Introduction

[Raymond73]

Greetings from North Dakota!

I found my way over here from TheSamba website. It took a couple attempts, but I managed to set up an account here. My user name is the same in both locations and I have included a link to my profile over there.

I have a '70 Autostick, which I purchased a year ago. Once I brought her home, however, I proceeded to completely dismantle everything to see how bad the rust was. Right now I have the body up on saw horses, with the chassis underneath. So far I have cut out and welded in a new passenger floor pan. I still need to purchase two new heater channels and some smaller repair panels to complete the body.

My intention is to restore her to a reliable daily driver status. Although it has taken me a bit longer than I intended (weather, time, and money all play a factor) I am making progress.

Thanks for reading,

Raymond

[WPD]

Hi Raymond, you're welcome!!!

[68autobug]

Greetings from North Dakota!

I found my way over here from TheSamba website. It took a couple attempts, but I managed to set up an account here. My user name is the same in both locations and I have included a link to my profile over there.

I have a '70 Autostick, which I purchased a year ago. Once I brought her home, however, I proceeded to completely dismantle everything to see how bad the rust was. Right now I have the body up on saw horses, with the chassis underneath. So far I have cut out and welded in a new passenger floor pan. I still need to purchase two new heater channels and some smaller repair panels to complete the body.

My intention is to restore her to a reliable daily driver status. Although it has taken me a bit longer than I intended (weather, time, and money all play a factor) I am making progress.

Thanks for reading,

Raymond

Welcome Raymond..

and it doesn't matter how long it takes to get Your autostick going, so long as You succeed..
luckily My bodywork was OK , rust not being a major problem in inland Australia...
it took Me 8 long years to overhaul My beetle and put it back on the road.. [mainly because of medical problems]
I am still upgrading the wiring etc, and still have new parts to add at some time in the future..
but I'm driving every chance I get... mostly around town.. with next to no traffic except on the highway/main street.. lol

best wishes from Australia

Lee

[Raymond73]

Lee,

Thanks for the welcome.

I never thought I would actually get around to purchasing a Bug. Growing up, my parents owned two Vanagons and I have very fond memories of cross-country trips. Now that I am a father I hope to instill some of the same love of VWs onto my own children.

I'm definitely making progress. I originally wanted to drive her from the get-go, but I also wanted to make sure she was safe. The farther into the inspection I went, the happier I am that I chose to rebuild first.

I had one badly worn CV joint, which I replaced along with new grease, boots, bolts, and clamps for all. The PO didn't believe in following torque values it seems. Half of the CV bolts came out with my fingers! The rear castle nuts also came off way too easy. No cheater bar required. However, a recently purchased Torque Meister will rectify that. 

Overall, she isn't too badly rusted. I say that only because I have seen some other people's Bugs on TheSamba. We get our fair share of snow here in North Dakota (The original owner bought her new here), but at least they don't salt the roads.

I removed all the old wiring. There's nothing like exposed wires to cause problems in the future. Everything worked except for the turn signal, but that was because of a broken connector in the switch. The PO wired a toggle switch instead of replacing the unit. I'm fairly confident that a new wiring harness will keep her working well for many years to come. Of course, wiring will come after the paint...

I could go on for awhile about my plans, but after all this is just an introduction.

Thanks again for the welcome. I look forward to spending more time here and hopefully contributing something worthwhile.

Sincerely,

Raymond

[68autobug]

Hi Raymond,

Good to see You found those castle nuts on the rear axles
as they do Need to be done up to 217ft lbs from memory
I've been told if they aren't done up that tight they will move and wear the splines off the brake drums...
Mine were very tight.... snapped a top quality 1/2 drive breaker bar off...
had to use 3/4 drive sockets..  I also use never seize on the threads...
also on the spark plug threads too..  stops the steel from binding on the alloy threads..
it is good to know your car... then if something happens or a noise appears You May find the problem faster..
or at least know where to look...
I notice parts are getting more expensive but then again I bought most of My parts before 2000..
although tie rod ends and ball joints are still OK...
I have been looking at an online VW parts shop in the Netherlands
and they have 1st quality and second quality etc.. and the makers name or symbol..
the prices can vary greatly, but whether the quality varies that much ?
they are still selling them so they cannot be that bad...
although anything made in China or Taiwan is suspect [E.M.P.I]
and some South American made parts aren't good quality...
so, unless You buy OEM or VW made or Brand name US or German made parts
its a bit of a guessing game...

My Son just swapped some parts for a 1968 German Beetle in rusted condition...
My Son has taken the body off and cut it up.. the rust is the worst I have seen..
Maybe it has been sitting in the open for many years...  although the rust isn't surface stuff..
its like the car has been in a river etc..? at some time..??
anyway I'm getting the adjustable front end off it as I have a camber problem on My RHS front wheel..
and hopefully that will fix the problem....

Lithium based Moly grease is recommended by VW,,   and Me.. I've been using it for 40 years..
I also use it in CV joints... and I pack them right up, the boot too... even though the books say not to..
You can't have too much grease... IMHO.. lol  and it makes everything last...  front end too...

cheers

LEE from Australia

[Raymond73]

I purchased a few manuals as well as some videos to help me in my endeavor. The Bentley and Clymer manuals are amazingly full of rich detail. The Bug Me videos also help to fill the void of a real mentor.  Upon typing this I realize how sad it sounds, but I think you can understand what I am getting it. There's nothing better in my opinion than a real person with real experience helping you along.

The Internet really helps searching for/acquiring parts. There's not much around me in North Dakota, but I can acquire most of my VW specific parts from California. Four to seven delivery days away isn't bad. My CV boots are EMPI brand and I have read on TheSamba that I should expect to replace them in a year or so. Oh well, I'll cross that proverbial bridge when I get to it.  At least I know how to do that really messy job already. If they do fail that soon I'll be sure to up the quality next time.

I'm very happy with the extent of the rust damage. Shocking as that might sound, expecting a rust-free bug would be a bit unrealistic of me. The entire rust damage was limited to the heater channels, passenger floor pan, inside the wheel wells, and the corner of the front drivers-side firewall that straddles the heater channel. Everything else is solid metal. Fortunate indeed as Bugs are extremely rare in my state. I paid a lot more that I would, say in California where they are plentiful, but shipping a vehicle from that distance would be make it just as expensive in the long run.

I hope your son is able to save his Bug. It's good that you are close enough to lend a hand.

Sincerely,

Raymond

[68autobug]

Hi Raymond,

My CV joint boots were new rubber ones with silver[2] and gold [2] colored  metal pieces..
Both inside ones [gold] perished and cracked although didn't get to the leaking stage

and had only done minimal miles...  the other ones are fine.... ??

so, I picked up two yellow ones on ebay....

they are NOT rubber.. but yellow polyethelene are similar..

so, they will last much longer than rubber...

Poly doesn't age like rubber either...

cheers

LEE