Woody my 72/73 bay window resto project .......an epic tale of rust.......

Good to see your still cracking on with it diddy. The attention to detail is going to make this

 

cheers

...nearly finished the seat...but still got a few small issues to sort out

ok, all bits fixed togeter and here is how it looks (still got to remake the side bits as I found the front and sides were too short once I fitted the seat base)





so from seat, I raise the seat base up and the catches disengage





you can see how much lower the side bits are ...and that it is not bolted to the wheel arch but is flat against it



I lift it up to about here



nothing latched in and pull the lot towards me untill the back goes down

half way there and still pulling towards me



and then it is down



bolted securly at the rear both sides (will change these to countersunk 8mm)



couple of mm between the boards

 

....I've not fixed the supporting legs on yet

then putting it back to seat mode I raise the base to here and it clicks into place





and can then push on the egde and it rocks back to a seat



bed to seat works lovely ....not sure about the other way around though

.....and the seat base definatley slopes to the rear, as I put a drill bit on it and it rolled towards the back .....putting the drill bit in the base and it stays where it is ....still got to look into that

....also got to replace a few more wood screws with bolts - I used wood screws to temporarily fit it until I was happy

 

Hi Diddyman.
Looking good. Have you got the measurements for the bed? @davidoft pointed me in your direction.

Cheers!

 

Your in luck ....I was just going to chuck them in the wood burner as i'd finished with them

Made mine to slightly different dimentions as the measurements I got from David were slightly wrong for my hinges

I can let you know the measurements I have on paper, or I can measure mine for you

.....I'm guessing you have early west style hinges too, are they original or copies ....and do you have the fixing points already in your van ?

 

Phew, good timing then!

Not sure on the hinges unfortunately - pretty sure they aren't original though. They look identical to the ones you have so perhaps your meaurements would be most helpful.

 

I'll draw them up a bit neater on AutoCAD tomorrow ....I'll do both measurements when I get the chance

The main difference is likely to be the height of the front and end pieces, if you can fix the hinges to the van first and put them into the bed position ....you can double check the height you need and get it right first time unlike me lol!!

....just checked your location to see you are local to me lol!! .....JF Goodwillies on the London rd just south of Waterlooville shops will probably be the cheapest place to buy your wood, and they can cut it to size for you

 

these are the measurements I had on paper



I think it was only the front and side panel height that was different when I made mine ....from memory they were 36cm high

....if I get a chance I'll measure them up and re-draw on CAD

if you get stuck let me know

 

You're a hero! Thanks

Mines already been made (badly) with MDF so going try & re-do with ply. Hopefully my upholstery will survive unscathed.

 

MDF tends to absorb moisture overtime, and can swell and distort .....ply is a lot more stable IMO

....you should be able to take measurements from your existing bed as you already have one ......it might be a bit more accurate than following my measurements, but depends how bad yours is

regarding upholstery ....do you mean the upholstery for the bed or the side panels? .....side panels (door cards) should be safe as there is nothing attaching the bed to the side of the van, for the bed upholstery, as long as you are carful you should be able to save it

have a look in the mech tech section as I posted a few questions on R&R beds and there was lots of good advice given

http://thelatebay.com/index.php?threads/couple-of-r-r-bed-questions.45191/

or take a look at Dicky's how to:-

http://thelatebay.com/index.php?threads/timber-rock-and-roll-bed-using-westy-hinges.34335/

let me know if you get stuck

 

Nice thread mate. Your dedication makes me feel like a right pansy. However your lower A-post repairs have given me renewed vigour to get stuck into mines. Awesome job.

 

Cheers mate .....its been a labour of love thats for sure!!

I've been thinking of starting the restoration of my MG soon ....but I've got to finish the van first....so maybee I'll start it in a few years lol!

 

ground ...................... to a halt ?

 

...and as there won't be time this year now there's no point rushing as he's got another whole year...

 

not completely stopped ....just not done anything for a while

I suppose it's because there is not much more to do, hard to get motivation when there's only little bits an pieces left

I did re-bend the brackets for the R&R bed base the other day so it lays level.

got to order the foam, seat belts, T-bolts to hold the seat to the van, finish off the headliner ......and get my arse in gear and crack on!!

Been working on my kitchen and house stuff over the last few months, Mrs Diddymen did say we will have to get it finished this year and start using it ......she has booked up a holiday in Wales for Easter ......in a static caravan, so I guess she's not holding much hope we will have the van done by then

....thanks for the kick up the backside

 

I feel your pain diddy when the house needs doing before the bus
Im in the same boat at the moment but once the house is sorted ill be full pelt with fresh energy and commitment on the paravan

Your bed seems to have been a lot of faff
Ive got this as my bed and hopefully its going to be fuss free

 

Your bed looks good. Glad to hear your still working on yours in between house stuff.
My bed wasn't too bad TBH .....I made it more of a faff than it should have been as I do with most things!

 

has it rotted out yet, must of been parked up with you longer than any time in its life

get it fixed, drive to techenders, it could be all finished in that weekend and off to camp all over the world, have your children started uni yet

love you byyyyyyyyyy

 

hey @Diddymen can I ask how your other half did such nice tuck and roll on the panelling? its lovely! I want to do my own covers and panel covers and would love to use this style, but they're some of the nicest Ive seen!