He steered it in himself. A very proud 5 yr old.......


Barrels on the bench. 85.5s out here only last for 50K km then they're dead. 50*C and under 10% humidity together with highway running will do that I guess! For this build I found some 83mm barrels off a stock 1500 motor.
This is why.
85.5 barrels........


83mm barrels........


This is the 3rd VW I've bought at a fire sale........


Can we fix it?


Yes we can!


Well, uhmmm, I think so.


Have a great week everyone! Share some pics to get all fired up. The weekend is getting closer by the minute.

It's good your flying the air cooled flag out west, hope to get out that way one day.

It's not for everyone, but I love it, all the red dirt you can eat, and whispering Wandoos everywhere.

Bring a drink and a hat.

Shed time after work hours, WOO!HOO! Lets face it, TV is crap, especially out here.

Sump plate. The car had been sitting for over a year or two, and poorly maintained before that. You wouldn't believe the sludgy eco-systems squeaking at me as I cleaned it up.........


How about a pic of a few tools for the job? Power tools and lathes/mills are great, but they don't give that certain something.........or blisters!
Can't have the fun stopping too quickly. That big chunk of alloy is scrap from under the bench, used to be part of a telescope mounting plate.


And all for this.......


A sump extender. This means I won't get a flickering oil light 1/2 second after launching the 1600 big block off the line.

Draw-filed flat while humming away to the spiders and flies. It's all good.

Steel wool burnished. Stock for now, mods later perhaps.
Mmmmmmm, shiny!


Final QC.........


Last little check on this bit........

My all time favourite tool ever...........



Out with the old.......


.....and getting ready for the new.
Mmmmm, shiny!

I was discussing with Matt Berry this morning the merits of T3 Transporters and their MV 2.1 motors vs Scooby Doo stuff. It has sort of reinforced to me the benefits of QUALITY parts making your life easier in the long run.
Oh yeah, and one day maybe hopefully eventually getting the Beetle going so I can pile the family in and head to the desert for a few overnighters with a tent. That'll make getting a Kombi MUCH easier I rekn!

Anyway, apart from building chook sheds.........


......I have been collecting decent parts for the rebuild.
Here's a few.

OEM genuine Mitsi valvetrain direct from Japan.
SI race valves and custom ground cam from the US.
Spring checker from Melbourne.
OEM genuine stalk assemblies from Mexico.
Good quality VW steering wheel from, believe it or not, Croatia!
It's a very small world now.

Finally, steel wheels. GOOD ones that don't have 6mm runout off the showroom floor.
Here's a pic of my apprentice pointing them out. Brand spanking new, fitted with my new rear tyres, and quickly stuck on to check offset.
Just the look I'm chasing.


I WILL get this thing done one day, but in the meantime, back to the cement mixer again.
*sigh*

It took 15 mins to get here.......



......then a full 30 minutes to get the thing off the jack onto a plywood sheet and dragged under a workbench until I can get to it.

It's easy to see why the rear apron and bumper removal makes things easier.
Yes. It's on the list.

Quote:

Originally posted by Craig Torrens

That would be where the 'fowl' smell would be coming from. lol

Did you drive through the chook shed?

Good to get into a project finally, don't forget to show us some of those Solex mods....

Enjoy the journey

Yep, a few pics is the plan. Although I've had a 1.7/16" throttle plate on backorder now for months, so might have to pinch/fabricate/rabbit something up instead.
SSOOOOO much easier to just use the brand spankers NOS Stromberg BX in the shed I bought for it, but we'll see. Spluttering around left handers is annoying.

Quote:

Originally posted by modnrod Spluttering around left handers is annoying.

Hehehehe!

Most people would use one of these.......
http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_odkw=bore+micrometer&_osacat=0&_fr...
........but to be honest, there are other ways just as accurate or better. That $100+ will buy a lot of gaskets.

These are in the shed, but you really have to hold your mouth right and have a bit of practise in to be accurate.


Or, you can wander over to see a mate with a lathe on a Friday with a beer or few, hunt around the workshop for something round and close (like an old pulley), spin it up to an exact mm measurement, then use the feeler gauge set that goes in .001"increments to measure the rest.


Like this, all the way down the cylinder........

85.5mm old pistons. Much lighter than I expected, dunno what brand. This old engine was built in the mid-70s complete with period parts, these 85.5s have BRAS M57 cast, and P865.
Anyone know? Just curious really.........



PS: Sideways! Huh?


New hypereutectic 83mm pistons, with Hastings moly rings, YAY!!!!! Weight will be 30-35g less than this, due to piston pin mods and machining for circlips. The piston on it's own weighs 352g. Significant weight savings.......

Engine stand can also be used for test running. It uses an old bellhousing to hold the engine, so then bolt a starter in, then brace the frame temporarily, and tune it up before fitment...........


Big Block!

What were the 2 biggest VW trends in VW's biggest market (California) in the late 60s and early 70s?
Taking off the front bumpers, and turning them into "Baja" bugs.

TADA!


And everyone wonders why VW made the Supers with such a rounded nose. I like big curves!
Easiest Baja I ever made!

As stamped in 1973........

A friend down the street helped me lug the engine onto the stand. Funny, I don't remember them being quite that heavy!



Then another neighbour and his wife wandered up to the open shed doors, so the 4 of us talked old Volksy stories for the next 1/2 hour, grins all round.

Good for fostering community spirit these Dak-daks.

Mmmm! Shiny!

Close enough for Govt work.........

10T press to get the pitman arm off


Disassemble Stephanie..........

This is looking great...and helping me to get through another boring weekend of shift work.
Please keep it coming......

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Woo!Hoo!
YEEEEHARRR!!!!!

Huh!?!?!?!



Aaahhh!
Gate latch for the carport...........

Hahah... Great work keep us updated!!

*sigh*
I had all of December off almost, but didn't get much done. Did spend a heap of time with the family though, so well worth it!

I did get a few bits ready under the bonnet though.
I moved the brake fluid container from the LHS over to the right (drivers side). I made the start of some spring strut braces (you can just see it). Made plans to move the washer bottle to mount over RH strut plate. I've also started on custom bonnet hinges, the OEM ones wobble and bend and scrape everything.



All of this is to create a fair bit of extra space for "CARGO", oh, and to free up the passenger side with a bit of room.
In this case. room enough to move the battery here I hope, which means easy access to cut-off switches, fuse and cct brk panels, and also more storage under the back seat inside.
There's now a bit gaping empty space over there.



Tackling the little bit of seam rust in the air plenum is next here.