Sad ol' manx replica

[Gromitdog]

I have aquired a sad ol FG Buggy project, The P.O. restored the pan (new floor) and I will soon be setting the body back on it. My Question... It appears that most bodies are just bolted on with nut bolt and washer. Is this really adequate? should I cut some strapping and make a fiberglass sandwich here? My concerns are primarilt crack and flex. as well as structural strength. also... serious cracks and... erosion? on this shell. A bodyman recommended a spray on filler to fill the cracks for refinishing, any recomendations?

[manxdavid]

Post some pics...we like pics... If your body flange is in good order I'd use M8x30 button headed bolts with oversize flat washers up top and the regular Beetle chanel washers with ordinary flat washers and self locking nuts underneath. It's always worked for me...

[mel hubbard]

Hi Bill, there is a real good spray on filler called Duratec thats made in USA, I've used various makes in the past, but found Duratec to be by far the best. As for any cracks, by just rubbing them down and spraying them with any kind of filler, there will be a very good chance they will re-appear after a while because even though they may just look like gel coat cracks, there's a very good chance that the FG under the gel is also damaged, maybe due to rocks hitting the underside over the years,, who knows. So if your looking for a top job IMO your be better off cutting/grinding out all of the bad areas and grind the underside well back before re-glassing. As for extra strength, some guys put box section steel around the edge of the chassis & bolt the body down. There are front and rear body supports that help too, they used to come with the classic Manx kits, two go from the front beam and bolt through the FG body, just in front of where the gas tank goes. The other two go from both top rear shock/damper mount bolts and onto the FG body for extra support. Or you can go a step further and fit a full cage and link this up to strong parts of the frame, which will reduce any flex by a long way.

[Gromitdog]

Thanks. I am building this for my wife as a suprise. I want it pretty solid though it will likely not be used off road (much) I saw some online pictures that showed the fastening pretty well. looks like adding a roll cage will help a lot. Now as it is for the wife and will be a primarily drive TO the beach as opposed to ON it... what are thoughts on automatics?

[towd-dude]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS]Gromitdog,[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]Automatic ? good thinking... Dave Barrett built a custom shortened Manx chassis set up for a Type III automatic and a couple of transmissions as well. He has built 2 chassis for me and does excellent work. He is located in California, see his post on "the samba" site. For street use it would be an excellent buggy. [/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS][/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]Bob[/FONT]

[tim morgan]

Can,t beat a Dave Barrett chassis,,,http://www.manxchassis.com

[mel hubbard]

Does Dave Barrett get on this forum by any chance?? only I'm not a very adventurous kinda guy on forums, but I have a question for him. Dave, if your looking in, don't be shy!! LOL!

[tim morgan]

[QUOTE="mel hubbard;15500"]Does Dave Barrett get on this forum by any chance?? only I'm not a very adventurous kinda guy on forums, but I have a question for him. Dave, if your looking in, don't be shy!! LOL![/QUOTE]He had 3 post's on samba 2 days ago,,,He checks in there all the time,,PM your question from there,,,,,Dave is one of those guys you could talk to all day on the phone,,Just a great guy,,,,

[towd-dude]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS]Here is Dave's email address and his phone number. And yes he will talk your ear off. Good guy.[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS][/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]jadbarrett@msn.com[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS](559) 260-5947[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS][/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]Bob [/FONT]

[towd-dude]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS]Here is Dave's email address and phone number. He will build it to your specs.[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]jadbarrett@msn.com[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS](559) 260-5947[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]Bob [/FONT]

[mel hubbard]

[QUOTE="tim morgan;15503"]Dave is one of those guys you could talk to all day on the phone,,Just a great guy,,,,[/QUOTE] Yes, I did speak to Dave about 9 years ago and he seemed like a great guy. Thanks for posting his contact details up Bob, we have a guy in UK that deals with Dave, (Darren at Billybobs Buggies) and I spoke to him a while back about the Berrian roll cages that I've seen, but Darren was not too sure about them, as he deals more in things like sand rails. Maybe before I pester Dave, as I'm sure he's a busy guy, I'll ask on here first. I have the Berrian chassis and like the look of the full roll cages that Dave does. All I need to know, is do these roll cages come as ready to fit, or weld together? and what points of the Berrian frame to they pick up on. There was a real nice looking pic of a street buggy going around on the forums a while back, it had black wheels,,, That had the same roll cage, but the chassis/frame on that buggy was not the flat one like mine, so was wondering also if that cage was made for use with that frame only.

[ManxRob]

Is this the car you are referring to Mel? http://www.tonyprioli.com/buggy_files/image293.jpg

[mel hubbard]

[QUOTE="manxrob;15511"]Is this the car you are referring to Mel? http://www.tonyprioli.com/buggy_files/image293.jpg[/QUOTE] Thanks Rob, yes thats the one, the frame I have is the flat one with the fiberglass floor.

[towd-dude]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS]Mel,[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]Go ahead and pester Dave, he quits working to answer phone calls. Just make sure YOU have the time to talk to him...[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]Bob[/FONT]

[manxdavid]

[QUOTE="Towd Dude;15513"][FONT=Comic Sans MS]Mel,[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]Go ahead and pester Dave, he quits working to answer phone calls. Just make sure YOU have the time to talk to him...[/FONT] [FONT=Comic Sans MS]Bob[/FONT][/QUOTE] Bloody hell!!! Phonecalls with Mel can go on for hours...they could keep going for weeks if Dave's the same...