Seahawk 356 project:

[speeder]

Since the last report on this car, I've ordered a bunch of non-engine parts as well, cosmetic and rubber parts + suspension bushings, etc. Here are the reproduction door handles I installed, (+new seals), and the ones they replaced. The originals will be saved.

Old:



New:



The lock buttons were not replaced and they are still needing refinishing. The cost of complete repro door handles is huge compared to the *handle only* part that we replaced.

The original rearview mirror was looking dowdy, so it got the Semi-chrome polish treatment:

[Tobra]

That thing sure looks familiar after working on AC VW's for, a while.

Heads look different to me. Did they do the 356 like they did the 2.0 914? Take a VW motor and put some groovy, high flow P car heads on them. The valves on the outside look angled.

[Superman]

What's the update on this creampuff? I think Paul is making preparations for a drive, and I just wonder if Denis is finished breathing his magic breath on it.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by Superman

What's the update on this creampuff? I think Paul is making preparations for a drive, and I just wonder if Denis is finished breathing his magic breath on it.

Very glad you asked, Sup, since I still plan on invading your abode.

The engine is out, no major problems and will be reassembled soon...standard stuff, bearing, polishing, etc. Denis has aligned himself with the best folks in the 356 world and I am amazed at the information I get. It is a Who's Who.

Axles next.

In the interim, much has been done.

Really. Denis may chime in, but everything is proceeding apace.

The new plan is I get to go see my Daughter at ASU for parents day on the 25th of September. I will then (as with all plans one has to be firm in the planning) get the car in LA and head up the coast to Seattle.

I have two stops on the way for business, one for pleasure (pwd) and then Armageddon with Sup. After that, back east with some stops in MT for stuff. I understand the risk of snow, but a day or two in the hills beats a month in Maryland.

The best thing so far is that Denis and I have from the start recognized that fact that old cars giggle at schedules, so we have (and will again if required) never pressed.

Denis gets it right, which is in my best interest.

A few picks from my drive out with Arden to follow. I enjoyed the fact we saw maybe 200 miles of interstate from OK onward. And one small fact, OK is really beautiful off the track. The Wachita Mountains were awesome. Lastly, I wish I could say she took the picks, but I rode most of the way...ignominious end to my life as a man

[myamoto1]

Make sure you have a stop planned in Portland on your way up to Seattle. PM me when you have firm dates and we'll get the locals together to show our respect for such an awesome story and (class) act.

[RWebb]

feel free to drop by Eugene for lunch or a beer - I-5 goes right thru town -- can maybe scare up a couple of other Pooschey-people, depending on schedules

[Superman]

If I were in your shoes, I would be looking very much forward to a trip up the left coast in a 356. Again, if I were you, I would seriously consider using 101 at least part of the way. Riding up and down 101 as a young man on a motorcycle is still, to this day, some of my best memories. Our weather here will be pleasing to you, I think. Driving a 356 through beautiful country with good weather should be rejuvinating. Which will be good preparation for the Armageddon.

[Superman]

Originally Posted by RWebb

feel free to drop by Eugene for lunch or a beer - I-5 goes right thru town -- can maybe scare up a couple of other Pooschey-people, depending on schedules

If Paul drinks all the beers we're offering, he'll need a Designated Driver.

[myamoto1]

Hmmm... let's see - designated driver in a 356 up the Oregon/Washington coast. I'll make the sacrifice and volunteer.

[Dottore]

Denis: please check your PM box. Cheers.

[wdfifteen]

What a wonderful thread. And a great project! Just a couple of notes: As for the brake drums lasting forever -the drums corrode so that the wire ring and aluminum ridge that make up the dirt/water exclusion "maze" basically falls off. Very disconcerting if you happen to be driving the car when it happens. The engine pushrods at one time had wood IN the centers, not wooden centers. There were many iterations of pushrod materials and construction as well as cylinder barrel materials used over the years. The pushrods are matched to the material the cylinder barrels are made off to get similar heat expansion characteristics. Get the match wrong and your valve adjustment is a crapshoot. Someone asked if the 356 engine was an "improved" VW. No. They are completely different. I think the rear main seal is interchangeable. Can't think of any other part that is. There is a long list of VW interchange parts for the rest of the car though.
Thank you for this thread and the pics. The meticulous work going into this car is fantastic! Craftsmanship lives!!

[speeder]

I don't have a lot of new pictures right now but the engine is at the machine shop and parts are being ordered. The machine shop we're using is Kelly's Block Welding in Culver City. They were recommended to me by John Benton, a top 356/912 engine builder here in Southern CA. Oddly enough, I used them for my last engine rebuild which was a diesel truck. They did the heads and I was extremely pleased with the work but did not know that they were big in air-cooled stuff. Turns out that they are.

The P/Cs in the motor were old NPR "big bores" which are 86mm. (Dave B.--you called that right). They basically stopped selling them ~20 years ago so that gives an idea of when this was last rebuilt. They are serviceable pistons, (crap/heavy/cast), but good iron jugs. The jugs are not worn and are totally re-usable. We are buying new forged 86mm pistons from Shasta Engineering, a company started many years ago by famous 356 racer/guru/engine builder Duanne Spencer. He wrote "The 356 Performance Handbook", a staple of any 356 library. When he was in SoCal years ago, Kelly's was the shop that did all of his motors. He's up in Northern California now.

The crank has been turned but is in good shape, just needed polishing. Measures-out fine. The cam in the motor is an old "Racer Brown" grind from the '60s. It was never a great choice even back then, according to Benton and Spencer. It will be schit-canned for either a new SC cam or a very similar grind. Still sorting that one as we speak. The last guy who put this engine together was a strange bird. He used Loctite on rod bolts, case bolts, the flywheel gland nut, you name it. He put in a cam that is not well-matched to the stock Zenith carbs which are still present.

The heads were replaced sometime recently and they are 912 heads in perfect condition. Yay! These are the best ones to have with their bigger valves and factory 30deg. combustion chambers. The bottom line is that with Duanne's excellent forged pistons and the SC cam, this motor will sing! I'm a pretty good chef once I have the recipe and I have the best guys in the world looking over my shoulders. John Benton says that the new combo of parts will make this engine "butter". Duanne's Shasta forged pistons are 2 ounces lighter per piston than the crap NPRs and one hell of a lot stronger! Not to mention balanced. I want to have the flywheel lightened to ~14 lbs. which is what the Super 90 was from factory. This finished motor will produce about 90+hp.

The transaxle is coming out and going to Dave B. @ TRE Motorsports for a once-over this week if I can ever get the axle nuts off. I think that the same guy who did the engine last used a 10-foot breaker bar and a whole tube of Loctite on them. Might have to load the car on a trailer or flatbed and take it up the street to a shop with a stronger Impact/compressor. Aaarghh....

Anywhoo, pictures:

[speeder]

I waited until I got to the shop to split the case, just on the chance that there was anything notable to show Garrick as it came apart. (There wasn't, other than a shtload of Loctite). Garrick is the actual man behind the curtain @ Kelly's. Not sure who Kelly is/was.



We had to use this massive 3/4 drive impact to get the gland nut loose, it sounded like a freaking motorcycle:

[speeder]

While I was there, a guy with a Smokey and the Bandit Pontiac T/A stopped by to show Garrick the car with engine installed. Garrick built him a 600hp mill out of the stock bb. He did a nice burn-out in the alley when he left. Since we're all equal-oportunity gear-heads, here are some pics of the TranAm, (Garrick on left, owner on right):




Factory CB radio!

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by speeder

Another before shot, just for emphasis. I could tell you guys how I did this but I'd have to kill you all afterwards and that's a lot of traveling.

Easy-off over cleaner will do the same thing, it just might take a couple applications.

[speeder]

That's a shot of the axle nut that won't come off. At least not yet.


Also took the speedo and combo gauge to North Hollywood Speedometer to get fixed and they are in a bag inside car. They look great, I'll try to get a picture up.

[Zeke]

I have a 3/4 inch drive socket set and a 6 foot cheater pipe for that purpose. Axle nuts from VW's to Carreras laugh at us.

[Don Plumley]

I love this thread. If you are passing through Sonoma County and need anything, don't hesitate to ask!

[enzo1]

Great thread..... if your ever in OK again take the Talimena drive

[Seahawk]

I rode it on a motorcycle in 2001 with an old CO of mine. What a road...there are turns when you really feel like you are flying.

He was a Vietnam era helo pilot for the Navy...HAL squadrons that supported the riverine folks. He and I hooked up in Patuxent River. No better pilot I have ever met.

He has done great things after the Navy...including getting me off the Talimena drive

I thank everyone for their generous words...Denis is the star of this show, however...and others, including Scott and Milt.

It is never easy but it can be comfortable. I am very much looking forward to seeing this great country from the seat of the little notchback.

Originally Posted by enzo1

Great thread..... if your ever in OK again take the Talimena drive