Whore!....parts whore I mean . Sure it was $50! You are just too modest to tell us what you really had to do to get that one...
Here is a strange thought. I want everyones thoughts on this one please. A while back...on a rusted through deck lid...lots of little holes, I took a fine fiberglass cut-off wheel and a dremel...and at the very edge of the rear hood...all the way around..seperated the inside rain baffel assembly...but not the rain baffel wing you can see through the grills.
What I ended up with, was the holey rusted outer shell and the inside area that seats against the intake boot gasket. Can you picture this?
So...what if I....cast....the outer shell out of zinc with the integral rain wing cast in...say about .025" thicker than stock....anc cast the inside shell....putting in three steel clamp plates inside to allow the hinge arms and lockeing plate to bolt right up (they would be unseen on the inside).....then using high strength 25 year urethane construction adhesive....on a jig...glued the two pieces together. I would have to rout out and polish the thin flashing where the air intake hole is. It would be solid......and look like stock from the outside...and barely differnt on the inside when you lift the hood. But...not strong enough to stand or sit on....which you would be crazy to do anyway. Would anyone be interested? Its not a hard casting to do. Ray
Sounds like a reasonable idea. I wonder how much the material would be?
The guy I got the decklid from bought out an old VW business and had 120 VW's to sell or part out. I e-mailed him back today about some more parts and he said the car was already sent to the crusher . I should have acted sooner.
Zincs pretty cheap actually. Its relatively rigid for a low melting point metal. I have to think of "groups" of parts at a time. I'm thinking of production. If I have more than one part...or type of part to produce at a time....and I'm melting a big pot of zinc...or more precisley probably a zinc/tin alloy....it pays to melt more at one time and cast all I can.
Hee hee...I have not even alluded to the already modelled....front 411 and 412 headlight bezels..closed in on the edges...with .080" polycarbonate covers......for that sleek look...yet . That and my air conditioning system console have put me into the "casting works mode"...long ago. That....and I know how to make molds. I know I know...suspension first! Ray
so are these parts hard to get or something? should i be saving them from the crusher when i see them? tis a shame the vw's i see going to the crusher... but i cant save them all and junkyards are particular about selling whole bodies... still wish i coulda save that rust free dent free square... but i really have no desire to touch type 4 parts :-/
Uh, yes... There are virtually no new body panels for these cars (in this hemisphere) and the decklids rust terribly.
VWGirl wrote:so are these parts hard to get or something? should i be saving them from the crusher when i see them? tis a shame the vw's i see going to the crusher... but i cant save them all and junkyards are particular about selling whole bodies... still wish i coulda save that rust free dent free square... but i really have no desire to touch type 4 parts :-/
Right you are, guess who's getting the one off the 411? Not trying to diminish your purchase, though, that one is definitely nicer, it's absolutely gorgeous...
ecdez wrote:That must be another one because the one I got came off a 412.
Your idea for the covered headlights is very intriguing! I think it could look great. I have some ideas for headlights of my own, nothing major, but it will be cool... I think reproduction decklids in a more corrosion resistant material is a fantastic idea. If you think it could work out of zinc, then hey, go for it. I was thinking about the possibility of this myself previously, but I was thinking fiberglass maybe.
raygreenwood wrote:Zincs pretty cheap actually. Its relatively rigid for a low melting point metal. I have to think of "groups" of parts at a time. I'm thinking of production. If I have more than one part...or type of part to produce at a time....and I'm melting a big pot of zinc...or more precisley probably a zinc/tin alloy....it pays to melt more at one time and cast all I can.
Hee hee...I have not even alluded to the already modelled....front 411 and 412 headlight bezels..closed in on the edges...with .080" polycarbonate covers......for that sleek look...yet . That and my air conditioning system console have put me into the "casting works mode"...long ago. That....and I know how to make molds. I know I know...suspension first! Ray
I had thought of fiberglass as well...then thermoplastic...like late car bumpers. Both have the same issue, that being that this hood is somewha a work of automotive art. Its one gentle continous, compound curve series. The slightest bit of planarity problems or lumps....will show up. When painted....as you can see from that gold deck lid...this is one of the most distinctive and "prettiest" parts of the car. I think fiberglass would have a very difficult time staying dimensionally stable. But...I would like to see one tried still...simply because I am not a fiberglass worker. I was not even thinking about rust proofing. The existing lids only rust because the foam in them soaks up water. If you could get the foam out...you could seal the edges with modern urethanes, or acrylics silicones ...and have no problems. I was thinking about the best way to produce a dimensionally accurate, rigid part....that is from th eoutside and 90% from the inside...indistinguishable from stock. As it is...on the inside it will have to thickening ridges in the casting to keep the wide expanses flat. Ray