Painting the body with primer

I have finally started work on the body of my Bug. I primed part of the hood. In order to do this, I had to grind down the rust. the fellow who had it before me had ground it down and then not painted it over, so it was pitted. After grinding, I rubbed it down with lacquer thinner to degrease it I then proceeded to paint it with the new high pressure spray gun (see previous blog). I had to be careful not to paint over the rust spots I hadn't ground down, so I covered them with newspaper (see bottom photo) . It turned out very nice.

Finding Top Dead Centre

When I disassembled the engine on the Bug, I forgot to label the wires connecting to the distributor cap and spark plugs. It's important that you get the wires on the right spark plugs so the spark fires at the right time. Because of this, we had to discover where the thing under the distributor cap (rotor) was when the #1 cylinder was at top dead centre, and mark that spot as such. Our first course of action was to use the compression from the spark plug hole to find out when the #1 cylinder was at TDC. This did not work, as the intake valve for that cylinder was stuck open. I will have to find out what is wrong with that and fix it. Anyway, we found where TDC was by putting a stick in the spark plug hole and watching the exhaust valve. We then marked it on the distributor cap.

L8NG-BUG

My family recently surprised me by beginning to paint my Bug. First, using stencils, they painted lightning bolts on the hood. They then fix up an old licence plate to say, "L8NG-BUG". Wasn't that nice of them?

Second Engine

I recently acquired a "new" engine for my Bug. It came with two old clutches I can use to try it out in the car. The whole package cost $40. I did not get this new engine because the one I had didn't work, only because while the engine that came with the car came from California and has the heat ducts closed off. The engine I just got, however, is from my area (which is a bit north of California), and has heat ducts already in place, although they need replacing. I am planning to try and start this engine out of the car, as the shrouds on the other one are off for cleaning.

Torque Wrench

I recently acquired a torque wrench (shown right). It was given to me on freecycle. I would like to thank the previous owner for giving it to me. Torque wrenches are used to measure how tight you are making a nut when putting it on.

Painting cylinder shrouds

I have finally made some progress in the area of yellowfying my bug! On A beautiful Memorial Day afternoon, I got out my paint and primer and let them sit, so as to get the paint and metal the same temperature (a friend of mine says that helps). My friend Doug then helped me put on a few thin coats of primer 10 minutes apart before putting on the yellow. It came out beautiful, but we are leaving it out for a while so the paint can cure.

Spray guns

I recently made a very useful acquisition: two spray guns. These will b very useful, as I plan to completely repaint the exterior of my Bug, as well as the engine shrouds, which I have already begun. The spray guns are high pressure and low pressure. The high pressure one has a metal paint resivoir, as plastic wouldn't hold. With these, I won't have to by my paint in spray cans.

Changing the Hood

I mentioned in a previous post that I had gotten an extra hood in with the deal. Well, I went over both hoods thoroughly, and decided the extra one was better. The one that came on the car had more rust patches and a dent. Also, the one on the car didn't have a latch , and water had gotten in through the holes where the latch went and corroded the underside. Anyway, I undid the four bolts that held the hood onto the hinges and took it off. I then put the extra hood in place and fiddled with it until I thought I had the adjustment right. To make sure, I closed the hood. The latch caught, which meant I had got the adjustment right.

Bringing Home the Chassis

When I made the down payment on the Bug, I only brought home the engine, bumpers, running boards, and chrome. That meant the actual body (or "chassis") of the Bug still had to be brought home.
Before I went to get the chassis of the Bug, I had to get something to bring it home on. In case you're wondering why I couldn't just drive it home, let me remind you that the engine was at home in pieces at the time (and still is). Anyway, I went to U-haul to rent a trailer. as luck would have it, the biggest trailer they had was to small (the six foot wide trailer was being taken just as I arrived). As a result, I had to settle for a tow dolly. This was not the best thing that could have happened, as all the tires were in need of replacement and I didn't want them on the road. When I went to pick up the Bug, it turned out the previous owner had a spare hood that looked as if it was better than the original, so I stuck it in the back of the van and took it. Luckily, the Bug did not pop any tires on the way home.

Uncovering (and cleaning) the Engine

In order to repair the engine properly, I had to take the shrouds off. The first thing I did in this direction was to take off the shroud that houses the oil cooler and fan. After this was finished, I was able to remove the intake manifold (that's what the carburetor connects to). I then took off all the other panels. After the engine was completely uncovered, I water blasted it (with this high power hose thing called a water blaster) and blow-dried it (with the compressor). I left the panels off so I could clean and paint them.

The Carburetor

The first part of the engine that I started working on was the carburetor. I took the top of it off, so that you could see into the reservoir, removed the diaphragm that pumps the fuel into the reservoir, and soaked both main parts in petrol (gasoline). After that, I scrubbed them thoroughly with an old toothbrush and sanded down the inside with 1,500 grit emery sandpaper. I then put the whole thing back together. I didn't put it back on the engine yet, however, as the next step was to take the intake manifold and heating shroud off for cleaning (fyi: the intake manifold is what the carburetor connects to) .

'70 Volkswagen Bug

I recently bought a 1970 Beetle for $600. Here it is:
The person I bought it from was apparently meaning to fix it up as well. For this reason, the engine is separate from the rest of the car. I first thought of this as an inconvenience, but this actually makes it easier to clean out the engine, which appears to have several rodent nests in it. I plan to start work on the engine promptly.