I know
believe me, I know...
I really like the early ovals – with certain little features carried over from the splits.
But I couldn’t bring myself to cut up a good one… I know it’s only metal, but still.
The two ovals we bought from this property had sat there for years! According to the owner, every VW enthusiast within striking distance (and some from beyond) had made proposals/offers/attempts to cut parts from the cars, with nothing eventuating. So, in a way we’re using something that no one else has had the motivation (or stubbornness) to do anything with and should end up with something cool in the end.
I was also able to source a really straight ’58 beetle. The car has the usual dents and knocks to all 4 corners, but nothing that has affected the overall structure of the car.
But…
It has spent decades in a small shed… with insulation bats sitting on the roof of the car, as well as mattresses, cushions and cardboard stacked against the rest of the outside of the car. Sometime many years ago the tin roof of the shed sank in on the car and everything within the shed had been exposed to rain and moisture ever since. Needless to say, nearly every external panel… No, wait, every external panel on the car is pitted heavily with rust.
We gave it the nickname of ‘The Swamp Rat’. But the swamp rat is, funnily enough, the ideal donor car to use as a Jig for the Oval shell.
As it happens, this car had also been overlooked by hoards of people. So in a way, I’m kind of happy that we can put what others have considered unusable to good use.
I’ll post some more photos over the weekend, including some of the progress so far.