TheSamba.com :: View topic

Tue Jan 12, 2010 8:50 pm

Thanks Dubbin. That is my goal, to have it at the bug-in this June! I really hope to be ready for paint this spring. Then I can kick it into high gear with the mechanicals and such. I'll see you there either way. :)

Wed Jan 13, 2010 4:18 pm

Awesome! Good luck with the rest of the resto, ill be keeping an eye on it.

Mon Jan 18, 2010 8:47 pm

So....welding in the battery tray was a biatch. :evil: First off it is a tight area to work, my welding helmet liked to fog up (MN winter) and slag liked to land on my clothes. I ended up stitch welding the lower seam, as I was having a horrible time plug welding. The plug welding didn't work well because I wasn't able the get both pieces of metal perfectly flush. I am going to apply Masterseries to the metal, then seam seal the joints to protect, and cover up my ugly work. :(

And a preview of the next area.

I've heard others complain about this panel. Note the damaged b pillar. I think I need to order the inner B post. I do have the outter. Later :)

Sat Feb 06, 2010 6:01 pm

I worked on the b-pillar today. I needed to get this done before I could move any further with the dogleg. Here is a picture of how it started. The PO installed an all-in-one dogleg+b-pillar skin. What a hack job.

I started by cutting out metal from the pillar which was banged up beyond repair.

I added some metal to the Schofield b-pillar to aid in welding to the inner pillar.

This is the view from the inside. I will be hitting this area up with seam sealer. Note the holes I need to address.

The Schofield piece only makes it to the bottom of the door. I had to fab up a piece to extend just below the handle.

Sat Feb 06, 2010 8:43 pm

Good lookin' work! Keep the pics comin'!!

Sun Feb 07, 2010 5:27 pm

I got half of it patched up. I used the justkampers panel to do this. I could have fab'd one up pretty easily, but I guess this one did save me a little time.

So, that's it for now. :wink:

Thu Feb 18, 2010 8:36 pm

I finished welding the passenger side dogleg. It took time bending it so it would follow the door's line. I'm happy with the end result though, it works.

This is a shot of the inner wheel well.

Today is a good day. I have completed the metal replacement on the passenger side. I will be pulling the bus out of the garage and turning it around to start work on the drivers side soon.

8)

Fri Feb 19, 2010 6:18 am

looking good, nice work. 8)

Fri Feb 19, 2010 7:51 am

This is coming along nicely man. You do some great welding work!

Wed Feb 24, 2010 1:40 pm

wow she's going to be a beauty when all is said and done!

Sun Mar 07, 2010 3:35 pm

Here is an update on the driver's side dogleg repairs. The bottom 3" was pretty well rusted away, so I cut the rot out and cut my repair panels down to fit in the areas I cut away. There were 2 other quarter size rust spots further up that I cut out and patched also. (you can see grinding evidence on this pic in the upper right)

I've seen others run into this issue with the Klokercrap panels. The holes for the bumper bolts on the inner step were 1.5" too far back. I drilled new holes and patched up the ones in the wrong location. This next pic shows how I use a block of graphite behind a seam I am welding. It puddles the weld on it, but the weld will not stick to it. This trick helps from time to time.

I had to cut out the bumper nuts that are welded to the bracket inside of the dogleg. The threads were in bad shape from rust. I welded each nut to a square piece of steel with a hole drilled through it.

I then welded the assembly into the bracket seen below.

All boxed in and solid again!!

Tue Mar 09, 2010 1:14 am

Thanks for the great info.
I had someone repair the passenger side dogleg making up individual pieces. I think I will do the driver's side myself cutting pieces off the bought panel like you did.
They all seem to rust is similar places.
Neil

Sat Mar 27, 2010 9:10 pm

So, I've been going back and forth with how to repair my driver's side rocker and side panel area. Originally I was going to just buy a replacement panel, but then I realized that there isn't one avalible that extends above the rocker. I read how some people were doing it, some looked good, while others were hack jobs that eliminated several seams. I purchased a rocker and a splitty side panel early in the game, thinking these would work. Now having second thoughts, I decided to try to fabricate them together while creating a horizontal seam. I bent it over my knee to add a curve above the seam. It turned out okay, but I wasn't happy enough with it to install it.

So I decided to buy OE metal. I got such a kick out of how much of the bus this guy sent me, from CA mind you. I was really happy though since I was able to use some of the metal in other areas.

Now this really put a simile on my face!

Sun Mar 28, 2010 8:12 am

Looking good. Gotta love that clean california metal

Sun Mar 28, 2010 4:23 pm

Wow, you're making some really nice, steady progress.

What're you using for a welder?

Sun Mar 28, 2010 4:40 pm

I'm using a Harbor Freight mig welder with flux core wire.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=94056

I paid $100 with a coupon, and I'm happy with what it does for the money. At work I use a Miller welder with sheilding gas which works better. I'd like to upgrade to something like that once I start my next project. :)

Sun Mar 28, 2010 7:19 pm

thats awsome, i need to do something similar .. :(

how did that massive length weld go? do you just jump around tack welding or lay her down in a strip? how was the heat warping? i dont see any on that pic.

Regardless, you're awsome, i should fly you up for a visit!

what does the underside look like?

Mon Mar 29, 2010 3:08 pm

Thanks Rustbus. I had no issues with warping, it went together very well. And yes, I did it all in tack welds, and just kept jumping 6" forward. I also spent a good deal of time getting the gap to be as small as possible. I cut the panel oversized a bit, then ground down areas till it fit like a glove. You can see in this pic how I started the welds.

Now you ask about the underside. If you are asking about my frame and floors, they are in great shape. Most of it is original undercoating or paint. I had some issues around the front wheel well splash area, but that is pretty common.

You'll do just find welding yourself, but I'll take you up on the Alberta plane ticket. Only in the summer time though! 8)

Mon Mar 29, 2010 5:51 pm

I just finished welding in all the panels on the driver's side. This pic shows the new metal in the wheel well splash area, along with the rocker/ side panel, and panel in front of rear wheel well.

Body filler time :?

Thu Apr 29, 2010 6:51 pm

Thought I'd add alittle update. I made it through the body filler stage. That was time consuming. I did start to get the technique after a bit. I used Evercoat Rage, which worked well. It is pricey at $20 a quart, but does save time as it lays out nice and smooth. I did have to tell myself, "okay time to move on." I could have worked an area a bit more to make it appear perfect, but my time is limited and I do want to be driving this year.

Removing the PO's painted on finish was a pain. Some areas came off easy, while over areas adhered well to the OG paint. In hindsigh, for time I should have had the bus blasted. This has been a good project though, as I wanted to learn all the steps to complete the project on my own. Sure next time I may drive down to a dry state and grab a solid project. :lol:

So I picked up some Omni PPG paint. (epoxy primer, high build primer, and single stage urethane) I sprayed the epoxy today. Came out okay, but my 1.5 stall garage is waaaaaay too small and dark to be painting in. I will have to think long and hard before I spray color on how I want to do it. There is a bodyshop down the street from me. 8) I would spray outside on a calm day, but all the trees are in bloom and pollenating like crazy.

On to the high build primer. But will it build high enough to cover my rookie quality? :wink: