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Post by Volktales on Dec 31, 2023 22:18:43 GMT -8
Well here we go again. What the hell did I get accomplished this year??? January: The very first day of the new year was playing with Bluey once again. Finally figured out why the car smelled gassy despite not having run since October...  Yup. That stupid cap that SHOULD have been vented in both directions, but wasn't. Once modified, the fuel smell problem went away, never to return. Also sent my first order in to Clark's Corvair. It would not be the last... Also stripped down the spare bumper that came with Glacier Gray, to extract the bumper guards and brackets that were missing from Bluey.  Also did some work to Glacier Gray, as I thought I might daily drive it in the summer. Removed the instrument cluster to repair a bunch of electrical issues, then pulled out the dead radio speaker that was buried under the dash. A strange design, I have still not found a solution to the problem of mounting a different speaker in the correct place. They are not available at all... Also removed the Rally wheels from Glacier gray and stripped them down for refinishing...  Meanwhile Don's SAAB was in my basement and we were still having fun with dashboard wiring. And if that wasn't enough of a busy month, my sleep was filled with weird dreams including Bubble Boy lawnmowers, 2 door Acura conversions, and mass extermination (that last one after ingesting some of my wife's powerful Chinese medicine!) What would the next month bring??? February: Still going full speed on Bluey. First up was getting those Rallys installed:  Then a few easy items like swapping out incorrect radio knobs, horn button, and reconditioning the Rally centre caps...  The caps were a success...  The steering wheel swap was not. Turns out my column has been swapped and the splines of the original wheel won't fit. WAAAAAAAHHHH! Still don't have a solution to this yet...  Also got an overpriced and misrepresented promotional model off E-bay for too much money. Did you know there are dishonest people out there? Bummer.  I did get around to finishing the rebuilding of Glacier Gray's instrument cluster. Installed the original rims and 40 plus year old tires back on that car as well. Can't locate replacement tires in that size at this time... Another bummer. At least I did finish off the month by cleaning and undercoating the front wheel wells and suspension of Bluey. Never a fun job... Continued... |
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Post by Volktales on Dec 31, 2023 22:48:27 GMT -8
March: My order from Clark's arrived, and more goodies were swapped including the license light, door lock knobs, and my favourite:  Colour matched GM repro floor mats! Woo Hoo! At the same time I finished off cleaning and undersealing the rear wheel wells and suspension. Again a yucky but necessary job. Then the Rallys were permanently installed...  Likey how they turned out... During this same time, the old rims and tires from Bluey were transferred to Goldie. The oversized Camaro rims on the car were given to my friend Terry, who gave me them in the first place...  And then the dark times began... The repainting of the "frunk" turned into a full on fiasco that lasted well into the next month... Combined with a bathroom reno downstairs meant irritation for the next while... April:  Sooo much work to get here. I initially used the grey spatter tone paint, as that was the finish that was already there. Multiple paint reactions, and lack of drying meant way more work to strip it back down. I elected to go to the "Canadian" spec finish of body colour instead, and am glad I did. Was very happy to finish this part of the project...  Just one of many things accomplished, was completely rebuilding the lighting assemblies, finishing off the bumper, drilling the body for the missing emblem (stressful), etc, etc.  Meanwhile spotted a set of these on Marketplace. For a much cheaper then average price, I had to have them. These were the top hubcaps of the era, and will make their way onto Glacier Gray. Came with lots of other goodies too, so was a worthwhile trip to Victoria. And Don and I gobbled fresh donuts, so it was a great day overall... May: Lots going on...  Completed that front end at last. Restored everything including the lights, bezels, trim, and bumper guards. Felt very good to finally get this all together!  Finished off everything in the frunk, including a new master cylinder, repro washer bottle, repaired wiper and pump assembly, and replaced every single missing clip/grommet/seal etc. Also did the weather-stripping of course...  Meanwhile Reagh went through his photo archives and found this forlorn picture of Goldie as he found it. It just HAD to be saved!  And it was VERY nice to see that Rob had repaired and put my old Fasty back together and on the road once again! Made me smile every time I saw it, and he enjoyed driving it throughout the summer.  And another milestone was Don completing his SAAB to operational status, and taking it back home. Now what was I going to stuff into my basement garage next??? Continued... |
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Post by Volktales on Dec 31, 2023 23:24:00 GMT -8
June:  We finally had our first car event of the season to attend, and it was the Nanoose Swap Meet. Lots of stuff, but did not find anything spectacular. Just picked up a couple of nice '65 license plates for either Glacier Gray (or Goldie some day.)  Then a bunch of small but necessary things on Bluey, including new arm rests, vapour barriers, and installing the correct window winders. Did a couple of mechanical things including cleaning the points, and installing a new vacuum advance unit. Would Bluey finally run well? You bet it did; ran great for the rest of the summer... The other big news in June was I finally got a stupid smart phone, and now I am hopelessly addicted to it, just like everyone else.  And then finally June 18 came. The first real car show of the year at Qualicum, and it was fantastic! The Corvair made it just fine, and Don with his SAAB, and Brian with his bus were behind in this pic. We all parked side by side, and had a great time at the show. It was absolutely packed as usual...  Given the fact I have owned mostly small cars in my life, you would not think I would like this huge Lincoln. But I love this model, one of the most beautiful designs from the 1960's. If I win the lottery, I will get one of these for sure. And take all of you for a ride in it! July:  The only thing done to Bluey this month was getting my new keys professionally cut. And it was worth it! Otherwise it was time to drive and enjoy the car at last...  It was time to get the old '62 out again. Had to repair a minor leak from the fuel pump, and she was back in action.  You guys would all laugh, but finally retired the trusty old Canon. From this point forward, it was all pics from the cell phone...  And now we were all off to the Victoria Volksfest! Tons of pics on this site as usual.  Brian's bus was a popular hangout site at the show. Rob, Don, Frank, and his mini-me were enjoying the shade...  Some of us decided to head back via the Brentwood Bay ferry. This was pretty cool, and I think I would do it again... The '62 performed admirably and was a lot of fun!  The event of the year for me however, is the trip to the Seattle Vintage Meet. And this was the car that blew me away with how nicely it was put together. Tons of stellar cars at that event, and you can see tons of pictures of it on this site...  This show has a HUGE swap meet, and this was the treasure I brought home. It has since been restored, and will be installed in a project soon...  July finished off with a new show at KMS tools. Don and Rob S. both entered their cars, but I did not. I was there briefly, and this highly modified Corvair was the highlight for me. It has since been properly painted white, and looks stunning in person. Otherwise the KMS show did not impress me at all, as it was mostly tuner type cars, and many of them were quite shabby. Just my opinion of course... Continued... |
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Post by Volktales on Dec 31, 2023 23:58:43 GMT -8
August:  The only work done on any of my cars was replacing the chokes and adjusting the transmission on Bluey. Otherwise it was lots of driving in the hot weather.  The next event in August, was the Ladysmith show on the 19th. And the above Ford Fairlane was my favourite car there this year. Why? Because this is pretty much exactly the car I hoped to buy when I lived in Victoria in the early '90's. Bought my old Cougar instead...    Don was there in his SAAB of course, and Brian was there in his bus. And my ride was my Dad's old '56 hot rod T-bird. Fresh out of a substantial detailing it certainly got lots of looks. For sale too!  I quite liked this Caddy, too. An all original minter it was. Unfortunately after a full day at this show, I was too burnt out to go to Clay's Duncan show the very next day. I really need to get to that one one of these times! The final event in August, but unfortunately I was unable to attend the Island Bug Jam on the 27th. I have no pictures of my own, but like all past events, there are tons of pictures on this site September:  Bavarianfest, the final VW and car event of the year for most of us. Those that made the effort to attend were rewarded with tons of fantastic door prizes, great food, and good VW talk. Because of iffy weather forecasts prior to the show, attendance was less then hoped for, and changes to the show date are expected next year. The next day after the show, the heavens opened and it rained for what seemed like weeks. Anyway once again pictures of everything at this event on the site...  A "new" project finally made its way into the basement garage. My old '66 is finally going to get that engine swap and 12 volt conversion I have been threatening it with for years and years.  The rounding up of parts began... All in "stock" too.  Goldie got a bit of loving this month too, as a boat tank made its way into the engine compartment, and the last of the lights were fixed. Also pulled the cowl panel, and cleaned out the ick within. Why? Still going to be taken for at least one test drive for sure... Just because... October:  A bit of excitement as Savannah Beige finally came home! In storage at Reagh's place for ages, I finally managed to "create" an inside storage space for it. How?   Extreme slamming did the job (removing the wheels), which allowed it to just slip under the bench at the back of Mom's carport. Very tight, but at least it is undercover. Hopefully no more racoons and rats move in...  Goldie had a brief drive out of the carport, as I mulled over storing it outside for awhile. Couldn't do it, so Goldie got the carport back, and my boring Honda will sit outside for the winter. Wish I had a warehouse. And money. And a dog. This was also the month we decided to shift to once a month meetings for our in person get togethers. This seemed to bring attendance up, and will be continued in January.  Lots of fun this month overhauling components for the '66 Beetle. Slowly getting there... House issues occurring again including microwave and plumbing repairs. More fun...  And Bluey returned to Dad's old garage for the next round of improvements. It rewarded me by running poor and stalling on the way over to the garage for no obvious reason. The next round of work includes redoing the engine compartment including the wiring harness, so everything is coming out anyway. Hopefully we will find something amiss... Continued... |
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Post by Volktales on Jan 1, 2024 0:27:51 GMT -8
November:  More reconditioning and assembling components.    And yanking that old 1500 out for good. Reorganized the shop with Brian, and made more space for working. Felt good! Gathered up pretty much the last of the parts I needed from both my own stash, as well as good friends. Only part I have bought is a new 12 volt battery so far...  Remember this? My old "Project Pootina/ZomBeetle. The current owner announced that they intend to fully restore this car (not on this site unfortunately). I wish them the best of luck as I would love to see the old beast roadworthy once again! December:  Darren said he would finally have time to recover the front seats in Bluey. So I jumped on that and got the seats to him. Once he removed the covers, it quickly came apparent one seat frame was mint, and the other was absolutely trash. I started to try and clean up the trashy one, but it was a total mess with rust and many broken springs.  Managed to find a set of seats from a '65 for a fair price. Removing the old upholstery from this was fun. No it wasn't.  They all are stripped, repaired, de-rusted, and painted. Ready for more of Darren's magic when he is ready...  And wrapped things up be eating this on the 25th!  And for desert and a happy new year! Now what will next year bring??? Hint, I will NOT be buying more cars!!! |
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Post by tony on Jan 1, 2024 15:58:34 GMT -8
Damn Russ it must have taken you a month to put the year in review together! ...... as for the turkey and pie it looks like there is only enough there for one! lol 😋🤤
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Post by Volktales on Jan 1, 2024 19:34:03 GMT -8
Damn Russ it must have taken you a month to put the year in review together! ...... as for the turkey and pie it looks like there is only enough there for one! lol 😋🤤 Oh there was more. Much more!  Cranberry pecan stuffing with sausage meat inside AND on top. Mmmm!  My brother in law was responsible for the scalloped potatoes, and Rebecca did the ham. Mom made her famous jellied salad, and there were lots of veggies, but who cares about those... Next big feast scheduled is Chinese New Year. Mmmm! |
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Post by 1hotvw on Jan 1, 2024 23:36:30 GMT -8
yummy yummy
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