Kevin's 1966 Beetle - Bay Area

Here's the spot to show off your 1966 Beetle Restoration projects
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

darzoom wrote:there is usually a hole in the kick panel that you can use to help get the defrosters on. Another option is to use hard pipe (copper) and insert in the areas between outer and inner quarter to the pipe out of the pan. Then use the silver flex pipe from the end of the pipe. As it is hidden in the between area, it would be hard for the purist to detect.

Also you are probably right that the previous owner put the Volkswagen script on the hood. Sometimes you have to work with what you have.
Yes ive read up as much as possible about the hoses, im hoping that the hole on the inside will be enough for me to work with. Gotta remove a few carpet nails before trying to reach my arm down there though.. and about 500 things to do before i get to that stage.

I do not know how many previous owners this car had, but at least one of them had some very interesting choices for modifications.. oh well at least the important stuff is solid, and emblem is the least of my worries :D
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

no photos, but I spent some time last night cleaning up the areas where the front apron mounts and played with mocking it up a bit as well as removing the hood release conduit to make things a little easier.

Hood fitment with no apron or latch etc is still horrible. Seems the hood is a bit too wide for the car.. overhangs a bit and has a sizable gap on one side (enough to put your fingers in the gap)

laying the hood flat it appears it is not tweaked, at least not badly. The inner lip of the hood may be causing part of the gap instead of a 90* angle it is more of a 45* so i am not sure if bending it will help with the gap, it definitely wont help with the overhang. (hood is original, has minor damage towards the windshield.. a little bend on the edge and the inner lip at the front has some small surface rust and bent in "lip" on the inside.. but nothing that screams an issue as far as fitment) I originally thought the chrome flimsy brackets were causing the bad fitment; but fitment is almost identical with the old apron and hinges as it is now with no apron or hinges. I am no expert with body work or panel fitting, just what i see from eliminating variables.

in other news for my weekend checklist I may get less done than I originally anticipated.. wheels still aren't done at the body shop and a tattoo appointment opened up.. so we will see how much I feel like moving after getting my kneecap tattooed tonight. If you couldn't see from photos, those are my two favorite things, tattoos and cars. :P
User avatar
Digger89L
Senior Member
Posts: 258
Joined: Sun May 12, 2013 10:23 am
Location: Western Canada (SK)

Post by Digger89L »

"Carpet kit was provided with sale of the car.. but was for the foot rest option. So i ditched it (empi) in favor of a better quality one with pre-cut holes and the headliner.. "

Pretty sure the front passenger side footrest was standard equipment, and not an 'option'. Sure makes it more comfortable for the passenger.

BTW .....great work you're doing!!! Keeping a running tab on the cost???
"If you can't fix it with zip ties and duct tape, or hold it together with velcro or magnets, it REALLY is broken."
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

Digger89L wrote:"Carpet kit was provided with sale of the car.. but was for the foot rest option. So i ditched it (empi) in favor of a better quality one with pre-cut holes and the headliner.. "

Pretty sure the front passenger side footrest was standard equipment, and not an 'option'. Sure makes it more comfortable for the passenger.

BTW .....great work you're doing!!! Keeping a running tab on the cost???
I was referring to the carpet not the car in terms of the foot rest option. Since you can purchase the kits either with or without. The empi kit had no precut holes and was lacking in quality (obviously) anyways.

I do have a somewhat running tab on the cost.. although I hate to look at the total haha. All receipts have been kept for future records.

Hopefully have some progress knocked out this afternoon, just took a trip to the local hot rod show for inspiration. Ended up seeing a handful of vws there.
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

so little progress but progress nontheless
painted the front section after i sanded down the rusty spots. and control arms painted
Image
Image
and got some of the steering box and wiper assembly parts cleaned up.. now to find the proper seal for the steering box
Image
Image
Image
Image
and finally; finished assembly of the pedal cluster and resealed the horn
Image
Image

i may have to tap the pin in a little more on the pedal cluster, will have to see once carpet is in, do not want it rubbing the carpet and eating it up
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

while waiting for a few parts to show up, my attention has been on reassembling smaller sub-assemblies, like the pedal cluster and horn as shown above.

got the measurements for the seals for the steering box. I know some people have posted it on TS but i like to check for myself instead of trusting everything I read
Image

I then scanned the original steering box cover gasket and cleaned it up via a knock off illustrator
Image
Image

I plan on cleaning up the drawing, rough edges and the tear in the side and use my plotter to reproduce the gasket. I have not replicated a gasket this way before so i am not 100% sure how it will turn out but it should be cleaner and more precise than just tracing the old gasket and cutting it. we shall see how it turns out.. if nothing else itll keep me busy until my parts arrive :D
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

and for anyone wondering why I dont just buy a new steering box: $20 in parts and some time vs. $120. Plus I would rather reuse what I can, the internals are in great shape just needed some TLC.
I did unfortunately damage the shim (#14)when removing the bearing race.. so that is the only piece i need to reassemble
Image
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

seals for the steering box ordered.. gotta wait till next week for those

and picked up some new more hog rings to continue on the interior.
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

got my weld nuts and hog rings
Image
Image

got a couple of the weld nuts in and made sure the fender holes lined up
Image
Image
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

and one of the steering box seals showed up

Image

small steps in the right direction
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

No photos but sticking with doing a little bit everyday.. worked on the wiring yesterday. Purchased some nice wire covers that match the OE style. Removed some butt splices and soldered all the connections on the pass side headlight harness. Just gotta add some heat shrink and do a mock up to cut a few wires to length and that section will be complete.
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

so i found a replacement defroster vent.. still plan on machining one but at least i will have something that isnt broken until that is made
Image

and ordered a legacy plate.. sorry wont reveal it until the car is done. Would have loved to go YOM route but then i wouldn't have a slightly offensive plate :shock:
Image

planning on taking a day off of work this week to get some more work done on the car and get myself back on track (mentally) until Friday dont expect much besides these small updates.
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

sticking with the small progress daily.. v.1 of the steering box gasket is done. need to modify it a bit in a few spots then cut on actual gasket material. IMO worth the extra effort to have a precise cut vs a sloppy hand cut gasket
Image
User avatar
1966veedub
Senior Member
Posts: 70
Joined: Mon Sep 27, 2010 2:02 pm
Location: Texas

Post by 1966veedub »

That's some good work! Was there a specific thickness you're using for the steering box gasket? I had read that if you're making your own, it shouldn't be too thick. Also, will you be filling it with oil or grease? I've read threads that say grease is recommended although they're normally filled with gear oil?
euroimage
Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:10 pm
Location: CA

Post by euroimage »

1966veedub wrote:That's some good work! Was there a specific thickness you're using for the steering box gasket? I had read that if you're making your own, it shouldn't be too thick. Also, will you be filling it with oil or grease? I've read threads that say grease is recommended although they're normally filled with gear oil?
I haven't purchased the gasket material yet, but the factory one is extremely thin so I will try to get some material as close to the original thickness as possible.
I plan on using grease, from what I have read vw issued a statement saying grease was an acceptable substitute. I also plan on machining out the plugs on the cover to add zerk fittings if the need ever arrises to need to add more. Hopefully it will not though!
Post Reply