mk1 golf spit

has anyone got a mk1 golf spit.  if so would you be willing to take some dimensions down so that i could make my own

sorry for being dumb but whats a spit :?

the spit is a frame that is fastened to the front and abck of the car making it possible for you to roll the car 360 degrees.

something like this

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mk2-Cortina-Mk1-Golf-car-rollover-spit-chassis-tilter_W0QQitemZ150262002427QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item150262002427&_trkparms=72%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C65%3A12&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

If you roll your car 360 degrees, it's back to where it started.

In the past, i've just used a couple of old double matresses and plenty of pieces of wood.  Far cheaper and does exactly the same thing.

ive been told to use old tyres, lay them down next to the car and then a double mattress, but would this not dent the quarters??

Ive seen various dangerous ways of getting a car on its side and to be fair, for the hassle and expense people go to with old tyres, matresses, chunks of tree etc.. it would be easier (and in some cases safer) to fabricate your own from some box section!

get your bumpers off and measure the distance between the holes the spit will go into, thats the width of the spit sorted.

The length of the fork is up to you, not too long as they'll bend but not so short they dont actually support the weight.

Height wise, if i remember rightly (sure someone will be able to varify this) a mk1 is about 65inces wide so to allow rotating clearance, assuming the car will only be going as far a 90 degrees (on its side) the spits pivot will need to be a minimum of 35-40 inches high. (if the car needs to go a full 360 this point needs to be alot higher)!

think about making a couple of loops or brackets for bracing the two ends of the spit together (dont want em moving n the car dropping off!!)

I know thats not enough to build a spit from but i hope it helps you getting started.

ive got a 90'tilting spit that gets it up on its side down in falkirk if you want to come down and ill roll the shell out and you can measure it up mate,if it was likely the jetta coop would be ready anytime soon id just give you a shot but its not looking likely

te im down in birmingham, doubt ill be able to make it! would be nice if someone could do a how to. ide do it if i had a welder and time to get the materials and know what im doing? even some great pics and measurements would help.

im sure there'll be pics in the projects forum.

yeah ive seen a few, but would be nice if some of those people ctually took measurements. and posted them, so we can get it fabricated, last thing you would want is it to collapse etc.

there was a thread about this last year iirc where dimesions and plans were posted try searching rotisserie (spelling) or somthing tto that effect :wink:

Building a spit is a fair amount of engineering and welding and stuff - the mechanism to make it freely rotate the car would need to be properly thought out. Also, you'd have to get the height where it rotates, pretty much right (just below C of G, ideally) otherwise you'd never rotate the car and if you did, it would simply flip back to the right way (or if you got it wrong, quickly and violently flip to upside down!).

There are simpler ways of getting good access to the underside of a car.

well as ive posted before there is one on ebay for ?170. so ws thinking if its worth while or not. but would be a good idea to get a price made up guess i will have to find a gate builder or something.

c11rgd said

well as ive posted before there is one on ebay for ?170. so ws thinking if its worth while or not. but would be a good idea to get a price made up guess i will have to find a gate builder or something.

If you need to lift/rotate a Mk1 Golf, its 99% probably going to be to do some welding underneath….

Made this last week with my dad ,got the pipe from work so all its cost is a pack of welding rods.makes working on it easy

would you be able to knock something like that up for us please mick?

having something like that would help a lot with my project - i'm not in any rush for one at the mo but it would be an excellent help if you didn't mind

cheers

Well after just spending 4 hours underneath my golf with a heat gun and a scraper , this topic is a welcome find! Seen a few pics of various designs, but Mk1MATHERS yours looks bang on, simple effective design!

Cheers!

barker,ill do you a deal for a pedal box  :wink:

Looks like a cracking spit for the DIY'er, I have a similar welding job to do on the axle mounts and other areas in future.

I have just started a 10 week Introduction to Welding course in Southampton and hope to get a MIG Welder for the crimbo pressie, assuming I have some ability after the course.

I see all these spits with cars on them, but how do you get the car up there and what should be removed from the car before putting it on the spit?

iv got 1 off ebay, it looks easy to make