Working On My List

[BellePlaine]

This summer has been great! We've put about 4,000 miles on Spiderman since late April but now it's time button him up for winter storage and think about some winter time projects.

Here's what I have planned so far:
- Rekey the locks so one key does everything
- Re-glaze and refresh the side mirrors
- Make new curtains
- De-rust and refresh the splash pan

For storage, what product is recommended for fogging the cylinders? Also, do you guys do anything special to preserve the tires: higher or lower tire pressure, do you lift them off of the concrete floor or place a wooden board between the floor and tires? I thought that I'd try placing lots of cotton balls of peppermint oil all over the place to ward off rodents. I know to add fuel stabilizer and keep a full tank of gas.

[sped372]

I thought that I'd try placing lots of cotton balls of peppermint oil all over the place to ward off rodents.

I haven't found anything that seems to actually work. At a bare minimum make sure there's nothing tempting left behind, no stray pieces of food, candy, etc. We take just about everything soft out, no paper towels or other "nesting" materials left behind. I'm still always nervous about the cushions, wiring, etc. though.

We have a detached garage which seems to help because it really isn't any warmer out there than being outside, I like to think the mice would rather bother someone with even a marginally heated garage.

[yondermtn]

I have heard that mothballs keep mice away, but have no experience.


This will be the first Winter that I store my bus in our new(to us) garage. It is detached and unheated. I'm wondering what can be done to keep moisture to a minimum. I read that parking on top of a tarp can act as a barrier to minimize moisture from the concrete floor? Any truth to this? Anything else I can do to keep things dry?

[BellePlaine]

I have heard that mothballs keep mice away, but have no experience.


This will be the first Winter that I store my bus in our new(to us) garage. It is detached and unheated. I'm wondering what can be done to keep moisture to a minimum. I read that parking on top of a tarp can act as a barrier to minimize moisture from the concrete floor? Any truth to this? Anything else I can do to keep things dry?

Great idea about parking on a tarp. I'll definitely do that.

[Amskeptic]

For storage, what product is recommended for fogging the cylinders? Also, do you guys do anything special to preserve the tires: higher or lower tire pressure, do you lift them off of the concrete floor?

With Certified Proper Fuel Injection, just bring the engine up to 2,000 rpm and shut it off. Your cylinders will do one winter fine.

Bring the tires up to 42 psi for the older 36psi max tires, and 60psi for the 55 psi max. Not only does this help just a bit with keeping them round, it stretches the interval if you find you have a slow leak in those Minnesota howling snowy winters . . .
Colin

[BellePlaine]

The bus is out of winter storage. Unfortunately, it has a cross-threaded sparkplug, which was discovered while preparing for storage so I'm concerned about driving it too much until the repair is made. I did drive it one lap around the river though!

In the meantime, I've been having fun crossing items off of my list. Here's what I've done so far this Spring.

1. Cleaned and rekeyed the front door locks to match the ignition key. For the life of me, I cannot figure out how to remove the barrels from the rear hatch or the slider lock. They remain on the list.

2. Replaced the parking brake cables because I busted the driver's side one last fall. Other than the drums giving me some trouble, this was a satisfying job. I was pleased that my old brake cables were a synch to remove from the backing plates as I've heard that they can be a bear. I anti-seized my adjuster stars as well. Now my brakes are very well adjusted with good pedal and the parking brake is good too.

3. The only complaint that my wife gave about the bus on last summer's 9-day vacation camping around Lake Superior was that her seat belt chaffed her neck. So this spring I installed new GoWesty retractable seatbelts in the cab and new (non-retractable) belts for the kids in the rear.


4. Since I was ordering from GoWesty, I splurged on myself and ordered a Wheelskin wrap. I kinda feel guilty for having something so nice.


5. New used door vent to replace the one that popped out and was lost last summer.


6. I wire-wheeled and painted the splash pan.


7. Finally, I repainted the timing scale because the old paint and flaked away so much that most of it was unreadable. I painted it with white appliance paint and black and red oil Sharpie paint pens. I found them at Micheals Crafts.


So, this is where I'm at for now. Still on the list this summer are to make new curtains and replace the rusty frame on the rear vent wing window.

[poptop tom]

Saving the best for last with that rear vent wing window, I see!

PITA that is.

Great progress so far, Chris!

[yondermtn]

Great work! How long do the retractable belts take to install?

I started my bus up and drove it out of the driveway. That's it so far this year.
Crappy weather and too many other projects.

[BellePlaine]

Great work! How long do the retractable belts take to install?

I started my bus up and drove it out of the driveway. That's it so far this year.
Crappy weather and too many other projects.

It took no time at all. Well, I touched up some bare metal with paint at both of the top anchors to keep them from rusting. Waiting for the paint to dry was an overnight deal. Otherwise the job was very easy.

Saving the best for last with that rear vent wing window, I see!

Yeah! That job is best left for warmer weather, right?

[poptop tom]

Great work! How long do the retractable belts take to install?

I started my bus up and drove it out of the driveway. That's it so far this year.
Crappy weather and too many other projects.

It took no time at all. Well, I touched up some bare metal with paint at both of the top anchors to keep them from rusting. Waiting for the paint to dry was an overnight deal. Otherwise the job was very easy.

Saving the best for last with that rear vent wing window, I see!

Yeah! That job is best left for warmer weather, right?

Warmer weather. Lots of time on your hands. Great beer on hand. A day where your patience is at a peak.

You get the picture!lol It's not alot of fun. And I replaced my seal on mine and didnt have to deal with any rust.

[Ritter]

For the life of me, I cannot figure out how to remove the barrels from the rear hatch or the slider lock. They remain on the list.

It's been a while but it seems like you just remove the interior panel, unscrew the Philips screw and it pulls out through the outside. You can then add a latch release lever from the inside as well (the long screw).

[album]126[/album]


Looking good, btw.

[BellePlaine]

When you are dealing with a late Westy interior (specifically because of the closet), it's most practical to perform the driver's side rear ventwing window repair/swap on the same day that you exchange those nasty, stinky, and faded baby-poop yellow curtains for something fresh. So much work on the bus has happily been on my shoulders, that I thought that my creative wife would appreciate a chance to earn some of the glory in the form of sewing up some new curtains. According to my wife, she works best under pressure; her motivation was Sunday's Twin Cities Bug-In.

See, here she is, cranking 'em out.


So while new curtains were being made, I removed the driver's side rear window and ventwing. I wish I would have performed this repair a couple years ago when I had all of the windows out for painting but I was intimiated by that vent wing. I now know that I was scared for nothing. The original window frame was such a rusty mess that I never dared open the window for more than a crack. Look at all of that rust!



I sanded the rust off of the window sill, cleaned it up, treated the metal with rust converter, and painted it. It's not perfect but not rusty either.



I had non-rusty ventwing window from my old parts bus which I installed using keg lube which is a waterproof lubricant we use on the o-rings and rubber bits on homebrewing kegs. We installed those windows without any problems using the lube and a new WW window seal. So, here's what the window looks like now. Perfect for driving around on these 100+ degree Minnesota June summer days.



And the curtains?

Nice, huh?

Here's bonus camping tip; get yourself one of those puking/bed pans the next time that your at the hospital. They fit perfectly inside of the Westy sink and are nice for use as a dog water bowl or for doing the dishes.

[Mike Boell]

BellePlaine,
No pictures showed up?
Mike

[BellePlaine]

BellePlaine,
No pictures showed up?
Mike

Weird. I linked the photos from photobucket. I can see them. Anyone having trouble?

Something strange is going on though because I can only see Ritter's photo in the entry before mine when I'm logged in. If I'm a guest, then I get one of those "you are not authorized" messages.

[hiwaycallin]

BellePlaine,
No pictures showed up?
Mike

Weird. I linked the photos from photobucket. I can see them. Anyone having trouble?

I can see them.