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Today I got my new gas tank support stripped, sanded, and ready to weld in place.

Then I made a couple 1/8” frame gussets that notch in under the new crossmember, right where the frame kinks in on each side.

DAE822E4-0E36-4171-B452-FA60F1399901.jpeg


I prepped the floor and crossmembers for more sheet metal welding.

I’ll get all that stuff welded in place tomorrow.
 
I got these little gussets welded on today.
8C68F471-B894-4261-9385-911424CE2C96.jpeg


I think that tank of “bad gas” was actually wet gas.

The new gas worked crappy, then ok, then crappy, then ok.

I laid out all the gas hose to slope downhill, then purged the hose 15 seconds. Problem solved

I would have done more, but today was Christmas tree shopping day. I got a lovely tree but the trunk was 1” too thin to bolt into my stand.
F43C4D0A-9810-4E79-917D-FC7257F474EB.jpeg

I ended up making 5 little “shoes” for the clamping bolts from scrap tubing.
DD03D573-7D04-4DD4-96FE-36088F552216.jpeg

Problem solved.
 
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A very early Good Morning from The Gateway to the Sierra.

I spent several cold hours out in the boatyard, cleaning up my VW chassis, rolling it back over to hit the ugly spots with a grinder. Scraping, wire brushing sanding and feathering paint is nearly done on the bottom side.

I want to put some more spot welds on the pan. About 50 more.

I am praying the weather will get dry enough to paint before it all gets rusty again. I still have a bit of minor welding on the topside first.

I’m not used to wearing gloves just for sanding, but I am much more sensitive to cold weather now, than when I lived on the muskeg, in Baudette, at the Northwest Quadrangle.

That’s farther north than 3/4 of all Canadian people live. I didn’t realize at the time why the only TV shows we ever got were some variety show from Winnipeg, with Stompin’ Tom Connor, and then Hockey Night in Canada.

I prefer the local warm weather, hitting 54F yesterday. Here’s hoping for continued warm weather. The paint I bought wants 55 min. I will heat the paint and the metal before I try to spray, but first it gets etched.
 
I got the last 24 crossmember to floor pan welds on the bottom, fixed a couple bad welds, and started stripping off the bad paint. It sounds solid with no rattles.

View attachment 284881
I know a Cruise Ship Director that's looking for a new act for the next cruise to the Bahamas.
Two things: Do you know any other tunes? And, can you get your steel drum down to the
docks before midnight tonight? :bigboss:
 
It hit 56 today and it’s going to be warmer tomorrow. Possibly 67 and even 69 Saturday.

Then 100% rain Sunday, so time is on my side.

Today I got some more cleanup done on the pan and the fuel tank support and I put down about 30 more small welds.

Then I rolled the chassis back over so I can finish welding the seat rails down to the pan.

But I still have a couple little gussets I have never installed, and I need to get those in too.
 
Today was the first of two Christmas dinners at our house. Her family was tonight, and in two days, it’s mine.

I still managed to cut some pan bracket reinforcement bars and get them welded in.

I also got some more rust cleaned up. It was a lovely day in the mid 60’s & it looks like prime painting weather tomorrow.

But there is still more welding needed on the fuel tank support. I need to make some more crossmember gussets too.
 
I finished up the forward welding and finished up some little gussets at the mid crossmember. Then I started making these tubular gussets for the top of the frame.

54284595-378E-4D33-BEE1-6DB2636F9834.jpeg


Here’s the driver’s side setup, still in navy gray paint.

EB03BD59-9DC8-4D9A-A666-AE83935FA6A8.jpeg


That one is now finished & stripped, and I have started cutting the other one.

Unfortunately, I ran out of argon before the welding was done, so I had to go shopping. Still no paint was applied, and tomorrow will bring rain. ;-(

It will also bring my kids and grandkids for early Christmas. :)
 

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