Date: Sun, 6 Sep 2009 21:32:35 -0500
Reply-To: Max Wellhouse <dimwittedmoose@CFU.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Max Wellhouse <dimwittedmoose@CFU.NET>
Subject: Re: Minimal vanagon support kit
In-Reply-To: <4aa45796.1402be0a.5b36.2a4d@mx.google.com>
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can't believe nobody's admitted they carry a spare water
pump. Certainly one of the Vanagon items you won't find at the big
Box parts stores.
I also carry an FPR, some fuel pump and injection stuff, a packed and
shrink wrapped CV joint, a couple plug wires, and some loose and old
small hoses for the cooling system. All that fits in a plastic tool
box with the dividers that slide in the lid that house the spade
connectors, and small electrical stuff. The tools all fit in a metal
50 cal. Army surplus ammo box, so most of what in there has already
been covered. I do keep the triple square socket in the travel tool
box to make sure it's there for an emergency. Most of my travel tool
kit has come from Harbor Freight and the rest was spares I had from
garage sale-ing and such. I should add a voltage regulator and a
used hall sender, but the clutch slave stuff I can shift without the
clutch pretty well to get me home.
I have a bigger box of stuff I take on long trips, but that's mostly
gear pullers and breaker bars and such.
YMMV
DM&FS
At 07:31 PM 9/6/2009, David Beierl wrote:
>Dear Al,
>
>At 04:57 PM 9/6/2009, Al Knoll wrote:
>>For our aging road divas, I'm sure volks have the minimum support kit they
>>keep always available in their diva...er van.
>>
>>What's in yours? Duct tape, WD40 and what else?
>
>--> Soft iron wire, either mechanic's wire or the stuff they sell to
>wire cyclone fencing to the posts <--
>Something to twist it tight with, Leatherman usually -- because I
>wear it usually.
>At least a dozen or so 8-inch black Thomas and Betts Ty-Raps, the
>fancy kind with the steel insert and no serrations because they're
>very strong. I have a tensioner for them (cheap-type), not sure it
>would get permanent room in the van.
>
>Good-quality (Channelock 908) stripper-crimpers and some assorted
>crimps -- butt, ring lug assorted ring sizes, faston lug both
>sexes. Yellow and blue at least, preferably red ones as well. Good
>quality, nylon cover if possible for the fastons.
>At least a bit of medium wire, say #14. Can double or triple up if needed.
>Fuses and spare bulbs including one side's worth for headlight (don't
>have headlight ones yet for the new one)
>
>Small multimeter and clip for at least one lead Incidentally Mueller
>makes some gorgeous things that can grab anything from #24 or smaller
>to at least the head of an 8 mm, maybe 10 mm or more bolt. But they
>cost $13 apiece or more, without a lead (female banana plug end pretty sure).
>12-v test light with a hook on the end so you can if necessary feed
>it into a bundle, get behind the wire and punch the point in from in
>front. Bought one recently, don't remember where. 15 feet or so of
>#18-20 stranded wire with clip on one end and tinned end on the other
>so either test light or voltmeter can use it to extend reach.
>Digitool or equal if I had one
>
>Electrical tape, high quality (Scotch 33 or eq)
>Self-adhering silicone stretch tape. Dunno yet if it's good for
>coolant problems but electrical tape for sure isn't. Silicone with
>duct tape over might be great. Actually the rubber tape with
>friction tape over it old-style electrical stuff might be even
>better, and easier to deal with. The silicone stuff is a royal PIA
>to get stretched enough to bond quickly, and to keep it clean while
>you do. The rubber stuff doesn't need to be quite so clean, and I
>think is cheaper to boot.
>
>Vacuum gauge
>Stethoscope
>Two lightweight plastic wheel chocks
>Long #4 or #6 jumper cables, can't remember if 12 or 16 feet.
>Larger foot for tire jack in case it's soft ground. (bit of plywood)
>Three road triangles in red case -- Napa under $30 for excellent
>ones, case not so great.
>3A-40BC fire extinguisher with metal safety pin or with plastic one
>held in with 4" lightweight "Ty-rap" -- no problem at all for someone
>who's excited to burst. The little break-off ends on the plastic
>pins are too fragile. The substantial plastic thing I've seen with
>two short legs should be fine by itself.
>
>Ignition switch
>Headlight switch (don't have it yet).
>Throttle cable, though no doubt I'll install it at some point and use
>the original for backup instead.
>Voltage regulator
>Usually a fuel filter, the little square one. Never lived with the
>big aluminum one before, Bentley claims it's permanent. It's big,
>that's for sure.
>Usually one each spare belt. The ones in the FLAPS tend to be 11mm
>wide instead of 10 which is why the ones they list don't actually
>fit, they're too short because they ride higher in the sheave.
>Coolant pressure cap (don't have yet)
>Some bits of various-size braid-cover hose.
>Some small-to medium hose clamps. All hose clamps other than
>extremely small ones have to be the German type with a stamped thread
>on the band, instead of little holes forming the thread. VW hoses
>definitely don't like the US-style clamps, they get cut.
>Exhaust paste (Victor) Unlike any other I've used, it works easily,
>sets up like a rock, and if a leak is wound with above-mentioned soft
>wire first can stop a substantial leak. Yellow tube, don't remember
>exact name. Maybe exhaust gaskets, they sometimes shred out from the
>inside and quit working -- but the paste can be helpful with that if
>necessary, you work it down into the slot and then if it's bad
>confine the joint with the soft iron wire. Wash hands afterward,
>it's slightly irritating to skin (got some instant very-bad-magic
>gummint-issue voodoo engine-killer in it). And don't wait, it dries
>out pretty fast, easier to wash off before that.
>Assortment of hex hardware in 8.8-grade 6,8,10 mm.
>
>Tire gauge
>Compressor
>Plug-type repair kit with Tee handles (Victor)
>
>Shortened 6-mm hex key for water pump. That's the already-short end
>that needs further shortening.
>Shortened ?8? mm hex key for Bilstein shocks if indicated.
>8 mm triple-square bit for CV joints.
>Right-angle screwdriver for voltage regulator.
>Smallish tee-headed pin for probing and adjusting washer jets. Lives
>in the headliner by the visor.
>Nutdrivers for the couple common sizes of hose-clamp hex heads -- six
>and I think seven mm. Easier and less likely to mung the head than
>using a screwdriver, especially taking them off -- sometimes they
>rust up pretty tight.
>Maybe spring-clamp pliers for flat-spring type, Napa "heavy-duty"
>version #SER3444 ~$30 -- the regular one won't catch the big cooling
>clamps and this one barely will. I'm certainly carrying it now until
>all the cooling questions are sorted out. Some folks like screw
>clamps better than the original spring-type but I don't.
>
>Other tools -- I'll have to do some heavy duty remembering, it's been
>a long time. But you can get surprisingly far with #2 and #3
>Phillips screwdrivers, a few different-shaped (open, box, angled-box
>and 3/8-drive sockets ideally six-point) wrenches in lessee, 10 mm,
>12 for a few things, 13 mm, 15 mm, possibly 14 but I don't think so
>-- maybe on the alternator mounting bolt nut? -- my current one is 13
>on each end; a 3/8" drive ratchet handle with three (half-inch,
>three-inch, six-inch, something like that) extensions and a u-joint
>adapter, and a 3/8-drive beam-type torque wrench. This last is
>important and unless you're used to working on aluminum it's vital
>unless you enjoy putting in Helicoils.
>
>I seem to recall that an S-shape or perhaps half-moon 13 mm box
>wrench is pretty handy on the J-pipe ends, maybe a few other
>places. A stubby ratchet could be a minor convenience, and a
>1/4-drive socket set with ratchet and extensions is a good thing and
>not very big. Metric, of course. There may be more I haven't
>thought of. There are at least a few hex keys that would be useful,
>maybe 4,6,8 mm at least. I never bothered to really think and pare
>the other tools down much, but I intend to with this van, not least
>because there's pitifully little closed storage. But I'd throw this
>in and sight-unseen go a good way with it without worrying too much, I think.
>
>Oil filter and as much of one fill of oil as is easily practical --
>I've seen two filters get a rust pinhole and start squirting, one on
>my Vanagon and the other a Subaru. Filter wrench if possible, though
>stabbing with a screwdriver ought to do in extremis.
>0 or 1 gallon of 50/50 coolant, or one 50/50 and one or two
>full-strength if I'm gravely suspicious.
>
>Anything that I think is shaky but haven't dealt with yet and you
>can't get on the streetcorner assuming I can afford it. -- right now
>that includes a water pump and a bunch of coolant hoses that I'll be
>sorry about if I get a Zetec right after; but I had six events
>classifiable as coolant blowouts in three months after I started
>driving it in April (bought February) and the sheave on the water
>pump is starting to tilt.
>
>How's that for a start, Mr. Cane Rattler? I don't necessarily carry
>all these things strictly all the time, but if I'm going any distance
>I do with caveats as indicated. And as I said, it's been a very
>long time since I've done much with one, so I've probably forgotten something.
>
>Yours,
>David
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