jjwebb123 wrote:nice work mate,i soo want to learn how to do all that stuff myself.
Get yourself a grinder, a welder and some metal and get into it! This is the first time I've done metalwork on a car and I'm just learning as I go. Practice makes perfect as they say!
Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
This chassis is gonna be as strong as a mofo! Good on ya bro!
(ô_!_/ô) (ô_!_/ô)
69' baja: kombi box, thing spindles, irs, disc front, type 3 rear drums, 2 inch lift kit, 31x10 rears. 👍
New engine in process: 94mm p&bs, 74mm C/w chomol Crank, 35.5x39 SP heads, turbo. Wierd combo, hopeful torque monsta!
Thanks for all the positive comments everyone, the only reason I keep this diary is for the feedback from other people.
Thoughts, ideas, criticisms, keep 'em coming!
Smiley
If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
what are u using to smooth back the welds? a flap disk?
chippy wrote:what are u using to smooth back the welds? a flap disk?
Usually, it gives a very nice finish
🙂
Did a little bit for a few hours tonight.
Tackled the battery tray and hold down area.
When I rolled my last Baja the loops that the strap holding the battery box go under snapped. Probably cause they where dodgy plastic ones. Thankfully the positive and negative cables kept the battery under the back seat.
I wanted the new system to be simple and strong, and I definitely wanted better mounts for the strap!!
This is the old battery box, I'm going to be reusing to so I made all the mounts the right size for it.
I cut four pieces of angle and rounded all the edges and smoothed them off. One for each corner to stop the box sliding back and forward or side to side.
Tacked into place then checked the box for final fit before welding.
I then made two little loops up to run the strapping under to securely hold the box down against the pan. I spent a while getting all the inside edges round and smooth to prevent chaffing or wearing the strap.
That's all for now folks. Hopefully be more tomorrow, I want to keep the progress as regular as I can now.
Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
Looking very good, if you want even nicer welds get some high quality wire like lincon or like it, your welds are really nice and the better wire just makes em look even better and stronger.
71-BEETLE-SEDAN wrote:Looking very good, if you want even nicer welds get some high quality wire like lincon or like it, your welds are really nice and the better wire just makes em look even better and stronger.
Thanks for the advice. I'm still running the original spool that came with the welder, so who knows what brand that is. Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
What are you going to paint the chassis with ?
Sharpbuilt V2, EJ25, Subaru 5 Speed, Falcon rear discs, Heater & A/C, Rack Steering
nice work smiley. I still welding with stick, one day I will upgrade to MIG. Im super impressed with the quality of your work ... look fwd to seeing the progess.
Cheers Todd 😀
BlueV2 wrote:What are you going to paint the chassis with ?
POR15, I have a litre of it sitting here just waiting.
chippy wrote:nice work smiley. I still welding with stick, one day I will upgrade to MIG. Im super impressed with the quality of your work ... look fwd to seeing the progess.
Cheers Todd 😀
Thanks for the kind words.
The welds aren't really that great, the actual welds don't do the pictures justice
😂
Notice I take all the picture from a long way away, that's to mask the shoddiness!!
If you came and had a look you would see what I mean, especially where I welded to the galvanised unistrut, was a PITA.
A small update, every bit helps!! I try to do something everyday.
I got a few things from work today to put the last hold down on the fuel line inside the tunnel, just under where the shifter rod linkage is.
I got a rubber coated P-clamp the right size for my fuel line and cut a bolt down so the thread left on it was just shorter than the depth of a nut.
Welded the nut inside the tunnel, bit of Loctite and a spanner, HEY PERSTO!! your fuel line is clamped.
I also drilled the mounting holes for the brake master cylinder and marked out where the hole for the pushrod has to go. I have to buy a hole saw the right size to finish this off.
Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
Do you work for CAT?
65 Meyers Manx
68 Country Buggy (KO 367)
68 Country Buggy (KO 669)
68 Country Buggy (KO 789)
68 Country Buggy (KO 815)
68 Baja Bug
76 Baja Kombi Twincab
Love those CAT bolts mate....been a while since I spun those for a living!! 😂
You are really doing a great job mate, love the battery brackets. 👍
Wouldn't the tool store at your work have a hole saw that you could borrow for the master cylinder hole? Just a thought 😀
Keep up the steady progress mate!
Scarab (aka: Paul)
11CAB wrote:Do you work for CAT?
I don't directly work for CAT. I work for a CAT dealership, Hastings Deering. They cover Queensland, NT, PNG and Soloman Islands.
Scarab wrote:Wouldn't the tool store at your work have a hole saw that you could borrow for the master cylinder hole? Just a thought 😀
That's I great idea, I hadn't even thought of it.
Thanks Paul!!
Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
The other night I borrowed a hole saw from work and marked out and cut the M/C hole.
These are the holes that were left after I cut the heater tubes out from under the backseat area.
This is a section of heater tube that I cut from the wrecked car to make patches for the holes. I'm also going to use it to patch the vent holes in the front footwells.
New metal cut to shape.
Welded in place.
And smoothed off.
Then it decided to start raining before I could tackle the other side so I retreated into the carport and did some more on the pan.
Where the new framehead has been welded on, the new metal has covered over the forward pedal assembly holes on both sides.
I measured to where the holes are and drilled the top layer of metal to re-expose the threaded holes. I also ran a tap through them all to ensure the threads were nice and clean.
Yesterday I removed the pedals from the bent floorpan and started cleaning up bolts and the like. I took some of the cover and mounting plates to work to sandblast today. Will pull the assembly apart completely tomorrow for a good clean up and respray.
While I had everything there I trial mounted the pedals in place. The travel stop (little hook) on the bottom of the brake pedal was knocking on the floor as the pedal was moved through it's motion. So I had to lift the assembly up slightly. The factory flloorpans have a cross brace that runs from the tunnel to the top right corner of the floorpan under the pedals to give them support. This is what the bolts go down through. I was planning on welding one in so I can drill and tap for the mount holes. It'll now also lift the end of the pedal assembly up slightly so the brake no longer catches.
Trying the pedals in the pan.
Flattening the checks off the checkerplate so the plate will mount flush.
Plate cut to size and sitting in plate.
Fully welded.
Can't wait to get stuck back in tomorrow, the pan is starting to get very close to paint.
Smiley 🙂
If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
Thats brilliant mate....what a great idea to borrow a hole saw from work!!....who would have thought of such a thing? 😁
Glad it worked for you Smiley.....its looking great!! Bring on that POR15!!
Paul
Scarab wrote:Thats brilliant mate....what a great idea to borrow a hole saw from work!!....who would have thought of such a thing? 😁
Glad it worked for you Smiley.....its looking great!! Bring on that POR15!!
Paul
Still a little to go yet. Have to drill all the body mount holes in the side rails, drill the holes where the seat frames will bolt down, slightly enlarge the outside hole where the the M/C bolts up, drill and tap holes for the pedal mounts, and position and drill holes for the accelerator pedal. Then find a bolt to go in all the threads to prevent paint from clogging them, then wire buff and paint. That's the plan for tomorrow.
I wish it would stop raining.
And thanks for your idea on the hole saw Paul.
😎
Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
Hopefully not but that plate you welded on for the pedal mount near the throttle pedal usually goes underneath the floor and in the position you have it above the floor layer i suspect you may force a bend into the the hole arangement
Don't let body work get in the way of real suspension travel
OZ Towdster wrote:Hopefully not but that plate you welded on for the pedal mount near the throttle pedal usually goes underneath the floor and in the position you have it above the floor layer i suspect you may force a bend into the the hole arangement
You's such a party pooper sometimes Andrew!
I'll remount the pedals and check for any problems, I can always modify the bracket on the pedal assembly or grind that plate down a bit.
Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
Looked every bit as good in person, good effort fella. Cheers for yesterday, i hope to fit one today and see of it cured the problem..
Hows the weather? raining a heap here and the winds a bit gusty but not to bad. We've missed the worst of it for sure(unless the bastard turns round!) they were saying it mite hit ur way ,any dramas?
steff.............
Life with out a v-dub is no life at all!!!!!
It's raining a little but not too much, it's no where near as windy as it was yesterday. I was looking on the website earlier and it's down to a category 1, tracking west and very slightly north. On the map it looks like it went straight up the main street of Proserpine. It was raining heavy early this morning but is dying off quite a bit now.
I just want it to piss off so i can do that body!
Hope all goes well with the steering boxes, let me know, I'm keen to see if it works.
I suppose I had better go and get to work.
Well it seems Andrew was right about the pedals (jinxed me)
They were up too much on the side where I welded the plate in.
Easily fixed though.
This is the mounting plate that slots onto the far most RHS on the pedal assembly.
I cut it in half then slotted the piece onto the end of the shaft. Set the pedals at the right height so they were level and free to pivot. Then I held the other half in place and tacked. Pulled it off and welded it up, fits like a dream!
I drilled and tapped holes for this mount plate and drilled the holes for where the accelerator pedal mounts down.
Flipped the pan and realised I hadn't welded the outside of the fill plate that I made for the back of the floorpan. Got this sorted and cleaned up next.
At the front where the unistrut joins the framehead it hangs down quite a bit. This is because I got one size larger then I needed. Not a problem though, I just cut them off at an angle and made up a pair of mini skid plates which I welded on.
Last thing I did was drill all the body mount holes in the side rails on the pan.
I'm now happy to report that the floorpan is complete!!!
Just need a tidy up with the flapper wheel and a wire wheel and it'll be ready for some shiny black coats of POR15 goodness!!
Now to the body!
Smiley 🙂
If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
looks great mate!
Paul
I sandblasted most of the pedal assembly pieces at work today. When I got home I hung them up and primer them.
I also picked up a new drivers side pillar and front quarter on the way home from my local VW supplier.
Smiley 🙂
If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
hey mate, how did you find using the rust repair pillar sections??? I had a bit of a dig around mine and I reckon I'm in the same boat!! Where did you pick yours up from?? Not a lot of options in Cairns!! Want to make sure they are ok before ordering them up, people don't appreciate parts being sent back on freight!!
Cheers
Chris
1958 Beetle (currently restoring)
Mk5 Golf Pacific TDi
I was there when smiley fitted his passengers side repair panel it seamed to fit really well and suprisingly we got it to be just right in the first attempt for the hinge loaction which is no mean feet when you don't have the 3 way jig .
As for where to get em , Mick motors is your man
Don't let body work get in the way of real suspension travel
Great job smileyman. 👍
Wish my shoddy welds looked as good as your shoddy welds !!😊
Sharpbuilt V2, EJ25, Subaru 5 Speed, Falcon rear discs, Heater & A/C, Rack Steering
What Andrew has said above is true. The passengers side fit incredibly well and one the first go too! The drivers side one in the picture above was bought from North Rocky Mechanical, a local mechanic that keeps a lot of Volksie parts. I have yet to see how it fits. I spent yesterday afternoon cutting out the old pillar and quarter. It was a lot worst underneath than I was expecting. If my internet is working again tonight there will be pictures. I know how much everyone loves pictures!
Just another small thing. Turns out the pan isn't quite ready for paint yet. Just have to sort out seat mounts and seatbelt ankorage plates. I knew that I would forget something!
BlueV2 wrote:Great job smileyman. 👍 Wish my shoddy welds looked as good as your shoddy welds !!😊
Thanks for the kind words BlueV2!
I promised you all pictures!!
The pedals are coming along nicely, now wearing gloss black.
I started to pull the old seat frames off the seats. They are incredibly dodgy/weak looking/illegal. Will definitely be getting this all sorted out in the next week or so. This afternoon I pulled the runners off the bottom of the seats. They're going to need a good clean out and regreasing to free them up.
Here are a few before photos of the driver's side pillar and quarter before I started cutting.
You can see from the next few pictures that the bottom inch or so of the pillar has dissolved and the quarter doesn't look much better due to a few dodgy repairs in the past.
I think I will surely have to do the same as the passengers side and replace some sections of the sill.
Still unsure how much more of the quarter will be removed. That replacement panel I purchased goes all the way to the front corner.
I went and ordered some steel for my seat spacers and mounting plates this afternoon. With any luck I should get it tomorrow so I can attack the seat/seatbelt side of things this weekend and get it all approved next week.
That's all folks!
Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
mate....you are an inspiration! looking good!
Scarab (aka: Paul)
Scarab wrote:mate....you are an inspiration! looking good!
Scarab (aka: Paul)
Does that mean the Notch is moving forward?
😂
I picked up my steel this afternoon. Luckily they were able to get everything I needed, and at a great price too.
Poor little Eleanor got used as a work ute to transport it back home. It only just fit into to door when it was almost up against the rear screen. I thought I might have to open the sunroof and poke it out the top!
Marking out and cutting the box section that is going to be the spacers under my seats.
Also cut all the crush tubes to size that are going to be welded inside the box for where the bolts go through.
I spent a long while taking a gazillion measurements off the bottom of the seat rails so I can get everything just right.
This is what I have come up with. The 4 corners of the box on the piece of cardboard perfectly match the seat mount holes down to the millimeter. I'll punch very small holes in the card so I can transfer these measurements onto the stuff I need to drill holes in. This template matches the drivers side seat, I have yet to dig out the passengers seat and see how close it is.
Unfortunately that's all I got done on the car this evening. Mum's car stopped working in the next town over so I had a half hour trip either way to go and pick her up, bloody SS's!!
Definitely keen to get up early tomorrow and get the floorpan completed.
See you all then!!
Smiley
🙂If you said I was a Volkswagen man, you'd be right.
smileyman3000 wrote:Scarab wrote:mate....you are an inspiration! looking good!
Scarab (aka: Paul)
Does that mean the Notch is moving forward?
😂
Smiley
🙂
Sadly no....but I enjoy reading your updates!!
😂
Paul
Hey Smiley, I'm intrigued with the crush tubes.....
do they fit vertially inside the box section with the bolt running through them?....whats the go??
are they intended to stop the box sectioning from 'crushing'?
Thanks, Paul
