Stripped down one of the westy louvred windows today and now got a big pile of aluminium on the workbench waiting for some better weather to polish it all up outside. Sourced a replacement rear quarterlight as well, the old one turned out to be rusty along the bottom. I am constantly finding new stuff that needs doing that I did not expect, in spite of attempting to plan ahead and source parts in advance. It's getting to be a bit of a pain at the moment, hope it's worth it!
Polishing 40 year old aluminium with standard polishing gear is a bit of a lost cause. Got a scotchbrite mop on the bench grinder now and it takes off the accumulated corrosion brilliantly. I also got a heavy duty wire brush for my angle grinder and cleaned up all of the rusty roof rack stays for Paul to paint. Cleaned up the replacement rear quarterlight as well, Paul painted it for the next day and now that's fitted, along with a new front screen.
Pop top painted, it was too grimy to put back in original condition. New seals ready to go on and I've refurbished the hinges with new sliding bearings and pivots. Roof to be fitted Thursday, got a couple of helpers lined up!
Got the Westy top fitted today. It was a bit time consuming working out the best way to fit it, but it's done now. Sorry, no pics as it was tipping down with rain as well.
Mechanicals nearly done now. The van came with some new parts already fitted: Main steerting rod, shocks, front discs / pads / callipers. Apart from that, nearly everything was shot. Replacement list: Both track rods, 4 front ball joints, rear wheel bearings, rear brake shoes, rear brake cylinders, hand brake cables, master cylinder and servo. The engine's running now - full engine service and rear oil seal, replace gearbox oil, replace clutch and replace all fuel lines. The loom is new with hot start relay fitted. Just waiting for the better quality engine lid seal and a replacement RHS door seal (incorrect one was included in the door kit from VWH) then it should be ready to MoT.
I picked up the van from Lincoln VW today with its fresh MoT certificate. It's gone up to J&S to have the interior fitted, no pictures because it was raining hard again. Next job is to get it registered so I can tax (free) and insure it ready for the road.
I finally got round to sorting out a picture of the van with the Westy top fitted. It's now at J&S in Doncaster for the interior fit out.
That looks awesome. Love the colour. I really like the quarter light in the rear window. Was this standard on the van?
One Westy window now completely re-sealed and polished. This was a long job, although the second one will be a lot faster as I know what to do now.
