Featured Buggy
of the Month
For August we travel to Wills Point. David had the perfect
excuse to build another buggy...his wife Edie wanted one. Some guys have all the
luck!
Then.....
Now.....
My advice to all is to
take your time and build it the way you want it. Do not get in a hurry
or try to rush it. I built this buggy in about 11 months. If I can do
it, anyone can.
Good Luck, David Head
Finally, putting it
all together! It was really pretty easy. I tried to make all my mistakes
on the first buggy. Believe me when I say that I didn’t know anything
about VW’s when I started this hobby four years ago. With the help and
encouragement from a lot of guys on this site, I now have completed two
buggies and with any luck at all I might have number three ready
sometime next year.
When Johnnie had
finished with patching the many holes in the body, and with a new hood
from the Manx Club in California (the original hood was beyond repair)
It was off to paint. We had it painted Aggie Maroon. Having it painted
was the easy part. Getting it home from the painter was the scary part.
I went all out on this
one. Powder coated chassis, aluminum floor pan, custom shifter console,
four wheel disc brakes with emergency-brake, CNC hydraulic pedal
assembly and Morse cable throttle linkage.
I had already decided
to use a custom Hawkeye chassis in the rebuild. So when I got the body
off the old chassis, it was off to Neil Decker's so he could build the
chassis. When Neil was finished, we carried the body down the road to
Johnny Bridges house for the much needed fiberglass work. This thing was
full of holes, including a rotted out battery box. While Johnny tackled
the chore of patching holes, I took the chassis home and started to
work.
I know people who
build dune buggies in as short 3 weeks and as long as 7 years.
My first, a rail, took
about 19 months. My wife (Edie) liked the rail so much that she wanted
me to build a buggy for her. That was all the encouragement I needed.
I was really
interested in finding an original Manx to restore for her. I found one
in Tennessee. It was a long way from home. But after a tiring, non-stop
22 hour drive, I was home with the new Manx. It was in sad shape. A
perfect candidate for a total rebuild.
