Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

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Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by Amskeptic » Thu Jun 16, 2016 7:22 am

Last time I made an "official Itinerary Post" I was in beautiful upstate NY going on about some "it's about orange and green".
Still true:

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Alas, the orange aspects became muted as I traveled to Pennsylvania to see BuelaBus:

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Caught myself behind this monstrous mess of Lost In Paroxsms Of Its Own Stylin' RV that must feel embarrassed just to exist. Seriously, folks, what were they thinking?
"Hey guys, hey guys, I got it, make the rear of our coach look like a Cadillac grill mated with a Jeep Comanche, it'll be great! No wait, I got it, Star Wars! No wait, Finding Nemo! Like water swirling and stuff. No really, put in little LED tail light slashes like the last scene in End Of The World Of Good Taste, did you see that? Hey put the ladder where they'll have to RUN and JUMP to reach it! Hahaha, more coffee!":

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The hills were a nice counterpoint, just the same old trees enjoying the latest of thousands of millions of successive springtimes, that still look beautiful:

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So, no more orange, grey and rainy US 15, no more golden afternoons lighting up the inside of NaranjaWesty:

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I stopped here to almost bitterly complain that I can't get a damn thing done on this stupid Earth if it is going to just piddle all over every project I ever wanted to do and I will just DIE HERE IN THE WET because God doesn't WANT me to be happy EVER, but:

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I didn't complain, I just went ahead and finished painting the headliner, right here. Painted the big expanse of headliner over my head, Slowlane's post echoing in my mind, something about "insanity", because now it is wet outside, and it is a special kind of painty sort of wet inside, and I know this inside white wet is going to be wet for WEEKS now. It was a HAH! kind of decision, a breakdown of my resistance against whatever nature decides to throw my way. A squall came barreling in and blasted sheets of rain through the open tailgate and driver's door, so I closed them and kept painting in the closed interior with momentary sliding door openings to spray the cap barely clear of the side of the car with another charge of this NeverDry "Ivory Silk" satin off-white almondish plastic paint. That headliner was painted in place, overhead, no drop cloths, with a 1" foam edging implement:

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A policeman showed up after the last squall to tell me that the guys standing around their trucks sitting over in the parking lot didn't want me parked here.
"Why not?" asked I of the policeman.
"Because they think the building entrance walkway here should be reserved for pedestrians not camper vans."
"That's a good reason," I shared with the policeman.
"That's a nice camper van," offered the policeman.

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I do not have photographs of my day with Buelabus. That is a shame, because you will not get to see all the gnats that pestered us, yes, but also met their ends on my WET HEADLINER FLYPAPER. We sat down and organized the list of our day's projects and enjoyed the very highest dry humor that I adore. BuelaBus's two and half year old is scampering around in and out while his wife is working inside. Imagine this conversation at the patio table. As we are going through the list, a coach's whistle suddenly gets blown piercingly again and again and again.
"Is that a rape whistle?"
"Yeah."
"Which one is blowing it?"
"Probably my wife."
"Huh . . . "
"My son tries to touch her sometimes."
"So, do we have all the parts to install the dual carbs?"

Next up was 70Crew in Grand Rapids MI. As soon as I hit Michigan's choppy concrete roadways, my gas tank started shedding crusty old gas varnish from The Long Sit. I have cleaned out the fuel filter between once and three times a day since. Saw this welcome sign and pondered the irony (coughcough Flint! cough cough):

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Arrived in Grand Rapids MI with a quickly clogging fuel filter and a whining fuel pump to lay eyes on this 1970 dual cab pick-up:

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This is the beautiful engine that must be installed in the soon to be completed 1970 dual cab:

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This is the beautiful engine and transmission that must be installed in the soon to be completed 1970 dual cab:

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We spent more time getting the muffler to fit on the Chirco rebuilt engine than installing the engine and transaxle :

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It was a proud moment for the neighborhood and 70Crew to hear this engine run for the first time in ten years:

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I hope you get it all done in time for the wedding procession, 70Crew. It is going to be beautiful.

Enjoyed a lovely evening drive of jarring roads and clogging fuel filter to visit with hippiewannabe and TrollFromDownBelow at the hippiewannabe lake resort.
see: "CK social visit with the wannabe hippie and the troll..."
viewtopic.php?f=70&t=13061#p221127:

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Drove to Indiana where I was reacquainted with standing in front of a judge.
"You shall be remanded to the garage for a term of four and one half hours."
That's what I said to the judge.
The judge had no choice but to comply.

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She loves her little white convertible Beetle, her charming little Beetle with the delinquent little distributor advance that went all cuckoo and was threatening to harm her valiant but tired little 1600 engine.

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We decided upon a diversion program whereupon the advance unit was ordered to cease and desist and henceforth be rendered inoperative with two golf tees in the vacuum lines. Now the engine has just centrifugal advance, and it seems fine.

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I must go finish up the andrewtf Supersaga Of The New Itinerants this morning, then drive to locoqueso in Grayslake IL this afternoon, fix the infamous oil leak forever and always tomorrow, and write another epistle as soon as I get the chance.
Colin

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BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by locoqueso » Thu Jun 16, 2016 8:40 am

Welcome to Illinois! I'm clearing out space in the garage right now. We should have some nice weather tomorrow.
1978 VW Campmobile (P-21) Westfalia - T2 2.0L F.I.- 151,000m
1982 Mercedes-Benz Estate Wagon (300TD-T) - S123 3.0L T.D. - 142,000m
1993 Dodge Maxi Van (190 SLF) InterVec Falcon - B350 Magnum 5.9L F.I. - 70,000m

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by wcfvw69 » Thu Jun 16, 2016 1:44 pm

Beautiful countryside you're enjoying. I'm still in awe of that, what's it called again...? Oh yea, moisture. Can't say I've seen it in months..

I have to say Colin that I'm quite amazed at your patience with that non-cooperating fuel tank gunk.. I have seen in your previous itinerant posts over the years, your engines out of the bus, scattered across all sorts of abandoned parking lots or open areas while you've replaced or repainted or changed this or that. I'm quite surprised you haven't "snapped" and ripped that tank out to address that vain in your existence. :drunken:
1970 Westfalia bus. Stock 1776 dual port type 1 engine. Restored German Solex 34-3. Restored 205Q distributor, restored to factory appearance engine.

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by Amskeptic » Fri Jun 17, 2016 5:24 am

wcfvw69 wrote:Beautiful countryside you're enjoying. I'm still in awe of that, what's it called again...? Oh yea, moisture. Can't say I've seen it in months..

I have to say Colin that I'm quite amazed at your patience with that non-cooperating fuel tank gunk.. I have seen in your previous itinerant posts over the years, your engines out of the bus, scattered across all sorts of abandoned parking lots or open areas while you've replaced or repainted or changed this or that. I'm quite surprised you haven't "snapped" and ripped that tank out to address that vain in your existence. :drunken:

Hello wcfvw69,
It is the bane of my existence right now, and it shall have to wait for some pretty place where there is no moisture for more than a day. Other than that little problem, NaranjaWesty is eating up the miles with the best of them. Yesterday's incessant headwinds, nottaproblem, hunkered in at 57 mph, little bit of dancing in the gusts, but a real trouper.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by Amskeptic » Fri Jun 17, 2016 6:17 am

Continuing the Illinois/Indiana/Illinois travelogue . . . there has been a bunch of driving. Happiness floods in when the landscape opens up and I get to see the neon lights of the next fuel stop from far away in the evening light. I-57 south in Illinois gave me that first taste of western expanses to come, as I visited andrewtf for a challenging visit. Last year, he floated the possibility that I might do a two-day visit to help his daughter and her boyfriend prepare for an epic little tour of the western hemisphere in her VW bus, Big Emma.

After reading the HastaAlaska epistle over on theSamba, I certainly knew what I did not want to happen . . .

I had to ascertain:
*if these two young adults had the right stuff,
*if they had the sort of minds that know how to read an air-cooled VW's moods,
*if they had the pluck and perseverance to dive in and turn wrenches in trying circumstances,
*if they had the intelligence not to wreck the car avoiding a squirrel - but the reflexes to avoid a moose,
*if they had the emotional comportment to work together ( like, that's any of my business?!? ),
*if they could diagnose and figure out the little sabotages that I planned

I had to help determine if Big Emma:
*had the right stuff
*could answer to their needs
*had the pluck and perseverance to drive all over the continent
*had the integrity to help avoid squirrels, moose, and the most dangerous animals of all, oncoming drivers
*had the mechanical comportment to work with them (there's my business)

and we repaired to the garage to get to work:

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There was work to do. Wheel bearing repack and adjustment:

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center pin kit and drag link installation with a steering box centering/adjustment, that's dear ol' dad in the thick of it:

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brake check/bleed/rear cross-bar spring replacement:

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door latch adjustments, tune-up, transaxle oil change, shift coupler replacement, stop plate adjustment, fuel pump contact adjustment, double-clutch lessons, emergency dog swerve test, braking test, emergency brake cable adjustment, front suspension lubrication, freeway shoulder emergency stop and merge lesson, and the left wiper had to be adjusted. Yes, it did.

Did I overwhelm them with two days of mechanical mayhem and a torrent of VW arcana?

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.
.
.

Nahhh:

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The sabotages I planned were thwarted by an overly-observant Sven who saw my surreptitious furtive little movements,
"Why did you take out #12 fuse, doesn't that just do the brake lights and horn?" Ahh well. Let's yank the AFM plug instead.

It was a total pleasure to work with these , do I say "kids"? and their devoted dad, and I was relieved to find that they possess keen intelligence and tenacity. I hope they check in here and keep us updated of their journey.
ColinMustGoTakeOutAnEngine
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by GoBigEmma » Sat Jun 18, 2016 8:29 am

Thanks for the nice words Colin!

We had a great few days with you and I still feel like my head is all goopy from the insane amount of information pumped into it during your visit. Big Emma is definitely running and driving better than I have seen her ever before.

Well, maybe except for this one incident, where we broke down on an intersection because the screw fell out of the newly installed shift coupler while driving. :blackeye: Luckily we still had the old screw, which made it a quick fix. Now I know why the Bentley shows the screw to be secured with a wire. Dunno if that is because the part is all thin and cheap (only two threads for the screw in the coupler piece, doesn't seem too secure), but it makes me think you were right when you said we should try to get an original VW coupler..

Anyway, departure date is getting closer (ahm.. tomorrow..) and there is both excitement and this question in the back of my head if we did enough to prepare the bus and ourselves, but after your visit I feel much better about both parts.
Here are some pictures we took. Also, Emma did her own write-up of your visit on our blog, have a look here: http://www.gobigemma.com/2016/06/17/the ... -mechanic/

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Emma is getting greasy while packing her first wheel bearing on her own.

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Colin and Andrew (Emma's dad) are working on that stubborn center pin.

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NaranjaWesty fits right in between the other two!

Thanks a billion Colin, soon we'll be reporting from the road!
Sven
'75 FI Riviera "Big Emma"

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by SlowLane » Sat Jun 18, 2016 11:49 am

GoBigEmma wrote: Now I know why the Bentley shows the screw to be secured with a wire. Dunno if that is because the part is all thin and cheap (only two threads for the screw in the coupler piece, doesn't seem too secure), but it makes me think you were right when you said we should try to get an original VW coupler.
Ayep. Safety-wiring screws so that they don't back out is common practice in the aircraft industry, but it is time-consuming and therefore expensive. So if VW decided to do so on that screw, you know it was for a good reason (one where the engineering dept. won a small victory over the bean-counters).

My recollection of the coupler on my old Super Beetle was that there was a goodly amount of boss for the screw to engage with, so definitely source a genuine one when you can. What was wrong with your original one, BTW? Thought they would be pretty durable, being constructed out of steel.
'81 Canadian Westfalia (2.0L, manual), now Californiated

"They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it is not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance."
- Terry Pratchett

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by Amskeptic » Sat Jun 18, 2016 7:29 pm

GoBigEmma wrote: Big Emma is definitely running and driving better than I have seen her ever before.

Well, maybe except for this one incident, where we broke down on an intersection because the screw fell out of the newly installed shift coupler while driving. :blackeye: Luckily we still had the old screw, which made it a quick fix.
we'll be reporting from the road!
Sven

Guten Abend, Sven,
I wish I could claim that it was my sabotage . . . but I can't. Andrew and I decided he should use the old screw because it appeared to fit more fully into the coupler. I think you may have put in the new one that we rejected?

Congratulations on a successful execution of a repair.

I really would like to meet up with you two on the road as I am in Minnesota and you are westbound.
There is some more Volkswagen information that we could address, namely Fuel Injection.

Viel Glück!
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by locoqueso » Sun Jun 19, 2016 10:06 am

Amskeptic wrote: I must go finish up the andrewtf Supersaga Of The New Itinerants this morning, then drive to locoqueso in Grayslake IL this afternoon, fix the infamous oil leak forever and always tomorrow, and write another epistle as soon as I get the chance.
Colin
I thnk we did it. I parked the bus after a 100 mile test drive and the garage floor is dry 24 hours later. The SABO seal (029105245) seems to work well. I'll clean up the engine case and keep driving. Thanks Colin!
1978 VW Campmobile (P-21) Westfalia - T2 2.0L F.I.- 151,000m
1982 Mercedes-Benz Estate Wagon (300TD-T) - S123 3.0L T.D. - 142,000m
1993 Dodge Maxi Van (190 SLF) InterVec Falcon - B350 Magnum 5.9L F.I. - 70,000m

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by GoBigEmma » Mon Jun 20, 2016 8:56 am

Amskeptic wrote: I really would like to meet up with you two on the road as I am in Minnesota and you are westbound.
There is some more Volkswagen information that we could address, namely Fuel Injection.
Colin, that would be great! I'll have a look at your schedule and ours, I'll get back to you. Thank you so much for everything you've already done.

Alright, it's time to head out, see you on the road guys!
'75 FI Riviera "Big Emma"

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by Amskeptic » Tue Jun 21, 2016 6:15 am

locoqueso wrote:
Amskeptic wrote: I must go finish up the andrewtf Supersaga Of The New Itinerants this morning, then drive to locoqueso in Grayslake IL this afternoon, fix the infamous oil leak forever and always tomorrow, and write another epistle as soon as I get the chance.
Colin
I thnk we did it. I parked the bus after a 100 mile test drive and the garage floor is dry 24 hours later. The SABO seal (029105245) seems to work well. I'll clean up the engine case and keep driving. Thanks Colin!

Illinois! My last call in Illinois was the most important call of the Itinerary. This was The Call Back.

We had to eradicate that oil leak that has returned and returned with a vengeance, eroding locoqueso's trust and my confidence over and over again. We have a photo-documentary of the entire decade it seems, starting when we were both young and beautiful and ending with us worn and beat down . . . beat down by Victor Reinz, whoever he is. Mr. Sabo, on the other hand, now Mr. Sabo it looks like we can do business with. Mr. Sabo is made of a sterner stuff than that wimpy little Victor whatshisname. As a matter of fact, we measured the spring behind the seal lip and found that the Victor Reinz seal spring was a paltry .163mm and the Sabo was .168mm (did I get the numbers right, locoqueso?)

Arrived and parked in my usual place:

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Locoqueso took his position for our annual portrait:

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We of course did outstanding work. We know this job better than anyone else in the country. Don't have to say a word about what steps to perform, we just talked about politics and guns and roads while we automatically did the work we know so well. Look at how shiny this engine is (before any cleaning) at 1,300 miles since our last visit with Victor:

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THIS is what makes a Sachs a Sachs, Fitchtel. When Fitchtel left, the business went to the depths of mediocre whatever:

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After our lovely test drive tooling around the neighborhood and countryside:

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Locoqueso! Please keep us updated, I am still holding my breath.
Colin

is it yay taco time??
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BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by asiab3 » Tue Jun 21, 2016 9:29 am

Amskeptic wrote: Illinois! My last call in Illinois was the most important call of the Itinerary. This was The Call Back.

...what if it's NOT the main seal leaking? :bom:

I've enjoyed watching the progression of locoqueso's loco-leak saga. Not in a sadistic sort of way, but I enjoy knowing that there are others whodo not give up easily.

Now get him that front bumper bolt cover schnell!

Robbie
1969 bus, "Buddy."
145k miles with me.
322k miles on Earth.

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Illinois

Post by locoqueso » Tue Jun 21, 2016 2:44 pm

Amskeptic wrote: Illinois! My last call in Illinois was the most important call of the Itinerary. This was The Call Back.

We had to eradicate that oil leak that has returned and returned with a vengeance, eroding locoqueso's trust and my confidence over and over again. We have a photo-documentary of the entire decade it seems, starting when we were both young and beautiful and ending with us worn and beat down . . . beat down by Victor Reinz, whoever he is. Mr. Sabo, on the other hand, now Mr. Sabo it looks like we can do business with. Mr. Sabo is made of a sterner stuff than that wimpy little Victor whatshisname. As a matter of fact, we measured the spring behind the seal lip and found that the Victor Reinz seal spring was a paltry .163mm and the Sabo was .168mm (did I get the numbers right, locoqueso?)

~SNIP~

Locoqueso! Please keep us updated, I am still holding my breath.
Colin

is it yay taco time??
It's Yay Taco time!!! There's no sign of the oil leak. The bus used to quickly pool oil at every stop. I still need to wash up the oil residue on the engine case but the garage floor doesn't have any new oil stains since the seal replacement. I think this is the first time since 2011 that I haven't seen a puddle under the bus. I look forward to next year when we can look at anything other than a seal replacement.

I checked the old Reinz seal spring and it measures 2.30mm. I think the Sabo is closer to 2.60mm, maybe 2.56mm. You can look at them and see the difference.

Thanks for all of your help Colin!
1978 VW Campmobile (P-21) Westfalia - T2 2.0L F.I.- 151,000m
1982 Mercedes-Benz Estate Wagon (300TD-T) - S123 3.0L T.D. - 142,000m
1993 Dodge Maxi Van (190 SLF) InterVec Falcon - B350 Magnum 5.9L F.I. - 70,000m

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