1967 VW Variant.

kadman · 23-01-2021 9:48pm

At least I now know that when i take off the wing, and fit a nice pulling plate on
3-4 wing bolt holes, I can pull any bulk ripples, and get a good result.

Then when I replace the wing, I can position it nicely to form evn spacing around
the door and front boot.

I am still surprised how tough the metal is. I have a few klokkerholm beetle panels,
and they are about as tough as a coke can.

Looking forward to this project:)

richardsheil · 28-01-2021 9:26pm

kadman wrote: »

At least I now know that when i take off the wing, and fit a nice pulling plate on
3-4 wing bolt holes, I can pull any bulk ripples, and get a good result.

Then when I replace the wing, I can position it nicely to form evn spacing around
the door and front boot.

I am still surprised how tough the metal is. I have a few klokkerholm beetle panels,
and they are about as tough as a coke can.

Looking forward to this project:)

Excellent, very resourceful.

kadman · 30-01-2021 8:57pm

I tried to buy a couple of NOS panels for the variant today, from a well known german type 3 supplier.

His online system says not to charge vat to an Irish address, but to charge Northern Ireland vat:D

I was tempted , but would rather pay the lower German vat rate, than the irish one.

He is going to look further into it for me.

Hotblack Desiato · 02-02-2021 1:57am

It's OK for him to charge German VAT if his sales into Ireland are below a certain figure each year. Think it's 35k.

Above that, then he has to register and collect Irish VAT.

This is why the price goes up at checkout on amazon.de, they have to apply the Irish VAT rate...

kadman · 02-02-2021 11:51am

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

It's OK for him to charge German VAT if his sales into Ireland are below a certain figure each year. Think it's 35k.

Above that, then he has to register and collect Irish VAT.

This is why the price goes up at checkout on amazon.de, they have to apply the Irish VAT rate...

Got it sorted after
. His system was set up for brexit, Thinking Ireland had left.:D

I was charged the german rate of 19%, which is what I expected.
Originally they were charging me nothing, as a country outside the EU.

If I let this go, I was concerned that I would then be charged the Irish rate.

So finally sorted, with NOS front apron, NOS inner spare wheel carrier panel, NOS outer cills, and new inner rear bumper mount panels.

I made all these for the white fastback, plus much more. But the variant is well worth New Old Stock panels of original german metal. fek the expense:D

kadman · 03-02-2021 1:07pm

I bought 2 new inner door seals yesterday from a UK company.

Was charged vat yesterday, about £10, it was refunded today.

It will be interesting to see what transpires now on the Irish side?

zilog_jones · 03-02-2021 4:20pm

Generally unless the seller is set up to handle EU VAT (like eBay or Amazon) you'll be paying it after it gets through customs - and how that is handled depends on who is delivering it.

kadman · 03-02-2021 4:55pm

zilog_jones wrote: »

Generally unless the seller is set up to handle EU VAT (like eBay or Amazon) you'll be paying it after it gets through customs - and how that is handled depends on who is delivering it.

I'll keep you posted, it will be interesting to see.

kadman · 04-02-2021 1:50pm

Quick question.

If I buy car products from Northern Ireland. Are they subject to Vat here,

or in the Norf,

Thanks,

K.

Sam Russell · 04-02-2021 3:11pm

kadman wrote: »

Quick question.

If I buy car products from Northern Ireland. Are they subject to Vat here,

or in the Norf,

Thanks,

K.

Simple.

If the product is liable to VAT in NI, it is charged, so depends on who you buy it from. There is no border so no liability to VAT in Ireland if it originates in NI.

On the other hand, if you are registered for Irish VAT, then when buying from a NI VAT registered business, you can accept that the VAT is not charged by the NI business, but by your business. This helps you if you are reselling it as is or as a component is some other product. It appears on you VAT returns.

kadman · 05-02-2021 10:02pm

I just got delivery from paruzzi.com , based in Belgium I believe.

It was for 2 new door handles, new lock barrels, and a new ignition switch,
for the 72 Fastback.

Excellently packaged, and surprisingly even the parts catalogue was placed and sealed into
its own box.

Its this kind of attention to detail from most european suppliers, that draws me more to dealing
with them, instead of Irish suppliers.:)

Off now to delve into their catalogue, I feel an urge to spend now, good job herself is in another room:D

kadman · 07-02-2021 10:02am

Working on the white 72 Fastback, I needed to fit and glue new carpet.
A job which I was dreading, especially since I used Evo Stick 528 which was a bugger before,
trying to get the glue on the body metal and carpet. Especially when the glue does not like brushing on.

So I used a different contact adhesive recommended for this, Stick2 by Everbuild. I Gal
can at 39 euro, way cheaper than Evo Stick.
It was brilliant for brushing on with a 2" brush, on the carpet and metal. And a super strong bond when applied.

I just thought I would mention this in case anyone has a similar job to do.

Sam Russell · 07-02-2021 12:51pm

kadman wrote: »

Working on the white 72 Fastback, I needed to fit and glue new carpet.
A job which I was dreading, especially since I used Evo Stick 528 which was a bugger before,
trying to get the glue on the body metal and carpet. Especially when the glue does not like brushing on.

So I used a different contact adhesive recommended for this, Stick2 by Everbuild. I Gal
can at 39 euro, way cheaper than Evo Stick.
It was brilliant for brushing on with a 2" brush, on the carpet and metal. And a super strong bond when applied.

I just thought I would mention this in case anyone has a similar job to do.

As they say, you'd be stuck without it.

kadman · 09-02-2021 8:32pm

Stocking up on NOS parts for the 67 Variant.
I got my first delivery of good old original German metal.

Two panels for the front apron. The outer curved panel, and the inner spare wheel panel.

It will be a change fitting brand new stuff instead of having to make them. And drilling out the old,
and spotting in the new will be a lot quicker.

[IMG][/img]

[IMG][/img]

11-02-2021 9:58pm

kadman wrote: »

Stocking up on NOS parts for the 67 Variant.
I got my first delivery of good old original German metal.

Two panels for the front apron. The outer curved panel, and the inner spare wheel panel.

I thought the rust on the '67 was limited to surface rust. Is there rot or is it because of the front being a bit bashed?

kadman · 11-02-2021 10:55pm

Fratello wrote: »

I thought the rust on the '67 was limited to surface rust. Is there rot or is it because of the front being a bit bashed?

I will post you up a picture in the next couple of days. The bottom of the spare wheel well, is a small bit snotty from the wheel in the area, plus the front right mount nudging the metal back a bit.

Its easier and quicker to either spot in a new full panel, or take off cuts that are needed. If I go the full panel route, its about 1 dozen spotwelds at the most, no full welds , so no heat distortion.
If I have to replace the small rusted out holes, its a few patches, fully welded, and possible heat distortion.

The panels I bought are New Old Stock. So same original metal, same thickness, same quality as the original.

If they were newly made panels with modern metal, and thinner sections, I would not even consider them.

These panels are same quality as existing, but unblemished.

I have not started any work yet, so the decision has not been made what route to take, thats for another day, but when the original quality panels came up, I jumped at them.

The 2 inner corner rear panels have rust damage, as they always do here, and the 2 outer cills, heater channels are pristine. New replacements were inexpensive , so I am getting my ducks in a row. This car is worth it.

Whats not to love:)

kadman · 11-02-2021 11:08pm

If you zoom into the bottom lefthand corner of this pic, you can see some of the damage. When metal gets creased, the paint chips off, protection is gone and rust sets in.

The metal here is already torn and rusted, so replacement with a proper patch cut from the new panel makes this repair seamless. If its similar the other side or bottom edge, then it might make more sense to replace the full panel.

Same goes for the front apron bottom. But as the work has not started that decision has not been made

[IMG][/img]

kadman · 12-02-2021 10:07pm

I got my final delivery of the remaining panels for the Variant.

Left and right hand sills, and left and right hand corner bumper mounts.

Plus my german quality drivers door rubber seal.

[IMG][/img]

kadman · 14-03-2021 1:47pm

Well, Variant is getting closer to the scissor lift in the next few weeks.
And I have had many contacts with views and questions on the resto plans for it.

And I have not yet come up with the right plan.

Some say full resto, some say rat look, some say partial ect.

My own inclination is to replace the rusted panels, which is,
spare wheel inner clip, outer front bottom clip, 2 outer sills,
and rear bumper mounts. And then make the decision whether to fully restore paintwork or not.

So I would be interested on you guys out there, throwing in your 2 cents:)

wildwillow · 14-03-2021 2:18pm

I hate it when cars are restored to factory condition. They are essentially new cars hanging on a fragment of age. I would do the minimum to conserve it.

Gremlinertia · 14-03-2021 3:18pm

Do what you said you are inclined to do, better idea then how you feel about it..

kadman · 14-03-2021 4:55pm

I suppose my thoughts at the moment are whether to restore the paintwork to original or not.

AS regards the mechanics I will restore, replace, renew all components that need it,
regardless of expense At the end I want a 110% safe car to drive. I will also rebuild the engine,
again regardless of cost. I want safe , and I want reliability.

From there on, i have not defined a plan to follow,
so you felows will be helping me on my musings:)

emo72 · 14-03-2021 4:57pm

I think leaving the paintwork original and polishing it up looks great.

kadman · 14-03-2021 6:12pm

Leaving paintwork original with a good polish is a great look, that I would normally be thinking of.

But in this case a lot of the paintwork has some degree of rust damage under the paint causing
it to craze and give a cracked appearance. So running over it with a polishing mop is not goping
to do the job. Basically its not in a state that can be polished.

New Home · 14-03-2021 6:15pm

Could you repaint it but just leave a clearly-delimited patch of old paint to show what the original looked like?

Sleepy · 15-03-2021 10:38am

I'd go full re-spray. You're replacing panels as is so will need to spray those at the least and, personally, I think the rat look is best saved for movie cars.

kadman · 15-03-2021 10:47am

Sleepy wrote: »

I'd go full re-spray. You're replacing panels as is so will need to spray those at the least and, personally, I think the rat look is best saved for movie cars.

My thoughts would be along the same line too. Personally I think a rat look
is a lazy solution to a resto. Plus it would be tricky to blend in new panels to old for a rat look.
Although the new panels are in locations where they wont be readily visible. 2 under the wings, 1 in the front boot area, and the last one under the front bumper

jmreire · 15-03-2021 10:58am

kadman wrote: »

My thoughts would be along the same line too. Personally I think a rat look
is a lazy solution to a resto. Plus it would be tricky to blend in new panels to old for a rat look.
Although the new panels are in locations where they wont be readily visible. 2 under the wings, 1 in the front boot area, and the last one under the front bumper

After going so far, I'd be all for a complete respray....the more you clean it up, the more blemishes you will find.Plus if there is existing cissing / cracking, it would indicate previous paintwork. And I'd be sealing these areas too,,,you dont want them contaminating the new paint. Getting the original front panels was a bonus.:)

Igotadose · 15-03-2021 11:04am

jmreire wrote: »

After going so far, I'd be all for a complete respray....the more you clean it up, the more blemishes you will find.Plus if there is existing cissing / cracking, it would indicate previous paintwork. And I'd be sealing these areas too,,,you dont want them contaminating the new paint. Getting the original front panels was a bonus.:)

With such an enormous amount of time and effort spent on this, down to building the tools needed to do the work, all the complexities of getting parts, you just have to make it look 'cherry.' Plus what a great story to sell to a car magazine, from the seriously joyous way it was acquired, your blogging the work here, and the final result. Might be a few Euros in it for you selling such a story.

jmreire · 15-03-2021 11:05am

kadman wrote: »

Good result today:)

Managed to put my home made dozer onto the variant. Applied some serious force, and managed to pull the bumper mount forward to where it should be.
This took the wing away from the door edge, and best of all it took the large bulge out of the wing. Bonnet now aligned better too.

It was the only way to pull the bulge on the wing, and it worked a treat.
Job was done, saved on the price of a dozer, and now own one to boot.

Its okay now to remove the wing, and do whatever tweeking i need to the bulkhead:)

Thats a fine dozer allright !!!:D What is it anchored against? The front axle beams?

jmreire · 15-03-2021 11:08am

Igotadose wrote: »

With such an enormous amount of time and effort spent on this, down to building the tools needed to do the work, all the complexities of getting parts, you just have to make it look 'cherry.' Plus what a great story to sell to a car magazine, from the seriously joyous way it was acquired, your blogging the work here, and the final result. Might be a few Euros in it for you selling such a story.

Good idea,or on youtube??? Well worth it, would quickly create a big fan following, if thats what Kadman wanted.:D

kadman · 15-03-2021 11:12am

jmreire wrote: »

After going so far, I'd be all for a complete respray....the more you clean it up, the more blemishes you will find.Plus if there is existing cissing / cracking, it would indicate previous paintwork. And I'd be sealing these areas too,,,you dont want them contaminating the new paint. Getting the original front panels was a bonus.:)

Too true. It took a few months to source the correct NOS panels. But once i found them it was a definite purchase. Nothing like original german metal.
Plus the fact that time wise it is going to be a quicker result.

The spare wheel bottom area is a bit crimped from the front bumper nudge. It could be straightened out given enough time. But either way it would have to be removed from the car to do the job right, so I thought at the time, if its out anyway and i can get a NOS part, I might as well put that in.

When its out I might chose to straighten it, and put it back in and sell on the NOS. I will have to wait and see then.

The paintwork, especially the roof is crazed so much putting on some form of barrier coat is hardly going to do. I will post up a god pic on it when the car is on the lift to give you a better Idea of how bad it is.

Of course better poor paint than rusty metal:)

kadman · 15-03-2021 11:17am

Yep its anchored at the strongest point of the front axle, the mounting bolt position.

Once there it took very little to pull and straighten the wing and bumper mount position.

I suspect more modern cars would have torn metal fairly quickly

kadman · 15-03-2021 11:22am

jmreire wrote: »

Good idea,or on youtube??? Well worth it, would quickly create a big fan following, if thats what Kadman wanted.:D

I am not a fan seeking type of chap. I just like VW's and like to share my experiences in fixing them.

I am way too old and ugly to be anyone's celebrity:p:p

Not interested in the money aspect of it either, any info I have while I am fixing them will be out there for free.

Lots of things more important than money:)

jmreire · 15-03-2021 11:23am

kadman wrote: »

Too true. It took a few months to source the correct NOS panels. But once i found them it was a definite purchase. Nothing like original german metal.
Plus the fact that time wise it is going to be a quicker result.

The spare wheel bottom area is a bit crimped from the front bumper nudge. It could be straightened out given enough time. But either way it would have to be removed from the car to do the job right, so I thought at the time, if its out anyway and i can get a NOS part, I might as well put that in.

When its out I might chose to straighten it, and put it back in and sell on the NOS. I will have to wait and see then.

The paintwork, especially the roof is crazed so much putting on some form of barrier coat is hardly going to do. I will post up a god pic on it when the car is on the lift to give you a better Idea of how bad it is.

Of course better poor paint than rusty metal:)

Well, you will know when you start sanding it down, if it was painted at some stage, and its the "new" paint is cracking. This is normally what happens with new "paint" aging....maybe too many coats sprayed on. Genuine factory finish tends to grey out or whiten ( red being a good example of this) But for the cracking, best to remove it if at all possible. Other than that, a good two pack sealer will do the job as well, after a good sanding.

jmreire · 15-03-2021 11:32am

kadman wrote: »

Yep its anchored at the strongest point of the front axle, the mounting bolt position.

Once there it took very little to pull and straighten the wing and bumper mount position.

I suspect more modern cars would have torn metal fairly quickly

You would be right, but we have several Skodas in the family, and whatever is in the composition of the metal, it takes a fair drill bit to penetrate it...I had a 2003 A6, completely rust free, again its whatever metal they are using. And sign of the times....in the last few years, I regularly see dozers and other bodyshop equipment for sale on done deal, adverts etc. Most repairing now carried out in "Insurance Approved" workshops, and smaller 1 or 2 man businesses going to the wall.

kadman · 15-03-2021 11:42am

I located a nice dozer on Donedeal for small money, but restrictions meant I could not collect it,
thats why I made my temporary fix. Courier charges were over 150 euro for the DD one.:eek:

jmreire · 15-03-2021 7:46pm

kadman wrote: »

I located a nice dozer on Donedeal for small money, but restrictions meant I could not collect it,
thats why I made my temporary fix. Courier charges were over 150 euro for the DD one.:eek:

No, the one you "Engineered" yourself did the job just fine....I've often done the same myself, ( in my nixer days....:rolleyes:) The company I worked for back in the 70's, a Ford main dealership, got in the 1st jig-bench system( outside of dublin at the time).It was made by the Italian manufacturer Massa and It was state of the art back then, a big improvement from the dozer.... LOL. The first car I repaired on it was an almost new MK5 Ford Cortina, it needed a chassis leg and valance and I can still remember it.:)

kadman · 15-03-2021 9:47pm

Gotcha,

but if i keep making any tools I need, there will be no time left for Resto:D:D

jmreire · 15-03-2021 10:52pm

kadman wrote: »

Gotcha,

but if i keep making any tools I need, there will be no time left for Resto:D:D

Yes, but (always a "BUT" LOL 😂 ) when the job comes to a standstill because of the lack of a piece of equipment / special tool etc. Choice goes out the window... and its a very positive thing,,meet problems and solve them.

Jeff2 · 15-03-2021 10:57pm

jmreire wrote: »

Yes, but (always a "BUT" LOL ðŸ˜‚ ) when the job comes to a standstill because of the lack of a piece of equipment / special tool etc. Choice goes out the window... and its a very positive thing,,meet problems and solve them.

Necessity is the mother of inventions.

kadman · 18-02-2022 10:17pm

I spent the last few weeks rebuilding the topend of the variant engine along with new rings. I also balanced the pistons and gudgeon pins. There was a variance of a bit more than the 5 grams that VW say is their stock requirement. I manged to balance them up to within .5 grams between them all.

Today was the startup day at long last. It started up first crank, and sounds very well. I found nothing strange during the rebuild, except that at some stage the thermostat was removed, and the cooling flaps were jammed open by some judicial bending of one flap.

Thats all fixed now, with a replacement thermostat and operating linkages, and is fully returned to stock.