TheSamba.com :: View topic

Mon Nov 21, 2005 4:46 pm

Just thought I'd post some progress photos of my sound-deadening project.
Thanks for all the help guys :lol:

Drivers side before. I left the original plastic sheeting in place.

Drivers side after.

The difference is indescribable! If you haven't done this...DO IT trust me. It even eliminated all those little drafts that found there way through the door.

Next I’ll do the sliding door, then the floor up front. I’m gona put this tuff everywhere.

I used a product called eDead. It sticks like crazy.

Mon Nov 21, 2005 6:51 pm

Looks great. Where did you get it?

Mon Nov 21, 2005 7:14 pm

Got it on eBay.

Here's some more for sale.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Elemental-Designs-e...dZViewItem

Mon Nov 28, 2005 4:42 pm

Some more pics from this past weekend

Before

After

Son of a @#$^ Didn't expect to find this.:evil: :evil: :evil:

Just ordered some POR15 :cry:

Mon Nov 28, 2005 5:43 pm

lovedavdubs wrote: Just ordered some POR15 :cry:
That small hole means it is VERY thin around there. You may wish to put a piece of sheet metal on top. Maybe paint with POR15 and then put a piece of metal over the top for strength.

How much difference does the stuff applied to the floor make?

-W

Mon Nov 28, 2005 6:02 pm

I think the little pieces on top of the seat swivel may be a little overboard :D :D But EVRY little bit helps... I would also be careful about the piece on the underside of the batery cover... You should get some covers for your wires just to make sure there is no way for the wires to hit it. It looks to be metalic.. I did the same to a '60 bug, except with Dynamat a few years ago, and the results were amazing. The guy at the stereo shop made a fortune on me... I bought out his supply... :twisted: :twisted:

Mon Nov 28, 2005 6:30 pm

Guess I cheated on my 80 Westy. I got the sound deadening material out of a GL and just installed the preformed, perfectly fitting stuff in the drivers and passengers area. It's about 1" thick, deadens sound, and insulates too - feels great under the carpet too.

Mon Nov 28, 2005 8:17 pm

If you want an alternative try this

http://www.raamaudio.com/

Rick provides an excelent product as well as top notch customer service.

Tue Nov 29, 2005 6:38 am

Ericthenorse wrote: I think the little pieces on top of the seat swivel may be a little overboard :D :D But EVRY little bit helps... I would also be careful about the piece on the underside of the batery cover... You should get some covers for your wires just to make sure there is no way for the wires to hit it. It looks to be metalic.. I did the same to a '60 bug, except with Dynamat a few years ago, and the results were amazing. The guy at the stereo shop made a fortune on me... I bought out his supply... :twisted: :twisted:

Trust me Eric, I'm all about going over board :lol: I even plan to put a second layer around the wheel wells if I have some left over.

The sheet mtl. around that hole is very thin. I'm actually gona cut it out and replace it. The POR15 is just to seal the perimeter edges so it doesn't spread further.

Oh, and this sound deadening material is if fact metallic. I put a thick coat of duct tape on the bottom of the battery compartment door.

Would you believe I covered this much surface with only 65 SF of material? And I still have about a 1/4 of it left :wink:

Tue Nov 29, 2005 7:45 am

Don't you have the molded rubber like mat thing under the rug on your floor?
The one in the picture here, that deadens a lot of the road noise and vibration under your feet.

Tue Nov 29, 2005 8:20 am

Yup, Its just not in the pictures. Mine extends between the seats also.

Tue Nov 29, 2005 4:21 pm

Alright, so those pictures are great. My question is how much of these materials do you really need for one good layer for a vanagon. I dont want to really break the bank on this.

Tue Nov 29, 2005 4:37 pm

I've spent about 130.00 so far, the sound deadening stuff has become cheaper in the last year. I'm doing it in stages the front and doors are suppost to make the biggest difference so I did it first, next will be the rear, and I'll do the middle of the van last. Remember this is sound deadening material not insulation. I have a Westy so I'll be using sound deadening stuff plus I'll replace the fiberglass insulation with the nasa insulation.
I figure about 400 bucks in insulation and deadening material when its all done.
http://www.b-quiet.com/vanagon2.html
http://www.b-quiet.com/vanagon.html

Tue Nov 29, 2005 4:50 pm

You can get good results, and spend a lot less dough by just covering the large flat pannels. All of the flat surfaces in a car act like drum heads and transmit sound into the car. If you get enough to cover at least 75% of evry flat pannel ( inside of doors, top of wheel wells, floor, etc.) you will notice a conciderable difference... A little home science.. find a coffee can with a plastic lid, and tap it with a pencil like a drum... now put a piece of duct tape on it and try again.... :twisted: :twisted:

Tue Nov 29, 2005 5:52 pm

So far I've done both front doors, both wheel wells and 75% of the floor up front (work in progress), as you can see in the photos above. I used a material called eDead v.1. http://www.edesignaudio.com/product.php?cid=9&pid=7&cur=USD
I initially bought 65 SF. of material for about $70.00 shipping included on eBay. At this point I have about 10 SF. of material left. The trick is to measure twice and cut once. That way you make use of every inch possible. When your doing the front doors, watch that you don't cut them out in reverse. It makes you feal really stupid...I know from experience. :roll: I think about 120 SF. or so should cover the job to the extent that I'm going. What's up with that NASA insulation Art? Got a link?

Fri Dec 02, 2005 5:10 pm

I am contemplating doing this myself... if you want a really good comparison of all the alternatives out there, check this out http://www.sounddeadenershowdown.com/

Im probably going to go with the RAAM stuff, it seems like a good buy.

Sat Dec 03, 2005 6:38 am

http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/Product/showCus...insulation

Thu Dec 15, 2005 6:37 am

Hey lovedavdubs, great looking job! Now that you've got it done, how noticeable is the difference? Did it make the van seem more "solid" and get rid of that tin can sound when closing doors? Also, did you do the slider and hatch?

Fri Dec 16, 2005 6:43 pm

Tin can sound is gone. And the van does feel more solid. :lol: I can still hear the long standing squeak in my front end though :roll: But I think I need to fix that problem rather than cover it up. Its been cold as hell recently, and I haven't had a whole lot of time to complete the job. Unfortunately I haven’t progressed much past the last photos I posted. The job will be on hold at least until I get that rust out of the picture. :roll: Keep ta posted.

Fri Dec 16, 2005 11:08 pm

I am not sure what they did to the later vanagons, but I drove an 83 today, and the sound level inside was rediculus. I had an 81 but that was a while ago. My 91 is dead quiet compared to the earlier vans... I could still use some in scientifically calculated locations :lol: But overall my van is prety quiet.... Have any of you had an early and a late model?? did you notice a difference???