The Inaugural Type 3 Invasion is coming up!  Be there on August 17th & 18th, 2002.
 

For more information about the Invasion, please visit the "Official" Invasion 2002 Site at:  www.geocities.com/menacefye/invasion.html There are "Official" Invasion t-shirt available.  Just go to my Type 3 Clothing page and click on the Invasion T-shirt link or just click the text link. There is a group of us planning to caravan out to Parma for the Invasion in August.  Watch this space for more information about routes and timing.  We will start the detailed planning soon.

Thermostat Parts and Pictures
April 28, 2002

There has been a lot of discussion about the thremostat linkages and funstion on the Type 3 List lately.  I happen to have both single and dual port versions of the linkage.  During a recent engine removal on my 66 Square, I took some pictures that compare the two versions.  They are posted here for your information.   Hope this helps.

Simply click on a thumbnail to see a large version of the picture and them use your "BACK" button to get back here.

A.  B.  C.  D.  E. 
 

A.  An overall shot of the linkages for the thermostat system on my 66 Squareback with single port heads.  You can see the spring which is an important part of the system since it pulls the flaps open should another element of the system fail.

B.  A shot of the thermostat bellows.  This expands as the engine heats up, opening the fan shroud flaps.  The bellows and the bracket are common parts between the two systems and common to the Type 1 Beetles.

C.  Here is a close up of the bellcrank bracket that bolts to the head.  This part is also common to both the single and dual port systems.  The bellcrank changes the expansion of the bellows from vertical motion to horizontal motion to pull the flaps open.

D.  You can see the cooling flaps in this shot.  Look like a small garage door that is partial open.  Again these are common between the two systems.  Be aware that although the flaps are common, there are two versions of the magnesium fan housing depending on which generator diameter you have.

E.  And finally, the only difference between the two systems is the link rods.  The parts that are installed are the single port versions.  The parts laying loose are the dual port parts.  Basically the horizontal leg of the vertical link is longer on the single port version to reach to the bellcrank which is mounted further away from the center of the engine on the single port.  The horizontal link has a z-bend in it to get it out to the right position.  This make sense from a OEM standpoint since the tooling changes required to alter the rods would be the cheapest to make once the heads were changed.  Typical VW.
 

Sandblasting Cabinet Plans

One of the truly useful tools I have in my garage is my sandblasting cabinet.  I orginially had a simple "blast from a bucket" sandblaster.  It worked fine, but I was dumping sand out of my clothes and shoes for a week after using it.  I was also going through sand pretty fast.  I decided I needed a cabinet to blast in.  In my case, I actually built my own cabinet.  It has proven to be a great help in the restoration and customization of my Type 3s.  I use it for stripping paint and rust from parts and for cleaning up bolts and nuts and other parts.  I just use sand in mine, but I am sure I could run other kids of media.  The total cost including the gloves was under $75.  This obviously does not include the cost of the air compressor or the sandblasting gun.

I got around to taking some pictures and sketching up some basic dimensioned plans.  Thought they might be useful to other T3ers/
 

Click on an image to see a larger version.

Couple of notes:  I used electrical (1/2", I think) electrical conduit for the grill supports.  The actual grill is a piece of expanded metal.  My pick-up tube is also electrical conduit (5/8", I think).  It just runs down one corner of the funnel to within a couple of inches of the bottom.  I also sealed up all of the seams on the inside with construction adhesive.  Painting the inside white is a big help.  Having a lot of air available is a must.  My 6.5HP, 30 Gal Oilless Sears Craftsman compressor just keeps up.  It runs continuously, though.  The other essential is dry air.  I have a micron level air water separator in line to the cabinet.  Without it the sand quickly turns to mud in the gun and clogs it up.

A good source of materials, including the gloves, is Eastwood Company.

I originally did not have a Shop-Vac hooked up and the visibility was bad due to dust.  Had to stop every 10 minutes or so and let things settle.  You can see the  hole I drilled to hook up my Shop-Vac in one of the interior shots.  It is near the light.  Visibility is greatly inproved with the vac on.  Don't have to stop at all now, except for when my trigger finger get sore. One thing to make sure of though...... you need to have a bunch of vent holes for the cabinet with the shop-vac hooked up.  The first time I turned on the vac,  my gloves stood out stiff as a board and I could not move them.  Too much suction.

You can see the holes I added to mine to the left of the window on the front face.  One advantage of having them there, I think, is that it sets up the airflow inside across the window and helps with visibility.
 

Things I would change.....hmmmmmmm.

I think I would make it top loading rather than end loading.  I lose blast media everytime I open the door and it is a bit messy.  Might add a lip inside the door to minimize this.  I will be adding a second light on the inside.  Too many shadows with only one.  My one light is on the non-door end.  I will add one near the door.  Just worry about breaking it all the time while loading parts.  I also recommend getting a foot switch for the air.  My fingers get too sore with the trigger.  I still need to make this investment.  Other than that I am very happy with the cabinet.  It was a minimum amount of materials and not tough to construct.  Hardest parts was fabbing the funnel on the bottom.  Mine is particle board.  I would consider sheet metal the next time.

Making one big enough for a T3 fender would be impressive, considering how long the fenders are.  Might have to have two funnels on the bottom in order to get the angle of repose right for the media.  This is the angle that the material will pile to if piled free.  The angle needs to be greater than this for the media to flow down into the bottom.

I will eventually add this stuff to my Technical Page.