TheSamba.com :: View topic - 1972: Our first Bay Window Bus

Thu Feb 04, 2016 3:13 pm

Dong , this is one of the most entertaining restorations out there , you're always pushing the envelope and doing different things , I love that varnish , it makes the plywood look old (which I like) and the sawblade on the angle grinder reminds me of an old weapon from the Philippines I've read about , keep up the good work =D>

Thu Feb 11, 2016 9:50 pm

tonyx wrote: Dong , this is one of the most entertaining restorations out there , you're always pushing the envelope and doing different things , I love that varnish , it makes the plywood look old (which I like) and the sawblade on the angle grinder reminds me of an old weapon from the Philippines I've read about , keep up the good work =D> Thanks buddy. To be honest doing all these things on the bay and to my other vee dubs is one way of getting these unwanted stresses away. And it works. The circular saw is quite unsafe and every time I use it, I got to have a bucket full of patience and I would be so vigilant not to hurt myself. But is works fast... thanks again buddy. :)

Fri Feb 12, 2016 12:10 am

DONGKG wrote: ...

I used this circular saw to cut through the ply board. But, to be honest, I don't recommend to use this one. It was quite fast as normal and the ply board could be easily damaged and the desired straight line would be compromised in the processed. Plus it was a bit unsafe! :( ...

Very unsafe. Here is the correct toll to use:

Safe, straight, and makes a clean cut. Handy for many jobs.

Aloha
tp

Fri Feb 12, 2016 12:24 am

Thanks for that one, buddy! I know that the circular saw i used was quite unsafe, and, I don't recommend it when sawing ply board for that matter.

Thanks,

Dong

Fri Feb 12, 2016 12:37 am

I was just about to tell you that the Makita is not inexpensive and post a photo of hand with the fingers cutoff. I Googled cut fingers and images and got faint looking at the pictures. I'll leave to your imagination. :shock: Take care.

Aloha
tp

Fri Feb 12, 2016 1:11 am

Yeah, I know. Being safe while fixing our bee-dubs is still our primordial concern.

Thanks again.

Wed Mar 02, 2016 2:52 am

Recently, we fixed the tent of the pop top.

Firstly, the tent was being checked for proper alignment. Then it was being fixed onto the wooden frame.

A view of the inner tent.

These stainless metal screws came in handy for the aluminium frame that held the tent on its based that was fixed on the roof.

The aluminium frame that we used to hold the tent onto the roof.

The upper portion was almost done.

Getting the aluminium frame positioned on the roof where the line was.

Of course, the drill was essential to get it fixed.

One side of the tent that revealed that aluminium had been fixed already. Although the excess cloth would be removed using a universal cutter.

The ratchet was so useful it practically shortened the time for screwing this.

Since the corners of the opening in the roof should be curved, I took the excess wood I used to strengthened the roof and placed the same on the corner to get the correct curvatures of all four corners.

The wood I saw that would be used on all four corners.

That is the portion of the tent where the feet are position for a soothing rest.

With the tent in place and the ceiling had been redone, it looks cool now.

Now that the tent was just fixed, it was time to endlessly stare at it. I liked its coolness!

I also asked my upholstered to make me a spare tire cover. It looked neat!

The ceiling looked pretty old and tired due to its age, but a new replacement thereof may be considered in the future! :)

When the pop top is opened the the bed attached onto its ceiling for living area condition. It looked cool!

I drove the bus and stopped at the nearby river with my son and had some snacks a coffee! It was fun!

Wed Mar 02, 2016 8:10 am

Awesome! I love the big screen windows in your top!

Wed Mar 02, 2016 8:14 am

DONGKG wrote: I know that the circular saw i used was quite unsafe
Seriously, that tool is so outdated and unsafe :shock: that it should be destroyed so that no one can use it again.

Thu Mar 03, 2016 7:59 pm

Bala wrote: Awesome! I love the big screen windows in your top! Thanka. Philippines is a tropical country so bigger windows on the tent are a must especially during summer time camping. Thanks

Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:41 am

About a month ago I fabricated a swivel table for the bay. I went to one of the stainless steel fabrication shops hereby and asked the pros to make me the stainless steel stand. Here it went.

First, I got this printout from the internet (of course from the samba.com) then got the dimensions and everything.

After we got the correct lengths of the tubes, we cut the and got a stainless steel elbow.

The TIG welder was the norm of the day! It was worthwhile using that one!

We used this tube about 2 inches that was welded onto the end of the top tube that would hold the swivel table. An adjustable bolt with cog-type adjuster was used.

These were the pieces that would be fixed on the side of the kitchenette cabinet. The one on the left would be placed in the bottom of the cabinet. Note that it was covered underneath to hold the bottom of the lower tube.

The other one on the right would be fixed on the middle portion of the cabinet and a nut was also welded to hold the cog-type adjuster.

This one was the plate that would be installed on the back of the table.

I could not wait for the weekend to have it installed. So, after arriving home from work, I immediately installed the same. I don't waste time actually! :)

Alas, the swivel table can now be positioned beside the table or be pulled towards the middle. Pretty convenient. For sure!

That is the look of the bottom portion where the plate was screwed. Although I will make a bigger table with the classic folding-style on one end.

Thanks,

Dong

Sun Mar 27, 2016 10:26 pm

Last week, Holy Thursday and Good Friday, we went to Infanta, Quezon, Philippines, about 2-hour drive from our home and abound 100 kilometers aways from where we live. It was a cool place with high altitude. It was a perfect camping sight during the summer time. We parked our camper on the lot with bought. These are the pictures.

We arrived around 3 in the afternoon, the whether was cool about 18 decrees compared to Metro Manila, it was around 38 decrees that time! Hot!

Preparing for the camping, Cooking, etc.

After we prepared our things, it was time to have our family bonding! Awesome!

We brought with us our pet, named: Kitkat! He was cool too!

That's my son with our pet!

Of course, my wife took care of the household (err... or camping) chores! The food tasted great!

Our son, relaxing after going around playing outside!

Since there was no electricity, we brought with us our mac and we watched a movie!

It was a goo timing that it was full moon that night, so we had a better view of the place during the night.

After dinner, our kids were checking their respective tabs... As usual for the kids!..

Our daughter was ready to sleep on top. She liked it there a lot!

Bonfire was awesome too! It kept us warm and illuminated!

To be honest the z-bed was great, it was so comfy that sleeping was sound!

I woke up at around 6 a.m. and the fog was enveloping us! It was cold, indeed!

Another morning, another fun day!

Our view was the foggy mountain ranges!

It was a foggy morning!

The following day at around 1 p.m., we went hiking and visited the water falls about 2 kilometers of descent. We left the following day at around 5 p.m.

In sum, it was a fun filled and a family bonding day! We are looking for our next camping adventure!

Thanks,

Dong

Mon Mar 28, 2016 5:26 am

Great trip report... Looks like you guys had fun!

Mon Mar 28, 2016 6:04 am

Looks like a fun trip for you and your family. Thanks for sharing the story and the pics!

Mon Mar 28, 2016 9:15 am

Awesome seeing your bus in action!

Tue Mar 29, 2016 10:26 pm

Vee Dub Nut wrote: Great trip report... Looks like you guys had fun! Indeed we had great time. And the family bonding was priceless. Thanks .

Tue Mar 29, 2016 11:59 pm

Cool buddy. That's what it's all about. One of these days you got to come out to the Pacific Northwest of the US and hang with Notchboy, me, and the rest of us and show you where ACVW go to live :wink: beautiful family you got there by the way. Maging masayá sana ang araw mo!

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5...81bfcf6309

Wed Mar 30, 2016 6:56 pm

Bala wrote: Awesome seeing your bus in action! Thanks buddy. Our bus Wil definitely be busy in our forthcoming camping trips. This the life I love. Bonding with the family and exploring the outside world. Thanks

Wed Mar 30, 2016 7:00 pm

richparker wrote: Looks like a fun trip for you and your family. Thanks for sharing the story and the pics! Thanks buddy. It was cold there about 3000 feet above see level. The bus did well negotiating the climbs. But when I was there the following mo ring I had to overhaul the right side card due to clogging foes and issues. But that was fun too.. hahahha

Mon May 16, 2016 12:35 am

@Xevin

Awesome! When my wife went to the States in 2009 she met jason and the rest of the the1500club members at the vw classics with my sister too who lives in San Diego. Looking forward hanging out with you guys soon. Thanks bro. BTW.. awesome command of Pilipino language! Maraming salamat at Mabuhay ka at ang iyong pamilya!