'59 Baja Ragtop Back To Semi Stock Build Thread

Bret2094 · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2014 12:12 pm Post subject:

Didn't plan on updating anything today, but i was at walmart and picked up some groceries and decided to look for some resto stuff while there. Anyone guess what all of this is for?

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Bret
_________________
1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

Dauz · Samba Member Joined: January 05, 2010 Posts: 1790

/ˌflamˈboi(y)ənt/

Bret2094 · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2014 12:38 pm Post subject:

Bret2094 · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2014 2:59 pm Post subject:

All of that stuff is for steering wheel resto. Also Saturday morning i will be picking up this engine for the carb, intake and possibly heads. Does that look like a 010 to yall? I couldn't get the seller to provide a better pic of it but i did get an engine # of 2744174. It's meant for a 59 but i'll be using my original case. might use some other pieces, but for the most part i'll have a spare pump and various other pieces. between the intake and carb i already own, plus this new stuff, I should be able to create my vintage speed dual carb setup, minus linkage. Is there a tutorial i can stash away to use for making a dual carb linkage/ where could i buy one?

Man , it's hard to imagine all ive got done, and I only have had these since late July.

Bret
_________________
1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

henry roberts · Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2014 1:13 am Post subject:

to me the distributor looks like a normal VJU4 BR8 missing it's vacuum can. they are a little taller in the body to allow for the twin plates for the vacuum mech. back in the day some people used to modify them to make them function like a VJ4 BR8 (019) by removing the vacuum can and brazing the two plates together. (the advance weights are the same for both)

I don't think there is a full how to anywhere, but there are good threads in the vintage speed forum, that should point you in the right direction.

edit. this thread is a good start: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=326666&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

as far as manifolds and linkages your options for a full kit are limited to what ever you can find second hand or a reichert kit. http://www.riechertmotorentechnik.de/

at least 2 members on here sell manifolds (with out linkages, carbs or aircleaners):

bengt h makes manifolds for solex 32 PBI type carbs

and

welt makes manifolds for solex 28 PCI's at a decent price.

there was also another member in the US repro'ing another partial kit but I can't see it advertised anymore... anyone remember who that was?

as far as carbs:
28 PCI's are everywhere, 32 and 34PCI's are out there too, if you can find them. the throttle shafts run across the carb

32 PBI types: WW repro's (quality?), OG Porsche (expensive), French made variations (Peugeot, simca, etc, some more suitable than others looks wise, not sure about functionality) and British made variations (mk1 landrover, not sure if they work well or not). the throttle shafts run along the length of the carb

riechart also does linkage parts and aircleaners.

the WW okrasa linkages might be able to be made to work with PBI type carbs on bengt's manifolds

the WW aircleaners would work for either carb type

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=601970 should work for both solex types.

or of course twin stock air cleaners.

as far as other carbs you are only limited by your imagination and how good you are at setting them up. there were kits sold in australia for vw's that used twin SU's (sidedraft) and twin single throat Zenith's (downdraft), plus of course the EMPI/speedwell kits that ran twin Stromberg's (sidedraft).

I hope this helps.

sportin-wood · Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2014 6:52 am Post subject:

Cool thread. This fellow Texan will be following the progress!

Got any pics of the other VWs you acquired in the deal??
_________________
.
Paused 66 project bug
.
"Relax, all right? My old man is a television repairman. He's got this ultimate set of tools. I can fix it." --- Jeff Spicoli

Bret2094 · Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2014 10:04 pm Post subject:

Thanks Henry! Lol i went and picked up that engine, and boy I am kinda scratching my head now. the engine was locked up, which is fine by me. The perplexing bit is that after removing the tinware, i notices that almost all of the studs were out of the case and that the left side of the engine was trying to come off with the head....and all of the pushrods were missing, but the tubes were there. Not mad, as i got this for parts, but sadning no less. got way more than 75 bucks in parts off it, and i havent even split the case yet Wound up paying 75 bucks, and you are right, the vacuum canister is missing. Might do that mechanical convert you talked about. As far as the carb setup, i will be running dual 28 Pci's , with my own manifolds made from the stock ones, just looking for the right linkage setup. gonna run stock air cleaners as well. Thanks for the info! Gonna put up pics of my steering wheel resto soon. Frame pics tomorrow as well

Bret
_________________
1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

Bret2094 · Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2014 10:06 pm Post subject:

Bret2094 · Posted: Sun Dec 14, 2014 11:29 pm Post subject:

For those interested in restoring their steering wheel in the future, here's the order to do things

1. get some 60 grit sandpaper and clean the entire area apart from ribs and intricate parts of the wheel down to a smooth finish
2. treat ribs with 220 grit paper
3. fill in any missing areas with loctite epoxy putty
4. allow putty to dry for suggested time on box, and then sand down excess to match curvature of the wheel.
5. clean with a moist rag
6. apply JB weld to all fine cracked areas. ( i covered the entire steering wheel as my whole wheel was fucked up)
7. allow JB weld to dry overnight
8. sand jb weld smooth as necesary.
9. repeat 6-8 untill steering wheel is completely smooth
10. shoot with primer to check for more cracks only seen under paint
11.after areas are smoothened out, hit with primer again
12. allow to dry and then paint 2-3 layers of Almond Rustoleum paint
13. allow to cure for a day before spraying 2-3 coats of clear coat paint
14 admire your new jewel

assembly removed from car

whole section missing from wheel

side view with crack shown along grip

more cracks

sample of a sanded area

Putty worked into the wheel(excess to be trimmed later)

Same area that was missing before, now after sanding

Seam that was falling apart

Covered in JB weld. I used my fingers, but there's gotta be a less messy way.

Haven't gotten to the paint yet, many more cracks to fix, but now i can actually grip the wheel without it crumbling into little pieces

Enjoy!

Bret
_________________
1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

Bret2094 · Posted: Mon Dec 15, 2014 4:48 pm Post subject:

Major improvement today, got the frame and front beam cleaned and covered in POR-15. I would have taken pics of the cleaning process, but i was afraid i would run out of time before it got dark(supposed to be cold and nasty starting tomorrow afternoon). Wound up forgetting to prep my lip for the pans with tape....so Now i'll have to deal with removing it along where im gonna weld(nightmare). Still a pretty good day

The steps i took to clean the chassis were as follows:
1. wire brush entire surface until all remaining paint and rust scale were gone
2. power washed the surface until visibly clean
3. used an SOS pad to remove any oil residue from surface
4. power washed again
5. dried the surface with shop towels
6. Used 60 grit sandpaper on a 4-1/2 inch orbital sander throughout the chassis to give an extra tooth for the POR to stick to
7. Used 4 foam brushes to apply POR to the surface(2 large for big flat areas and 2 small ones for crevices)
Here's some pics of the finished product

front beam

Only wound up using a fourth of a can. Another coat is in the plan, but I'm not sure when that will happen

Bret
_________________
1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

Bret2094 · Posted: Wed Dec 17, 2014 8:21 pm Post subject:

Update:
spent the day cleaning my drums and backing plates. I removed my front adjusters easily from the housing, but my rear ones are stuck in good, even after soaking for 3 days in a chem dip. Sprayed em with penetrating oil, but so far no luck. Suggestions? I could use heat, but i'm trying to avoid that currently. Tomorrow's goal is to defunkify my tranny and get the axle tubes cleaned for paint, as well as make the required bearing puller. Pics to come soon

Bret
_________________
1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

henry roberts · Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2014 3:55 pm Post subject:

you're smashing through it. Cool

back on to the twin carb thing, you have prob already seen this thread but if not:

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=503551

the first 3 links in particular are excellent.

Bret2094 · Posted: Sat Dec 20, 2014 7:26 pm Post subject:

Bret2094 · Posted: Wed Dec 24, 2014 8:47 pm Post subject:

Well it's been cold outside so ive been inside helping out with the holiday junk so for the most part when i've been outside it's been to work on my bus, but i did manage to mock up a better bracing system for heater channel and chassis support replacement.

I spent a couple days hauling scrap off from the house for a couple $$ and came across this old feeder laying out in the woods half buried and decided that it would be recycled at home. The legs were cut up in to appropriate lengths with a metal saw.

Note these are just mocked up, I have yet to drill holes to the angle iron so that they will be secured down, yet reusable. I also have some sections for the doors to be put in at an angle, but forgot to add a pic.

Everything else has been done inside, including carb and fuel pump cleaning. I dissassembled these without a camera in hand, but most get how that looks

This chem dip stuff in nifty, cleans stuff right up. notice the dual 28 pci's

I went ahead and cleaned the other fuel pump, and saw some slight differences in the pumps. as i got to looking there are some slight differences in the carbs as well

This is the top of the pump that came off the car i have

This is the top of the pump from the donor engine. It had an extra screw on the top of it. What was that for? Both cases are 59's and i was curious if there was a change in pumps mid year . or a PO put whatever on either engine

the bottom of the pumps are even different, the one on the bottom is stamped made in germany, while the other doesnt have a marking..hmmm

My original carb

gotta get a new accelerator pump spring

Started taking the other carb apart, and it's missing the choke spring. Always somethin i guess

Closeup of the hardware removed

Doesn't look like much, but ive spent a ton of time on this stuff. Oh and i just picked up a huge load of free vw stuff. on a block that i got in the load, look what was on a 40 horse

I think i'll be using this hehehe

After xmas is done, imma be onto welding the pans up. gonna need them in so ican do heater channel replacement when my order gets here around the 5th of Jan

Happy holidays!

Bret
_________________
1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

Bret2094 · Posted: Sun Dec 28, 2014 8:57 pm Post subject:

Well Christmas was a sucess, everybody at the house had a ton of fun, and i would like to point out that my mother was on point with the gifts she got everyone, including myself. ( I really dont deserve such kindness). She bought a clutch alignment tool, snapring pliers, an air chisel,and.....these bad boys

Now i already had an oil pump puller, but i wasnt gonna tell her that, so i modified it to fit 36 horse pumps by shortening the puller on each end with a grinder

If you look at my previous pictures, you will see that the old brake lines were still clinging on for dear life, well not anymore! My new air chisel took em off in seconds without damaging anything. I did the brakes a while back on my 1960 buggy, and swore to never fuck with those cips again. Major Pain.

some random stuff i just took off the chassis. brake lines, bowden tube..etc

afterwards, tonight i cleaned off my pan lip in preparation for tomorrow's welding frenzy, and i covered the bare metal with masking tape to keep surface rust off of everything, just incase i dont get around to it tomorrow

Decided since i was this far, i should try and clean up my shift rod, as well as change out my frozen choke cable......the rod came out, the cable...not so much

Not sure if you can make it out, but most of it snapped at this end

Now....The engine...what a pile of worms. Some of this is self inflicted, while the rest is P/O induced crap, so bear with me. Back this summer i got mad at it and decided to but it in a corner for time out.I started to remove the flywheel, but it started to turn a little on its own...strange..so i put a flywheel lock on it before putting any real pressure down on the gland nut. (someone had tried to remove it before, because it was scarred up)

After further inspection

YAAAAAAAAAAAAY! all the dowels just fell out when i removed the flywheel...looks toast. I bet someone tried to push start this baby after it locked up. Only kinda force i could think of that would do this
Now the crank..

Same....blehhhh. I'm glad i have that spare engine now for parts.
After that little treat, I thought hmm i guess ill just pull the crankshaft pully next...oh boy. Now i had read that using a 3 arm pully is a bad idea because it could warp the pully when removing it, but as a 20 year old jackass, i kinda didnt pay attention to that, as i had pulled many pulleys in the past without a hitch. I guess some lessons have to be self learned

Looks like an accordion now......But wait the fun continues!

I finally decided , after heavy soaking of atf/acetone and kroil that i would just cut around the pistons on the 3&4 side and remove em that way, so i could split the case. This plan worked well, and i split the case in a couple hours, but upon inspection, i really goofed

If you look at the bell housing , you can see where my grinder nicked the housing ( didnt go all the way through, but made me mad at myself none the less) The second mistake is on the pushrod tube inlet, you can see the shiny metal where i hit the edge and broke off the lip a tad. There is still enough good surface for the pushrod tube seal to do its job, but between these two i started kicking myself a bit, but hell the engine is open! I have a ton of patience, but it finally ran out on this part of the project, and i paid the price.

I still have to adress the partial liner in my case, and the 3&4 P&C's still frozen up, but i at least feel better about myself Rolling Eyes

I'll Be back to it tomorrow, hopefully with construction instead of destruction. Apparently i'm up to like 7k views, so thanks to whoever you are! Don't get too mad at my recent goofs, i'm only human!

Until tomorrow,
Bret
_________________
1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

Fifty-Eight Rag · Posted: Mon Dec 29, 2014 1:13 pm Post subject:

Bret2094 · Posted: Mon Dec 29, 2014 7:48 pm Post subject:


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