'Cleanliness is next to Godliness' and all that....someone needs to condense the techniques used in this thread for reference, an exemplary effort, WEll DONE!!!

Interesting about stainless exhaust studs, Heritage only sell stainless ones!

Congrats for an amazing work, I'm very impressed by your dedication to cleaning :shock: well done.

Were do you get all the correct info, books?

cheers

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I've always wanted to rebuild a VW engine and already own several generic books.

However, the absolute bible in terms of tolerances, specifications, clearances, wear limits etc has come from the original Bentley workshop manual which is the most wonderful publication.

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Wonderfull job !!! You should write a book !!

What about brakes and front axle ?

As brakes are a safety item, I've already replaced the master cylinder with a NOS item and have a full set of ATE NOS wheel cylinders and flexi hoses along with solid lines.

The front axle seems fine and can be a post MOT/registration project - it'll just need a clean up from what I can see.

Don't get the wrong impression - the cleanliness of the motor build is simply because that's how engines are supposed to be built in my book. The rest of the car won't be cleaned to the same degree as this isn't a restoration project, it's a preservation project and I want to keep as much of the original patina in tact as possible whilst only replacing what is safety related or essential maintanence.

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I was working late tonight so only had time for a quck tinker...

I cleaned and fitted the oil pressure switch, which for the record, changed from a screw terminal to spade terminal in '55, so yes, it's the correct one.

Cleaned up well.





The oil pressure switch has a tapered thread is nt meant to be screwed in all the way to the end stop as this just puts strain on the case which with a little heat expansion can crack the case!

The manuals say to add a little thread lock/sealant and nip it up medium tight, but don;t keep going expecting it to get tighter as it won't, it'll just keep on going...

Apparently, you should still be able to see a few threads when it is in far enough, assuming you don't have a thread that has already been over tightened.





I cleaned up the small tin that sits under the fuel pump and fitted it next.







The thermostat was next, and it was in a right sorry state.





With this being a soft brass, I didn't want to put any harsh chemicals near it so just gave it a bath and scrub in the jet fuel wich cleaned it up well enough....





Well enough for some.... but not for my level of OCD, that's for sure!


before I went crazy cleaning it, I thought I'd better test it, gently clamped the mount in a vice and waved the heat gun in front of rit for a little wheil until I watched the bellows expand nice and evenly...





..... which gave me an idea!

With the bellows open, it was a great oppertunity to get in the gaps between each fold and have a good clean.

I'll spare you the details, but with some burnt finger tips as it was still hot, an oily rag and a lot of frantic rubbing with a little polish, I ended up with what is probably the most shiny original thermostat there has ever been.

Sorry guys, I just couldn't help it!







Night all!

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LT,Where did you get that information? I am not sure(guess around 1960) when it was but i had an all original 58 beetle with not one spade terminal on the whole car and my original vw manual from 1958 is not showing the spade type .Its only a small detail i know and have a spade type on my 53 only because i cannot find a working one .I have got 4 and they have all failed closed circuit.

Mike

PS thermostat looks nice but taking it too far 😳 .You will be lining the slots up in the tin screws next ,or at least fighting the urge now i have mentioned it :wink:




Joking aside you can still buy those tin screws new and zinc coated just like the originals.The slots may line up better to :!: :wink:

The Bently manual says that from 1955 the switched to the spade terminal, but the generic photo they show in the book is of the early type.

I've also had this confirmed by an old boy at one of the shows who had a '56 that had been stored in a museum much of it's life which also had the spade terminal.

I'm using all the original nuts, bolts, washers and fsteners - including the tinware screws - only replacing what is worn out of spec, or damaged / broken beyond repair.

Preservation, not restoration.

Just couldn't help it on the thermostat - still the original and nothing wrong with cleaning a component - only the same as waxing your paintwork, only this just happened to be a thermostat....

:lol:

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Interesting, I don’t doubt what you say but I have certainly owned ’56, ’58 and ’60 beetles that have had oil pressure switches with screw terminals. The wiring on my present ’57 has a connection for a screw terminal, not a spade connector.

I had always assumed that the spade connectors were universally introduced in August ’60 for the ’61 model year. But I may be wrong.

This continues to be a fantastic thread by the way, and essential reading! It'd be great to see it published as a "how to" manual with all the pictures, I'm sure it would be well received.

Mike 😎

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Correct Mike, spade connectors were introduced in Aug '60.

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Must admit, I was thinking similar Mike.
I believe my 58 is still fitted with its original switch and that is screwed (in a nice way:lol:). and as you say I too have not found any other spade terminals.
The switch is also a dull alloy colour (raw) and the insulated bit is the older bakerlite material. Maybe LT, yours has been replaced at some time in the past, the golden colour and moulded plastic insulation does look to be slightly later period?

Awsome thread LT, like many, I have to get my daily fix. I think you should capture the first restart of your finished engine on film, I for one would love to see it burst in to life once again8)

Pete:d

'Edit' you jumped in there quick Rich, I've got to learn to type faster:lol:

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^^^Fantastic.

Evil Ben would be proud of you... :lol:

Guys - just excuse me for a moment whilst I wipe the last few crumbs of humble pie from around my mouth.....

For the life of me I cannot find the reference material for the spade connector oil pressure switch in any of my books, yet I swear I didn;t dream it...

However, enough people with far more knowledge and experience have corrected me on this issue so I have bitten the bullet and just shelled out for a correct screw terminal item.

Oh, and a screw terminal brake light switch too!

:lol:

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Made some more decent progress today, so buckle up for a treat of a trip into automotive astonishment!

Seriously though – this is what happened today…

First things first, I finally managed to find the original and correct exhaust studs and hardware with the blank band in the middle – not from a VW source but direct from Porsche as they used the same component on the 356 and early 911’s. I feel somehow ‘cleansed’…







Got the jewel of the thermostat in its mounting bracket and mounted to the block.







The thermostat pushes a rod that runs up between the cylinders and links to a mechanism that controls the amount of cooling air supplied to the fan.
Here is a sequence that shows before and after cleaning, then assembly.











Next up was the cylinder head tinware which was in a right old mess. The gunk was so heavily caked on, the most efficient method of cleaning was to used a plastic scraper to remove the majority of the thick stuff, then give them a bath in the jet fuel, then a final degrease and clean in a foam bath.

The temptation to get all the tinware blasted a powder coated was very strong, but then I’d not be following the plan to preserve rather than restore, so I’m leaving it well alone.













The heater channels were next and they were equally as grotty as the head tins. These took hours to get clean as most of the filth was literally backed on, hard and crusty and wouldn’t dissolve in any of my cleaners and I didn’t want to risk taking any more paint off by using the oven cleaner, so it was literally a case of scrubbing until they eventually came up clean.













I was in a bit of a quandary about what to do with the bare metal and light corrosion, and as I’ve said, I didn’t want to be painting, coating or covering anything up. As the metal work is actually perfectly sound, I decided to give them a coating of the transit sealer I’ve discussed earlier in the thread. It takes about 30 – 40 minutes to dry, then forms and tough yet flexible amber coloured protective coating that keeps moisture out. I’m all too aware that it will attract dirt and dust, but as it is only on the external surfaces, I’ll live with that in the interests of preservation. I’m sure they’ve got another 53 years left in them…





You’ve got to love original tinware – it fits perfectly!









Apparently, the support mount from the case to the top of the oil cooler is a rare item and only fitted for a few months in late ’56 to mid ’57. Obviously I’ll need to swing it out the way when the fan housing goes on. It mounts through a hole in the housing direct to the cooler for additional support.





And finally – this is how I left it for the evening. I sense I’m on the home straight now and the finish line will soon be looming!
I’m really, really pleased!





Thanks for sticking with me!

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Knock, knock......?

Anyone home?

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This thread is terrible.

I went out and had a nice 1500 built for my '55 the other day, very happy with it and then I see this thread and it makes start going "oh I should really rebuild the 30hp engine and stick it in"

In all serious, nice work mate, are you taking this car to Bad Camberg? (I'm sure it would fit in well there!)

I don't know anything about Bad Camberg, please educate me?

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I really like this. Clean it up, bolt it back on. Great!

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https://www.lottermann-veteranen-treffen.de/ 

Bi-yearly show in Bad Camberg, Germany (near Cologne). Aimed generally towards your stock and rare Volkswagens.

Going to be heading over there next year (see the Bad Camberg thread on here in the Vintage Shows section) and as I say, I think your car would fit nicely in with all the other cars!