SeventhSon
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Posts posted by SeventhSon
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Finally! I finally got back to the storage unit today, I believe the first time since Memorial Day. It's been an off kilter few weeks at work and I've been trying to get my bearings back, having to deal with a major computer crash, the layoff of our lone field guy, a vacation in the middle of it all, then getting back into the swing of working in the field again. A trying time. But things are coming around - I took care of the field work, took care of the office work, even had time to change the oil in the field truck (way too much time passed since the last oil change). It's funny how much better an engine feels with fresh oil. My new computer is probably 90% to what my old one was - I have a couple of little things that need to be straightened out, but I'm beginning to accept that it won't be exactly like my old computer. Just have to work with what I have.
So, I headed off in the rain to the storage unit to re-install the overhead lamps that I fixed up. I really wanted to fire the old girl up and take her out for a run, but the rain was relentless. I thought about just starting the engine and letting it idle, but I didn't want to expire from carbon monoxide poisoning. So I just installed the lights, turned on the battery cut-off and had a look. The right side light was on, even though the doors were closed. I got in and slid the switch on the left side light and it came on. I switched the lights on and off - both work fine. Except they don't come on when the door is opened. I have to look at the wiring diagram and see if the hot wire runs through the door switch. Or, are the lights only wired to work with the slider switch? Could that be an optional thing - where you could order the lights that came on when the door opened? It could be - I know there is an extra connector on the wire junction, but no matching connector on the lamp side of the junction. Hmmm...something I could test with my electrical tester.
Next up, after I test the overhead light to see if there is power supplied when the door is opened, I'll pull the courtesy light. The light works (on and off with the door open and close), but the switch doesn't. Has to be taken apart and cleaned up, like the others, I suppose. After that I'll pull the steering wheel again and touch up the repair areas, then try to figure out what is making the horn sound when it's not asked to. Always something, eh?
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John - how many miles do you have on that Passat? That W8 must really fly!
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Thanks John - it is gratifying to work on some little piece of the car and see it come back to life. The old girl still has some life in her!
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Well, I was going to head over to the storage unit (gotta hear that rumble!), but big storms were 'a brewin' so I decided to stay put and work on the dome lights some more. Not too exciting but if I want the lights to work I have to fix 'em up. I decided to try the soldering again, this time on the wires that I spliced from the new socket assembly to the old existing wires. This time the solder took real nicely, "gluing" the twisted wires together. I covered the splices with electrical tape and now that lamp is ready to go back in the car.
I was looking at the other light a couple of days ago and it looked like the socket was in good enough condition to use. The wires, contacts and springs were OK, they just needed some cleanup. First, I cleaned the connectors on the wire junction block. Then I took a Dremel tool with stiff brush and ran it on the socket contacts. That worked OK, but not as good as steel wool - I took a piece of that and jammed it in the socket. Then I took needle nose pliers and twisted round and round until the contacts were shiny. So was the socket wall. Next I had to disassemble the little slider switch, which I dread because the little copper contact bar fits in the slider piece just so, then you have to hold it all together whilst putting the switch in its place and clamping the little lugs down. A real fun task for large fumble fingers. Anyway, I took the switch apart, cleaned up the copper contact bar, then gave the contacts a good cleaning. They were totally coated in corrosion. I made the usual ten attempts to get the whole tiny package back together, dropping the little contact bar once (please let me find that!). After a while, with me drenched in sweat, the switch was back together.
I wrapped things up by re-connecting the wires to the switch, then giving the socket a little squeeze with some pliers, to hold the bulb tightly. I put the bulb in the socket, then hooked it up to my electric machine. Light! Woohoo! Now I have two working lamps ready to go back in the car. I have to remember to clean the connectors on the wire junction block in the car before re-installing the lights. Hopefully the lamps work as well in the car as they do hooked up to the electric machine.
My thoughts are beginning to turn to what I can do on the car next. Hmmm, something that doesn't cost too much, that's for sure.
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Whew - what a week. Hardly any time for the Avanti stuff - our field guy at work got laid off a couple of days before I went on vacation. That means I'm the field guy now, plus the office guy too. I'm not complaining, glad to still be employed. So now that I have returned to the field it turns blazing hot. Naturally. As my father used to say. Plus, I've been hobbling along with half a computer, trying to work things out with that. I spent the last two days in the field burning up, then decided to stay in the cool today and draw up what I did the past few days. I got a call from the computer whiz, who I've been playing phone tag with for a few days. I spent two hours on the phone with him while I watched him operate my computer remotely from Michigan (I'm in Virginia). He made some progress on getting me tied into the network, but ran into a brick wall while trying to get my data transfer software to load. When it was apparent that we were not making headway I bid him goodbye and considered throwing my hands up in the air and taking retirement early. Since the prospect of sitting by the road with a sign and cup didn't thrill me I decided to mull it over at lunch.
Things looked up after lunch - I uninstalled the email program and re-installed it. Success! It worked. Then I started thinking about the two part data transfer software - software that enables me to connect the field data collector to the computer and download all the day's work. I was downloading the program from the manufacturer's support site, then loading it onto my computer. But it kept hanging up and throwing up an error that this file was missing, etc. After three hundred times trying that and getting the same results I decided to look around for a different source for the program. I found a site in Europe that had the same program - I downloaded it and loaded it on my computer. It worked! I wonder if the manufacturer knows they have a defective program on their site? I turned to the other piece of the puzzle next - I went to the Microsoft site to search for their connection software. That's where I saw it: "Microsoft ActiveSync does not work with XP Pro, Service Pack 3". Oh, that's nice - my operating system. Any advice on what to do next? Nope. I went searching online threads - lots of complaining about that little glitch, but not much in the way of solutions. Finally, I decided to try loading an earlier version of that program. It worked! So now I'm 90 percent back in business with the computer at work. Hmmm...maybe I should have played the lottery today?
Now back to the regularly scheduled programing - I finally got to go back to fiddling around with the dome light I was working on the other day. The JB Weld set up nicely, holding the bulb socket tightly in place. I plugged in the soldering iron and tried my hand at getting a bit of solder to take between the light base and the socket. I had limited success - I'm not sure why the solder won't stick, but I got enough that I think it grounded things. Then it was time to try out the lamp. I cut off the old socket contacts, stripped the wire ends, and connected the new wires to the old. I hooked things up to my little electricity machine and threw the switch. Light! I tried the slider switch on the lamp. It works! Wow - what a day, success on many fronts. I going out to get a lottery ticket!
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Thank you Chuck, for the nice words and the link. It serves to remind us of that which we should never forget.
Memorial Day, 2013. A nice day, a nice Avanti day. I was up and at 'em early, heading over to the storage unit by 8:30. I opened everything up, checked the oil, had a look at everything. I opened the trunk and began to fool around with the carpet - I was going to tape it down with some double sided carpet tape but I changed my mind. I had a hankering to just get out on the road. But first, let me try out my flasher and jump wire setup. I squeezed myself into the space in front of the driver's seat and pulled the flasher out. I took my jump wires and plugged the first one in. The other connector would not slide into place. Of course, I was struggling to hold myself in the awkward position, plus I couldn't see clearly that close up, plus the light wasn't right. After struggling with all that for a few minutes I was able to determine that the connector was sort of squished closed, so the spade wouldn't slide into place. It began to occur to me that maybe the flasher wasn't fitting into the connector but maybe the space between the connector and the fuse block.
I got my little pen knife out, and concentrating on the connector, slipped the blade into where the flat spade would go. I spread the connector open a bit, then did the same to the other side. I also slid the knife blade in and out of the connector to clean up the connection some. Hopefully. Then I slid the second jump wire into the connector. I turned the key on and tried the turn signal lever. Ticka, ticka, ticka... yep, she works. I taped the flasher and jump wires up out of the way. I was ready to rumble! The engine cranked and cranked - so much so that I finally held the pedal to the floor. She roared to life after ten more seconds with the pedal floored. A little flooded, I suppose.
Out we went for a nice cruise - I logged about 50 miles here and there. Another enjoyable ride - she ran fine the whole time, the gauges all held steady in the good zones. The signal lights worked the whole time too. After putting things away I headed for Advance Auto and picked up a bulb socket to use in the dome light. I wanted two, they only had one - I got another one later today at another Advance. I also picked up a soldering iron today to use in attaching the new socket to the lamp base assembly.
I worked on the worst light assembly tonight - I had a look at things and for a moment thought I may be able to just use the wires from the new socket assembly and just stick them in the old socket. After trying that out I decided to just go with the new socket assembly, so I unattached the existing socket and began trying to fit the new socket into place. I attempted several times to solder the new socket into place, but I could not get the solder to "take". Not sure what the problem was but most likely was due to "operator error". So what did I do? I reached for the JB Weld, that's what. I mixed up a little and put a little on each side of the new socket, attaching it to the old lamp base. Hopefully it will stick tight. I didn't put the epoxy all around the socket, as I wanted to leave a couple of spots to put a touch of solder on. If it will stick. For grounding purposes.
Well, 10 days off are now coming to a close - back to work tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have work to go back to - I'll find out tomorrow!
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Definitely swoopy and sexy, Pat.
While hanging out in the hotel room, in between forays out onto the balcony to listen to and watch the ocean and other various goings on, I worked up a couple of wires to connect the flasher to the fuse panel. Not sure what I hope to accomplish by running the wires, I guess I just want more control where the spade connectors slip into the connectors. I'm thinking about soldering another spade onto the existing spade so I will have a thicker spade that fits more snugly into their respective connectors. That's where I think I am going with it - if I have success making the flasher work all the time then I will leave it hooked up that way. If not, I will abandon the plan. I guess I will get to test it tomorrow, since I put in for, and was granted, a leave pass for a few hours. I'm excited!
On the way back from the beach we stopped off in Richmond, Virginia for a couple of nights. We like the old southern city of ghosts, with so much history to share. We were rained out for a while but on Friday we were able to make it to the old Hollywood Cemetery, home of several notables including two presidents, several governors, and many Confederate soldiers and officers. It is also the final resting place for my brother Steve and my sister-in-law Nancy, both of whom died too young.
Many times I called on Steve's expertise as a blacksmith, welder, fabricator and facilitator to fix this and construct that. A real talent, he was. 30 years ago I was in need of a car and went to see a 1970 Volvo 164 that I saw in the paper. The price was very reasonable, like $1800 or something, and I was really surprised when I saw the car. The exterior presented very well, the paint was nice, but what floored me was the interior. Apparently, the lady who owned the car since new kept the protective plastic on all the carpet and the seats as well! The interior was like new! I began to think the advertised price was a typo, so I asked if there was some mistake. The couple selling the car said it belonged to her mother, who lived in Canada. They then proceeded to open the hood (cue the music from the shower scene in the film "Psycho"). There wasn't a spot underneath the hood that hadn't been touched by rust. Or should I say, battered by rust. It was a terrible sight to see. Apparently the lady's care to protect the exterior, carpet, and upholstery did not extend to the underside and engine compartment.
I ended up buying the car, and called upon Steve to plug and patch holes here and there. Every year, at inspection time, I would head over to his shop and see if he could fix this or that - weld the hood hinges back in place, that sort of thing. Steve would cut out pieces of steel and weld them into place to hold the hinges - the biggest problem was finding something to weld to!
When I had my '55 panel truck I bought a kit that would enable me to remove the teeth jarring straight front axle from the old truck and replace it with the front end from a 1972 Pacer. I located a Pacer and bought it (actually had to buy two of them, the guy said they go as a pair), had the front end cut out (both of them, kept one as a spare) and rebuilt everything. I removed the straight axle from the panel truck and positioned the Pacer front end in place. I called Steve and he came over with his traveling welding rig. After checking all the dimensions Steve welded everything in place. we stepped back and looked at things - I said, "You think it's tight, it's not gonna move, is it?'
Steve gave that grin of his, kind of chuckled and said, "Oh, it's not going anywhere. Unless you pull out in front of a dump truck." We laughed, and I was sure that front end was tight and right. I sure could use Steve on the underside of this Avanti, now that I am getting to that part of the fun. Ah well, maybe he'll guide me from where he is and show me how to do it right. The picture of the coal train below is the view as seen from his resting place. Steve liked trains too - he's in the right spot.
The big stone monument pictured is a huge, free stacked stone monument to the Confederate dead, built upon a mound containing several thousand Confederate dead taken from battlefields all over the south and brought home to the Confederate capital. The picture of the ornate iron crypt is the final resting place of James Monroe, Revolutionary War soldier, Founding Father, President. Like I said, lots of history in old Richmond, city of ghosts.
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Thanks Ernie - I've located some possibilities. They all seem to mount at the front of the socket like your standard tail light assembly mounts. The dome lights mount at the rear of the socket - I might have to end up soldering the socket to the lamp housing. I thought about using JB Weld, but I need to maintain the conductivity of the mounting, so as to maintain ground. I'll rig something up...
Well, we just got back from several days at the beach, where we just kicked back for a while. We did take a few hours one day and traveled to the Military Aviation Museum about 15 miles south of Virginia Beach in the small hamlet of Pungo (think strawberries). The museum is a fairly new (7 years) facility that has a surprising amount of hardware, from a Wright replica (one of Greg Cone's?), a Jag of the same vintage as unimogjohn's (I believe, some displays are lacking in signage). There is also a picture below of the 5th Air Force insignia that reminded me of my father, the same insignia was on his uniform during WWII.
The last couple of pictures show a B-17 bomber, the airborne angel of death that wore down Germany to the point where allied ground forces could finally kill the beast. Of course, we paid a terrible price in lost flyers on these B-17's that never came back. On the second picture you can see the belly turret that housed a brave gunner who watched for German fighter planes sent up to intercept the bombers. Reminds me of the series by Ken Burns called "The War", where an elderly gentleman recounted his time in a belly turret. He said he was a dumb kid who signed up for B-17 duty (didn't realize what he was signing up for) and ended up in the belly turret spinning around looking for fighters. On one flight an anti-aircraft shell came up through the turret, passed through his arm, and struck the flight navigator seated above the belly turret, killing him. The belly gunner said he was bleeding all over the turret, the blood was freezing and turning into marbles of blood rolling around the turret. And all he could think about was how he was going to get in trouble for bleeding all over the plane.
A brave bunch of boys, all of them, in the air and on the ground. We owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude - here's remembering them on this Memorial Day weekend with a proud and hearty "Good job!!"
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Thanks for the info Ernie - yes, my light socket springs are too weak to hold the contacts against the bulb. Plus, it almost seems like the bulbs fit a tad loosely in the old sockets - not sure why. So, I will seek out new sockets and install them into the light assembly. I hope it works out that way. I'm not sure what is going on with my backup lights - they did work at one time, maybe just more socket problems. I will be checking that out in the coming days too.
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Very nice Pat - don't be surprised if a film director comes calling, wanting to use the pretty girl in a movie!
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A couple of days get by me without getting anything posted - I was having trouble getting stuff to post. Computers - ya gotta love 'em. Hopefully I'll be back up to speed by this time next week. The other night I fooled around with the one dome light assembly that had the socket contacts that came apart from the socket. The contacts now hang free so I sanded them with some sandpaper to make sure they would make good contact with the bulb I had. The bulb for the dome light has two contacts, presumably so one contact can be positive and the other contact can be tied to the main electrical ground for the wiring system. Presumably because the car is fiberglass. Or maybe because the dome lights mount onto a vinyl covered panel. After I cleaned the contacts I hooked up my little electrical supply box and connected the wires to the plug in connector of the lamp. Then I held the bulb against the two free hanging contacts (the contacts that the bulb would mate to in the socket) No light came from the bulb. Hmmm. Thinking that maybe I was missing grounding the bulb because it wasn't in the socket, I took a length of wire and held one end against the metal body of the lamp and the other end against the side of the bulb base. Then I touched the bulb to the one free hanging contact that had shown voltage on the meter. I got light. Hurray!
Next, I tried holding the bulb against the two free hanging contacts while grounding the bulb to the light body (it gets tricky holding all these wires together). I didn't get light. To clarify, the second contact wire comes from the little slider switch of the light, the switch that turns the light on when the door is closed. I figured that the little switch was probably all corroded inside so I took it apart. Sure enough, the contacts were corroded, so I cleaned things up and re-assembled it (tricky little operation, also). After finally getting the little slider and its copper contact bar back together I tried the light again - still no light. Baby steps here, baby steps....
So, I have a hot contact and another that I now believe is also hot (when the switch is on). So, I guess I'm wrong about the two contacts being one positive and one negative. I now believe both are positive, with the ground being provided by the bulb base against the socket, with the light assembly tied to the main electrical ground. Whew! Electricity can be confusing! Ah well, I believe I have made progress in figuring things out - I need to find a couple of new, double contact sockets that I can rig up in the lamp base and solder the wires to the connector wires. Sounds like fun! I think I'll go make a couple of jump wires for the flasher now. More on the dome lights soon.
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All the pics I wanted to load last night didn't load so I will try again....
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I started fooling around with the dome lights and pretty quickly I realized that, "Houston, we have a problem..." Mainly, on the right side light, the backing material (bakelite?) for the socket that holds the contacts for the bulb, has disintegrated. Imagine that, only 50 years old and it's falling apart. Not really surprised, I guess. After determining that the right side light was toast I had a look at the left side dome light. Hmmm...contact assembly in better shape, but light doesn't work. So, I cut some lengths of wire, crimped some connectors on them, hooked one end of the wires to the old light connectors, then hooked the other end of the wires to my new electric machine. I flipped the switch - nothing. Not surprised, really. I got my electrical tester and checked the current coming out of the machine. Exactly what the machine says it's supposed to be. I tried the contacts in the bulb socket but couldn't get anything. I cleaned the old contacts with sandpaper and was finally able to get the correct voltage at the contacts. But everything had to be fiddled with and perfect. I inserted the bulb in the socket, but could never get it to work. I believe there just isn't enough contact there, due to weak springs behind the contacts as well as corroded contacts.
So. it looks like new sockets are in order - the search begins for those tomorrow. While I get that together I will start on the flasher setup. Chasing the electrical gremlins - reminds me of my Volvo days and working on the infamous Lucas (The King of Darkness) Electric parts.
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Just a few pics of the dome lights coming out. I was going to start working on them to try to get the sockets cleaned up and working, but I didn't get started on it yet. So, we will set sights on tomorrow - also, I need to work on some type of fix for the flasher set up. Maybe run some jumper wires from the the electrical block to the flasher. Try to get a better connection at the block, if possible. It seems that the little connectors on the flasher aren't making good contact at when the flasher is plugged in. So, I hope to attach some decent connectors to short pieces of wire, then insert those into the receptacle where the flasher would go. On the other end of the jumper wires I would have connectors that the flasher can plug into. I know it sounds jury rigged, but that way I could control the connections better - I even searched for gold plated connectors so I could try them. They work good for computers - however, I couldn't find any for a automotive application.
Yesterday, when I was driving the old car I turned around in a parking lot of a business office park. Some of the buildings had ground level windows and I was able to back up in front of the windows and see if my tail lights were working. It looked like one tail light was out, but both brake lights worked. Yay! But as I got ready to drive away I realized the the backup lights weren't working. Ah well, looks like there is some various electrical housekeeping to do.
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John - didn't one of your Buicks have a cracked block? Did you fix that? Or am I confused again?? :confused:
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A quick check in - what a week! Monday morning saw my computer at work fail to "boot", and after several attempts at coaxing the old machine to wake up I gave up and retrieved another computer I had at home. Then the fun began - one never realizes how much they depend on something until it is not there, then they realize how important that thing is. My computer, for example - the one that gave up the ghost served faithfully for 8 years (except for a hard drive failure 5 years ago), and I could always depend on it to deliver when called upon. It never balked at anything I threw at it - just kept running and running. Until Monday. So, this week has been taken up with dealing with getting the new computer loaded with different programs, updating this, updating that, dealing with programs that don't want to load because of little conflicts with this or that. And I'm still not back up to speed - more fun awaits.
Needless to say, I haven't had any Avanti fun this week. I did make a break for it tonight and rushed to the storage unit for a quick visit. I started the old girl and we went out for a few runs around the local area. What fun! Much too short of a visit. After returning to the storage place I removed the two dome lights so I could work on them this week, as I probably won't get to visit again for a few days. Pictures tomorrow.....
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Thanks Ernie - it works fairly well, not bad for a 50 year old setup. And I can always leave it unlatched when I don't feel like fooling with opening it.
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Well, now I'm not so sure. I stopped by the storage place at lunch and had a look at the trunk release cable. If anything, it looks like it may be too long. In the first picture you can see the rust line on a curve where the old cable was. In the foreground, a couple of inches to the left of the lug wrench, by the bend in the wrench, is what is left of a hold down clip and screw. Long since given up any semblance of a screw or clip. That's the only hold down I can find along the route of the old cable. If I try to hold the new cable to the path of the old one along the rust "ghost" line I can't do it because the new cable is too long. Doesn't matter, really - it works well enough. Maybe I'll rig up a remote electric opener to the latch, something that can be removed for the purist out there who wants to restore it.
Since Ernie informed me that the strap I was removing from the antenna is the ground, I can now see, whereas before, things were blurry. When I took the antenna ground off the other day there was a short, flat piece of metal hanging there. I figured it was probably some type of conductive strip or something. But it was just hanging there, long ago wasted away by the oxidation monster. And today, since I knew that is was a ground because Ernie told me, I easily could make out the "ghost" mark of the old grounding strip that used to run from the antenna strap, down the wheel hump to the trunk floor, across the floor to the nearest body bolt (which in this car is now a rust blob and no longer resembles a bolt), thereby grounding the situation. Easily seen in the second picture (first picture too, for that matter - almost identical pics
)Next, I put the pieces of floor carpet in and just left them there for now. I plan on fine tuning things and taping most of the carpet fast, except for the area I need to lift for the lug wrench. I threw the spare tire in, then the spare tire cover on, then I put a couple of heavy items on top of the carpet, just to flatten it some. I'll leave the trunk for a while and fool around with something else - there is always something else to do in case I get bored with one thing.
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Thanks Ernie, now things are a bit clearer. You are right, after thinking about it I realize that the route the cable is supposed to take is along a wider arc than it is taking now. And yes, the trunk release doesn't work nicely like it should. I have to pull the handle and hope it sticks a little, then run to the back of the trunk and pull up. Repeat this process until the trunk opens with a decent tug from me. So, all this fun, improper routing of the cable, limited functionality, cable won't fit under carpet correctly - what is to blame? Reproduction parts, that's what. I'm sure the cable is shorter than original, taking a tighter arc to the latch. I guess I just deal with what I got - thanks for the info and offer of help Ernie - I'm sure I'll need it from time to time.
John Byrd - you didn't even mention the purple elephant in the pictures - wow, that glue is strong stuff! (Thanks!)
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Well, a couple of days away from the old Avanti - just to get re-focused on something else and ponder things. Today, at lunchtime, I headed back to the storage unit, called by the work to be done and just to pay a visit. A boy and his car, or, the old man and the car. Take your pick. I got back in the trunk and removed the floor carpet pieces so I could take them home to work on them. I decided I was just going to fold the vinyl edging over and glue it fast. Then I'll just lay the carpet on the trunk floor. While I was in the trunk I went ahead and glued the vinyl edging of the carpet affixed to the partition between the trunk and fuel tank area. There is a little strip of metal that juts out at the bottom of the partition and I assume the carpet folks intended for that vinyl edging to wrap around that. I grabbed some silicone and a piece of metal strap and some clamps. Pretty soon the vinyl was glued and clamped - I'll cut a couple of slits in it by the edge of the spare tire well to make the side pieces fit better.
Tonight I took the floor pieces and folded the vinyl edging around to the carpet backing and glued it in place. After trying some clamps on the first piece of carpet I decided that wouldn't do. So I stacked a bunch of heavy stuff on the pieces - I hope they stick fast.
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Man, the work has ground to a halt at my regular money making job. Like someone turned a light switch off - I keep checking the phone to see if it still works. After a few days of staring at the ceiling and overloading on surfing the 'net (did you know that the Packard factory covered 45 acres?! It still stands, a decrepit monument to the death of a once great city, Detroit), I decided I was going to take a few hours off and continue the trunk carpet install. But first I would go in to work at the regular time and check to see if maybe I had a phone message or email. I cranked up the computer - it wouldn't "boot", I restarted it several times and it just got worse, first it started out with a display, then blue screens, then darkness. Oh boy - I just love computer trouble. I shut the unit down and headed out to the storage unit.
As I mentioned in the earlier post I decided to attack the rusted screw with a hacksaw blade, since I forgot the Dremel tool and cut-off wheel. I hacked away and pretty soon the screw cried "uncle" and fell out. I cleaned the wheel hump and scuffed off some of the old adhesive with a sanding pad. After wiping everything up I did a test fit - looked OK to me, so I coated the hump with adhesive and pretty soon the carpet was in place. And, as you will be able to see in the pics, it is not perfect. It's a good thing I don't plan on showing the car or having it judged. I merely wanted to stop the deterioration of the old classic (hence the name "Avanti Rescue) and drive it around and have fun. So, the carpet hidden in the trunk looks just fine to me - a heck of a lot better than it did.
After getting the carpet glued tight and sweating more buckets I decided to see how the floor pieces would look. I threw them in the trunk and moved them around here and there until they looked about right. I was pleasantly surprised with the results - again, not perfect, but not bad. I just laid the carpets in to see how they fit - when I had the car in the shop a year ago they put a new tag light in and attached the wires of the light to the trunk release cable with little zip ties. I cut those off and tucked the wire behind the carpet that runs along the rear of the trunk. I haven't figured out exactly where the trunk release cable will go - part of it can go under the carpet but when it gets to the trunk latch it has to be above the carpet. Dunno, I'll fool around with it.
The next mountain to climb is the vinyl edging that came attached to the carpet that runs around the spare tire well. I'm not sure if that is the same setup as original - I kinda don't think so. It's going to be tough to get that edging to fit tight in the groove where the spare tire cover fits, plus it might make the cover not fit so well. Another thing to study and make a decision on - I'm half tempted to take the pieces to a seamstress and have her just pull the edging over the edge of the carpet and sew it tight. Make a finished edge like the other edges. We'll see....
I had had enough of the trunk work - I straightened up the storage unit, swept it out, and took some trash to the dump. Then I went by the house and picked up a spare computer I had. I spent the rest of the afternoon at my desk getting updates installed, anti-virus installed, hooking up to the work network, etc, etc. I still have programs and files to find and install, but overall I made some progress on the Avanti and a new computer setup so I'm not "dead in the water". I think I'll take a couple of days off!
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Pat - yes, like it was made for it! And a great price - 8 bucks! I couldn't believe it when I found it - something I was looking for, exact size and type for cheap! Something must be wrong here!
Dale - thanks for the advice and compliment and for not busting my b---s for installing the carpet in the wrong order. Ha! On my way to the storage place this morning I remembered that I forgot to bring my own Dremel tool with cut-off wheel to cut the screw off. So I did it the old fashioned way - with a hack saw blade. Details coming up....
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Another visit today to the Avanti storage spot. Once again I headed straight there and got to it - it's the only way I know of making any progress on the thing. I hooked up the drop light and started fooling around with the four small pieces that cover the wheel humps and the other 2 "protrusions" on the trunk floor. Turning this way and that I figured out what went where and got some nice test fits. I ran into an obstacle with the radio antenna strap, which ties the antenna assembly down. It has a strap that reaches over to the wheel hump and a screw passes through the strap and wheel well and has a nut on the wheel side of the well. Of course the nut has no intention of coming off the screw, so here we are, turning round and round. I put vice grips on the nut and then of course the screw head slot doesn't have enough left to turn the screw. I could cut the strap off because I plan on getting a new antenna assembly someday ($140), but I want to get rid of the screw instead of having a bump under the carpet. By this point I was sweating buckets so I decided to come back to that.
I had three carpet pieces that I had stuck into position as a test fit. I had lifted up the edges of the carpets that I already installed and slipped the pieces under the edges. I was ready to glue - I pulled each piece out as I went, applied the glue and carefully fit the piece where it went. As careful as I was, I still got a little glue here and there which I wiped off using a damp cloth (you can see the damp spots in the pictures, couldn't see them with the naked eye). In the end the sweat was pouring and the pieces looked pretty good for an amateur. I was happy to get back in my daily driver and blast the AC. Whew! This is harder than I had planned on! Next time I'll attack the antenna strap screw with vice grips on both sides and get that left wheel hump piece installed. Making progress!
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Avanti Rescue
in Our Cars & Restoration Projects
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Thanks for the info, Ernie. It's good to know the lights are working the way they are supposed to. Hopefully I will get to take a drive tomorrow morning - if the showers stay away.