WCSTA -06- 56 T1

Share progress on your 356 related project or full restoration with others!
Post Reply
Message
Author
User avatar
Harlan Halsey
356 Fan
Posts: 2338
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:05 pm
Location: No Cal SF Peninsula

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#31 Post by Harlan Halsey »

The wiring loom and the hard brake lines are all installed. I put two couplers in the long front to back brake line so that the main run is straight and the curvy pieces could be fabricated outside the car. (I'm using an Eastwood brake line DIN bubble flare swager.) The lights are all mounted. The headliner is in place and the Dynamat is installed.
IMG_0182 Front view June 12 2018.jpg
IMG_0183 Rear View June 6 2018.jpg

User avatar
Harlan Halsey
356 Fan
Posts: 2338
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:05 pm
Location: No Cal SF Peninsula

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#32 Post by Harlan Halsey »

We've made a little more progress, The carpeting and the rear panels are in:
IMG_0223 1 3 2018 Rear Upholstry.jpg

and the seats re installed:
IMG_0221 1 3 2018 Seats In.jpg

a new shift linkage coupler has been fabricated and is installed as is the pedal cluster, the brake cylinder, and the throttle/hand throttle unit. Wiper motor, dashboard wiring, and steering box and column are next.These cars had a fresh air vent in the fender well. I don't have any of the parts for these so I may just blank them off.

Brad Ripley
356 Fan
Posts: 4205
Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2008 9:28 pm

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#33 Post by Brad Ripley »

Here you will find the air vent assy https://www.stoddard.com/nla-571-011-01.html.html

looks like so:
Attachments
Air vent assy.jpg
Air vent assy.jpg (7.92 KiB) Viewed 4258 times

Brad Ripley
356 Fan
Posts: 4205
Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2008 9:28 pm

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#34 Post by Brad Ripley »

Just now I see Jesse Rodriguez offering these in the Classifieds: https://porsche356registry.org/classifieds/24362

User avatar
Harlan Halsey
356 Fan
Posts: 2338
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:05 pm
Location: No Cal SF Peninsula

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#35 Post by Harlan Halsey »

Thank you Brad,
I have contacted Jesse and they're on the way.

User avatar
Bill Oldham
356 Fan
Posts: 405
Joined: Thu Apr 03, 2008 1:29 am
Location: Maui, HI (also Orinda, CA)
Contact:

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#36 Post by Bill Oldham »

Looked up Jesse's ad and read this: "Fresh air pulls-vents. Standard equipment for cars 1955-1959, including Convertible Ds. Also for some Roadsters with black knobs. All original parts and knobs, except the rubber/foam gaskets purchased from Stoddard. Chrome pieces restored to concours quality by Christensen Plating. Restored to concours quality and ready to install. "
Vents on some Roadsters? This is news. My 60 roadster does not have them (the sheet metal is absent the necessary holes). Does anyone know which serial number roadsters got them? (TUB BLUE is SN 88139)

These little vents don't offer much air, but any air would be welcome. Maybe they did a measurement and found out that the air coming thru the vents was negligible compared to that leaking around the doors etc. :P

User avatar
Harlan Halsey
356 Fan
Posts: 2338
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:05 pm
Location: No Cal SF Peninsula

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#37 Post by Harlan Halsey »

There is a problem with the steering shaft-it is too long, placing the steering wheel too far from the dash.
This car has the VW steering box, not the ZF. Looking in my A parts manual I see both boxes but no mention of a corresponding different steering shaft. (The manual does show a 25mm shorter shaft for Carreras.) Does anybody have an idea of whats going on here? Could this be a B shaft? The shaft has the two slip rings which match up with the two brush holders on the column so I could just shorten the lower end, but I'd like to know what's going on first.

User avatar
Vic Skirmants
Registry Hall of Fame
Posts: 9276
Joined: Tue Oct 27, 2009 5:02 pm
Location: SE Michigan
Contact:

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#38 Post by Vic Skirmants »

The B shaft has a completely different spline.

Norm Miller
356 Fan
Posts: 2506
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 9:14 am
Tag: Official curmudgeon
Location: Ft Collins CO

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#39 Post by Norm Miller »

[quote="Harlan Halsey"]There is a problem with the steering shaft-it is too long, placing the steering wheel too far from the dash.
This car has the VW steering box, not the ZF. Looking in my A parts manual I see both boxes but no mention of a corresponding different steering shaft. (The manual does show a 25mm shorter shaft for Carreras.)

Harlan,

My 59 Carrera had the shorter shaft such that my knuckles nearly rubbed the dash pad. I liked it as I'm tall.
I have a 56 in restoration currently and will measure the shaft and send it (measurement) to you.
It is Sahara beige with green interior. should be a nice combo.
Original Beige/black.
The steering column should be able to slide up/down about 50mm but only if the contact rings are in the envelope. ??

Norm
 

User avatar
Vic Skirmants
Registry Hall of Fame
Posts: 9276
Joined: Tue Oct 27, 2009 5:02 pm
Location: SE Michigan
Contact:

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#40 Post by Vic Skirmants »

"The steering column should be able to slide up/down about 50mm but only if the contact rings are in the envelope. ??"
But the shaft won't move.

Norm Miller
356 Fan
Posts: 2506
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 9:14 am
Tag: Official curmudgeon
Location: Ft Collins CO

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#41 Post by Norm Miller »

Vic Skirmants wrote:"The steering column should be able to slide up/down about 50mm but only if the contact rings are in the envelope. ??"
But the shaft won't move.
Moving the column, was only to accommodate a shaft of different length.
 

Norm Miller
356 Fan
Posts: 2506
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 9:14 am
Tag: Official curmudgeon
Location: Ft Collins CO

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#42 Post by Norm Miller »

Harlan Halsey wrote:There is a problem with the steering shaft-it is too long, placing the steering wheel too far from the dash.
This car has the VW steering box, not the ZF. Looking in my A parts manual I see both boxes but no mention of a corresponding different steering shaft. (The manual does show a 25mm shorter shaft for Carreras.) Does anybody have an idea of what's going on here? Could this be a B shaft? The shaft has the two slip rings which match up with the two brush holders on the column so I could just shorten the lower end, but I'd like to know what's going on first.
Harlan,
I've measured the shaft from 55968 Coupe '56.
It is 99cm or a bit under 39" end to end. Longer than a VW shaft.
This is an original one owner car with no mods.
Norm
 

User avatar
Harlan Halsey
356 Fan
Posts: 2338
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:05 pm
Location: No Cal SF Peninsula

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#43 Post by Harlan Halsey »

That's the same length as mine. So I measured some cars, minimum distance back of wheel to dash pad:
'58 Convertible D, 3 1/2"; '59 Carrera, 2 3/16", '63 SC; 1 1/2". So I shortened the shaft by 25mm for a 2 1/2" target for the '56. The shaft machines and TIG welds beautifully.

User avatar
Harlan Halsey
356 Fan
Posts: 2338
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:05 pm
Location: No Cal SF Peninsula

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#44 Post by Harlan Halsey »

It has been a while but there has been slow progress. The doors are on and the latch mechanisms and the window regulators are installed.
IMG_0285 Body w Doors.jpg
IMG_0285 Body w Doors.jpg (1.79 MiB) Viewed 3512 times
The fuel tank is restored and installed. I used closed cell medium density neoprene foam rather than the original jute padding under the tank.
IMG_0286 Gas Tank Instaled.jpg
IMG_0286 Gas Tank Instaled.jpg (2.17 MiB) Viewed 3512 times
A 6v regulator has been modified to 12v and installed.
IMG_0293 12 v reg top view.jpg
IMG_0293 12 v reg top view.jpg (1.05 MiB) Viewed 3512 times
It is not quite as it appears. This is how it looks from the bottom.
IMG_0294 12 v Reg bottom.jpg
IMG_0294 12 v Reg bottom.jpg (1.74 MiB) Viewed 3512 times
I spent the last session cleaning out the front torsion bar tubes and centering the center block, so now it is on to assembling the front suspension.

User avatar
Harlan Halsey
356 Fan
Posts: 2338
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:05 pm
Location: No Cal SF Peninsula

Re: WCSTA -06- 56 T1

#45 Post by Harlan Halsey »

A major milestone has been passed: The front trailing links are inatalled.
Tht torsion bar tubes where last of the original big problems to be addressed. The car had been sitting for decades with the front torsion bars out. Therefore the grease had to be cleaned out and the inside condition assessed.
Cleaning out the grease was a messy job, for which I made a couple fo scrapers and ultimately made a looped tool which I coud thread a length of terry cloth. With that I got the tubes relatively clean. Old grease looks just like new grease, there was no water, and the inside of the tubes was excellent-no rust. I used a shortened brromstick to center the center block and got the set screw in to hold it, then backed it out so as to be able to slide the torsion bar through.
I had made a tool to pull the bearings out three years ago and pulled them then. I planned to push them back in after a thorough cleaning of the ends of the tubes, and of course the bearings. For that I machined an aluminum pusher so I could hammer on the pusher if I met resistance, but with everything clean I wasn't expecting much.
But the first, the upper right, stalled about 1/3 of the way in. The uper left stalled about half way. Those are the original flanged bearings, in good shape, and hitting them harder looked like trouble. So that was the end of that days work and on to plan B. Plan B was to draw the bearings in, as I had drawn them out.
I made the drawbar the easy way, I bought a 6' piece of 1/2 x 13 all-thread, two coupling nuts, four large steel washers, and machined another aluminum pusher. I machined the end of the coupling nut flat. The pusher was center drilled and bored 1/16" deep to center the larger steel washer.
There's a lot that could go wrong with that setup: The nut could gall on the washer, the nut could gall on the threads, the all- thread could turn with the nut, the nut on the other side could turn, etc.
Armed with all the tools needed to cover any eventuality, and puting my faith in moly grease, I headed over the hill to Bonny Doon to do battle with the torsion tubes. The all-thread went through the center block and all the way across. I centered the pusher, greased everythig, and threaded on the coupling nut. I went across to the hard side, and put the other pusher on. As I snugged the nut up with the 11/16 box wrench, I put a little more torque on it and the nut turned rather easily! I checked, no the rod wasn't turning, the nut was actually threading down. With practically no effort, the far side, the easier side pulled in. Then with a little more effort, the near side moved, but with stiction. But that side pulled in easily too. Just like that both bearing were seated. The lower tube bearings went even easier. Sometimes I get lucky.
After checking the fit of the trailing arms, I slid the torsion bars in, snugged up the center set screw, and installed the trailing arms.
The picture shows the tools I used in order from left to right.
IMG_0295 F Torsion Tube Tools.jpg
IMG_0295 F Torsion Tube Tools.jpg (1.87 MiB) Viewed 3426 times

Post Reply