Rip VWs 27 T Coupe
- Thread starter Rip VW
- Start date
old round fart
Well-Known Member
Rather keep it sharp or reveal how screwed up you really are!
Rip VW
Active Member
Well I got the old motor mounts torn off the frame and the frame ready to receive the new mounts. Tomorrow I will pull the firewall out again so I can cut the engine recess out. Then put it back in and finish that part. I pulled the trigger on my new steering column and all the little related parts like u joints tie rod ends, steering shaft and column mounts and they should be here toward Friday or maybe Monday. I also scored me a 1 inch raised Pittman arm and that should be in by the weekend. I plan on setting up the steering box at the same time the engine mounts go in so I can ensure proper clearance this time. This steering and motor mount setup is going to go a long way in finishing a major pain in the butt this car threw at me. There is still a heck of a lot to do and I still have the radiator mounting and such to iron out but soon I can tackle the rest of the body work and fit the doors and deck lid hopefully that will be pretty straight forward. I am getting closer but still a heck of a ways from the finish but maybe some of these last details will actually be a lot of fun. So till the next milestone I bid a fair Adieu...
You won't be sorry for the time spent to get it right when that car is on the road. Safety items like steering and brakes deserve the most attention of any builder. Way to go, Rip!
Rip VW
Active Member
Well parts showed up yesterday except for the column drop bracket. It seems that Speedway chose to send that part of my order via USPS and it hasn't shown up yet. Today I am ready to slide the engine back in the frame and get ready for the mounts. I won't be able to finalize the mounts till my raised Pittman arm gets here. It was ordered from a different supplier. That too was shipped via USPS and hasn't arrived yet.
The new steering column seems pretty nice and the DD shaft is nice along with the steering U joints. Seems I should have all the stuff I need to wrap the steering and motor mounts up soon. I feel pretty good about getting this part of the equation wrapped up and done correctly. Yes safety is my first job in building this Coupe especially Brakes and steering..
Here is a slogan I remember that was printed on the dash of an old Light & Power utility Truck my Grandfather owned. " No job is so important, No work is so Urgent that we can not take time to perform our work safely". Funny how you remember things like that so clearly from our youthful days!!
The new steering column seems pretty nice and the DD shaft is nice along with the steering U joints. Seems I should have all the stuff I need to wrap the steering and motor mounts up soon. I feel pretty good about getting this part of the equation wrapped up and done correctly. Yes safety is my first job in building this Coupe especially Brakes and steering..
Here is a slogan I remember that was printed on the dash of an old Light & Power utility Truck my Grandfather owned. " No job is so important, No work is so Urgent that we can not take time to perform our work safely". Funny how you remember things like that so clearly from our youthful days!!
old round fart
Well-Known Member
Entered a safety slogan once. “When you gamble with safety you bet your ass” I didn’t win.
fletcherson
Well-Known Member
It’s amazing how much you can spend on steering column components. It’s also amazing how many variations are available. Hope everything works out!
Rip VW
Active Member
Well as it usually goes things move ahead then go sideways. I was putting the engine back in the chassis to set up the motor mounts and the engine would not set centered between the frame rails. A quick look and my moving of the Brake pedal 1" to the right sets the pedal box right against the shift linkage. My 1 inch spacer moved the box to close to the transmission so I have a couple of ideas to fix that problem but in the mean time I pulled the box out of the way and will tend to it when motor mounts and steering is ironed out.
Problem two is more of a logistical problem. When I moved in my shop last June I had a mover unloading and setting my stuff where ever they could find a place to set it. I have a large 6 foot long 6 foot high and 2 foot wide shelf I was storing things on but unfortunately where it was placed it is blocking access to my second 220Vac line for my welder.
When my shop was built and wired I had what I call a North 220Vac plug and a south 220Vac plug. One plug in on each end of the garage That way I can get to everywhere with my welder. Well with the shelf blocking the plug I can't get my welding leads close enough to the front of the T to weld the new mounts in. So it was decided that the shelf must move so I can weld up my mounts. I spent several hours today going through the crap on the shelf . The upside is I found several things packed away that I have been looking for since my move in. I had a bunch of grinding wheels, cutting disks and a box of roll locks. Oh and another steering column. I swore I had brought it with me when I moved out here. It was buried under a ton of stuff. There were a bunch of other things I thought got left behind and a lot of things I should have left behind.
So I figure by the end of the week I will be back to installing engine mounts and steering boxes. I have a couple a doctor visits to do this week and they usually knock me down for the day so It is going to be a slow progress this week. This time next week I should have some progress to report. Lets hope it is good progress at that!!
Problem two is more of a logistical problem. When I moved in my shop last June I had a mover unloading and setting my stuff where ever they could find a place to set it. I have a large 6 foot long 6 foot high and 2 foot wide shelf I was storing things on but unfortunately where it was placed it is blocking access to my second 220Vac line for my welder.
When my shop was built and wired I had what I call a North 220Vac plug and a south 220Vac plug. One plug in on each end of the garage That way I can get to everywhere with my welder. Well with the shelf blocking the plug I can't get my welding leads close enough to the front of the T to weld the new mounts in. So it was decided that the shelf must move so I can weld up my mounts. I spent several hours today going through the crap on the shelf . The upside is I found several things packed away that I have been looking for since my move in. I had a bunch of grinding wheels, cutting disks and a box of roll locks. Oh and another steering column. I swore I had brought it with me when I moved out here. It was buried under a ton of stuff. There were a bunch of other things I thought got left behind and a lot of things I should have left behind.
So I figure by the end of the week I will be back to installing engine mounts and steering boxes. I have a couple a doctor visits to do this week and they usually knock me down for the day so It is going to be a slow progress this week. This time next week I should have some progress to report. Lets hope it is good progress at that!!
Island Girl
Well-Known Member
I can sympathize with the "things going sideways" on an all to frequent basis . . . .
These little cars always look so clean and simple from the outside when they're all done and on the road, but that clean & simple, back to basics look, belies a lot of engineering and finagling to fit so much into such a tight amount of space.
I'm working on the premise that all the headaches and depressing moments along the way will be more than compensated for when I take it for the first drive . . . .
These little cars always look so clean and simple from the outside when they're all done and on the road, but that clean & simple, back to basics look, belies a lot of engineering and finagling to fit so much into such a tight amount of space.
I'm working on the premise that all the headaches and depressing moments along the way will be more than compensated for when I take it for the first drive . . . .
Rip VW
Active Member
OK, Today I finally got the new motor mounts tacked back into place and am ready to battle the steering box mount next. The mounts are 1 1/4 inch higher than their counterparts and that was accomplished by removing the engine spacers I added a long time ago and fudging the engine another 1/4 inch up. This changed the tailshaft angle from 1.8 degrees to 1.3 degrees. Still very workable angles. While positioning the steering box I noted the existing mount for the vega box was not going to be adequate as the box hangs on the frame a lot lower than before. It took a bit but I have found a way to make a new mount out of .250 steel plate braced from the bottom of the frame rail to the back of the plate the rest of the bracing will come from expanding the size of the plate to create more surface area to weld to the frame. The photo showing the changes drawn up rather crudely . I think that will make a nice solid mount mount that is workable. I also spent a little time looking over the brake pedal box to figure out how I am going to move the pedal over to the right by a inch and a half now that my spacer I had on it will have to go away. I found when I put the engine trans back in to rework the engine mounts that the transmission shift linkage was hitting the box not allowing the engine to set straight on the mounts. So a little progress forward with not to much rearward movement for a change. so enjoy the pics and I am sure there will be more as I am not out of the woods yet on this steering, brake, mount story..
fletcherson
Well-Known Member
Good work. There is seemingly always give and take when creating these seemingly simple machines. You are making good progress.
Rip VW
Active Member
Well I finally got the brake pedal assembly fit after removing the spacer assembly that I had made to move the box to the right an inch. The box is back in the original position and I modified the pedal pivot to move the pedal to the right and this time I got 1 1/2 inches to the right. I think this will work along with changing the pedal from the smallish steel pedal the brake assembly came with to an offset round pedal. I did a quick install of the assembly and so far everything clears and is over to the right just a little more than the first Attempt so things are looking up in that aspect.
I pulled the firewall last week so I can add the lower brackets that hold the floorboards to the bottom of the firewall and now that is done I reinstalled the firewall so I can proceed with the steering column install. I need to re install the brake pedal assembly so I can make sure it clears the steering column and then maybe 1 more remove and re install of the firewall so I can add reinforcement of the firewall where the column goes thru. Once that is done I can finally finish the steering box mount and hook up the steering.. What a long strange trip this has been!!!
I pulled the firewall last week so I can add the lower brackets that hold the floorboards to the bottom of the firewall and now that is done I reinstalled the firewall so I can proceed with the steering column install. I need to re install the brake pedal assembly so I can make sure it clears the steering column and then maybe 1 more remove and re install of the firewall so I can add reinforcement of the firewall where the column goes thru. Once that is done I can finally finish the steering box mount and hook up the steering.. What a long strange trip this has been!!!
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