Bud's Manx Restoration - Part Deux

[rzeller]

Let's paint and put this jigsaw puzzle back together.

[rzeller]

Assembly - Brakes, plumbing for brakes, and engine detailing.

[rzeller]

Putting the body back on for the final time.

Let's do some wiring. Rebel wire kits are the best ever. Even a caveman can do it.

Improving the ingress and egress of the buggy by adding a Flaming River tilt steering column.

[rzeller]

Here's something that might answer a Manx question that you've had but were afraid to find out. What does the inside of the front lifting block look like under the fiberglass? Hmmm, I don't know. Let's find out. Give me that drill and hold my beer.

[rzeller]

After many months and many change control requests, Dr. Zarkov was ready, willing, and EAGER to give Sue and me our little fantasy ship back.

[rzeller]

So, how did the overall ground clearance requirement work out?

Here is the "before" (all of the reinforcement and body were added) and "after" the Zarkov was completed. Pretty darn good!!!


Before:


After:

[rzeller]

So what do you get after a conversion like this is done? Answers: a future-proofed, modern'ish-powered fun buggy; a Baja-rated terrain beater; and with a naturally aspirated 2.4L Ecotec engine, a horse power increase of over 110 HP (over my 1776cc AC VW engine).

[rzeller]

Here is our buggy in all her spendor. Thank you very much Joe Wheeler (Dr. Zarkov).

[Mike-Presley]

Very nice project and pictures of the process.

[rzeller]

Very nice project and pictures of the process.

Thanks Mike. Like all of us, I have 100's more pictures of the minutia of every step. These are just the high-lights. Thanks for checking it out.

[stevemac]

very cool looking buggy. Congrats!

Steve

[rzeller]

very cool looking buggy. Congrats!

Steve

Thanks Steve.

[rzeller]

We checked off another box this weekend and got our baby weighed (2060 lbs).

She's not fat. She's big boned.

[rzeller]

Ever wonder what some of the the caustic affects of E85 gasoline and the salty beach sand does to those hidden parts on your buggy?

Let's start with how one might get beach sand under the hood of your buggy while out enjoying a peaceful ride with the Father of the fiberglass dune buggy (Bruce Meyers):




Surprise, this is what is collected on the top of the tank. Look closely at the plastic bit on the top of the fuel sender. Notice it's broken, which allowed "some" of the contents of the tank to pool around it on top of the tank. You'll note the discoloration of the sand due to the fuel collected in it. Hmm, I guess I know where that gas smell was coming from. There is another reason for the pooling (see below):





We all know that E85 (the ethanol in the fuel) has a very bad affect on fuel lines, but what you probably aren't thinking about is the gasket under your fuel sender - or the lack there of. When the sender gasket dissolves and/or breaks off, guess where it's going? Into the tank and on the various screens and filters in the gas flow.

[rzeller]

You might think that the simple solution is just to replace the missing/dissolved gasket with a new one. Well... at Zarkov Industries we believe in experimenting, so we put a brand new - off the shelf - gasket in a cup of gasoline over night. Seems the rubber, actually Buna N (Nitrile) which it's made from, absorbs the gasoline and expands.



I suppose the lip around the sending unit mount might "contain" the expansion, but let's try another one as this must be a fluke - after all they wouldn't sell something that doesn't work.

Comparison of the first gasket (on top) to the second one



Zarkov Industries is always on the cutting edge of new technology, materials, and methods, so this was not going to be a problem left unsolved. Since Dr. Zarkov consults with many different industries and service providers, he was aware of a product called Viton which is impervious to gasoline. After sourcing a raw sheet of the material, he cut his own sending unit gaskets, one of which was used in this build.

"Viton is a brand of FKM, a synthetic rubber and fluoropolymer elastomer commonly used in seals, chemical-resistant gloves, and other molded or extruded goods. The name is a registered trademark of The Chemours Company previous Du Pont de Nemours and was introduced in 1957."