They're for equalizing front-to-back water pressure.
They coincide with the water level in the cabin during a heavy rain.
They are to reduce weight.
Jim Kelly posted:Wolfgang,
Sorry, but I don't understand your post above. Maybe you are being satiric? You seem to be saying that cooling the drums and rotors after hard braking is not so good. Please explain.
I think what he's saying, Jim, is that the drumskinz hold the heat in. It's probably not even measurable (except with maybe the most sophisticated equipment), but being covers that reduce airflow over heat sources I can't imagine them contributing to brake cooling...
Todd M posted:Does anybody know what the purpose is for the two slots in the seat back?
They are the first “ventilated” seats ever made 
I do find air cooling my back side where the slots are at on a SoCal “hot” day...
Sorry was being sarcastic. The cooling restriction caused by the wheel Skinz is vary minimal at best.
the life preservers are under the front seats just like the airlines
IaM-Ray posted:As far as I know, never having had the Drum Skins, they are great covers for wide 5's .
As to the wide wheels, with low profile tires you can use 17 inch wheels but you have some limitations to the width of the rims... Often times modifications to the rims have to be done in building the width towards the inside of the car which then means possibly reducing the front beam width and do the same for the rear. Not for the faint of heart. Some manufacturers add flares, cut pie shapes and stretch the fenders and the list goes on.
Sorry. I should have been more specific "within the existing body lines, no flares."
Todd M posted:IaM-Ray posted:As far as I know, never having had the Drum Skins, they are great covers for wide 5's .
As to the wide wheels, with low profile tires you can use 17 inch wheels but you have some limitations to the width of the rims... Often times modifications to the rims have to be done in building the width towards the inside of the car which then means possibly reducing the front beam width and do the same for the rear. Not for the faint of heart. Some manufacturers add flares, cut pie shapes and stretch the fenders and the list goes on.
Sorry. I should have been more specific "within the existing body lines, no flares."
https://www.speedsterowners.co...6#566936181352155686
https://www.speedsterowners.co...1#588895125725179061
The short of it- 6" rims will fit on the front which will carry a 195 tire, while with the right combination of rear track and wheel offset/backspacing you should be able to fit 6 1/2-7" rims with 205's on the back. Irs is the same width as long swingaxle. Read through the threads above to find the info you need (I don't have time to put it all together now). Ask away if you still have questions. Al
@Todd M- I forgot to add that irs trailing arms can be narrowed (I've heard of as much as 1 1/4" per side and not having to narrow the torsion housing), but it is a little involved, and then you have to come up with shorter axles (type 3 automatic left side is approx 1" shorter than beetle sedan irs axles and works). The point is if you want it bad enough, whether your car is swingaxle or irs you can put somewhat wider tires on the back of a classic Speedster bodied car.
@ALB Thanks for the threads and the info.
Here is a patented "Eddie Theory" (TM), which I'd like to hear more experienced chassis builders/modders and racers' opinions and experiences on:
Wide, extra-low profile tires will make a swing axle car handle worse.
When (not if, when) a swing car's rear axle "jacks" during S-turn maneuvers at medium or high speed, a very good, wide, low profile modern radial tire will ride on its sharp outer edge, providing a relatively smaller contact patch than a more pedestrian, narrower tire with a taller sidewall.
This is because sidewall stiffness—so important to making a good tire handle predictably when G-loaded under a modern suspension that keeps the tread face oriented consistently toward the road surface—will tend to keep that wheel "tucked under" longer when the weight returns to it. This should make the car more prone to snap oversteer than it would be with a softer-sidewalled tire that "gives" under that condition.
If you can picture it: the standard 165/80-15 all-season type tire, having a somewhat rounded shoulder, "rolls over" a bit on its sidewall and then kind of skids out from its jacked orientation. Ugly, but relatively controllable if you're the kind of driver who experiences this kind of thing once in a while.
The baddass 235/35-17 summer/track tire, by contrast, being aggressively squared-off along its shoulder and rock hard along its 2-inch sidewall section, tips up on that pointy edge, where the soft tread compound tries to hold grip before very suddenly letting go.
Makes sense?
Again, I've not yet tried to prove this out on a track, but I wonder if any of you have relevant experience.
Vred sprints, 165/80: 
Bridge potenza, 235/45-17:
edsnova posted:When (not if, when) a swing car's rear axle "jacks" during S-turn maneuvers at medium or high speed, a very ..."
Are there modifications to the swing axle suspension that can keep it from jacking?
Todd M posted:edsnova posted:When (not if, when) a swing car's rear axle "jacks" during S-turn maneuvers at medium or high speed, a very ..."
Are there modifications to the swing axle suspension that can keep it from jacking?
Camber compensator. Guys here say the Empi version isn't well built.
ALB posted:@Todd M- I forgot to add that irs trailing arms can be narrowed (I've heard of as much as 1 1/4" per side and not having to narrow the torsion housing), but it is a little involved, and then you have to come up with shorter axles (type 3 automatic left side is approx 1" shorter than beetle sedan irs axles and works). The point is if you want it bad enough, whether your car is swingaxle or irs you can put somewhat wider tires on the back of a classic Speedster bodied car.
Hi there, new to this forum and learning about Speedsters and Spyders.
I am not new to VW's though. I have narrowed an IRS rear on a 1958 LowLight Ghia. I used the Bruce Tweddle method, and moved the bearing carrier in 1 5/8" each side. I fitted a 205/65r15 under the fender, which is very tight on a Ghia. As left side type 3 automatic axles are hard to find, I bought Bus into Bug conversion axles, which are a little shorter than a standard bug axle. These axles do not have an inner shoulder like a stock axle, and they have a lot more spline. I than machined off some of the outer spline on both sides to the proper length and then cut new circlip grooves.
Here are a couple of pictures so you can see the results.
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Looks good, Rick. I like Bruce's narrowing method best, as the trailing arm still retains it's basic shape. The other ways works as well, though. Good tip on the axles. I take it the car is being built to go fast?
And for those looking for the type 3 left auto axle assemblies and don't know- Empi sells the shorter axles complete with cv joints (I can't comment on the quality of the axles or cv joints). Al
PS- since you already know VW's you won't find anything that 356 specific with these cars.
Rick - Does the missing cutout piece of the rear trailing arm get welded back in for strength or to keep water out --- or is that not necessary. I tried to find the article in HotVW from 1994 with no luck.