Time for an update, I’m waiting on parts for the 1904 so I went back on Bus 2. Here I prime the inside of the left rocker area getting ready to set the left outer floor. Once the floor is down this won’t see daylight for a long time so it’s time to shoot some primer to protect it.
Here I’m fitting the left outer floor and tacking it.
Here it is after grinding out the welds, they actually came out nice.
I installed the outriggers and jack points.
Some of the welds look OK, some not so great. I promise nothing will come apart.
Hey Kirk! Here’s about 2 inches that actually looks good! I’m getting better!
Next are the crossmembers underneath and the long heater tube. Here I’m fitting the front crossmember and tube together. They need to be set in place as an assembly as the tube is trapped in by the crossmembers. The crossmember is actually scooted back a few inches while I weld the center pipe to the front dogleg pipe. Yes that's Will in the background checking his email, he came down one day to watch. After getting my stuff done I gave him some scrap and a few tips.
I used 2 ¾” Napa truck exhaust pipe, half of a 10’ piece that was left over from Bus 1. You could also use 2 ½” but 2 ¾” fits the holes better in the x.
The rear actually necks up from 2 ½” to 2 ¾”. Here you see a small piece of 2 ½” I sleeved together through the x to make the transition.
Here it is all done.
On to the front floor. I decided not to weld this in but to use panel bond, which is basically epoxy in a caulking gun. New cars use this extensively in assembly so it must be OK.
I used Sem 39747 panel bond, they have 2 kinds, regular and quick set. I’m pretty slow in my old age so regular it is. It has a 90 minute working time and 24 hour cure vs. 15 minute working time and 2 hour cure. The tube is about $35 shipped but you have to have the special gun.
It’s pretty straight forward, grind any paint from the attachment points, squirt the stuff on, plop it in place and clamp it. It only took about 30 minutes for me to do it, including cutting the wood and propping everything in place. I still had an hour until it set.
I didn’t go crazy with the bead, just ¼-3/8” or so like it says. You can see it squeeze out of the joints from below.
The magic marker marks are so I knew where to grind the paint from the pan, there’s about a foot on each side where it sets straight on the frame rail.
Here it is installed. Yes I cheated and cut a "U" around the heater pipe so I wouldn't have to remove and replace it. Shame on me.
Next: Prep and paint the undercarriage. All welding and panel replacement is pretty much done right now, I’ll do the cargo door bottoms at my convenience next winter or something. Yeah!
'65 Standard
Re: '65 Standard
Bruce Amacker
'66 Deluxe Bus
'65 Standard Bus
'66 Deluxe Bus
'65 Standard Bus
Re: '65 Standard
Don't care so much what the welds look like as long as they hold.
I have mad respect for anybody that tackles these large rusty projects...there is a ton of messing around to get it all to fit and look half way decent.
Keep giving her hell!
I have mad respect for anybody that tackles these large rusty projects...there is a ton of messing around to get it all to fit and look half way decent.
Keep giving her hell!
1961 Swivel Seat Kombi
Re: '65 Standard
Great stuff Bruce. Thanks for sharing. I don't have the capacity to repair something like that, but it's a great education observing your competence.
Re: '65 Standard
I was able to stop by Bruce's place to see the bus in person a few weeks ago. The outer body panels are remarkably straight and solid. It is going to be a great bus when finished.
We can all learn a lot about patience and attention to detail from watching Bruce in action.
We can all learn a lot about patience and attention to detail from watching Bruce in action.
1963 Single Cab
1964 Bowman & Sons Camper (Vegas Bus)
1966 Westy S0-42 Hardtop
1967 Westy SO-42 Pop Top
1968 Single Cab
1964 Bowman & Sons Camper (Vegas Bus)
1966 Westy S0-42 Hardtop
1967 Westy SO-42 Pop Top
1968 Single Cab
Re: '65 Standard
Thanks again Bruce for letting me tag along and try some welding. It gave a boost to my confidence!
Re: '65 Standard
Got the bottom prepped and painted. I ground out the floor seams, sealed them with fiberglass resin gel and seam sealed the front floor edges. It came out pretty decent, even with a few runs. I had to seal up all of that bare steel......
I can roll around under that thing for an hour looking for spots I missed and can't find any. Then I shoot pictures and there they all are, right in front of me, but now it's too late........
I can roll around under that thing for an hour looking for spots I missed and can't find any. Then I shoot pictures and there they all are, right in front of me, but now it's too late........
Bruce Amacker
'66 Deluxe Bus
'65 Standard Bus
'66 Deluxe Bus
'65 Standard Bus
Re: '65 Standard
I was lucky enough to find a good steering box/wheel at the Jim's Swap so I figured I'd go through it.
Mark the pitman,
Pull the pitman,
Strip it, blast it,
Disassemble, clean, blast, it looked really good inside. Bearing were smooth, pitman cleaned up nice, etc. This is just a quickie checkout and reseal, not a true overhaul.
High Tack the seal, drive it in place with a seal driver. Seal is a 9710, the cheapest place is Ebay, $14. Same seal whether it's a Ross/ATE or ZF box. The ZF box that was in it had water inside so it was done.
Lube everything, High Tack the cover- treat it like case halves, a machined surface can go without a gasket and just some sealer.
The long bolts go into the box cavity itself, VW used copper washers to prevent seepage, I'm going to use High Tack on the bolts. Torque to 18.
VW puts "timing marks" on the pitman to realign it, but when everything is crusty you almost can't see them. I generally use a whizzer wheel to make my own marks in case the VW marks aren't visible. You can see the VW marks at about 12 o'clock, and mine about 4 o'clock. If you screw this up, your bus turns to the left (or right) really well but not so good in the other direction.
If you have 9 minutes of free time you can see how I adjust a box and how VW adjusts a box.
https://youtu.be/n-1h47ILhxg
Assembled, adjusted, painted, filled with 8oz of gear oil, and installed. Nice to put something on that won't be coming off later.
I also got a driver's seat, so I'm happy about that.
Mark the pitman,
Pull the pitman,
Strip it, blast it,
Disassemble, clean, blast, it looked really good inside. Bearing were smooth, pitman cleaned up nice, etc. This is just a quickie checkout and reseal, not a true overhaul.
High Tack the seal, drive it in place with a seal driver. Seal is a 9710, the cheapest place is Ebay, $14. Same seal whether it's a Ross/ATE or ZF box. The ZF box that was in it had water inside so it was done.
Lube everything, High Tack the cover- treat it like case halves, a machined surface can go without a gasket and just some sealer.
The long bolts go into the box cavity itself, VW used copper washers to prevent seepage, I'm going to use High Tack on the bolts. Torque to 18.
VW puts "timing marks" on the pitman to realign it, but when everything is crusty you almost can't see them. I generally use a whizzer wheel to make my own marks in case the VW marks aren't visible. You can see the VW marks at about 12 o'clock, and mine about 4 o'clock. If you screw this up, your bus turns to the left (or right) really well but not so good in the other direction.
If you have 9 minutes of free time you can see how I adjust a box and how VW adjusts a box.
https://youtu.be/n-1h47ILhxg
Assembled, adjusted, painted, filled with 8oz of gear oil, and installed. Nice to put something on that won't be coming off later.
I also got a driver's seat, so I'm happy about that.
Last edited by Dual Port on Tue May 02, 2017 11:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Bruce Amacker
'66 Deluxe Bus
'65 Standard Bus
'66 Deluxe Bus
'65 Standard Bus
Re: '65 Standard
Great job Bruce. Kep the details coming. Can't wait 'till Bill Webner gets that front seat in the last pic!
Re: '65 Standard
Just messing around with a new photo hosting service. If you use Photobucket you might be aware that they are locking most links with a $400 annual ransom, which blows because I've been using them for years. That means that likely every post I've put up on this site will no longer have pictures on it. I'm trying Flikr now. I use a host because I like nice big pictures in my posts.
I took 2 speedos and made a nice one, one was nice and clean but the odo didn't work, the other looked grungy but worked:
P5220029 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Gently pried the bezel off to free the glass, cleaned the glass and face,
P5220024 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Reglued the colored gels that came loose:
P5220023 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Bead blasted the bulb holders:
P5220025 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Put the face back on and tapped it a bit to lock it down, looks good!
P5220032 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Happy Fourth!
I took 2 speedos and made a nice one, one was nice and clean but the odo didn't work, the other looked grungy but worked:
P5220029 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Gently pried the bezel off to free the glass, cleaned the glass and face,
P5220024 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Reglued the colored gels that came loose:
P5220023 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Bead blasted the bulb holders:
P5220025 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Put the face back on and tapped it a bit to lock it down, looks good!
P5220032 by Bruce Amacker, on Flickr
Happy Fourth!
Bruce Amacker
'66 Deluxe Bus
'65 Standard Bus
'66 Deluxe Bus
'65 Standard Bus