New to Ghias and I'm very excited!

[kingkarmann]

Kent, by the time you finish the refresh you're gonna stand back and decide to keep her.
Great work
Oh, and just spring for the proper dash removal tool dammit!
_________________
"Depression is a malfunction of the instrument we use to determine reality.”

Mike Gerson

What is your "Bespoke Reality"?

[kiwighia68]

[67 Florida Deluxe]

[iowegian]

[67 Florida Deluxe]

Okay, so needle nosed pliers, even my smallest ones won't fit the slots of the wiper switch and headlight switch escutcheons. So one of the tools suggested a couple of pages ago will be on order!
_________________
-Kent (BaT "daleallen")

OG member of the '67 Posse

A few of my toys, past and present
'56 Oval, '66 KG Conv't, '67 21-Window, '67 Bug, '79 SuperVert, '55 Pre-A Continental

[Trylon]

Ha!
_________________
1973 Porsche 914 2.0
1959 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia
1979 Volkswagen Rabbit
1973 Volkswagen Bus
1970 MGB-GT
1962 Oldsmobile Jetfire

More tomfoolery on
The Karmann Ghia Fever YouTube Channel!

[67 Florida Deluxe]

[67 Florida Deluxe]

[Trylon]

AND you are making up some nice espresso!

Bet your significant other enjoys the 12v battery on the marble top counter.
_________________
1973 Porsche 914 2.0
1959 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia
1979 Volkswagen Rabbit
1973 Volkswagen Bus
1970 MGB-GT
1962 Oldsmobile Jetfire

More tomfoolery on
The Karmann Ghia Fever YouTube Channel!

[sputnick60]

[67 Florida Deluxe]

As I am systematically going through the cars in my proverbial "stable" and attending to each one's needs through completion (versus many unfinished projects sitting for long periods of time any more), I made some more progress in the cleaning/detailing, etc. efforts of the 'vert last week and the weekend.

I already removed, disassembled, cleaned up and got the clock functional again by reconnecting the solder fuse. It keeps good time for several days at a time.

I removed the speedometer and sent it off to North Hollywood Speedometer to get cleaned up, including the INSIDE of the glass lens, and replacing the plastic lenses for the turn signal indicator, oil and generator indicator lights.

The chrome surrounds for the clock and speedometer were removed from the dash and polished up, too.

The fuel gauge was removed and I cleaned/polished the chrome bezel and plastic lens. I also oiled the cable to ensure smooth, easy operation of the needle.

The horn ring shined up like brand new with only tiny pitting in a couple places if you look with a jewelers glass. I also polished the horn contact ring with Brasso to the luster of a brand new penny!

Cleaned/polished the steering wheel and it looks amazing. It has zero cracks or blemishes.

My Sapphire IV 6v AM/FM radio is at Richard Langenwalter's and it's now fixed and operating properly. He switched it on when I was on the phone with him yesterday and is sounds great! And it's still 6v. It's the top radio and I have the correct faceplate for my KG. I think having the clock AND this 1966-only AM/FM radio (which is rare as hen's lips) working properly is so friggin' cool!

The lock for the glove compartment didn't work with the key or any of the spare keys, despite the key code matching the tumbler code. I removed the lock cylinder and carefully withdrew the tumbler. I noted that one of the wafers slightly protruded maybe a 32nd of an inch, maybe even less, but enough to impede the rotation of the tumbler in the cylinder. With the key in place, I carefully filed down the tiny part of the wafer that protruded, cleaned it up, re-greased the tumbler and wafers, and then reinstalled the tumbler into the cylinder. It operated with each key perfectly. Now, the door key operates the ignition, trunk lock and glove compartment lock, as originally designed.

I found a NOS Porsche 356/KG ashtray in Poland and installed that, eliminating some of the pits on the original ash tray.

I removed the cigarette lighter, took it apart and cleaned it all up including the chrome bits and the knob. Looks new! I need to reconnect the hot lead to see if it will work.

While the radio, speedometer, clock, and fuel gauge are out, I am cleaning up the back side of the instrument panel and trunk floor under these components and glove compartment liner. Years of dust and dirt! I'm also wiping down all the wires, cleaning the connections and replacing all the instrument bulbs.

Also while the instruments are removed, I polished up the original paint on the dash. The knobs for the headlights and wipers are now cleaned and I will be cleaning the escutcheons tomorrow.

The emergency lights switch had some kind of paint or shmutz imbedded in part of the ribbed part. I carefully used an exacto knife to clear out each groove of the ribbed part. It came out really well!

Details, details, but it will look so good when it's all done! And everything in the interior is original except for the ash tray.

More progress reports to come, and detailed photos
_________________
-Kent (BaT "daleallen")

OG member of the '67 Posse

A few of my toys, past and present
'56 Oval, '66 KG Conv't, '67 21-Window, '67 Bug, '79 SuperVert, '55 Pre-A Continental

[67 Florida Deluxe]

Thanks for the replies. I have a pair of slim needle nose pliers that I will try using a small crescent wrench for twisting torque as I hold the pliers in place. (And pray for no slippage!! )

@ Nicholas, if only ALL my original trim pieces look as nice as those! I've tried to cobble together some sets/pieces from other cars to send to Paul's. Hopefully, they still do this type of work.
_________________
-Kent (BaT "daleallen")

OG member of the '67 Posse

A few of my toys, past and present
'56 Oval, '66 KG Conv't, '67 21-Window, '67 Bug, '79 SuperVert, '55 Pre-A Continental

[sputnick60]

[kingkarmann]

[c21darrel]

I looked around the garage for a while and then with a cut off wheel and a file cobbled together this one, works just fine.

_________________
GhiaBuild
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=481184
1967 DC build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=693583&highlight=67+dc
Stop dead photo links! Post your photos to The Samba Gallery!

[kingkarmann]

[rcooled]

I've always used some small needle-nose pliers to remove/install those escutcheons. Seems to work just fine...
_________________
'63 Ragtop (current)
'65 Ghia coupe (totaled)
'67 Ghia convertible (current)
'69.5 Ghia convertible and
'62, '63, '65, '69 Bugs (all long gone)

[Karmann Gheezer]

This may not help much but I've had this Mac S193 tool for over 30 years. I purchased it specifically for removing escuteons on my Ghia's dash and it works perfectly. Unfortunately searching the internet didn't provide any information if they are still available. Most likely discontinued but maybe a local Mac Tool distributor might be of help locating one. Good luck.

_________________

[sputnick60]

Look like this..

_________________
'66 Karmann Ghia Cabriolet...
'65 Porsche 356C Coupe...
2005 Mecedes Benz C180 Kompressor Estate
Stop dead photo links! Post your photos to The Samba Gallery!

[kingkarmann]