The life of a daily driven 68' RHD Devon camper.

[Funky187]

I've read this thread multiple times and I just figured out that you stay up the street from my buddy from time to time! Hope all is well and I'm enjoying the bastard of an engine build!
_________________
1969 Campmobile TinTop
Stock remanufactured 1600 SP

[LivinInnaVWBus]

[Funky187]

[LivinInnaVWBus]

[LivinInnaVWBus]

Dug into the heads last night...

This might've caused a problem.

They were in surprisingly good shape, though I had some burned exhaust valves and two of them were bent. The guides are so-so, I test fitted a set of new valves and they seem like they might be in spec though I haven't measured yet.

Cracked cooling fin.

Pulled stud. I JB'ed an oversized, standard thread stud in there a month ago and held perfectly until I took the manifold off, it unscrewed with the nut.

Heads, after a quick blast in the media cabinet to look for cracks and as promised, the removed bearings. I'll get a better photo of it, but pay attention to what you can see of the thrust cam bearing.

Don't ask me how, but my new gear puller broke after 3 or 4 uses all on stock cam gears.

[LivinInnaVWBus]

Happy early 4th!
I've had a few productive days off for the holiday, the weather has been amazing so I did some paint work as well. Here's what the last three days have looked like;

First, better photos of the failing cam bearing. Looks like I caught it JUST in time, I even wiped some of the flaking pieces off of the cam journal though the journal was undamaged.

Head work! I sold the head jig I used for my press and I didn't want to risk the heads by primitively removing and installing guides, so I sucked it up and used the original guides with some Italian made valves which were a couple of thousandths larger than stock and made up for wear. The guides measured just outside of spec, but again, good enough for this build.
Here, you will see me removing the porosity out of the combustion chamber by rubbing WD40 into the metal with a scotch brite pad. It impregnates the metal leaving a smooth finish which should cut down carbon build up.

Left chamber has been buffed, the right chamber still retains porosity from media blasting.

The valves have been lapped in, now it's time for the cylinders. I do this even if the cylinders and heads are new but for used parts, I spend a bit more time creating a good seal. I leave the valves in to keep the lapping compound as far away from the guides as possible.

FIN! New valves, springs and retainers.

I hadn't previously noticed how badly they were glazed, but the cylinders needed some work. My father wanted to see if he still had it, so I held the cylinders and he sent the hone through. 3-leg hone, first heavy and then fine course. It's been some time since he's used them but his crosshatch is impressive, unfortunately the photo doesn't show how nice they turned out.

While awaiting parts to arrive from BusDepot and AppleTree Auto, I'm left twiddling my thumbs. I did order a new exhaust from CIP1 but had issues with them so while I'm waiting on the other parts, I decided to blast my old exhaust to diagnose how a few salt belt winters has left it. Though when I first installed it, I never properly stripped the packing paint and refinished it with a high temp coating, it held up surprisingly well with only a handful few pinholes.

Keep in mind, I was under the incorrect assumption a new exhaust was well on it's way - This exhaust only needs to last a couple of months at the longest, until I build my 1679 - I sold most of my welding equipment and I'm not going to ride my bicycle to the muffler repair shop a few miles away with a VW bus exhaust under my arm... even for this build, the "fix" is ghetto as hell.

Sheet metal screws and loads of JB weld to the rescue. After this dried, I applied a ton more.
Though I've successfully used JB to plug heat riser tubes and to fix pulled intake studs, I've never used it on a muffler body. Your guess is as good as mine if it will hold, I'll follow up when I remove the engine again in a couple of months... this exhaust is on it's way out, the JB might last longer than the rest of it.
The exhaust is currently hanging on a clothes line, drying after I applied 800 degree high temp paint - I'll post photos later.


Ready for some parts porno?

Butty's Bits throttle pedal linkage heim joint kit! Buttysbits.com
I'll be posting a full review of this product shortly and will follow up with the direct link and tons more photos. I'm impressed.

The parts for my 1679 thick wall single port fuel economy build have come back from Nick @ NSRacing with a race spec balance job.
(Level I Balancing ~ (is the highest level of balancing designated for
Full Race applications >8500RPM [less than <0.2 ounce inch, 0.1 g piston & rods])
This guy is top notch, he is FAR more attentive to your needs than the big guys and he went well out of his way until I was fully satisfied. He even re-opened the freshly packed and machined shipment to clean the case FOR FREE because he didn't want to see it go out the door ugly. I'll be using him from now on, you should too.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/profile.php?mode=viewprofile&u=7792

[LivinInnaVWBus]

Product review thread for Butty's Bits started here - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=631730

[andybla]

looking good! Keep up the good work

[Terriers 2121]

Nice work man, enjoying reading this one.

[LivinInnaVWBus]

Some progress from the other day. GKN/Lobro CV Joints - GERMAN BABY!
The joints and the boots are excellent quality, fitment is perfect. Don't mind the blue tape, I used my original axles and had them powder coated.
YES, I did use the conical washer on the axle side of the joint and I'll tell you why.
Pass side(left) CV was replaced because of a torn boot and it was drying up though I greased it often after I noticed the tear. The joint was still in good shape and tight, original from the factory with the washer.
Drivers side(right) I didn't notice this boot was torn as well, but it was still full of grease. I took it apart and it was clearly serviced, badly. RV sealant everywhere, including permeating nearly into the cage, conical washer installed backwards leaving tons of play, but still a hair less than with no washer at all. I couldn't say what brand or quality the replacement CV was, but it was BEAT and very loose. It appears this is likely because of the lack of washer pressure.
I installed the clips on the loose side and filled each boot with 2 grease packets and half a packet each on the flange side. Once the grease heats up, it will expand and push out whatever isn't necessary through the top of the boot. When I re-check the torque on the CV bolts after some use, I'll wipe off the excess and tighten up the boot clips.
I installed the CVs with the wavy washers I took off, but didn't torque them because they require serrated Schnoor washers as from the factory. The serrated washers keep your bolts in place much better than wavy or lock washers. These correct washers are difficult to find, expensive and one-time-use however fellow Samba member raygreenwood tipped me off that McMaster Carr sells them in packs of 100 for $18 shipped under part number 93501A030 - the cheapest I found them elsewhere was $15 for 24.
I am missing 7 of the plates which connect two of the CV bolts and share the clamping force load, if anyone knows where to source used ones, I'll take a dozen.

Installed.

Booty porn

Here is what the AutoZone Chinese axle looks like after 2 months of use. It's holding up just fine but 'think' I am getting a little noise. I can't tell if it's the CV or if it's the tire with the busted belt on the same side.

In other news, unfortunately I heard word from my friend with the Cabrio from the prior posts. Those photos are among the last taken of her liquid cooled, a lady with no insurance took on my friends lane effectively totaling the vert. Though banged up horribly, my friend is fine now and all healed up... let us all have a moment of silence for Cabby the 95' Cabrio which saved her, my dog and I from heat stroke during the Fun Fest - not to mention protecting my dear friend's life during this accident.
She's a prior air cooled owner... maybe I can convince her to use the insurance money on a another vintage.

[LivinInnaVWBus]

Pro tip #1 - The commonly found 83mm-87mm ring compressors floating around the ACVW world for around $5 will not work with an 83mm(82.95) VW piston.

Engine update: #3/4 side of the long block is assembled and ready to go! #1/2 side on the other hand, is not so lucky. Upon final assembly on that side, one of the center studs pulled before I could get 24 ft lbs on it. I couldn't find any unused case savers lying around so I pulled an 8mm stud with a case saver from a used aftermarket as41 case I had lying around. I drilled and tapped the case for a 12mm case saver before I realized this one was over sized, 14mm with a 2.0 pitch... which of course I don't have a tap or bit for, so I ordered one from the parts store down the street which came in today.
After I buttoned up the 3/4 side, I was left twiddling my thumbs until the tools came in so I media blasted and painted one of the heater boxes, the other box will be finished up in a couple of days.

On the CV front, the serrated CV washers raygreenwood recommended came in the mail and they are nearly a dead ringer for the originals. I don't have an unused OE one to compare the height, but it appears the only difference is the new ones have helical serrations and the originals are straight serrations.

Middle is the original.

New one on the left.

Came directly from McMaster in Schnoor packaging!

[LivinInnaVWBus]

Progress! ... has been slow.
I've been working, waiting on parts and good weather, but the long block is sealed up and there is very little left to make it a turn key.
List to be completed;
- Blast and paint other heater box.
- Repair bolt on muffler.
- Set valves.
- Install flywheel. The end play is set, I just need a friend to come over to help me carry the engine down a flight of stairs and having the flywheel off helps.
- Install distributor.
- Buy brass nuts for exhaust studs and long nuts or connecting nuts for intake studs.
- Warranty claim old plug wires for new ones - Autozone has a lifetime warranty on Bosch wires. This will be the third time I'm warrantying them just to get fresh parts in place though I have had one of these wires go bad before.
- Clean, paint and install what's left of the cooling tins.
- Install thermostat with bracket.
- Change trans fluid.
- Change clutch cable and bowden tube.
- Wrap wire around cylinder deflector tins.
- Install new throw out bearing and clips.

I might be missing a few things but as you can see, all very small tasks. With luck, it'll be fully assembled on Weds and in the bus by Thurs.

I decided to put different tins and a new intake on it while I could easily. The manifold I removed was a CB 3151 which is USA made and OK quality, I'm sure it would work better with a 34-3 but with a 30pict, I had all sorts of clearance issues with the carb mounting studs. I also was not able to use the mount in the center of the intake to hold it in place on the case, I had to rely on the heat riser tubes.
Obviously not wanting to deal with these issues and replacing manifold boots every season, I reluctantly bought a made in Brazil, sold by Empi single port intake manifold. I say reluctant because I've read a horror story or two of how the sealing end which goes into the head is made at the incorrect pitch and allowing vacuum leaks. I haven't fully torqued it up yet as the lip around the plates on each end of the manifold is higher than stock and not permissive for standard nuts, but it doesn't look like I will have any problems so long as the manifold studs don't pull.
Here is the engine in it's current condition. OE Brasilia shroud, genuine Bosch al82n, genuine Bosch epoxy filled coil, OE VW Garbe Lahme single vaccum cast iron distributor (used for mock up, will be replaced by a 40hp big cap, the Garbe is for sale) - More info on the GL distributor here http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=615532&highlight=

The final assembly on the rest of the long block went flawlessly once I fixed the pulled cylinder head stud. I drilled and tapped the hole for a 14mm x 2.0 pitch case saver which uses an 8mm head stud instead of a 10mm, which would match the rest of the case studs. Unfortunately I didn't have a 10mm case saver accessible, so this will have to do and though it will work just fine, I would use the correct sized stud on a proper rebuild.

Installing case savers requires nothing that isn't typically found in any shade tree VW mechanic's garage, other than the correctly sized tap and applicable drill bit.

On an unrelated note, a few cool photos from inside of the bus.
Bitches love buses.

[Brian]

So, why the puma?

Looking good though.
_________________
Wash your hands

'69 Bug
'68 Baja Truck
'71 Bug
'68 Camper

Only losers litter

[LivinInnaVWBus]

[LivinInnaVWBus]

Good afternoon Samba! LOTS of updating to do. I've made quite a bit of headway in my week long hiatus. THE ENGINE IS FINALLY FINISHED. Here's what you missed.

While installing the mustache bar, one of the larger bolts pulled the threads out of the case. Why VW never used studs here baffles me, but I just drilled it out, tapped it and used a case saver.
I also had one of the oil pump studs strip while retorquing, but it was just the stud, not the case, easy fix.

From there, I attempted to install the old Dansk exhaust I took off the engine, blasted, "repaired" and painted, but apparently other plans were made for me when this happened.

JB weld and sheet metal screws are not going to stop that from leaking.

I thought this issue left me stranded further and waiting on new parts but I dug through my shed of beetle parts and stumbled across a solution which is annoying as all hell, but it won't leave me sucking exhaust fumes through my back hatch. Zoom tube... oh boy.

The tube was pointing towards the drivers side but when I was installing the engine, it would hit my tow hook so I flipped it around. Even then, the pipe was sticking out too far for the bumper to be mounted. Keeping in mind this engine will only be in the bus until I build my other, I used grade 10.8 hardware to space the bumper off of the pipe.

Detailed engine photos, I still have a few small things to button up but you get the idea.

Connector nuts, the only way to go.

The Brazilian EMPI SP manifold ended up fitting perfectly, no leaks. I'm pleased with the quality all around though it's a bit lighter than original. The Sp manifold on the market currently, to my understanding is a variation which places the intake port further away from the alternator/generator. I was hoping it would allow the use of an alternator without using a spacer, VERY close but no cigar. I could have safely ground a very minute amount from the alternator housing to clear, but I ordered a carb spacer and my air cleaner still fit so I went with it.

While I was working on the power plant the past two days, the pretty tattooed gal in my prior post was ripping out the stained, decrepit and moldy headliner and insulation. Discovered was more rust than I'd hoped for, but we wire brushed it and put a temporary coat of Rustolium over it which she's started to use as a canvas.

With luck, Weds I'll be able to get started on making new bed brackets. Stay tuned!

[LivinInnaVWBus]

I haven't put a proper tune on it yet, but it's close.


Link

[PLF-Blue]

[LivinInnaVWBus]

[PLF-Blue]

[LivinInnaVWBus]

Good evening Samba! I apologize for the lack of updates, lots have been going on but I've found myself with little time to keep you in the loop until now.

First, this;

After clocking about 20 city miles on the new build, I cautiously took it on the highway for the first time. Keeping it around 50mph, all seemed to be going well until I got a whiff of the faint smell of burning oil so I shut the engine down immediately and pulled to the side... the main seal was spewing oil and my dipstick thermometer read 250. I quickly tossed oil in it and started it back up so it would cool down then sat on the side of the highway until it got under 200 and cancelled my plans for the night. After I added more oil, I limped the 5 miles home with my tail between my legs. Back to biking to work for the next couple of days.

Once I got a chance to pull the engine, all was revealed.

Double lip main seal failure, the first and last time I will use one. Nearly fried this engine. As you can see by the gland nut in the center, re-installation of an Elring main seal didn't quite go as planned either. A new genuine VW of Brazil gland nut shattered and it wasn't even fully torqued.

The main seal, I should have known better, but the gland nut, WTF.
After that mess, I took a successful 300 mile trip to break it in. A little blow by, but I expected it as the ring gaps were a hair out from honing the cylinders, no big deal. All in all, she's purring well and the zoomtube is surprisingly quieter than the factory style Dansk exhaust at 50-55mph... I'm beginning to like it but I haven't pushed it to 65 yet so that may change.

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I've been getting to know Devon's cracks and crevasses a lot better recently. Attempting to discover what rust and other issues may be hiding under the finish materials, so the headliner has been removed in the back as well as most interior panels and insulation, also the pop top insulation and covering fabric. This bus is due for some body work once I replace all of the mechanical components but in the mean time, the coat of rustolium should assist slightly in preventing too much more.

A week ago after some rough urban stealth camping in a college town, I realized clamping baja blankets to the inside of the bus wasn't cutting it for curtains so I installed the jail bar curtain rod kit I've had sitting around for over a year. 8 hours of measuring, careful drilling and a dozen broken drill bits later;

A review of the jail bar kit, don't bother. I already spent the money and I need curtains, so I used them but money would be better spent buying some original ends and cutting your own bars. The finish on the ends is pretty bad and they are cast so poorly, the shapes/hole locations don't even match. Also, the rods were bent(not from shipping) and one of them was cut incorrectly. I called CIP1 and they said they were made in China though their rating scale reads "Original German quality or equivalent"... my ass.

While glowing in the glory of my work, I kicked back with an adult treat and looked at my leaky roof as someone told me it was going to storm that night.
Once upon a time, someone stored heavy items directly on the roof vent causing the underlying thin aluminum panel to give way and create a crater all the way around the vent allowing water to pool and ultimately leak badly. With the insulation now no longer covering the pop top frame, I realized how easily I could alleviate most of the water seepage. I found a piece of angle steel in my garage, and there you have it! Didn't even need to cut it and it doubles as a paper towel holder! This literally made my week, I've been through two brief and light rains with no water coming in, I'll see what a heavier storm brings soon I'm sure.

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If there are any in the mid-west who read this and need parts, I'm having a moving sale, all must go - check my classifieds posting for more details on what I've got.

I've got this case listed up for $600, low mile AS41 with 0 miles since decking, line bore and full flow(Brothers VW), factory deep stud and case savers. If you mention this topic, I'll cut $50 off of it.

I've got a few more cases and other interesting things I'll be posting once I find the time.