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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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 Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:15 pm Post subject: My '86 Weekender, the "HonoWooWoo!" |
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Some of you may remember my effort earlier at restoring my '86 Weekender. I call it the HonoWooWoo!, because, of course, the upholstery fabric is, uh, rather Polynesian. Anyway, I caught a raft of abuse about the colors, especially against the yellowish plastic wall panels.
Well, I sold the 'Santa Fe' edition last week and got back to the weekender. I had taken the panels out and we sprayed them with a liquid vinyl paint to better match the color scheme. Then, I got a vinyl insert in the kick panel under the rear seat of the same as the seat backs and sides. Next, I put in a 'bamboo' floor that blended it all together a little more. I'm working on new custom curtains, but here's the little hula darlin' as she wiggles today:
First a 'before' of the rear floor:
And, finished:
AND, everyone's favorite parts supplier, Van Cafe, is famous for putting cookies in their shipments and doing art on the outside of the boxes. The last order I made, I wrote in the message box that my Down syndrome son, Kit, likes the Hulk. This is the box my parts came in!! Even the UPS guy was amazed; I mean, who does this kind of thing today? Thanks, Van Cafe, you guys are the HULKING BEST!javascript:emoticon(' ')
Uncle Lon |
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Steelhead
Samba Member
Joined: February 25, 2007
Posts: 1791
Location: Kentfield, CA
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:29 pm Post subject: |
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Van looks great and Van-Cafe remains awesome.
_________________
'77 Bay Window / '89 Caratsburg (aka. the Stormtrooper) |
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:41 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks, Steelhead! Still a ways to go yet. New tent, new stereo, finish the cracked dash repair, high efficiency fridge with solar panel, and a whole body reshoot on the paint. Plus, there's the little 'nice' things that they put on the Wolfsburg Edition that now don't work no more and are so rare, nobody makes replacements. Like the power mirrors, speed control, light dimmer switch...
Uncle Lon |
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geo_tonz
Samba Member
Joined: August 01, 2012
Posts: 1472
Location: Courtenay, BC, CANADA
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:45 pm Post subject: |
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Welcome back! You were pretty prolific for a while there and then you seemed to vanish after a few unpleasant post directed at you. The Samba needs interesting characters!
Van does look great...not my choice in upholstery, but it works, and does look cool. Go full Tiki! Gas-powered blender for the drinks too! Actually the more I stare at it, the more I like it...
Very cool Van Cafe pic too!
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 "Ron Burgundy": 1991 Vanagon Multivan (Weekender) 2.1L Auto - Driver/Camper |
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SCM
Samba Member
Joined: January 26, 2011
Posts: 3115
Location: Bozeman MT
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:47 pm Post subject: |
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I LOVE the floor! Is it wooden tile or some sort of linoleum type of thing?
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'91 Westfalia GL Automatic (GTA "Turbo" Rebuild w/Peloquin) and 2.3L GoWesty Engine |
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Ahwahnee
Samba Member
Joined: June 05, 2010
Posts: 9800
Location: Mt Lemmon, AZ
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:53 pm Post subject: |
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| I swear we had that same upholstery fabric on a sofa and chair when I was a kid in the 50s. Thought it was great then (I was about 5 years old) still kinda like it. |
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:56 pm Post subject: |
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The floor is self-stick vinyl tiles in a bamboo pattern. Easy peasy! And, the color really does magic in making the colors blend, so I got lucky (again).
And thanks for the 'welcome back', my friend. I just had other things to do, but like I said to some other members, it's bad enough to have someone complain about your posts, but it really smarts when you realize they have a point! (' ')
I sold the Santa Fe last week so quickly it scared me and I got a lot of calls on the other two I'm still finishing. I now have guys waiting to see them and I have to actually WORK again! Of course, Jazzydog keeps wanting to just go for a ride...
Uncle Lon |
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 5:01 pm Post subject: |
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| Ahwahnee wrote: |
| I swear we had that same upholstery fabric on a sofa and chair when I was a kid in the 50s. Thought it was great then (I was about 5 years old) still kinda like it. |
Yeah, yeah, I had quite a few comments about the fond memories of throwing up on that fabric. I've got to say, however, when I first put in the rear seat and saw it against the yellowish panels, Jazzydog squealed like she had been shot and tore a new hole in the screen door.
But I think I got a handle on the color situation finally. The bamboo helps, as does the vinyl fabric panels. I think I'll put them in the sides of the jump seat as well.
Uncle Lon |
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photogdave
Samba Member
Joined: April 05, 2004
Posts: 3052
Location: Vancouver Island, B.C.
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 5:27 pm Post subject: |
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| photogdave wrote: |
I hate weekender posts! Makes me want a weekender soooo bad!  |
Hiya, Dave! I planned to keep this weekender for myself. The layout just suits the way I travel. A lift-out, top-loading fridge, a little table with a gas stove top, and I'm in business. I never used to cook in my full camper Westies anyway, and now that I'm, uh, well, old and lazy, I usually just pick up a bucket of chicken and a cold six pack of survival beverage. Pic-nic and a nap - the secret to life on the road! |
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 7:30 pm Post subject: |
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Just so nobody thinks me and Jazzydog have been slacking off all spring. I did get a new toy and have been alternating it as my daily driver along with the Westies I'm still working on. It's a 1981 Mercedes 240D. Won't win any drag races, but it absolutely flies me over the passes on my monthly trips to Seattle and gets 30 mpg at 70 all day long. There's hardly a mark on it, as the owner who bought it new 33 years ago kept it garaged and only the MB dealership touched it. The A/C will freeze you, the cruise control works; even the clock keeps better time than my cheap watch. I swear, I love this little thing better'n a new bird dog puppy or a girlfriend with freckles!
Yeah, I know it's not a Westy, but still, I gotta brag on it a bit, and it is a close cousin.
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TequilaSunSet
Samba Member
Joined: May 30, 2012
Posts: 2109
Location: Philippines
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 7:54 pm Post subject: |
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I dig that interior! @ thumbs up for VC to... cool dudes!
_________________
Don't harsh my mellow...
1985 Hightower Vanagon 1.8T- Gone
1972 Panel Bus- Gone
1967 Bug- Gone
1964 Euro Sunroof Bug- Gone
1969/72/63 Sunroof Bug- Gone
1975 Brazilian Bug in the Philippines 🇵🇭- New to me |
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 8:02 pm Post subject: |
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| TequilaSunSet wrote: |
| I dig that interior! @ thumbs up for VC to... cool dudes! |
Thanks, man! The material is an outdoor furniture fabric, so I hope it will be somewhat more resistant to sun fading and the inevitable spill. It even looks a little better than the photos show.
And the guy at Van Cafe who puts the art on the boxes has some serious brownie points at that great Vanagon garage in the sky. Kit is still smiling about the Hulk drawing! He's 37 and almost blind now, and he's never had the ability to speak, but he knows - somehow he just knows!
Uncle Lon |
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Signalocity
Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2012
Posts: 573
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 8:10 pm Post subject: |
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| That is awesome, all of it! ^5 |
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 8:27 pm Post subject: |
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| Signalocity wrote: |
| That is awesome, all of it! ^5 |
Thanks! Believe it or not, this is not as wild as my Santa Fe model that I just sold. I posted a lot of photos of it earlier, but here's one when it was almost finished, with the southwest interior that I just loved!
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dobryan
Samba Member
Joined: March 24, 2006
Posts: 16503
Location: Brookeville, MD
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| Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2014 6:00 am Post subject: |
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| Uncle Lon wrote: |
| Signalocity wrote: |
| That is awesome, all of it! ^5 |
Thanks! Believe it or not, this is not as wild as my Santa Fe model that I just sold. I posted a lot of photos of it earlier, but here's one when it was almost finished, with the southwest interior that I just loved!
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I'm not usually a fan of the brown interiors (just my personal preference) but I really LIKE how that looks.
And welcome back.....
_________________
Dave O
'87 Westy w/ 2002 Subaru EJ25 and Peloquin TBD
"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive." Robert Louis Stevenson
MD>Canada>AK>WA>OR>CA>AZ>UT>WY>SD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=620646
Building a bus for travel in Europe (euroBus)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=695371
The Western Syncro build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=746794 |
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2014 6:34 am Post subject: |
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| dobryan wrote: |
I'm not usually a fan of the brown interiors (just my personal preference) but I really LIKE how that looks.
And welcome back..... |
Thanks for the welcome, Dave! This interior had quite a bit of earth tones of green, blue and the brown as well as the dark brown of the exterior. I even finished it off with bright green curtains, which, believe it or not, really looked great.
U.L. |
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61Scout
Samba Member
Joined: November 06, 2011
Posts: 1297
Location: Shoreline/Yakima WA
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Uncle Lon
Samba Member
Joined: November 26, 2013
Posts: 194
Location: Idaho
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| Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2014 3:07 pm Post subject: |
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| 61Scout wrote: |
Ah those old Mercedes were built like tanks! Superb craftsmanship for their time. Looks like you found a keeper, nice find. I know of a guy who has one (not nearly as nice as yours) but he's got 420K miles on the thing and it's still going. Good to see you back around here, UL!
Kevin |
Thanks, Kevin! I am really getting close on the last two Westies I am restoring, so maybe I can post some threads about things like rattle can paint jobs and such. Actually, I'm putting in high-efficiency fridges with solar chargers in both of them, new tents, new stereos and a few other little things. Then, each will get a complete reshoot on the paint. I think I'm about to win my fight with the cracked dash, so I'll put up a thread about that pretty soon. (If I survive...)
As for the 240D, it's a darlin'. It has 190K miles on it but purrs like a cat. The old guy who owned it for 33 years just took immaculate care of it and I got a stack of receipts for normal maintenance as well as upgrade things like new glow plugs, suspension replacements and an A/C rebuild. The driver's seat is torn, but I have the material on order, so that will be taken care of shortly. I put some Bilstein performance shocks on it to take out some of the boatiness, but these old gals are heavy and made to be comfy. I keep it waxed up and it does turn heads wherever I take her.
U.L. |
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djkeev
Samba Moderator
Joined: September 30, 2007
Posts: 32598
Location: Reading Pennsylvania
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