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Wed Apr 20, 2016 11:37 am

After nine months and several emails I finally received my Kombi's birth certificate. Pretty cool! My bus was built a few days from my birthday (day and month, not year). I kind of expected that but was hoping that is ended up on my actual birth day.

Couple things.

1) M 018 - Hazard light installation code? Are these flashers????
2) M 086 and M 145 code ideas?
3) Are most of these codes fairly standard for an early Kombi?

I posted here as well.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8052525#8052525

Wed Apr 20, 2016 11:56 am

Did you look here? http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/mcodest2.php

Not all of your questions are answered, but there is some info related to your M-codes.

Also, it seems the birth certificates are often incorrect. You may have numbers on the BC that are not actually applicable to your bus and it did not actually come with those options.

Wed Apr 20, 2016 12:19 pm

cdennisg wrote: Also, it seems the birth certificates are often incorrect. You may have numbers on the BC that are not actually applicable to your bus and it did not actually come with those options.

M code 18 and 86 are listed as unidentified on my birth certificate. Yours says 18 is hazard lights. I can't see that my truck ever had hazard lights (four way flashers), so I think that isn't correct on yours.

I also ordered the Data Sheet and it said my truck came with 16-inch wheels, but they stopped with Barndoor busses.

Fri Apr 29, 2016 10:54 pm

Couple of update items. Lots going on...

1) Continue to strip paint. Tedious but somewhat relaxing. I am liking the way it is turning out. Progress pics to come.

2) Returned the rear coconut pads to WW and picked up a new wiring harness for the for the eventual rewiring of my Kombi. Current wiring is not hooked up per stock but everything works so I don't want to dive into that just yet. Also, I am fairly certain that it is the OG wiring harness and therefore my bus could definitely benefit from it being replaced.

3) Ordered some cotton batting to add this layer to the rear seats.

4) Ordered and received a 67 DCMC from Old Speed.

5) I have been collecting for sometime now all new front end components; Tie rods, drag link (Thx Campingbox), center pin and dampener.

6) Items 4 and 5 are needed because I just placed my order with Wagonswest for 3.5" welded spindles and the Babystang front discs brakes! Nate convinced me to go with the welded instead of the flipped because it maintains all the stock geometry. Should receive in approx 3-4 weeks. I have been reviewing, for some time now, other threads on disc brakes and DCMC conversions but all those that are reading this expect tons of questions from me.

Stay tuned...

Fri May 06, 2016 3:04 pm

Paint striping progress pics. Still a lot of minor clean up on the roof and rear but looking really good. Starting the sides and then the front. Probably just going to complete from the beltline and above for now.

Roof was difficult. PO had done some minor sanding on the driver's side so the paint was a lot more difficult to get off.

Front Roof:

Using a combo of Klean Strip (paste), Citri Strip, Acetone and 0000 steel wool.

Fri May 06, 2016 3:13 pm

With the rare rain storm here today in so cal, you might want to seal the areas that now bare steel. This suff works great, easy to apply and you can weld on it if need be. Your bus is looking good!

http://www.mavcoatsteelshield.com/

Sun May 29, 2016 10:48 pm

Finished up the paint stripping above the beltline. Still a lot of minor clean up to do but overall I really like it! Found a few minor dings on the sides that were filled with bondo that IMO didn't need to be. Chipped and scraped it out of those but the PO had sanded down the areas for better adhesion. The bottom of the nose had some minor bondo as well which I removed. At any rate, I am pleasantly surprised at the condition of the body so far after nearly 60 years. Below is the nose stripping progression. Will leave the nose to get a little surface rust and then clear coat it.

I also removed the headlights and cleaned up the wiring and grounds for the fun of it.

Mon May 30, 2016 3:45 am

The last photo looks great! Job well done..... 8)

The way you posted the progress photo collage sort of reminded me of Andy Warhol art........ If Warhol did some VW bus art, it would look like that.

Sat Jun 04, 2016 9:52 pm

I have been soaking my front end components with PB for the past couple of weeks in anticipation of installing my Wagonswest welding dropped spindles and front disc brakes. I knew the old components had seen better days. Pretty caked up with grease and dirt and very little resistance in any of them. Only was able to remove and replace the steering dampener and drag link. Came out pretty easy and I attempted to straighten out my steering wheel as well. I haven't driven many buses except for the couple I have owned so the steering seemed fine. I didn't get a chance to drive it after these items were replaced so I will have to report back whether or not there is a noticeable difference.

BTW is there a way to tell if these were OG to the bus?

Installed

I wire wheeled what I could on the beam and the steering box which produced a sizeable mound of grease/dirt. Stuck a Q-tip in the fill hole to check the level of gear oil in the steering box and was not able to get a reading (very low) so I topped it off with some 90w gear oil. It's probably much happier now.

Fri Jun 17, 2016 11:09 am

Received my Wagonswest 3.5" welded dropped spindles, offset spring plates and Babystang disc brakes. Very excited! Everything looks so clean brand new.

I have all new German hard and soft brake lines, 67 only DCMC, tie rods and center pin to install over the next several weeks. Then off to the transmission shop to have the work done to lower the rear. I still need to order the tires (175/55/15 and 195/60/15) and paint my rims. Hopefully I can manage all of this over the next several weeks. I figure it will take me at least that long since there will be a lot of "firsts" for me. I have never installed the following:

1: Master cylinder
2: Tierods
3: Reamed and install a center pin and bushings
4: hard and soft brake lines (install and bend)
5: Bled a braking system
6: Anything having to do with disc brakes

I have been reading up on all of the above procedures so hopefully it all goes relatively smooth. I am really going to miss cruising in my bus during the down time though.

Also, I realize my thread isn't anywhere near as technical as a lot of other threads but I am enjoying doing it. I am sure a lot of questions are forthcoming!

Fri Jun 17, 2016 11:45 am

Looking forward to seeing it dropped! Cool bus already though...gonna be cooler.

Fri Jun 24, 2016 10:18 pm

Brakes have been drained and the rear hard and soft lines are installed. Front lines are next. When I was going to install one of the rear soft lines I noticed some metal shavings in the line.

Used a pick to get it out and blew some compressed air through all of the lines.

Next, went to remove the old SCMC. I took several pics to see how the front brake lines were routed and checked the brake pin for end play prior to removal. I have read on The Samba that the pin should have approximately 1mm of end play. This SCMC had approximately 6mm. Definitely not within spec and will be corrected when I install the new DCMC.

Question before I get to the point of installation.

1) When installing the new DCMC should I place any chassis grease or moly grease on the end of the pin?

Also, I should be getting to the welded drop spindles sometime next week. Again, I took some reference pics before spindle removal and noticed that three of the link pin bolts were install from the bottom up and the 4th bolt was installed from the top down. I believe the correct way to install is from the bottom up but was curious to know if it matters or not?

Fri Jun 24, 2016 10:49 pm

I like to put just a touch of HP grease on the end of the pushrod where it rides in the cup inside the master cylinder.

Not sure about the correct orientation of the link pin bolts, but I would tend to want to install from the top so if a nut comes loose, the bolt won't fall out. It's been awhile since I have had my grubby mitts in that area of a split.

Sat Jun 25, 2016 7:43 am

Babystang, good job getting them. You can run wide five wheels and you get a vented rotor, that's the way to go imo.

Tue Jun 28, 2016 8:31 pm

Is it necessary to jack the front end up to remove the tie rods or can it remain on the ground?

Tue Jun 28, 2016 9:25 pm

Dubskii wrote: Is it necessary to jack the front end up to remove the tie rods or can it remain on the ground?
As long as you fit under there and can maneuver, it can stay on the ground.

Thu Jun 30, 2016 12:09 pm

Thanks to everyone for your replies. I appreciate it!

So, all hard and soft brake lines have been replaced. Went relatively well. Kind of a pain to bend but I like the way it turned out. I also replaced all of the rubber grommets where the hard brake lines feed through the cross members, etc.

DCMC has been dry fitted and brake pin adjusted to approx 1mm of freeplay.

Also, I removed the rubber bumper between the passenger trailing arms and found this number stamped into metal. Aside from the 1st "2" the last six digits are fairly close to my VIN. Not sure what it is. Part number???

Thu Jun 30, 2016 12:16 pm

Dubskii wrote: Thanks to everyone for your replies. I appreciate it!

So, all hard and soft brake lines have been replaced. Went relatively well. Kind of a pain to bend but I like the way it turned out. I also replaced all of the rubber grommets where the hard brake lines feed through the cross members, etc.

DCMC has been dry fitted and brake pin adjusted to approx 1mm of freeplay.

Also, I removed the rubber bumper between the passenger trailing arms and found this number stamped into metal. Aside from the 1st "2" the last six digits are fairly close to my VIN. Not sure what it is. Part number???

Front axle #. Going off this reference - http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/chassisdating.php - it looks like a Feb' 1957 produced beam.

EDIT/ADD: That is badass, though, you have the OG, period-correct beam to boot! Mine was original, but the bump stop arms were hacked off long before I bought my DC 17 years ago...Cool to see numbers matching!

Fri Jul 01, 2016 10:50 pm

Thanks 62DoKaGuy. That is pretty cool to know I still have the OG beam!

More progress. Bought a tool that can squeeze into tight places to remove the tie rods/drag link. Hooked it up and cranked away. Nothing was budging. I was worried that my new tool was going to start to bend or break. Everything had been soaked for days in PB so I was praying things would start to loosen up. Anyway, kept cranking and cranking until finally, with a violent pop, the driver's side tie rod busted loose. I sure am glad I left the nut still threaded on! Moved myself around to each tie rod end and popped all out. All told this took me approx 1hr.

As you can they were pretty gummed up and two had no boot. I think they are the OG tie rods.

Nasty!

Old vs New

Matched the length on the adjustable tie rod and throw the old ones out. New tie rods won't be installed until my welded dropped spindles go in.

Question...when installing the new tie rods it is advisable to rub some grease or antiseize to prevent rusting, etc?

As I mentioned, I felt it took some serious force to pop these out. This is the tool I used (Gear Wrench 3916D, $25). Note the indent from the tip of the driving bolt. Also, used it to pop my new drag link back out to better align the steering wheel.

Center pin replacement up next.

Sat Jul 02, 2016 9:08 am

Dubskii wrote: Question...when installing the new tie rods it is advisable to rub some grease or antiseize to prevent rusting, etc?

As I mentioned, I felt it took some serious force to pop these out.
They are made as a perfect taper fit on purpose. Sometimes if you just push them together just fooling around you have to use the tool or smack the nut to separate them.

If you plan on separating them a lot in the future then put something on the taper as it will stop steel against steel molecular binding but otherwise just put it together and tighten the nut. Safety of them remaining together is what is all about.

Since your originals had the Zerks, how bad were they?