G Day from Sunny Western Australia everyone. I thought I would start a small build thread after the very warm welcome I received from the members here in the newbie introduction section (cheers guys, motivation can come in many forms and positive comments and a friendly group is a great start, well done). This will be more a photo journey than a how to, I am not a mechanic or fabricator but I love to give things a go and I'm trying to do most of this myself with some support from a good mate who is a Volkswagen tragic also. I imagine the finish threads will be more in the 2030s than 2020s. But here goes. This is what I have started with.
1968 Beetle pan.
Australian mad fiberglass Manta body (in various states of disrepair.
The rest I will need to source.

Just need 4 wheels and a couple of seats, a bit of wiring and an engine...

The body looks attractive and unlike MantaRay's I've seen in the UK. But buggys are all about difference and individual character so keep the images and story coming.

Don`t rub it in. It`s tossing it down with rain up my way and has been for days   

Looks like a nice clean chassis
Has it been shortened yet?

No Yaroon this one will not be shortened. In Western Australia only buggies that have proof of previous registration as buggies can have the shortened pan. I will need to get this engineered as the standard pan so I will actually need to lengthen the fiberglass body unfortunately.
The Aussie Mantas originally had a curved windscreen with a fiberglass surround. I have popped a couple of pictures below. On mine, this has been broken off over time so I will convert to a flat section and use the traditional flat buggy screen.

Just need 4 wheels and a couple of seats, a bit of wiring and an engine...

The body looks attractive and unlike MantaRay's I've seen in the UK. But buggys are all about difference and individual character so keep the images and story coming.

You make it sound so simple    I do like the shape of this one. They are reasonably rare here. most have the taipan or Manx, so I thought it was worth saving. The only thing I wasn't sure about was the original curved windscreen and I'm guessing the previous owner of mine felt the same way 30 years ago and tried to remove it so Ill work with what I have and learn to fiberglass. (who said they cant teach an old dog new tricks hey)

Don`t rub it in. It`s tossing it down with rain up my way and has been for days   

Yea, I feel you mate, bloody terrible morning here today.

So having been buried for a number of years the gearbox and front beam were a little bit worn and dirty. Surprisingly enough though when I opened the gearbox, I actually wondered if they had kept digging it up and changing the oil and re burying it.
A real testament to Volkswagen engineering I guess it really did look new inside.




The steering box however did not 

The steering box however did not 

From my experience, over here that would be a good one      

Strip the steering box and give it a good clean it will probably be fine having stood for years rather than used and abused.

Strip it, clean the old grease out, reassemble with new oil seals and refill with the thickest gear oil that you can find or John Deere Cornhead grease if available, adjust and you're good to go.

Tip: if anyone is struggling to find something to tighten the screw on the big adjuster try a lawnmower spark plug box spanner, mine's a perfect fit 

Cheers everyone, good advise with a good clean and a few parts, seems as good as new.

Tip: if anyone is struggling to find something to tighten the screw on the big adjuster try a lawnmower spark plug box spanner, mine's a perfect fit 
Now that is bloody ingenious, I love it.

Bit more of an update, The wire wheeling of parts to see what can be salvaged and what needs to be replaced. I am really trying to salvage any parts I have and only replace what is beyond safe practical use. (or if I cant make it look shiny enough) This project is really about salvaging an old classic that would have otherwise been lost to the ground and rusted away.
Gearbox got a bit of a touch up. taking a punt at this stage that it was in reasonable condition inside. Im sure most of you are aware once you scuff off that first bit of crud, there is no turning back and my OCD wont rest until its clean  .







And half clean and painted





Unfortunately I didn't take any photos of the inside of the gear box but I think I mentioned before it was clean as a whistle. even the oil looked fresh, so a quick strip and clean and new gaskets and shims and we were away.



Next stop, front beam.







And then like magic, the gearbox was in. another job done or so it seemed as I'm sure most of you will realise my rookie mistake, I had the bloody axel tubes on the wrong side.

Good news from down there then, gearboxes with oil in and boots in good condition to stop water and dirt ingress are generally fine