Restoring my first 914

[Darren C]

I’d have loved to have called in and seen your car over a cuppa but it was a real last minute .com mad rush to go grab a new “wonder bus” jalopy before some one else snapped it up in a military type "in & out" mission. Besides I’m a Southern softy and boy was it cold up norf and there was some strange white stuff covering the landscape?

Anyway, today I took my son out for more driving lessons. Even down here, although no snow, we had a sharp frost that “set” the car cover solid that we have over the Traveller. No fun at all trying to roll it off the car. Despite all that my son did really well today and by noon we’d been out almost 4 hours so called it a day and dropped him off.
I carried on this afternoon with the vacuum pipe. Taking a few things off the car to have good access I went too & fro from garage to shed getting the bending just right for a perfect fit.
I marked up the area nearest the dizzy and cut a short piece of pipe to make a tee and silver brazed it in place for a very strong joint. Next I ran a small drill down the pipe to create an opening inside the tee.
After sanding it all down, dressing the braze with needle files and a final rub with red scotchbrite; I gave it a paint indoors in the warm with satin black engine enamel.

It doesn't look much, but figuring out a neat route for the pipe to avoid all obstacles and make sure it doesn't obscure service stuff, plus pick up on tinware screws for the P clamps was no mean feat.



Lets hope it warms up a bit next week, my LED torch batteries last half as long in the freezing weather!

[Darren C]

Today I fitted the vacuum pipe, two jumpers on and a fleece (worn back to front so the zipper was at the back to remove the risk of scratching the car while leaning in) and I was still bloomin cold!
It’s no fun in a tiny ex council garage with no power & heat in the dark I can tell you.
The pipe fitted a treat held in place with the new rubber lined Stainless P clips.
If the temperature doesn’t start to rise a little I’m going to struggle working out there in the evenings. Fortunately I have only the engine lid to fit back on the car now, then it’s the wait for the wheels to be finished and I should be good to go!

[Tosh]

I have offered to take you away from the discomfort and cold by buying the reason for it from you. Sell me the car and you can sit in front of the telly and ogle Nigella on a Monday night
It's your own fault Darren

[911hillclimber]

We should have a wip-round for him and buy a little generator, all probs solved except you wont get this brilliant car!

Test drive and on-the-road pics just before the salt arrives.

[Darren C]

Nice try Tosh, but I already ogle Nigella on iplayer in the early hours of the morning; judging by the price of that 914 in the Leeds dealership you’ll need very, very deep pockets and Nigella in person to count out the cash (while telling me I’ve been a naughty boy………………. for selling it of course) to even tempt me to part with this little car.
As for the first test drive, I’m itching too. Just being held up by these damn wheels! Oh and please dont mention the s-a-l-t word

Anyways, today I did call the blasters and would you believe they told me they were in the middle of working on the wheels and they should be blasted (between the area’s to polish) by the end of the week. Hmmmm, I’ve heard that before somewhere?
During the engine lid rebuild I wanted to fit the rubber “L” bracket to my car to prevent the boot hitting the engine lid. I’d purchased the rubber part from 914rubber way back in the summer with the other bits but had no metal bracket to support it.
Searches had thrown up the part as discontinued so I thought I’d make one.
Not having the part and only some low res pictures off google, I spoke to Kev who did me a smashing drawing with photo of two brackets he’s hoarding.



Kev, thanks for taking time to send this info, but I need two crucial measurements still.
1, The thickness of the steel used
2, A reference measurement to the start/end of the slotted hole in the bracket.

This morning I got up a few hours before work and with the aid of a warm air blower spent a couple of hours in my shed before dawn and started to fashion some heavy duty spare metal plate in to a form press to make the missing bracket.
Now I guess at this point someone is going to tell me they have one that I can have; but to be fair the fun and satisfaction for me is in making one. (sad I know)
After work this evening I carried on with filing and checking, welding and dressing the form press parts in my new Imagineering quest.
To be fair this evening I was only going to post a couple of sentences in this thread saying “spent 5 hours in shed filing” or something similar, but hey, I thought post a picture because no one ever realises when I explain something as mundane as an angle bracket, the sort of effort that goes into it.
So with the two parts of the form press roughly measured and made, the next stage tomorrow will be to machine a locating dowel (for the hole to hold the metal precisely in the die while pressing) and a strongback with matching dowel hole for the other plate to lock upper and lower forms together while pressing.
Eager to see how things would work out and to understand the press “shrinkage” I was going to get (so that I could make the actual plate that forms the bracket wider to start with so that when pressed it will be the exact size) I trial pressed a piece of scrap Zintec sheet.
I’m quite pleased with the result as a first trial, there’s maybe another few hours refining the form press but it’s pretty much where it needs to be to make a nice “pattern” bracket.




Kev, just need those two measurements if you’d kindly oblige.

[914 KEV]

Not having the part and only some low res pictures off google, I spoke to Kev who did me a smashing drawing with photo of two brackets he’s hoarding.



Kev, thanks for taking time to send this info, but I need two crucial measurements still.
1, The thickness of the steel used
2, A reference measurement to the start/end of the slotted hole in the bracket.

Kev, just need those two measurements if you’d kindly oblige.

If only Darren, I robbed them of a couple of my fleet of 914s!
I left those measurements off to see if you could work them out!
Measuring the thickness of the steel used with paint is 1.22.
The slot is almost central.
The slot starts 10mm in from the forward edge + 3.5mm will give you the first drill centre + 3mm will give the second drill centre point.

Your test bracket looks great. A bit of fine tuning and it will be as good or better than the original.

[Mr Pharmacist]

Can you just slow down and not finish your project please? I enjoying read the thread everyday and when you stop updating it my life will be empty and there will be a massive void in it.

Well, maybe not, but I have really enjoyed your resto thread!

[KS]

Today I sat and read this from beginning to end. Good grief! What an incredible project - and how come your days have 32 hours in when mine seem to barely have 20?

Really look forward to seeing this when it's done. Brilliant!

[Bewildebeest]

how come your days have 32 hours in when mine seem to barely have 20?

You do realise that 'Darren' is actually three people, working shifts ?

[911hillclimber]

Or is he the only male capable of actually multi-tasking?

I will be sorry to see this done as the solutions and craftsmanship are an example to us all.
Shame this might have been missed as it is not in the Restorations Dept?
Imagine what more he could do when he has got his son through the test!

[Darren C]

Thanks for the missing dimensions Kev, much appreciated.

Stuart, I’m active on over 10 other marque forums and there are several more of my other resto threads out there, I have my own IMDB page and you can always find me on TV & in Film somewhere. I write for several car club magazines so it’s certainly not goodbye for good. When the 914’s done I’ll pm you some links so you don’t have to go “cold turnkey” (see what I did there)

Thanks for the kind words KS, but I have several other projects on the go besides the 914! When I don’t post that I’ve done anything before dawn or after 10pm, its because I’ve more than likely been working on one of my other classics. For example at the weekend I picked up a new run-around replacement for my V70. It’s a B8 Audi A4 Avant. On Sunday I went over it with a fine tooth comb and listed stuff I needed to do, searched it all for best quality & price and placed orders for parts, I picked up 4 brake discs and pads yesterday and before dawn today I degreased and painted the hubs and edges so that they’ll be dry to fit at the weekend. Sunday afternoon between driving lessons and the 914 Vacuum pipe I did a full valet on the V70 inside & out, took photo’s and listed it on ebay. I also live alone so have to cook and run the house plus make my pack up lunch for the following day at work etc, etc.
I really don’t understand why everyone else seems to have no time?

Hillclimber, I suppose a simple post in the Restoration Dept with a link to this thread when the cars done will do the trick. Besides, my target audience is 914 enthusiasts so posting here ensures they have a little exclusivity.

Anyways; today's 914 escapades started at lunchtime when I picked up some slightly longer M6 stainless Cheese heads from the iron mongers. The new throttle bracket I made and a couple of the P clips holding the vacuum pipe barely go in a few turns now as they pass through extra parts so my plan is to swap them over for longer sets.
This evening I had a parcel arrive. It was from Auto Atlanta (about time too) with two new deflectors in. These are the plastic parts that hang under the car just in front of the engine. One of mine was missing (apart from a broken bit of it left, held on with the screws). I opened the parcel with great expectation but my smile turned into a frown. The quality was again very poor. Obviously a back street molded part. Air bubbles and pieces where the plastic hadn’t flowed into the mold properly. I’m beginning to think (from bitter experience) that 99% of Auto Atlanta reproduction parts are like this. They must employ Stevie Wonder to make them and wear mittens for quality control.
Hey ho, at least they weren’t expensive unlike the speaker grilles. I think I’ll repair and tidy up the best one of the two and just replace my missing one.
I decided to take my mind off things and head for the shed.
Using some more scrap plate I cut and welded a strong back onto one half of the form press I made last yesterday. I then turned down a M8 bolt to give a 6mm dowel and tapped out the other half of the form press. Lining the two halves together I carefully measured and drilled the strongback to accept the dowel bolt.
With a second piece of Zintec of the correct thickness (cheers Kev) I bent it at 90 and drilled a 6mm hole to take the dowel. This “Locked” it into the form press and because I’d made a threaded dowel, as I pressed the zintec in the form press (using my large vice) I could back off (unwind) the dowel so that both halves of the form press could close fully without the dowel hitting the jaw of my vice.
The result was perfect. Superb definition and no distortion in the zintec as it couldn’t slip & slide like my first trial piece. The shrinkage on the width was a whopping 7mm (calculated from the first trial) so with the second zintec sheet cut 7mm too wide, it finished at a spot on width.
Finally I opened up the 6mm dowel hole to a 7mm slot and radiused the corners and folded the 5mm angle on the bottom to complete the missing bracket.



I’m really pleased with the result.

[Darren C]

Today was a manic day at work with a very early start, I went up to Guildford this morning, did a job and was back in Portsmouth for just after 8am.
Home late this evening I did manage to cut a few extra long tinware screws down to an exacting length, rub down the small angle bracket and give it a coat of etch primer before sticking it in the oven to bake while I put a second coat of paint on the Audi discs.
Fingers crossed tomorrow I can pick up the wheels from the blasters.

[rhd racer]

That's very cool tool making Darren, and a brilliant finished result.

Incidentally, you have been in my thoughts the last few days. I am fully emerged in the Boxster race car prep project, and have stripped the interior, dash, sound deadening and currently simplifying the loom.

Anyhow, the carpet on a Boxster is glued to the chassis with the most irritating glue. It is super sticky, rolls into a ball like bogeys, but sticks like sh*t to a blanket. It does not respond to a heat gun, meths, white spirit, panel cleaner etc etc. Then I thought, 'what would Darren do?.....'

So, l turned to Unilever for inspiration and cracked out the Cif.

Did it work?

Did it f*ck, but the car now smells of lemons

Anyhow, 3m sticky stuff remover turned out to be the answer with a scraper, so add that to your list of stock items!

Keep up the good work,

All the best
Wayne

[Darren C]

You need to "soak" it with white spirit rather than rub with a cloth. Then with a green dish washing scotchbrite (don't use a cloth it doesn't pick up, just spread around) again soaked in white spirit, rub it off. It's a messy job and wear gloves as it really dries your hands out.
There is also a big bogey ball method, whereby you roll your ever increasing in size bogey ball over it which pulls it off the car onto the ball. (slower but good in area's where you cant get it wet or use spirits)

Lemon smell isn't too bad though.

[nrc914]

I’m really pleased with the result.

Darren you're really good at this stuff! If you produce a few more items perhaps you could setup as 914metal.com or something!