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Post by PICTUP on Sept 1, 2015 19:35:12 GMT -8
I am starting to think I am a glutton for punishment. Yes, more than a year ago there was a new road pushed thru after a house was taken down on Extension Road. It exposed the back yard of another house and behind it, languishing under a cherry tree was a Westfalia. Upon closer inspection I found it to be a 1978. It was rather dilapidated looking with having tags on it telling me it had been sitting there for 13 years. I set about trying to find the owner. The house seemed to be empty for the first few months I knocked on the door time after time. I even wrote a snail mail letter to the last owner who seemed to live in Victoria. Then one day I saw a car in the driveway. So introduced myself to what turned out to be the tenant. I asked if it would be possible for him to get a letter to the owner of the Westy. He agreed, so I sent a gave him a letter with higher hopes I would hear back this time. And I did! We arranged to meet at the Bus. This was last summer. At that point the decision to sell was not in the cards, because the daughter of the owner might want to "fix it up". So left feeling a tad defeated. But I wasn't really defeated. Heck, "I managed to get in touch with the owner", I thought. After going by the vehicle to visit my folks for over a year, I decided to find out if there had been any further thought on the Westy's fate. Turns out it was now for sale…at a price yet to be determined. In person we managed to come to an agreed-on price. Thus the journey of revival and restoration began……. How it looked a few steps up the new road from Extension Rd.  Getting closer  Check out the stripes from above   So the question remained….Would it roll? Well, turns out a certain Mr. Beetle was up for a wreck adventure and the process began.  The spiders had set up veritable colonies…Eeeeeewww! …..Oh c'mon now!!!    With the front flat tires replaced it was indeed a roller!  And the emergency brake actually kinda still worked. But how to get it on a trailer without power or a winch? A couple of years ago I had been in a similar situation down in Gresham OR(a Portland suburb really) while moving a barn door bus for someone needing it taken to Lynnwood, WA and the answer turned out to be one Newton called gravity  Mr. Beetle has confessed to me recently that this was not a transfer method for him to participate in, but see how it went…. Westy poised to roll down the hill and moving the truck to in front of the Bus  With the FJ and trailer in position we got the Bus up the ramps, but rolling it onto the trailer proved a bit more difficult while still maintaining control. It would be fairly disastrous to have it take off as it moved down the trailer!!   But after a few almost tense moments, everything went fine. After blocking the trailer that is!!   Getting a sense of slope we were dealing with…  Next step…a good clean |
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Post by busaddict on Sept 1, 2015 20:28:37 GMT -8
How exciting, but I thought Don only took in good to great condition buses. Thanks for keeping another one on the Island! |
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Post by Volktales on Sept 1, 2015 21:24:09 GMT -8
It actually is much better than it looks. I am sure Don will post some of the after "cleaned" pictures. This bus was one family owned from new and is low mileage too. Was apparently running fine when parked and the engine still turns over nicely. I actually kind of like the stripes on this one too...
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Post by busaddict on Sept 1, 2015 22:52:13 GMT -8
Very cool Russ, do you think it will make it to the show?
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Post by paolo on Sept 2, 2015 0:06:11 GMT -8
I LOVE stories like this, a bit of love, a bit of patience.
Plus kudos for the story, pictures etc, so easy to post one pic and say look what I found
stripe reminds me of a late run limited edition, but ones I have seen with the stripe were kind of a metallic dark brown or burgandy
looks pretty solid
I am just building a canadian tire tent/garage to keep the rain off one of mine....slow progress!
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Post by Wongai on Sept 2, 2015 7:05:34 GMT -8
That's awesome. Nice pull! Looking forward to seeing this bad boy all cleaned up. Congrats on the adoption!
Byron
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Post by Brenticon on Sept 2, 2015 8:00:01 GMT -8
That thing looks way better up close.
Good to see, the cats outta the bag.
Congrats Don!
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Post by mitchy965 on Sept 2, 2015 8:26:51 GMT -8
kool! looks nice! (have you told your boat?)
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Post by PICTUP on Sept 2, 2015 11:51:59 GMT -8
How exciting, but I thought Don only took in good to great condition buses. Thanks for keeping another one on the Island! Well Tom, I know Don made the decision long ago never to buy another real rusty VW….well one that was so far beyond his skill set that he knew he couldn't ever make it safe. Of course, he might make an exception if the VW is exceptional In this case as Russ says, it isn't that bad, considering it has been sitting under a tree for 13 years. But I think Don agrees, it isn't the best example out there, but it does have some very good points, the major one being he didn't have to go to the USA to get it  Very cool Russ, do you think it will make it to the show? I'm gonna answer this…..  yeah, right!! (as I dry my eyes). This is a long term project and the goal at the moment is to just get it running so I can move it around without a winch  I LOVE stories like this, a bit of love, a bit of patience. Plus kudos for the story, pictures etc, so easy to post one pic and say look what I found Don't forget the hard work Thanks for the kudos, that is what we try to do here; have fun and inspire others to go out and do the same and join in a great community of VW nuts. That's awesome. Nice pull! Looking forward to seeing this bad boy all cleaned up. Congrats on the adoption! Byron Thanks Byron. But I prefer to think of the Westy as a bad girl, That thing looks way better up close. Good to see, the cats outta the bag. Congrats Don! Yes, I do deserve a whipping by that cat!  Thanks, my future just got even busier! kool! looks nice! (have you told your boat?) You did have to go bring that up!! No Burnaby does not know. But then again she doesn't know that Britannia Heritage Shipyard has expressed an interest in her…fingers crossed!! |
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Post by CrazyBrit on Sept 2, 2015 16:51:52 GMT -8
Good to hear you have some interest in your boat! I hope it goes through for you - Perhaps you'll have some spare room for some more VWs?
The bus looks great. I can't see much corrosion in the photos'. Looking forward to seeing it in person when I am not working! Perhaps you could trailer it up to the show for the "before" or "as found" reveal.
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Post by chickenwing on Sept 2, 2015 16:54:07 GMT -8
Great looking bus, Don! Just can't get away from them '78 Dakota Beige buses, eh??
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Post by PICTUP on Sept 3, 2015 21:34:59 GMT -8
Good to hear you have some interest in your boat! I hope it goes through for you - Perhaps you'll have some spare room for some more VWs? The bus looks great. I can't see much corrosion in the photos'. Looking forward to seeing it in person when I am not working! Perhaps you could trailer it up to the show for the "before" or "as found" reveal. I think the "spare room" already has dibs on it by the VWs I have hanging around . Don't think I will be able to trailer it to the show, but anyone is welcome to come take a look where it is Great looking bus, Don! Just can't get away from them '78 Dakota Beige buses, eh?? I know, what is up that? I did have a green one intervene for a bit So Russ and I took the Westy on the trailer to the car wash and I am not going to say which one because did I leave a mess behind!! Yikes! This time I managed to not completely coat Russ in 13 years worth of Bus slime. We hightailed it outta there as soon as she was deemed "clean enough" and she had her first blow dry in a while on the way back to Russ'. And here she is sitting out front. Still more could be done, but the majority of crud is gone.  The Movember Bus??   And some underside shots. Not terrible, eh Tom?    Definitely some good points when it comes to the interior  Some surface rust to contend with before it becomes too much of a problem on the step, but the floor is good  Quite complete with table  This part is a bit yucky, but with some cleaning and degreasing will probably not be that bad…  Next up…..the engine and what entails taking a tank out with the engine in. Not for the faint of heart! Arg!! |
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Post by busaddict on Sept 3, 2015 23:04:58 GMT -8
By the beard of Zeus that bus looks great! I dare you to take a little rubbing compound and a good wax, it would look like new Was the tank completely empty when parked? If so, maybe you don't need to take it out. The one on my '73, which sat for 12 years, had all the fuel leak through the failed fuel pump (the reason it was parked) and it turned out to be pretty dry. A bit of crust, but nothing that couldn't be flushed or filtered out. That Westy is in really nice shape! |
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Post by Brenticon on Sept 4, 2015 6:43:16 GMT -8
Would you look at that ugly green box, ewwwwww.
I'd throw that thing away.
(away in my direction,lol)
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Post by Volktales on Sept 4, 2015 7:22:03 GMT -8
Amazing what a good wash job will do... Now fire it up!
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Mr. Beetle has confessed to me recently that this was not a transfer method for him to participate in, but see how it went….
Thanks, my future just got even busier!
