Where I'm at so far... [Archive]

yetibone

February 13th 2005, 22:15

They're diagonal links with heim joints at the upper ends. They keep the horizontal control arms from having to rely on the sway bar to control caster, like a radius arm would.

They are only tacked on in the pics. I've made the pieces to box the whole arms in with, top and bottom. I'll weld them at work tomorrow.

jhelgesen

February 14th 2005, 05:18

Sure could have saved a bunch of time welding that 911 front end I have in place. :laugh:

Looks good Joe, gonna have to come and see it soon.

Wally

February 14th 2005, 06:50

Sure could have saved a bunch of time welding that 911 front end I have in place. :laugh:

Looks good Joe, gonna have to come and see it soon.
A pre-964 front end is less high tech than a Mc Pherson 1303 front end ;)

The extra control arms with heim joints look a lot like a set-up I saw many years ago on a german Kaefercup car.. :)

Looks very good!
Walter

PS: Jurgen, did you ever come to informing about shipping costs of the 912E tach we talked about?

randyj

February 14th 2005, 13:11

Yetibone,

That is a really sout crossmember you have there. What transmission is it for?

Randy

yetibone

February 14th 2005, 13:29

Yetibone,

That is a really sout crossmember you have there. What transmission is it for?

Randy

914/901. I made it from 6061 aluminum.

Mikey

February 14th 2005, 13:35

It looks great, I love that crossmember, looks more professinal than mine, 3 peices of flat bar, and a peice of square tubing. :rolleyes:

Great looking pictures too, I love to see projects in progress. :) Keep up the good work!

NO_H2O

February 14th 2005, 15:06

Dude got mad skills. :agree:

Racelook

February 14th 2005, 15:38

Looks verry verry nice...

I like what you made on the front of your car!!!!! I hope it support for the right task.

Greetings Wiebrand

p.s. I shall not copy it :D

yetibone

February 14th 2005, 19:45

Looks verry verry nice...

I like what you made on the front of your car!!!!! I hope it support for the right task.

Greetings Wiebrand

p.s. I shall not copy it :D

If you copy it, I won't mind. No patents on anything. :) I just didn't want the caster changing as the suspension jounces, or if I hit the brakes hard and turn in. This way, the horizontal control arms track straight up and down, and not in an arch. Plus, with this geometry I can actually ADJUST caster wiff the heim joints. :D

The 2 piece shiftrod is the big thing. I wanted to make the 901 shift right in my Bug. I got two 1" OD universal joints, one 12" behind the shifter, and one at the selector shaft on the gearbag, to work with the mis-alignment of the selector shaft and the base of the shifter. Everything else is pre-72 911 stuff.

It shifts SO SMOOOOOTH!!!

Thanks for the kind words fellas, I'll keep yall updated and try not to be such a stranger 'round here anymore. :o

Supa Ninja

February 14th 2005, 20:56

yetibone

February 14th 2005, 21:03

So let me get this straight, Yeti, your using 2 universal joints instead of welding on length and bending a Z into it. That sounds a lot like the what VW did with the steering linkage on the '71-'74 supers. I'll considering that for my setup.

Nick

Yep. That's what I did. Here's a link...

https://sdp-si.com/eStore/Direct.asp?CP=Index.htm

That's where I got the joints. P/N A5Q 8-D516.

Sandeep

February 15th 2005, 10:43

The 2 piece shiftrod is the big thing. I wanted to make the 901 shift right in my Bug. I got two 1" OD universal joints, one 12" behind the shifter, and one at the selector shaft on the gearbag, to work with the mis-alignment of the selector shaft and the base of the shifter. Everything else is pre-72 911 stuff.

It shifts SO SMOOOOOTH!!!

Thats exactly what I am working on .. I've got the shift rod welded up with the U-Joints and used a Bug shift rod shortening kit on one end of the shift rod for adjustability. By the angles involved, I don't see how putting a Z bend in the rod would work, let alone shift smoothly ... the 2 u-joints are definately the way to go.

Project looks great !

Sandeep

Wally

February 17th 2005, 08:55

By the angles involved, I don't see how putting a Z bend in the rod would work, let alone shift smoothly ... the 2 u-joints are definately the way to go.
Sandeep
We are very OT, but:
There is more than one way to achieve great shifting. I got my 915 trans to shift super smoothly and very direct. The so-called Z shape shift rod is a great eggageration (sp?). It only bends a very little and will therefore not make a noticeable difference whith the limited rotating of the rod when the shifter is move sideways.
The big difference lies in the same: the coupling. The porsche coupling is vastly superior, but has a build-in slack (as new!) to accommedate the moving of the trans/engine in a 911. In a well set-up bug with stiffer mounting of trans/engine, this won't happen that severely and engine torque will not pull the trans out of a gear. So, you can use a better coupling bushing without slack (as sold by Pelican). This makes a huge difference is my experience.

Greetings,
Walter

vw1303

February 17th 2005, 16:12

Will those support arms attached to the control arm arch at the same radius as the sway bar will? You might be creating some uneccasary forces on the control arms if the sway is traveling in a different direction. You could however leave the sway bar non bolted to the control arm so is would be free to move a little during suspension travel. I am talking nonsense or does this make sense? BTW that looks like a killer pan.

yetibone

February 17th 2005, 17:55

yetibone

February 20th 2005, 16:10

Pics of the finished control arms... :)

boygenius

February 21st 2005, 09:58

Looking realy good Yeti... I realy like what you did with your pedals. :agree:

yetibone

February 26th 2005, 22:40

Thanks BG. :) The holy pedals were kind of an afterthought, but I'm glad I did the drillin' :agree:

Here's some mo' front end parts...

vw1303

February 27th 2005, 06:22

Those struts look good man. What springs rates are you using? And where did you get the adjustable bottom perches from?

NO_H2O

February 27th 2005, 08:43

Sweet. I love the McColors. Now all you need is McSway-bars and McStut-brace and you will have a complete McFront-end combo,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,add a Super Size order McCalipers and McRotors. :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
Oh and hold the onions. :agree:

yetibone

February 27th 2005, 08:48

yetibone

February 27th 2005, 08:53

Those struts look good man. What springs rates are you using? And where did you get the adjustable bottom perches from?

The springs are prolly somewhere between 75 and 80lbs or so, I don't know. I got them from AC.net, and they're for a Super. The perches are stock 1303, and the threaded sleeves, and jam-nuts I got from a local speed shop.

hybrid_john

March 1st 2005, 20:58

great looking set up you got there yeti! I like the red springs....they stand out against the yellow quite a bit. :agree:

yellow73

March 1st 2005, 21:20

Yeti,
This is really cool, I am enjoying the progress you are making, it is inspiring me to get in my own garage and get going, especially with 2 projects now...

volkdent

March 1st 2005, 23:13

Looks awesome! Just tell me the struts bottom out before the front of the control arm does?

Jason

yetibone

March 2nd 2005, 08:21

Looks awesome! Just tell me the struts bottom out before the front of the control arm does?

Jason

Well, the IIRC, the ball joints are 6.5" off the ground with 205/40-17 tires, so with the frame head on the ground, and the ball joints 6.5" off the ground, I have about 1/4" clearance between the control arm and it's channel within the framehead. The bump-stops make contactwell before that.

That's what the angle is for in those diagonal links I added to the control arm. Eliminates an acclusion problem.

juse

March 7th 2005, 09:16

Looking good Yetiman.
Your front suspension setup looks quite the same that I´ve been thinking of. They have used similar "compression struts" or "radius arms" in RWD Ford Escorts for rallying. Take a look:
http://www.prepfab.co.uk/newsuspension.htm
And I remember seeing a setup like that in a Japanese racer featured article.
Very interesting upgrade to a super I think.
Justin

yetibone

March 9th 2005, 20:16

Yeah, the J-Sports Bug gave me the idea. It appears they used 1302 arms on that car, prolly class rules for racing :confused: . My 1303 came with the early cast steel arms too, but I nixed them 'cause of weight, unadaptability to Porsche spindles, and having to weld dissimilar metal together (cast steel to forged steel)

Tedzbug

May 24th 2005, 09:14

I really like this radius arm idea....I think i am going to head the same direction. I dont like the formed arms of my 1303, they seem weaker than the 1302 arms. I think i want to box mine in also and add the "radius" arm in the front.

How did you decide the length of the arm and the location of the hiems?

Ted

yetibone

May 24th 2005, 18:39

I kinda eyeballed it with two broomsticks where the added on strut-rods would be, then used two string lines to line up where the heim joints would go with the control arm pivot points. I wanted to make sure they were in line with each other, so the steering axis wouldn't change as the suspension compacts.

The angle of the pieces I welded on, in relation to the control arms, weren't on purpose. That's just how it came together. The critical part was the bend in the added on pieces. They attach to the control arms with about a 5 degree downward angle, and have about a 12 degree bend upwards, halfway to the end so I would have full travel all the way to some shortened 1303 bump stops without the add on pieces hitting the frame head first.

Unless you're going to add strut-rods on to the stock arms like this, I wouldn't recomend boxing them in for strength. The stock suspension relies on the "twist" that the stock control arms have to keep the sway-bar from binding the whole works up. Without that twist, you'd be replacing sway-bar bushings every month, and would have a hell of a time putting it together because of the binding-up.

Another thing to stress, take your time, measure three times, and don't try this unless you're sure you can do it right, and without compromise.

Racelook

May 25th 2005, 03:00

yetibone

May 25th 2005, 12:49

Yettibone... I read this topic on your front arms a time ago.
And now I'm at the fase of making the last changes on my chassis before painting and I see this topic again i'm maybe also make it someway like yours.

But I'm overlooking it now because I also want to go verry low with my super.

Wiebrand

I understand. :)

However, mine will bottom the struts out (without bump-stops) before the strut-rods hit the frame head, and the sway-bar mounts will drag the ground before the heim-joint channels do.

yetibone

May 29th 2005, 18:51

Pics of my strut tower brace, and Kafer Cup brace pieces. Still haven't finished the bars for the cup brace, and still waiting for some 6" M12 bolts from McMaster to finish the tops of the rear shock towers.

yetibone

May 29th 2005, 18:54

couple mo' pics...

zen

May 31st 2005, 15:04

yeti, what are you doing for bumpstops on the rear? i still have yet to do anything and need to. much more difficult with the body on though.

yetibone

May 31st 2005, 18:24

Since I got early alloy arms, I made some from the leftovers of my sawed-off shorter front bumpstops.

Drilled a 1/4 inch hole 1/2 inch deep, tapped it to M8 1.25, stuffed the leftover washers from some stock 944 inner rear control arm bushings into those little rubber acordians, and bolted 'em down.

I know you have later alloy arms on yours, so the pedistal isn't there. Is there some way you could adapt swingaxle bumpstops to work on yours?

rip

June 28th 2005, 14:53

Thats exactly what I am working on .. I've got the shift rod welded up with the U-Joints and used a Bug shift rod shortening kit on one end of the shift rod for adjustability. By the angles involved, I don't see how putting a Z bend in the rod would work, let alone shift smoothly ... the 2 u-joints are definately the way to go.

Project looks great !

Sandeep

Just to throw this out there

http://www.kartek.com/prod-windows/all/steering/shifting/vw/sac-601901.jpg

I was thinking of using the Saco shifter box. Cut a hole in the tunnel right behind the stock shifter big enough to fit the box through. That way you could slide the box forward bolt it up then have access to the uni joint. One behind the shifter and the other at the nose cone. The rod inside the box is support at both ends, and because the bushings are brass the shifting should be like ice even though the difference in angles.

yetibone

June 28th 2005, 18:32

Just to throw this out there

http://www.kartek.com/prod-windows/all/steering/shifting/vw/sac-601901.jpg

I was thinking of using the Saco shifter box. Cut a hole in the tunnel right behind the stock shifter big enough to fit the box through. That way you could slide the box forward bolt it up then have access to the uni joint. One behind the shifter and the other at the nose cone. The rod inside the box is support at both ends, and because the bushings are brass the shifting should be like ice even though the difference in angles.

Durn! :eek: Pretty slick. Simpler than my rig too.

I used 2 911 bushings and the little brackets they mount in, so mine takes up more space than that one does.

Wish I'd a thought of that. :rolleyes:

yetibone

July 17th 2005, 20:41

The pan is done. I put the engine back on for some pics, and realized the drivetrain will need to tilt back an inch, or less to be right. I'll have to do that with the body on to find out exactly how far though... :rolleyes:

NO_H2O

July 17th 2005, 20:51

Schweeeeeet. A seeat and some controlls and it will be ready to put on the Dyno in Nov. :agree:

yetibone

July 17th 2005, 20:51

Here's the rear swaybar. Had to use one that was long enough to clear the crossmember, and make my own brackets, and clamps. The endlinks are like the front ones.

I have to do some clearance work at the endlinks before it's ready to go.

yetibone

July 17th 2005, 21:26

Here's my home made Kafer Cup brace. :D

The tubes are hollow T6 aluminum, except for the ends, which were solid T6 'till I turned them down to the tubing's inner diameter, and drilled and tapped them for the fork ends on a lathe. All the chassis connections, the fork ends, and the shock tower pieces are steel.

The front brace was made the same way, but it's all aluminum, 'cept the fork ends.

rustbucket

July 17th 2005, 21:50

That chassis looks totally sick. It'll be a blast on the track when it's done.

And I'm taking notes. I'd like to do a super next time around if I can't find a good T3.

yetibone

July 17th 2005, 22:23

Thanks! :cool:

I've always thought that GL Type IIIs' are to GL Supers', what a Mercedes Benz E55 is to a Porsche 911. :D

I've never owned a Type III, but I still think Supers are where it's at! :agree:

rustbucket

July 17th 2005, 23:06

I've always wanted a Squareback. Heck, I might even do a Bus. But surveying the aftermarket, I'll probably end up with a Super. T2's & T3's are just so much more expensive in every way. And down here, they're so hard to find in good shape. Plus I get envious reading all of the Super threads! :D

vujade

July 18th 2005, 12:54

I've always thought that GL Type IIIs' are to GL Supers', what a Mercedes Benz E55 is to a Porsche 911. :D

Thats good way of putting it Yeti... I usually tell people that I consider
GL T3's more like a BMW M3 vs Supers being like 911's.

yetibone

July 18th 2005, 18:09

Thats good way of putting it Yeti... I usually tell people that I consider
GL T3's more like a BMW M3 vs Supers being like 911's.

Exactly. There's Soprt touring cars, and then there's sports cars.

Superbug Scott

July 18th 2005, 19:11

Thanks BG. :) The holy pedals were kind of an afterthought, but I'm glad I did the drillin' :agree:

...

You drilled the pedals yourself!!?! :eek: They look great!

I want a new cluster too. :bawling:

yetibone

July 18th 2005, 19:18

Couple of pictures of the Kerscher dash. Not done with it yet. Gotta get a 911 clock, and paint it, or gel-coat it.

starmember

July 19th 2005, 06:22

Sweet dash :eek:

Racelook

July 19th 2005, 11:37

Same dash that I have, only I have to modify it even more..

Looks nice!!

yellow73

August 5th 2005, 22:20

That dash looks great Joe!!!

yetibone

September 11th 2005, 21:34

I started doing actual bodywork today. Made a patch piece out of a section I got from jhelgesen. I cut the rusted section out months ago to make it easier to remove the wiring harness. I left the fold on the underside of the drip rail intact, so the patch will be inside the fold. I haven't stitched it into place yet 'cause I have to make some patches for the inside, lower rear window corners.

The other side will be easier 'cause I don't have to cut the outer window corners, just the inside.

Mikey

September 12th 2005, 13:06

Most 1303 supers are terible about rust in that area. I've seen a few that were a lot worse than that. The patch looks good to me.

yetibone

September 12th 2005, 18:09

Most 1303 supers are terible about rust in that area. I've seen a few that were a lot worse than that. The patch looks good to me.

I can only assume the reason is because of a different type of foam. The patch came from a section of an earlier model, and the foam was pliable.

My '73 has foam that's kinda like 'Great Stuff'. It's not flexible. :confused:

Racelook

September 12th 2005, 18:43

yetibone

September 12th 2005, 18:54

Yetibone, why didn't you removed or blasted the rusted (inner) piece at that corner?? (it looks rusty to me)Sorry I was reading too quicky :rolleyes:

Keep up the good work. ...

It's an place were almost every 1303 is damn rusty. (I had to cut out hole the corner (inner and outer piece) en welded in an doner to make it nice)

Yes, I saw that... :eek: I figured your car had much more extensive damage than mine as it looked like you had replaced the whole base of the pillar, not just sections of it like I'm doing.

BTW, excellent bodywork Wiebrand. :agree:

jhelgesen

September 15th 2005, 11:38

Joe, glad those pieces are going to good use!

yetibone

September 15th 2005, 21:06

Joe, glad those pieces are going to good use!

Hey, I even ended up putting that old stock VW Blaupunkt radio I got from you in my truck this weekend! It works great! Thanks for the bits. :D

Nice trucks are played out yo. Now on, my daily driver's on hoopty status dogg!! :laugh:

volkdent

December 26th 2005, 17:57

What's the latest?

Jason

yetibone

December 26th 2005, 19:12

What's the latest?

Jason

Well, I put the body back on the pan to do the major bodywork. I've cut rusty chunks out of the rear quarters, and rear window area, and am awaiting a donor Bug to fall into my lap! :laugh: Actually, with the entire week off, I will be exploring a couple of leads I have on a donor body, and see what I can find.

I finished the Kerscher dash. 8 guages to stare at now :cool: and am working out a mod to the spare tire well for my Mocal oil cooler to hide behind the front apron grille, and not have airflow impeded, or have the cooler stick out from under the car.

oasis

December 27th 2005, 17:30

The dash looks very nice. :)

yellow73

December 27th 2005, 20:54

It is looking good ... Joe your dash looks great.
Is that Texas Yellow I see under the dash.....?

yetibone

December 28th 2005, 11:15

It is looking good ... Joe your dash looks great.
Is that Texas Yellow I see under the dash.....?

Not sure of what shade of yellow I have Nigel. Looks incredibly similar to yours, though. :)

NO_H2O

December 29th 2005, 02:53

Nice dash :agree:

yetibone

January 8th 2006, 19:32

Yesterday (saturday) I got a '69 model donor bug from a friend of mine, and cut out the pieces I need. Got the whole lower rear window section, inside and outside, including the cheese grater. I also got a patch for under the moon vent on the right rear. The pieces are OK, not great, but better than what I have, and weldable.

Now that I got what I need, I'll be returning the unused portion to the guy I got it from. :laugh: It was originally cut up to be a baja bug, and the dude lost interest, so he gave it to the friend of mine, who gave it to me to get what I need. Turns out, my friend wants the drivetrain from it, so I'll hitch it up with a tow-bar and drag it back to where it came from. :D

NO_H2O

January 8th 2006, 22:45

Weld-R-Up. March is commin' fast.

yetibone

January 9th 2006, 19:12

Weld-R-Up. March is commin' fast.

:laugh: Uh,...I prolly won't be finished by then. :o

zen

January 10th 2006, 19:13

bad arse! :agree:

yetibone

January 11th 2006, 19:22

Here's pics of the pieces I cut off the '69.

yetibone

January 28th 2006, 16:09

...and here's what I just did with them (see attachments).

Before welding the pieces in I primed the oxidized bare metal surfaces with Oxy-Solve rust converter, then brushed on some POR-15 to seal it.

One more patch in the left side, and the rust is fixed.

Lazarus

January 28th 2006, 21:21

yetibone

January 28th 2006, 23:26

yeti did you get the foam out? when i had the quarters relaced on mine i had todd ( my good friend and body shopper) to remove all the foam so it wouldnt hold any water,it causes lots of destruction. just look :bawling: but its fixed now thank goodness.

http://www.germanlook.com/Forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=867

http://www.germanlook.com/Forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=868

http://www.germanlook.com/Forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=869

Yeah, while I had pieces cut out of the rear window corners, I could see how and why they rusted out in the first place. Stiff foam traps water away from it's core, next to the metal.

I made a hook out of a barbecue skewer and tore it all out before I welded the new pieces in place. Everything I could touch with a paintbrush got oxy-solved, and POR-15'd inside.

yetibone

January 29th 2006, 13:36

Ok, I just finished stitching the last patch into the right rear quarter. Now the body is ready to come back off the pan to be chemically stripped, primed, high and low spots fixed, sealed, and painted inside and out.

Still gotta get 1.25" wider front fenders, and a rear apron.

*please excuse the poor quality pics*

yetibone

January 29th 2006, 13:39

A couple more pics.

NO_H2O

January 29th 2006, 16:22

Fine job :agree:
That foam has a bad idea in the end. Both my Black car and Ryan's Red car had some repairs to make and foam to remove.

yetibone

January 30th 2006, 13:48

That foam has a bad idea in the end. Both my Black car and Ryan's Red car had some repairs to make and foam to remove.

True dat! I can't help but think that the type of foam used does make a signifigant difference. I see a lot more '72 and later cars with this problem than '71 and earlier, and now I know there is a difference in what type material was injected into the window sections before and after late '71.

NO_H2O

January 30th 2006, 20:18

I don't think there was anything injected in there untill the little half moon vent was used 71 and later.

yetibone

January 30th 2006, 20:49

I don't think there was anything injected in there untill the little half moon vent was used 71 and later.

The '69 I got the pieces from had foam that was like a blob of really dense sofa cushion material. Sue's bug has the same type stuff.

yetibone

February 11th 2006, 19:24

I installed the engine today to mock-up some things. Figgured out where the muffler, and oil filter are going, and made sure the rear apron, and tins for the DTM were gonna fit. Still haven't made a heat shield between the exhaust, and oil lines, but I will once I have the engine out, and back up on the workbench.

Currently, the engine sits about 12mm too far to the right, so I'll have to modify the crossmember slightly to move everything back to the left.

More crappy pics... :D

yetibone

February 11th 2006, 19:43

Pics of the engine. See the gap between the sealing tins, and the compartment seal groove on the left. There's no gap on the right. If I move the front of the gearbox to the left, then it should equal out.

Also, the shroud has kind of a rightward lean to it as well. It looks exagerated in the second pic by my not holding the camera straight. :o I'll also correct that when the engines' back on the workbench.

Mikey

February 11th 2006, 20:45

Yo, dats fly!

(Lookin' Good) :laugh:

NO_H2O

February 12th 2006, 11:33

Looks like you are chipping away at it. That is going to be one sweet GL when you get it done. :agree:

yetibone

February 12th 2006, 14:46

Looks like you are chipping away at it. That is going to be one sweet GL when you get it done. :agree:

Thanks Dave. It's been a long, tough row to hoe.

Yo, dats fly!

*Yo, mo' preesh on peepin' my ride, money! 'Bout to raise up and toss out mad flavas fo' y'all eyeballs, kno-wut-I-shayin' dog?

:laugh: :laugh:

(*translation: Thanks, Mikey. Pics of the oil cooler installation comming soon)

NO_H2O

February 12th 2006, 15:13

True Dat. :agree:

yetibone

February 12th 2006, 17:26

I mounted the front oil cooler today. With an 18"x24" 22ga. piece of sheet steel I made a piece to cover the opening I cut out of the tire well. I did this because I wanted the cooler high enough so It wouldn't peek out from underneath the car, and I needed room for a fan behind it. The mounting tabs on top are 1/8" steel with M6 nuts welded to it to bolt the cooler in, and the tabs are welded straight to the tire well. The bottom mounts are T6 aluminum pipe pressed flat on the ends, drilled, M6 threaded on the cooler's end, and 5/16" stainless steel riveted to the framehead on the other end.

yetibone

February 12th 2006, 17:42

Mo' pics. :D

The last pic is of the spacers I'll be using to get the wheels out to the edge of the fenders.

Still to do to the chassis:
-re-index the rear torsion bars. Currently the rear is WAAAAY to high.
-borrow a friends lathe and take 2" off the Bilstein cartridges in front.
-Modify the transmission crossmember to move the engine over to the left 10mm.
-install 100mm long rear wheel studs.

Still to do to the body:
-trim the bottom of the rear apron. The rear fender section I used for the bulge was a little too long vertically.
-take delivery of my front fenders.
-weld up antenna hole, and trim holes.
-strip, etch prime, knock down highs, fill in lows, 2K prime, block, and paint.

Mikey

February 12th 2006, 20:48

Word, you gots some mad fab skill up in hur!

(Nice work. :D)

:laugh:

yetibone

February 12th 2006, 21:06

Word, you gots some mad fab skill up in hur!

(Nice work. :D)

:laugh:

Yeeh foo! :laugh:

Thanks Mikey. You know, I never was any good at doing sheet metal, and bodywork, but this stuff hasn't been as bad as I thought it would. I'll lay down the primer, and do the finish bodywork, but I'm still gonna get a buddy to do the paint.

So far, the only things I haven't done myself were the machine and balance work to the engine, repair to the cylinders, :mad: and some TIG welding to the crossmember, and suspension braces. The only other thing I plan to farm out besides the paint, is the seat upholstery.

Mikey

February 12th 2006, 21:50

Yeeh foo! :laugh:

Thanks Mikey. You know, I never was any good at doing sheet metal, and bodywork, but this stuff hasn't been as bad as I thought it would. I'll lay down the primer, and do the finish bodywork, but I'm still gonna get a buddy to do the paint.

So far, the only things I haven't done myself were the machine and balance work to the engine, repair to the cylinders, :mad: and some TIG welding to the crossmember, and suspension braces. The only other thing I plan to farm out besides the paint, is the seat upholstery.

Building stuff like my car is why I'm in school for welding. I'm practicly welding a whole new top on to a 1947 Split. I wasn't very good with sheetmetal and body work, but My skills are improving. I was nervous about welding the grill in my car, I didn't want it to end up looking like crap. But I figured the worst I can do is funk it up. Then I'll just have to fix it. Turned out better than I thought it would. We just got a TIG Machine. I love it. I still haven't used it on my car yet. But I think I see a SS exhaust in my future. :D

yetibone

February 19th 2006, 21:39

Nothing happened today that was worth taking pictures. :sleep: I welded up the trim holes, and antenna hole, removed the body from the pan again for stripping, and found some more hammer and dolly work to do. To my dismay, the bondo in the right rear quarter in 'bout 1/4" deep in a spot :eek: . I woulda replaced the whole quarter pannel had I known. Oh well...I enjoyed shaping the rear apron, so mabye I'll dig this too.

I added a flat gusset to each front control arm strut rod where it bends upward. After some thought, I decided 1/8 inch thick steel square tube notched, and butt-welded together may weaken over time so I welded another 1/8" gusset flat over the bend.

Tomorrow, I gotta call Bilstein about shortening the struts 1.75". Lucky me, their east coast facillity is only about 100 miles away from me in Mooresville.

yellow73

February 25th 2006, 02:03

Joe,
The car is coming along really well. I love the way the muffler looks.
Keep at it you are inspiring us to do more...

yetibone

March 5th 2006, 18:22

Thanks Nigel. It came off of a '02 Toyota Tundra. :eek: I had to put a quieter muffler on that truck for a customer who just bought it used. I'm not sure who makes it, but the entire catalyst-back exhaust was pre-made for the truck out of stainless steel. What I salvaged should give me what I need to make the rest of the works for my Bug, and then some.

Last week I sent the Bilsteins back to Bilstein for 2" of shortening. Were it not for the internal bump-stops, I'd have done it on a lathe myself, plus, there's that lifetime warranty thing... :rolleyes:

Nothing worth firing up the camera for today. I pulled the rear hubs, installed 100mm wheel studs, and the 2" spacers, re-indexed the rear torsion bars back to their stock position, and did some grinding on the bottom of the spring plates to make clearance for the sway-bar links.

On the front end, I changed the position of the master cylinder by drilling new mounting holes horizontally across from each other, like an early bug, made an aluminum plate for the mounting bolts to go thru on the interior side of the Napolean's Hat, and utilizing the vertical boss on the front of the 930 master cylinder to bolt it to the framehead just behind the left front control arm.

I applied aircraft chemical stripper (non-military grade :( ) to the body this morning after power washing the whole shell clean. I did all the other stuff while waiting for it to work in. Really didn't have ideal conditions for the stripper to work as it was sunny, and much of the stuff dried before it could work its way under the paint.

BTW, Nigel, on some parts of the body, I got down to a layer of yellow that'll hurt your eyes in direct sunlight! :laugh:

yetibone

March 14th 2006, 19:25

Finished knocking most of the paint off the outside. Still got the center of the roof, and 4 sq.ft. on the right side to do, but ran out of stripper on Sunday :rolleyes: . The chemical stripper worked OK, but took more applications to dig in than on Sue's Bug, and her's had an extra layer of paint, 2 blues, and a purple. Mine was only 2 yellows :rolleyes: .

Anyhoo, I'm not gonna strip the interior, just rough it up, and 2K prime it. Wheel wells will get undercoated, and left black.

On the exterior, I found 5 places with bondo. 3 new places on the roof to go with the two on the right door and rear quarter. There's some spots on the front decklid that'll need work, so I'm gonna hammer and dolly everything before applying any primer, and filler to keep the extra weight off.

NO_H2O

March 14th 2006, 23:23

Git-it man. When it comes time for high-build primer go with Evercoat Slick Sand and a gun with a 1.8 - 2.0 tip. You will not be sorry. :agree:

yellow73

March 15th 2006, 23:47

That is (was) some bright yellow paint!!!!!

yetibone

March 16th 2006, 20:08

Git-it man. When it comes time for high-build primer go with Evercoat Slick Sand and a gun with a 1.8 - 2.0 tip. You will not be sorry. :agree:

Exactly. My Binks #7 came with a 1.8. :agree:

That is (was) some bright yellow paint!!!!!

Yeah it is!! Almost made me have to wear some :cool: when I had it out in the driveway scraping some of that stuff off!! :laugh:

yetibone

April 2nd 2006, 16:07

Here's what was under the wad of bondo. Crunched all the way into the B pillar.
The resulting bag of walnuts was after a little hammer and dolly work. jhelgesen turned me onto the idea of using a smooth stainless steel disk on my grinder to help shrink the metal up a bit.

After doing what I can with that, I'll be priming inside and out in the next week or two.

NO_H2O

April 2nd 2006, 16:22

yetibone

April 2nd 2006, 19:20

I had much the same problem on Ryan's car on the drivers side. A shrinking dolly on the inside and smoth hammer on the outside was what I used to get it close. then a skim coat of mud and 3 coats of Slik-Sand high-build got-er-done.

Yeah, that's what I've did this afternoon after some D&C on Sue's Bug. Took it for a drive to get some sandpaper, just to inspire me. :D

Found out the flat side of the dolly will shrink it, and the rounder side will stretch it a bit.

I think I'll be saving the Slik-Sand for last. I'll etch prime it first (after the hammer work), then mud it, then 2K prime it, then block it, then prime it, then block it, then prime it, then block it, then... :rolleyes:

One day, I might make a car out of this heap.

NO_H2O

April 2nd 2006, 19:30

yetibone

April 3rd 2006, 20:21

I did the dolly work, epoxy prim, skim coat, 3 coats slik sand at one time (won't shrink or crack and cures harder than 2 Carrera GT payments), then blocked it out. Came out great. But you better get your blocking done in 2 days or it will be much harder to block after the Slik-Sand cures out.

AAAAHHH,.. :agree:

I apreciate that tip. I'll definately save that for last.

You know, I hadn't even thought about using a sealer... What we used on Sue's car went on just hours before the basecoat. I not even sure who made the stuff we used, but I think it was Akzo-Nobel, same folks who made the color, and clear.

yetibone

April 16th 2006, 20:45

I etch-primed the outside this weekend. To my dismay, it doesn't seem to be etching in very well. Seems to come off easily with 80 grit after setting 12 hours. Also, in reading the directions on the 2K primer, it says not to apply it over self-etching, acid based primer...

Hmmm...

I can still use it on the interior though :rolleyes: . A buddy recomended PPG K-36 over the etch primer.

I'll post some pics after I size 'em down. Sue's new Nikon is set on billboard size. :laugh:

Racelook

April 17th 2006, 13:59

Dry-time of EP is 16 hours with 20 degrees celcius. And 80 is verry rough, roughing EP up, than use 280.

WIebrand

NO_H2O

April 17th 2006, 19:14

Yes 80 will skin the chrome off a trailer hitch. Some epoxy primers do take a while to cure out.

yetibone

September 3rd 2006, 16:57

I'm still going at it. A couple of hours here, and there.

Still hammering out and skimming over dents and creases. As soon as I fix one, I find another one. :rolleyes:

Whole driver's side, whole interior, top, C-pillars, front and rear aprons, and both decklids are done and ready for surface primer. Passenger's side is almost done except for a couple of new dents I found in the lower part of the door.

Mikey

September 3rd 2006, 22:20

Where da pics at cracka?

It's looking more and more likely I'll be painting my own. That's good and bad I guess.

ccain529

September 3rd 2006, 22:57

yetibone! WOW!! You have mad skills! Sorry I'm a little slow in keeping up with the progress of your car but DAMN DUDE!!!!! AWESOME!!!:agree:

yetibone

September 7th 2006, 19:14

Where da pics at cracka?

It's looking more and more likely I'll be painting my own. That's good and bad I guess.

Just think of a Beetle shell with splotches of light blue, peach, olive drab, and bare metal all over, with a blazing, retina burning yellow interior.:D

I thought about painting mine at home too, but I still have a favor to burn wiff the fella that painted Sue's. :)

yetibone

October 21st 2006, 13:40

The car's ready for surface primer. Since I'd finally had a free weekend, I set out to prime it today, and start blocking it tomorrow...

Well, my gallon of urethane primer is one half liquid, and one half pasty, sticky goop... literally. :( I guess shaking the can, and flipping it every two weeks didn't do a #%&$@!* thing! It's like putting a pair of wings on another $50 bill. :mad:

I'll get some more time to work on it again in two weeks and will have some more primer by then. Hopefully it'll be warm enough...

massIVe 79 vert

October 21st 2006, 13:52

Your project sounds like mine...always little things getting in the way huh?
Jake and I take 2 steps forward with my car then it sits for another month. These " real-job things" seem to get in the way of fun projects don't they? :eek:

Keep letting us know how it's going. :agree:

NO_H2O

October 22nd 2006, 02:42

Take it to Home Depot and get them to put it in the paint can shaker for a while.

yetibone

October 22nd 2006, 08:56

Take it to Home Depot and get them to put it in the paint can shaker for a while.

I don't know... This stuff's so hard I broke a paint paddle digging it out,.. it's like half dried bondo in the bottom of the can. I don't know if I would trust it, knowing my luck with this car...

zen

October 22nd 2006, 11:39

good to hear some progress being made. something is better than nothing. we were just talking about you at the Euro Auto Fest yesterday. keep in touch and get that thing on the road so we can see it!

NO_H2O

October 22nd 2006, 12:49

I don't know... This stuff's so hard I broke a paint paddle digging it out,.. it's like half dried bondo in the bottom of the can. I don't know if I would trust it, knowing my luck with this car...

Is it high build primer? If so it will be like that. The first gal. of slick sand I bought was like that off the shelf. I had to take it to Lowes to get them to shake it. That stuff is like spray-on body filler.

yetibone

October 22nd 2006, 17:09

Is it high build primer? If so it will be like that. The first gal. of slick sand I bought was like that off the shelf. I had to take it to Lowes to get them to shake it. That stuff is like spray-on body filler.

Yup, that's the stuff. :cool: None of the 2K primers I've used were ever that badly seperated, so it looked ruined to me. I thought I could just paddle it for a few minutes, activate, and spray. The lady at the SW paint store close by will prolly shake it for me... (rim shot)...Thank you,.. I'll be here all week folks! don't forget to tip the waitresses!:laugh:

Seriously, was what you used on Joel's Bug like that off the shelf? I'd never heard of that before, but then, I don't do bodywork...

yetibone

October 22nd 2006, 17:40

I just talked to my man in the know. He's going to take my can into work tomorrow, shake it for an hour, and put a stir lid on it for another. He said as long as it's less than a year old, and hasn't been below freezing, it should be fine. :p

NO_H2O

October 22nd 2006, 21:06

yep mine was that thick on the bottom. I bought it off the self and brought it home and broke 2 stirring sticks before I closed it up and took it up to lowes for a good shaking. Like I said, it is spray on bondo. You will need a big tip in your gun to shoot it.

yellow73

October 23rd 2006, 20:04

Yeti,
Glad to hear that you are still at it. Yours is going to be an awsome car, thanks for the updates!!!!

yetibone

October 23rd 2006, 20:16

It's a good thing that primer was all gooped up in the bottom of the can on Saturday...

I just got off the phone with the fellow that painted my TR6. After he got my gallon of primer back to a homogenious liquid, he talked with the Evercoat tech rep regarding Slicksand's adhesion to acid based etch primer...a question I had after reading the label.

Turns out, it won't stick.:( Since Slicksand is polyester based, it cannot get a chemical tooth into acid based primers, like body filler, and glazing putty can't. After curing, I would'ive been able to peel it off in sheets from anywhere etch primer is underneath.

So sometime before next weekend, I'll pick up some plain old 2K urethane primer.

yetibone

October 23rd 2006, 20:19

Yeti,
Glad to hear that you are still at it. Yours is going to be an awsome car, thanks for the updates!!!!

Thanks Nigel. I do intend to turn this heap of anger and frustration into a drivable car one day. :rolleyes:

NO_H2O

October 23rd 2006, 23:27

Will it bite the 2K after a coat of that?

yetibone

October 24th 2006, 06:55

Will it bite the 2K after a coat of that?

Yeah, but they said I don't need to build the surface up that much if everythings already level, and featheredged.

yetibone

November 30th 2006, 19:16

Ok. I've 2K primed the outside, dry 220 grit blocked it all over, Slicksand primed it inside, and outside, and should be able to start blocking to finish this weekend.

Dave, you were right about the buildup of that primer. It's so thick I could hide some of the interior seams with it.:laugh:

I've still got to decide on a color, but it'll be a couple of weeks to get my money right for some paint.

*After this, I'll post update threads into their corresponding forums.

NO_H2O

November 30th 2006, 20:13

yetibone

November 30th 2006, 20:49

Yep that stuff is sray-on-bondo. It won't shrink and cures very hard. In fact you better start blocking right away or it willget very hard to block. I did 3/4 of Ryan's bug the day after we shot it and waited 3-4 days to finish the other 1/4 and it took me longer to fish the last 1/4 than it took to do the first 3/4.

I agree. It's been 5 days since I laid that stuff down, and it's almost too hard to block with wet 320. I've found that using dry 180, or 220 works great to take it down to just above the bottom of the orange peel, and then wet sand it the rest of the way down to the bottom of the orange peel, taking out the dry 180, and 220 paper scratches at the same time. Yesterday evening I got the front decklid ready to paint in an hour and a half that way.

NO_H2O

December 1st 2006, 08:55

Looks like I forgot to tell you that part. I wish I had finished blocking Ryan's in the first 2 days. As far as "high build" primer goes, I love that stuff.

yetibone

December 1st 2006, 18:24

Looks like I forgot to tell you that part. I wish I had finished blocking Ryan's in the first 2 days. As far as "high build" primer goes, I love that stuff.

No, you DID tell me that, I just wouldn't have been able to start blocking until days later 'cause of having to do other stuff.

yellow73

December 8th 2006, 22:17

Yeti,
Great to see the progress....have you thought about Texas Yellow for a color......:D :D

yetibone

December 9th 2006, 18:29

Yeti,
Great to see the progress....have you thought about Texas Yellow for a color......:D :D

Actually, BMW Motorsport yellow crossed my mind...but the TR6 is already that color as a base. It's a not-too-bright, not-too-dark kind of yellow that gets your attention, without burning your eyes.

At the last minute while mixing the basecoat for that, Gunter says "You want some pearl on top of this? You know...3 stage and stuff?" I said "#*@% yeah! Lets do this." So what I ended up with was a color that Gunter calls 'Silver Queen Sweet Cream Corn Yellow' :laugh: which I've grown to like considerably.

At this point, I think the Bug will either be some shade of blue, or some shade of silver.

Mikey

December 14th 2006, 01:06

:D Nice progress, I can't wait to see the final product.

yetibone

December 19th 2006, 20:23

:D Nice progress, I can't wait to see the final product.

I can hardly wait either.

I took in a side job for some Poorsche fundage. The gent with the '79 Westy I built an engine for this summer has employed me to overhaul a donor front axle to replace his rusty one. He also wants to install the L-Jet fuel injection on his Westy from the same donor Bus.

That should give me enough to buy the paint, bumpers, body and window seals, and maybe taillight covers too.

Mikey

December 20th 2006, 00:14

I can hardly wait either.

I took in a side job for some Poorsche fundage. The gent with the '79 Westy I built an engine for this summer has employed me to overhaul a donor front axle to replace his rusty one. He also wants to install the L-Jet fuel injection on his Westy from the same donor Bus.

That should give me enough to buy the paint, bumpers, body and window seals, and maybe taillight covers too.

Sweet deal! :agree:

I enjoyed the conversation. I'm sorry I had to cut it short. I start working for Tim at 5pm. He seemed a little irritated seeing me on the phone when he showed up, but he'll live. :laugh: