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tootype2crazy
Samba Member
Joined: October 08, 2007
Posts: 1276
Location: St. Louis Missouri
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 Posted: Sun Oct 28, 2012 8:44 am Post subject: Plastic Fender inserts |
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Has anybody here ever thought about making plastic fender inserts for the bus, the kind like modern cars have? I have been contemplating getting a large sheet of ABS Plastic and slowly heating it and shaping it to the desired shape. After I fix the rust in my fenders I don't want them rusting out again and it seems inevitable where I live with road salt and all.
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air-cooled or nothing for me
1978 Sunroof Deluxe Bus (daily driver)
1978 Transporter (mom's, making into a camper)
1970 Single Cab 2.1 turbo/EFI 6 Rib, 78 front beam, vanagon backing plates on rear (project)
2001 GTI VR6 (wife's) |
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Westfabulous
Samba Member
Joined: January 07, 2007
Posts: 4207
Location: The tropic of Canada, dodging the giant flying moose of Surrey!
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| Posted: Sun Oct 28, 2012 9:07 am Post subject: |
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Unless, the metal under the liner is heavily treated, the liner will serve little purpose, and rust will still be an issue IMHO. You would be better off with a parafin or petroleum based coating and an annual maintenance inspection. Look at a modern day VW; beneath the liner is some very heavily treated body metal. The best thing you can do is keep it out of the conditions that will cause rust. These buses were not built to last against water and salt.
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notchboy
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Joined: April 27, 2002
Posts: 22461
Location: Escondido CA
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| Posted: Sun Oct 28, 2012 9:20 am Post subject: |
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If anything the plastic will trap moisture and grime working its way into corrosion. I thought of this sort of thing as well as I like the looks it can provide for off road looking applications. In the end, I left it be.
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| t3kg wrote: |
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Jason "notchboy" Weigel
1964 1500 S
1964 T34 S Convertible
1977 Westfalia Camper pop-top |
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chazz79
Samba Member
Joined: August 15, 2008
Posts: 2268
Location: ohio
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| Posted: Sun Oct 28, 2012 10:40 am Post subject: |
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If done correctly this could be a good rust preventer and cut ross noise considerably. Werksberg is a great plastics supplier but I'm unsure if he has thermo forming capabilities to do this correctly.
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The green monster in bits and peices: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=332556&highlight=green+monster |
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reluctantartist
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Joined: August 13, 2006
Posts: 1927
Location: Bloomington, IN
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| Posted: Sun Oct 28, 2012 8:00 pm Post subject: |
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These guys may have them. They do for the 412.
[url] http://www.lokari.de/epages/62716287.mobile/en_GB/...2242[/url]
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1982 Westy, 1974 412 Variant... Yes, Aircooled's are great! Oh and I do have modern computer controlled vehicles too, but I just don't care about them. |
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tootype2crazy
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Joined: October 08, 2007
Posts: 1276
Location: St. Louis Missouri
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SGKent 
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 41031
Location: Citrus Heights CA (Near Sacramento)
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| Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2012 5:00 pm Post subject: |
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| tootype2crazy wrote: |
| They do have them for the bus! Thanks reluctantartist! |
I think you could use them with the condition they came off once a year to inspect and that there is plenty of breathing space around them. If they are up against the body they will trap water and cause rust. Where does a bus rust? from inner areas that trap water and along seams. Rust doesn't typically occur on painted areas where there is adequate air on both sides (except by the beach).
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dwill49965
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Joined: August 08, 2005
Posts: 1396
Location: Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
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Wildthings
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Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 50350
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| Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2012 7:31 pm Post subject: |
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Amazing they would have them for a 412. The 411/412's actually need them more than most vehicles as they have cavities that hold a lot of dirt and thus rust out badly. I will have to check and see what they have for 72-93 Dodge pickups. A nicely made fiberglass inner fender would eliminate a lot of age issues on those rigs. I will probably make a set if I can find some. |
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tootype2crazy
Samba Member
Joined: October 08, 2007
Posts: 1276
Location: St. Louis Missouri
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| Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 6:42 am Post subject: |
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My main concern is where the rocker comes into the front fender and has all those joints and seams in that little area. It was such a stupid design for VW to make it that way. It's like a rust magnet there. The fenders would solve that problem and cut down significantly on the road noise coming in the cab. I think I'm gonna spring for them and install them when my rust repair is done.
_________________
air-cooled or nothing for me
1978 Sunroof Deluxe Bus (daily driver)
1978 Transporter (mom's, making into a camper)
1970 Single Cab 2.1 turbo/EFI 6 Rib, 78 front beam, vanagon backing plates on rear (project)
2001 GTI VR6 (wife's) |
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