Where to begin a resto?

[Jetfxr69]

Found some old photos of 77 before she was parked. I figure this is around 1992-1995.


Atlanta motor speedway nascar rain delay. Everyone appreciated getting inside and out of the rain for a spell.

Tallulah gorge park in georgia. Great free camping just at the foot of the dam.

Daytona beach, college kids gearing up for dead tour.

[SamboSamba22]

Love the old photos. Keep it up.
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The Bus Barn Ltd. Co.

Oct. ’67 Double Cab (’68 Crew Cab)
[url=http://www.vw-mplate.com/mplate-44412.png]Click to view image[/URL]
March '69 Delivery (Panel Bus)
[url=http://www.vw-mplate.com/mplate-44414.png]Click to view image[/URL]

[Hoody]

I just completely restored all of my interior over the winter. For the shelves of the closet you want to use 1/8 inch Baltic birch. But do not toss your originals. You might be amazed what some gentle sanding with 320 and some cleaning with denatured alcohol can do. The mahogany veneer is extremely thin. Forget about using brushes and oil based urethane. You can restore the wood to as good if not better than new carefully cleaning, sanding, and spraying it with several coats of Rustoleum outdoor water based varathane. This product has almost no VOC’s and when you lightly coat the veneer with several coats you will be amazed at the end result. If you would like to see what I am talking about PM me and I will send you some pics. Also you only want to use Tite Bond 3 wood glue to fix lifting edges and the plastic wood veneer repair. Contact cement will not last and only create a bigger mess. I can also guide you as to how to fix your plastic and rubber trim pieces.

[Jetfxr69]

Thanks hoody. Went down the road you mention about trying to save original shelves. They cleaned up well enough to reuse but the bottom one, that sits on the deck, was rotted beyond repair. The luan i got will work for that one as i only need to increase original undercut at bottom of structure to receive. It will be sitting on deck anyways, so as long as my bottom surface is flat all the way across, im good. Went with the weldwood cement but have been reading in multiple posts that its not the way to go.

It was way too moldy to possibly clean intact, so broke it all down. Will be aweek or so before i can get back to reassembly. Will post finished product.

[Jetfxr69]

Got a bunch more sambo.
Wasnt sure if anyone cared as we all have our stories to tell. Wife actually pulled out the old photo albums. Shes just as jazzed to get the ole girl runnin again. Truth be told, she was the one that bought the 76westy. Decided back then, she (wife), was a keeper.

This is the 76 up in Silverthorne, CO. One of the finest places ive ever stayed. Prob about 93.

Not wife, but very close with all of us back in the day. Cher-bear

[Jetfxr69]

Morgan (dog), jealous. Another girl in my life. Sighhhhh

[notchboy]

Post up some of your after stuff. Headbanger? Going good so far brother.

Will you be planning a final respray of the outside and pick one of the three Marinogelbs?

Keep your eye on the classifieds, make a search once a week under "westfalia". You will find lots of bits and OG pieces as you go along. As you know - BusDepot has lots of the other stuff like replacement laminate pieces and material for seats.

Getting to that point of enjoyment is the best.

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[Jetfxr69]

Getting to that point of enjoyment is the best.

Thats for sure! Will post some pics next week. Workin for a few days right now. Prob wont get to paint this year as there is so much to do to just get it back on the road. The yellow overspray is flaking off and exposing the original paint. Maybe lightly strip what i can for this summer.

[Jetfxr69]

Washed all the covers and foam pad, and am quite pleased at how well they came out, considering all the years of mold, mice, and neglect.

The wife however is unconvinced and thinks they still smell. I tried to explain that they have always smelled like that as I truly believe so. We washed the covers with a lemon juice and vinegar mix, then vinegar and dish soap, and lastly borax and vinegar. Three cycles through the wash and a gentle tumble with dryer sheets, and no good in her opinion.

I decided the only rational fix, other than buying replacements, which I will not do, was to dog em up.

Easy, cheap solution to remove old smell. Just add new smell.

[notchboy]

Yeah these old polyester covers wear like iron. They rarely stain like conventional cotton or even nylon. Shit is tough so when they do get a good clean, results are good. The foam rubber still the original?

They melt and fade. Only thing that gets them. Ill be impressed if you get the dog treatment past the Mrs.
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[ImAddicted]

[notchboy]

[Jetfxr69]

Notchboy. Holy shit thats funny!
There was a day when a spare bedroom in a house we lived in a longtime ago became an engine rebuild area. There was no garage and it needed to be done, soooo.....it never made it to the kitchen however.

They are original pads that I gently washed and then air dried in the basement. They held up really well. I havent done the fold down bench yet as its next to come out, but am pleased so far. Took a cue from eche_bus and ran the pillar remover over all of them. Really spiffed em up.

As far as the Mrs., she loves the bus and she loves her dogs, so parts and farts are part of our lives.

[ImAddicted]

[Jetfxr69]

Imaddicted- how far from a runner is yours? Is it just snowed in for the season, or has it been that way for a bit? I just got word from my farmer friend in georgia that the 66 bug looks better than i remember and that the old 76 camper is still upright. Even found out that i have another bus there that i forgot about...puff,puff,give!

Im thinkin its the yellow one in the back. Dont even remember what year it is. Bonus rig! He will be sending me pics eventually. I think i got it for parts, so most likely 74-78ish.

Making a plan for an april run. The beetle goes to delaware and parts and pieces of buses come home. Based on the kind of projects im seeing on here, maybe one or both of the buses become more than parts.

The bad news is that i have mis-placed my two T3’s!
Thought they were at the farm, but have been told they are not. Theres one in the pic above. Wow those were some fun years....if only i could remember.

Thats a house i lived in that was on an airport. Not near an airport, actually on it! Thats the runway in the top right corner of the pic. Used to drive the bus down the taxiway to work. My dog would wander down to the hangar later on in the morning. He liked to sit at the intersection of the runways and watch the planes go bye. Made for some interesting radio calls.

[Jetfxr69]

Headbanger and snack table finished.

Its nothing like eche’s, but im good with it.

Wardrobe in process now. Hope to reassemble and pull sink out next. Another -10* morning means no rush to pull engine yet.

Wife requested that Jerry moon stay and I like the old Daytona sticker. Days gone bye.

[notchboy]

Nothings like eche’s. You clearly dont have OCD and maybe a couple other compulsive disorders to even come close.

You planning on plugging the speaker holes with speakers?
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[Jetfxr69]

Oh yeah, like to rock out. Or maybe some blues, or maybe some sinatra, or maybe some country, oh fuck it! I like it all, LOUD!

[Jetfxr69]

PEEK-A-BOO

Just got these in from the farm. Looks like a chainsaw or three are going into my toolbox. I think I said there might be tree or two growing up through them. Almost!

[Jetfxr69]

Some other finds.