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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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 Posted: Fri May 25, 2018 4:06 am Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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Now that I’ve tidied up the engine bay wiring and installed my two new AGM batteries I need to take care of them. The dash voltmeter was taking an electrical feed after some other instruments, so had quite a voltage drop so I have rewired it straight from a switched feed from the fuse box. Much better!
I’ve also got hold of a battery monitor/voltmeter which lets me look at the voltage of the chassis and leisure batteries separately (or turn it off). I’ve wired that in so that they both give a good thick feed wire and an accurate voltage.
The final step will be to fit an adjustable voltage regulator, so that the AGM batteries can charge at 14.5v when the bus is running and the trickle charger gives about 13.5v for a maintenance charge.
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1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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Hikelite
Samba Member
Joined: August 31, 2012
Posts: 557
Location: Colville, WA
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| Posted: Sat May 26, 2018 9:52 am Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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Where did you find this fuse block?
I'm adding a leisure battery as well, and would love to have something that looked somewhat original to add the new circuits. It would be nice to only have to carry around one type of fuse too. 
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~Kevin
My 1968 Campmobile |
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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TomWesty
Samba Member
Joined: November 23, 2007
Posts: 3482
Location: Wyoming,USA
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| Posted: Sat May 26, 2018 6:36 pm Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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| mcdonaldneal wrote: |
| Hikelite wrote: |
Where did you find this fuse block?
I'm adding a leisure battery as well, and would love to have something that looked somewhat original to add the new circuits. It would be nice to only have to carry around one type of fuse too. |
It was a lucky find on a popular auction website. Old stock, and actually broken, I needed to repair a crack in the block with glue, but I believe it is very similar to the fuse box used in the Volvo Amazon, so that might be a useful starting point for a search? |
https://www.ipdusa.com/products/8508/110747-fusebox-amazon-pv
And there you have it.... Cool cat and excellent bus!
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If you haven't bled on them, you haven't worked on them.
Visit: www.tomcoryell.com and check out my music! |
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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| Posted: Sun May 27, 2018 2:23 pm Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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Wow. What a fantastic weekend!
The photos make it look like fantastic weather, but there was a layer of low mist that kept things pretty cool. Last night as we went to bed it was really cold, I had six layers on and I was glad of the new 100Ah leisure battery because we ran a 200w heater for an hour at bedtime and a couple of hours in the morning!
We met up with some good friends, and my friend with the barn find '74 Beetle won a prize for the best original aircooled vehicle! I didn't get pictures for the Samba though, as I was shooting print film on an old SLR.
Some gorgeous vehicles at the show...
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1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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| Posted: Mon May 28, 2018 11:28 pm Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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I might be going totally overboard with my battery management precautions, but I was so disappointed that my leisure and chassis batteries had only lasted 3-4 years that I'm determined for that not to happen again!
The switchable voltage monitor on the dash shelf is wired as close to each battery as possible. Compared with voltmeter readings at the actual batteries, the leisure battery reading is spot on and the chassis battery is 0.1v low (probably a voltage drop through the fuse box). So, accurate enough.
As you know, I've now got a trickle charger hard wired in, so the batteries can stay on a 13.5 float charge.
I'm not convinced I did the right thing, installing AGM (absorbed glass mat) leisure and main batteries, but I've done it, and I was glad of it when we had to use the 12v heater for a few hours over the weekend! The issue is that they should really have a higher charging voltage (ideally 14.5v) when recharging after use, otherwise they don't reach a full state of charge.
I knew my stock alternator/mechanical voltage regulator puts out nothing like that voltage, so I bought an (American made!) solid state adjustable VR for about £20 and I expected to have a rewiring job on my hands to fit it, but it couldn't have been easier!
I went for a test run with the stock setup and confirmed that the VR was at 13.8v. This dropped to 13.5v at idle. Not too bad, but not enough for the new, fancy batteries!
Swapping over to the new VR was a piece of cake, the plug connector from the alternator leads just fits right in (I had checked the terminal designations matched up beforehand!) I have temporarily mounted it on a spare screw in the engine bay, so I could reach the blue voltage adjustment screw. It will mount on the same screws as the original VR.
Straight away, the voltage was up to 14.0v when running, and a tiny adjustment of the sensitive blue screw brought it up to 14.3v. You can see that my aftermarket Dashboard VDO voltmeter is more or less accurate now I've wired it to the fuse box (switched feed).
I think I will leave it there, as there is the possibility of overcharging and overheating these sealed batteries if the voltage stays too high on a long journey, so 14.3v is a compromise. I guess on a big road trip, I could dial back the voltage to avoid this (actually, the voltage drops to 13.8v when you turn the radio and lights on, so it might not be an issue).
Any comments from actual electrical experts would be more than welcome!
_________________
1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper
Stop dead photo links! Post photos to The Samba Gallery! |
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furgo
Samba Member
Joined: September 06, 2016
Posts: 944
Location: Southern Germany
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| Posted: Tue May 29, 2018 12:44 am Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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Good work, thanks for sharing this.
You might want to put a drop of wax or your favourite removable chemical compound on the dial of the VR's potentiometer. That will prevent it from varying the adjustment with vibration.
You might also have mentioned this, but I might have missed it, sorry: when you got your new electronic VR, why did you go for a variable output regulator instead of a fixed one?
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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| Posted: Tue May 29, 2018 2:50 am Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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| furgo wrote: |
Good work, thanks for sharing this.
You might want to put a drop of wax or your favourite removable chemical compound on the dial of the VR's potentiometer. That will prevent it from varying the adjustment with vibration.
You might also have mentioned this, but I might have missed it, sorry: when you got your new electronic VR, why did you go for a variable output regulator instead of a fixed one? |
Thanks. There is a degree of stiffness in the VR adjustment, so I don’t think it will need locking with wax. Hopefully I can keep an eye on the voltage anyway.
The reason for the variable output is to give the optimum voltage for charging the AGM batteries, which need a higher voltage than a standard battery (14.5-14.8 ideally). The reason I’ve stopped at 14.3 is that if you continue to charge at the higher voltage there is a risk of overheating the battery. I get the feeling this is a theoretical risk unless the voltage continues for very many hours, but I’ll keep it conservative until I know better!
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1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper
Stop dead photo links! Post photos to The Samba Gallery! |
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Hikelite
Samba Member
Joined: August 31, 2012
Posts: 557
Location: Colville, WA
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| Posted: Tue May 29, 2018 8:32 am Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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| TomWesty wrote: |
| mcdonaldneal wrote: |
| Hikelite wrote: |
Where did you find this fuse block?
I'm adding a leisure battery as well, and would love to have something that looked somewhat original to add the new circuits. It would be nice to only have to carry around one type of fuse too. |
It was a lucky find on a popular auction website. Old stock, and actually broken, I needed to repair a crack in the block with glue, but I believe it is very similar to the fuse box used in the Volvo Amazon, so that might be a useful starting point for a search? |
https://www.ipdusa.com/products/8508/110747-fusebox-amazon-pv
And there you have it.... Cool cat and excellent bus! |
In my searching I did find the one for the Volvo. It has that 4th spot for the stubby fuse though. I also like the one Neal found because of the clear cover. Makes it easier to see if a fuse is blown.
I'll keep looking. I had assumed I would install something with blade fuses, but yours looks so original. I'm in no hurry. I'll find one now that I know they are out there. I wonder what it was originally made for? Might help me find one if I knew what it was from. Any part numbers?
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~Kevin
My 1968 Campmobile |
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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| Posted: Tue May 29, 2018 11:43 am Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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| Hikelite wrote: |
| TomWesty wrote: |
| mcdonaldneal wrote: |
| Hikelite wrote: |
Where did you find this fuse block?
I'm adding a leisure battery as well, and would love to have something that looked somewhat original to add the new circuits. It would be nice to only have to carry around one type of fuse too. |
It was a lucky find on a popular auction website. Old stock, and actually broken, I needed to repair a crack in the block with glue, but I believe it is very similar to the fuse box used in the Volvo Amazon, so that might be a useful starting point for a search? |
https://www.ipdusa.com/products/8508/110747-fusebox-amazon-pv
And there you have it.... Cool cat and excellent bus! |
In my searching I did find the one for the Volvo. It has that 4th spot for the stubby fuse though. I also like the one Neal found because of the clear cover. Makes it easier to see if a fuse is blown.
I'll keep looking. I had assumed I would install something with blade fuses, but yours looks so original. I'm in no hurry. I'll find one now that I know they are out there. I wonder what it was originally made for? Might help me find one if I knew what it was from. Any part numbers? |
I know I got lucky finding the fuse box, I'll attach the photos from the EBay listing, the manufacturers logo might help your search!
I did read somewhere that you can modify a blown 'stubby' fuse by bending a wiggle in the metal part of a normal torpedo fuse (of the required blow current) and fitting it onto the stubby fuse body IYSWIM...
Here it is!
Stubby fuse hack, two methods!
_________________
1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper
Stop dead photo links! Post photos to The Samba Gallery! |
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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| Posted: Tue May 29, 2018 1:00 pm Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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A Samba member had messaged me about the under dash shelves we have in the Kombi, so I though I'd put the info in a post and I can link to it for him.
They were installed by the PO, but they are very sturdy, well positioned so that I never clatter my legs on them, although I'm 6'3"! They're basically two metal frames each side of the bus, welded from angled steel, with a hardboard base, and covered with padded vinyl.
There are four solid attachment points: two screws near the door and two bolts near and on the handbrake frame (the front one is actually stripped, but this doesn't seem to affect the strength much!)
_________________
1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper
Stop dead photo links! Post photos to The Samba Gallery! |
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2018 6:29 am Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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I had a bit of time on my hands today, so I installed the new Voltage regulator into its correct location using the old screws. I also wanted to rewire the towbar electrics, which we use for the bike rack (the old 'splices' are just twisted wire and nasty electrical tape). Unfortunately, the electrical supply shop has sent me the wrong length of 7core cable, so I'll have to put that on hold.
That did give me the chance of a vanity project, which was to fit two 12v LED strip light into the engine bay! I'm fed up of constantly having to wear a head torch and these cheap lights secure with a screw and a magnet, and I've wired in to the leisure battery fuse box.
It's sunny today, so you don't get the full effect, but I love them already!!
What a view, I might have to clean up the grime that's now visible!
_________________
1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper
Stop dead photo links! Post photos to The Samba Gallery! |
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1970fun
Samba Member
Joined: August 24, 2008
Posts: 209
Location: Holland
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2018 12:16 pm Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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| Great work on the electrics Phil! |
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mcdonaldneal
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Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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1970fun
Samba Member
Joined: August 24, 2008
Posts: 209
Location: Holland
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| Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2018 10:12 pm Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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| mcdonaldneal wrote: |
| 1970fun wrote: |
| Great work on the electrics Phil! |
Cheers Harry! It's seeing a bus like yours that gives me something to aspire to!
I was remembering our trip to the Netherlands this time last year. Hopefully, we'll be able to repeat it sometime (not this year though!) |
Shame you didn’t come this month of may as it was the warnest and sunniest may in 300 years.
But the forecast still looks good so who knows if june brakes a record too would be nice as we are going to this show in Germany https://www.midsummerfestival.de |
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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mcdonaldneal
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2013
Posts: 2648
Location: Gullane, Scotland
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| Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2018 1:21 pm Post subject: Re: 'Let's Go! Scotland-Croatia and onwards in our Kombi!' |
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I’ve had a couple of weeks sorting out two main issues. The rusted strip of paintwork at the roofline has taken a long time to finish but ended up with grinding, POR15, filler, white primer, matched orange paint and a clear vinyl strip over the top . It’s an awkward area and I’m not skilled in paintwork, but I’m fairly happy with the result and by definition it’s virtually invisible if you’re under 6’ tall!
The second issue was a decision that my hot running issue was due to carb jetting and lean running. It’s detailed in the thread here, but I’m happy that I’ve got it sorted for the time being!
PDSIT carbs in 2.0l engine
Anyway! Once I’d finished all of that, I took the Kombi to a 4wd experience that I had been given as a present (so that I could check the wideband readings!) and I extended the day into a scenic trip through the local countryside.
It is a beautiful evening, and I’m now sat drinking coffee on a sunny hilltop!
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1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper
Stop dead photo links! Post photos to The Samba Gallery! |
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