TheSamba.com :: View topic - Fixing Up My Bus

Sun Oct 25, 2009 8:15 pm

Daverham wrote: Yeah, I might, but I'm going to have to weld in a new corner at the battery anyway. Will be re-painting original color for sure.

Dude, Go Orange! Go Proud! (lose that baby blue) Represent!

Mon Oct 26, 2009 8:53 pm

I love it when I come home to a Bus Depot box on the porch! Tonight the seal went in. Maybe tomorrow will be the quickshift kit.

After I tucked the new seal in there, my bus honked out a little sound. It was hard to tell, but I think it was "I love you".

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

What do you think... tomorrow I won't smell exhaust when I turn the heater on?

Tue Oct 27, 2009 7:43 am

Update.... WOW what a difference! I arrived to work cozy and warm this morning, clear windows and NO EXHAUST SMELL! That's a nice improvement. Installed in less than 10 minutes, well worth it.

I just wish I had a temp gauge installed already, so I could see if this had made a cooling improvement.

Sun May 20, 2012 8:27 pm

Ah! Here it is.... my official "my bus" thread. I'd lost it for some time. Maybe you've seen my posts coming one at a time, but I'll just put a few highlights here, all in one place, since I haven't updated THIS ONE since Oct 2009. Wow. Time flies.

Let's see....

I put in a wiper delay module. Seems like forever ago. But that has been very awesome:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=431442

Welded in from fresh steel around the windshield. That was last summer. Made it all winter without any leaks, so I guess that was a success! Also, new glass.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=479866

Before and after...

New rear window rubber, also no leaks there.

Last weekend I brazed up a cracked manifold. So far so good. It's so nice and quiet now! A week or two before that she got a new stock muffler.

Can't forget the Vanagon wheels with nice, fresh tires on them.

Bilge blower in the defrost system. What an amazing difference! Highly recommended if you actually need defrost in winter.

Home-brewed fuel sender repair. It still works great!
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=380693

Made myself some camper fixtures/furniture:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=481720

Before:

After:

Got a Bus Depot awning (the big one) Love it!

MP3 Player!

I hid a speaker in that blank hole:

Werksburg Kick panels to replace the decaying paper ones.

Before:

After:

Parcel trays via Samba classifieds! Very handy.

Rear, inside slider door handle for quieter closing after midnight pee breaks in the campground.

And stuff without photos:
- Sliding door maintenance and lube (http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=483867)
- Bus Depot retractible seat belts
- New chrome side-view mirrors
- Pertoronix electronic ignition
- All new fuel lines, of course
- Millions of little random fixes: New steering dampener, some electrical things, etc etc.

Slated for this summer:
- Lower the front 2.5 inches via Wagens West drop spindles (already ordered)
- Weld up the rusty holes: right rear corner, steps in cab
- Some minor body work and maybe PAINT!

Stay tuned!

Thanks for all your help over the last 3 years. I couldn't have done it without you guys.

Sun May 20, 2012 9:00 pm

And new curtains....

Purchased on eBay from "ACCELERATEDSUPPLY" for about $200 or so.

It's a nice set, good thick fabric. 10 pieces, including one on an elastic cord that spans the length of the back widow, and a really long one on snaps to go around the front/cabin area. Included hardware (snap screws), tie-backs and all that. Nice little kit. I love it.

Mon May 21, 2012 10:24 am

Love the bus. My favorite add on is the inside sliding door handle. People love to slam my doors. I always have to remind them to be gentle.

I didn't know a 78 came with a front seet like that. I thought they all were buckets. Or was that salvaged from an older bus?

So I seeyou went with the "big" awning from Bus De Pot. How do you like it? I haven't pulled the triger yet.

Mon May 21, 2012 10:39 am

Mine is a factory bench seat. Spare tire under the front seat. It had seat belts for 9 passengers before I converted the back into a camper. Currently I have seat belts for 5 people (three in the back and 2 up front).

I love that awning. Only used it once. I'd recommend the big one. If it rains you'll want room for you and your stuff underneath. Any smaller would seem kinda pointless to me. It's just like the directions say... it's slightly confusing to put together the first time, but once you see how it goes, I'm sure it will be very quick and easy next time.

Yeah... that inside door handle has been great. That plus a lube job on the whole slider door and I can click it shut, no slamming required. Nice improvement.

Wed May 23, 2012 11:13 am

Daverham wrote: Mine is a factory bench seat. Spare tire under the front seat. It had seat belts for 9 passengers before I converted the back into a camper. Currently I have seat belts for 5 people (three in the back and 2 up front).

That's interesting. Never seen one like that before. I like your storage setup on the partition.

Daverham wrote: I love that awning. Only used it once. I'd recommend the big one. If it rains you'll want room for you and your stuff underneath. Any smaller would seem kinda pointless to me. It's just like the directions say... it's slightly confusing to put together the first time, but once you see how it goes, I'm sure it will be very quick and easy next time.

That's good to know. Everyone seems to be happy with their quality.

Daverham wrote: Yeah... that inside door handle has been great. That plus a lube job on the whole slider door and I can click it shut, no slamming required. Nice improvement.

I have a 73 sliding door installed on my 78. Its got a cool mechanism that lets the door shut in two stages so you don't have to slam it. You just slide it slowly until the latch catches. Then you twist the handle, which pulls the door to the fully locked position. I'm going to swamp the mechanism into my 78 door after I get it painted.

When they are lubed up, they work great. It doesn't take much.