My new project ...

[Lightweight_911]

Following the sale of my 904 back in November, I started to think about a new project.

With the way early 911 prices had gone I wasn't considering going down that route again &, besides, there were already several fantastic 'sports purposes' cars being built by other DDKers, so it had to be something else...

I had found myself looking at 356's (especially tastefully-done outlaws) more & more in recent months but unfortunately, I'd 'missed the boat' as far as 356A models were concerned & most outlaws/hotrods based on the later B/C models just didn't have the same appeal.

In mid December I happened to be over in Essex – not far from Southend – so decided to call in to Karmann Konnection's new (pub) premises to see if they had any interesting cars there.

I looked at a couple of 356's & a swb 911 but nothing interested me so was about to leave when Paul mentioned another car which was currently in bare metal 'next door' being prepared prior to paint …

'Next door' was actually a workshop (part of the pub) – sub-let to none other than 'Lionel' – ex head body man at Sportwagen & master metalworker.

The bare metal car in question was a '65 356C – remarkably free from rust or accident damage which Lionel was in the process of tidying up (bottom of the outer door skins had been replaced).

KK's plan was to refurbish the car to original std spec with new paint, interior trim as necessary & mechanical overhaul before putting it up for sale.

I wasn't looking for a std car but this looked such a good starting point & having Lionel 'on hand' to undertake any potential metalwork seemed too good an opportunity to miss.

So, gradually, a picture formed in my mind – a 'period' lightweight competition-inspired car along the lines of the (very rare) Factory 356 SC GT's, of which only 6 were built.

A protracted discussion with Paul took place to finalise my intended spec & a fixed price was agreed (after a phone call to Ritchie).

My spec will feature the 'GT' look with:

Light Ivory bodywork (original colour)
No bumper F&R overriders
GT bumper trim
Deleted side/sill trims
Steel Speedster seats
Rear roll cage
Black vinyl/grey square-weave carpets
Perspex door windows with leather lifting straps
Perspex rear qtr windows & rear screen
Sebring exhaust

In addition I plan to add:

Louvred twin-grille engine lid
Steel/alloy wheels (which I didn't sell with my 904)
Avon CR6ZZ tyres
Old-style 3-point race harnesses (re-webbed in black)
Period wood steering wheel

& possibly:

Yellow headlight lenses (or Marchal Equilux headlamps with yellow bulbs)
Headlamp grilles
Leather bonnet straps

&, of course, some suitable decals, race stickers, etc

[Lightweight_911]

This was the starting point:

[964RS]

Great stuff Andy.

Engine?

[Bootsy]

About time - those Outlaw Fifty Six pics on the daily Porsche Pic thread were a bit of a giveaway!

Look forward to seeing this unfold and will be checking my numbers to see if I can buy if from you when finished!

[hot66]

really looking forward to this one Andy

Have you had a 356 in the past ?

[KS]

Pass the popcorn...

[DustyM]

Excellent. Look forward to following this.

[Lightweight_911]

I didn't want another 'long term' project – I wanted something that I could drive/enjoy whilst developing further – so decided to keep other (mechanical) aspects such as the engine/brakes/suspension standard for the time being.

Besides, it was over 20 years since I'd last owned a 356 (a RHD 356B which I eventually cut up for spares !) so have largely forgotten what they are like to drive in standard (ish) form - & the car should be significantly lighter as a result of my intended mods anyway.

Whilst the car was being prepared for painting, there were a few things that I could be getting on with.

Although the earlier 356B S90 GT's seats typically had a type of velour for the centre section, I fancied something a bit different for my car.

This has always been one of my favourite Porsche seats



so I set about seeing if I could track down some suitable material.

I knew that the Factory's 'Elephant Hide' had been unavailable for many years but I stumbled upon something relatively similar from an unlikely source …

Marshall amplifiers – as used by all of the major rock bands back in the late '60's/'70's – were covered in a black textured vinyl known as 'Tolex' so I sent off for a large sample to check its potential suitability.



It seemed a fairly good match to what I was looking for (although not quite as deeply grained as the original) so I ordered 3 metres.

Funnily enough, shortly after I'd sourced the material, a thread appeared on the Early S Registry where someone had suggested Tolex as a potential alternative to the '68-only Elephant Hide !

Another interior feature that's always important to me is the steering wheel – you spend so much time looking at/holding the wheel so it's a vital component to get 'right'.

The original woodrim VDM wheels as fitted to 356B/C Carrera & GT models are horrendously expensive - & I don't particularly like them anyway - & the alternative was usually a wooden Les Leston used with the cumbersome-looking B/C crested horn push.

I did have another Les Leston wheel but I'd already used one on my 904 so wanted something else for this car.

Amongst my 'stash' of period wheels, I had 2 Nardi woodrim wheels – a dished '63-dated 400mm version & a flat '66-dated 420mm version.

Both styles would have been available for the 356C when new so I opted for the smaller dished wheel.

It was currently fitted with an integral alloy hub (for a '60's Auto Union) so first job was to drill out the flush-fitting aluminium rivets & remove the hub.

Once accomplished I took the relevant measurements & produced some dimensional drawings which I sent to Andy Haas (along with a suitable chunk of billet alloy) for him to machine into a suitable spacer & trim ring (as he had done previously for my 904).

[Lightweight_911]

Although I don't think the Factory ever produced a T6 (twin-grille) louvred engine lid, I quite like the louvred ones that were fitted to 356A/B Carreras so was keen to see if I could incorporate a similar look.

Rather than irreversibly modify the original engine lid, I bought a second rust-free T6 engine lid from KK to use as a starting point.






After some research I found a company called Sports Car Metal Works in Iver, Bucks run by a guy named Mick Beakhouse who could press louvres into existing panels.

After a brief phone conversation, I sent him the engine lid along with some pictures of louvred 356 lids for reference.

In retrospect, I should have been more specific about what I wanted as, unfortunately, when the engine lid was returned, the louvres were spaced more widely apart than I wanted …




Oh well, we'll see what it looks like once fettled/prepped & painted – I might have to try again …


An essential feature of the GT 'look' is the deletion of front & rear overriders & the substitution of the std bumper trim (similar to the '69-'73 911T trim) with the plain wider aluminium version – like this:




In reality it's not quite that straightforward – the bumpers are made in 3 sections with the joins normally hidden by the overriders, so once they're removed there's an obvious 'step' where adjacent sections meet.

In addition, fitting the GT trim is notoriously difficult as the trim needs to be heated/bent to match the curvature of the bumper exactly & the new end sections fabricated/tig welded in place.

Luckily Lionel has done this numerous times in the past – albeit on A's which are easier - & will blend in the joins on the bumpers with lead.

[Uk911]

What a great project, will be watching this one develop, good luck and keep the updates coming...Mark...

[Darren65]

Way to go Andy, no doubt this is going to be one very cool car....love the way you do what you do!......

...huge inspiration!

Cheers,

[Lightweight_911]

I visited the paint shop a few weeks ago to check the car at the primer stage & discuss my requirements for the paint finish - they've painted quite a few cars for Ritchie King (KK) & Sportwagen over the years but are another set up that 'flies under the radar' ...

The car was finally painted last week (the bumpers, spare louvred engine lid & a few other minor bits will be painted in due course) but here's the shell in its current condition:






Whilst Andy H was fabricating the hub parts I set about refurbishing the Nardi wheel.

Being over 50 years old it had inevitably been re-varnished at some point in the past & it wasn't a very good finish:





- so I set about sanding down the old varnish





although I was careful not to remove its battle scars (small nicks & scrapes accumulated during many years of use).

Fresh satin polyurethane varnish was then applied in thin coats, rubbing down in between layers with fine wire wool.






Once it's hardened fully, I'll rub it down again with very fine wire wool & apply a light coat of wax ...

[stretch]

Blimey Andy not logged on since this morning and you have nearly restored a car. Think i guessed it.

Looks like another fine build. Maybe you might keep this one for a bit. Look forward to reading the progress. Can you slow up the build a bit please, you are putting us youngsters to shame.

[jamie]

Nice.

[964RS]

This is going to be lovely Andy.

I've been so tempted by a 356 Outlaw over the last few years but as you say everything Porsche has gone a bit nuts and think it's probably passed me by now. Will look forward to watching your build....should be pretty fast now compared to your last one!

Not fancy Spa at end of May?