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Posted by: Charles Deutsch Sep 13 2003, 11:59 PM

In this issue there is a 985 lb sand rail that puts out 225 hp at the rear wheels. That's like a 3000 lb sports car that has about 700 hp! You know that's got to be fun.

Posted by: cha914 Sep 14 2003, 01:10 PM

ahh yes...I am just itching to build one...although for my first one I will be shooting for ~1000-1500lbs and 100hp or so should still be lots o fun...

Posted by: Aaron Cox Sep 14 2003, 07:15 PM

my goped weighs 20 pounds and 1 horsepower....lol

Posted by: stock93 Sep 14 2003, 10:39 PM

I have a woods rail that has a type IV 2.0L with dual Weber IDF44s. I continually break it by jumping to high for the suspension. I broke the bellhousing on my bus trans after getting around 6-7 feet up.

John

Posted by: stock93 Sep 14 2003, 10:42 PM

pic


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Posted by: stock93 Sep 14 2003, 10:42 PM

pic2


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Posted by: 914Timo Sep 15 2003, 12:30 AM

John, looks fun. A LOT of fun !!!

Posted by: cha914 Sep 15 2003, 07:35 AM

Stock93,

Yeah, thats what I am going for...is yours a kit or did you build it? Bug suspension or home built? rear engine or mid?

I am going to build the cage myself, and I want to do a mid engine with probably a bug front end...I can't wait

Thanks,

Tony

Posted by: URY914 Sep 15 2003, 07:44 AM

That does look fun, but the landing is always the problem.
I'd love to try it.

Paul

Posted by: stock93 Sep 15 2003, 12:46 PM

It is a lot of FUN!!! The landing in that picture wasnt bad. I have 10 inches of wheel travel front and 11 rear.

Tony,
I bought my frame already assembled and built it from there. The front suspension is pre66 bug suspension(aka Link pin). The rear is IRS(independant rear suspension as opposed to swing axle) from a VW bus. Its rear engine. I run a 6 rib 091 '76-79 bus transmission. The bus transmission is much much stronger than the bus trans. Also you can run bus CV joints which are bigger than type 1(bug) and can handle more angle. I have mine set at 16 degrees right now and havent had a failure in over a year of riding. To give you an idea of size that rear tire in the picture is a 33x12.50-15. I would do a rear engine rail first. You will have plenty to do and sort out with that. A mid engine requires even more work/time/money. Buy a factory built frame. You will make several mistakes in the first frame and end up building another one. Simply modify the factory frame to your liking. A book you need to buy before building a buggy is Jeff Hibbards Baja Bugs and Buggies. Some of the info is a bit dated but its still a very very useful book. If you havent found www.dune-buggy.com yet then you need to go check out buggytalk. That form is like this one except for with buggies. Be aware these are as addictive as 914s. They will end up costing you a lot of time and money. If you cant accept that get out now Be prepared to spend at least 2500. Buying someone elses unfinished project can be a big help. I have found due to my habits of liking to leave the ground I need to build better suspension. I will be fabricating an a arm front end for mine using a 924 steering rack and vanagon spindles. I'm also going to be fabing some longer and wider trailing arms for the rear. I havent decided yet if I'm going to use airbags or coil overs to support the suspension. Anyway, check out DBC. You can ask questions and get parts there.

I stuck a picture of what my buggy started as when I got it.

John


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Posted by: stock93 Sep 15 2003, 12:51 PM

While we are on the topic of off road riding I found another picture you guys might like. This is me on my atv at the time. Notice the shadow. I'm not on the slop. I'm jumping off of it. To give you guys an idea of how far a drop that is I'm 6'2".

John


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Posted by: cha914 Sep 15 2003, 01:02 PM

John,

Thanks for all the info...I am actually learning how to build cages for cars, so I figured building a buggy would be a good learning project...but I might try and find a used/forgotten project to start with anyway.

Thanks again, and I will update everyone when I get started on mine

Tony

Posted by: Charles Deutsch Sep 15 2003, 02:09 PM

Here's the article from Hot VWs.

Posted by: stock93 Sep 15 2003, 07:31 PM

The article isnt working because its in Sony Imagestation.

John

Posted by: Aaron Cox Sep 15 2003, 08:52 PM

go a-arm suspension instead of VW- my neighbor has both! one is a 50k dollar twin turbo subaru setup with 18+ inches of travel at all wheels. the other is a vw mid engine setup- w/ vw suspension. guess which one he prefers??

Posted by: Charles Deutsch Sep 15 2003, 09:01 PM

You can't see it? Can anyone else see it?

Posted by: seanery Sep 15 2003, 09:12 PM

nope

Posted by: Charles Deutsch Sep 15 2003, 09:19 PM

Let's try this


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Posted by: Charles Deutsch Sep 15 2003, 09:20 PM

woo hoo!


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