After our return from Golden Beach Putt-Putt's engine still ran, but was vibrating terribly, and had tons of endplay. I could grab onto the crankshaft pulley, pull back & forth, & make it go "thunka-thunka" -- NOT GOOD! It was clear that this engine was on its last legs. A new or rebuilt crate engine would be nice, but (K-ching! K-ching!) not an option at the moment. One opportunity did present itself. At a VWCCNY wrenching session in March, where the object was to replace my burnt-out clutch, one of our gurus (Hi, Scott!) pointed out that a "parts" engine that I'd brought along had an acceptable amount of endplay, better than the one I was running. The "barn engine", which I'd acquired in a parts swap with a fellow enthusiast (Hi, Brian!) was dirty & needed lots of attention before it could be installed, but I kept the possibility in the back of my mind, while I decided to eke out what miles I could from the engine we had. By the time we rattled & shook our way back from Golden Beach in June, the eke-ing was clearly over. Time to haul the barn engine out, & see what could be done with it.
Hmm... rusty, dirty, just shreds of a muffler left. No carb, no distributor. Alternator - equipped, the kind that won't work with a mechanical regulator. Well, I can swap all this stuff, including the generator. Dual port, but no tap for the brake booster hose. Fortunately, I had one with the correct tap. Had a starter & a transmission, so let's hook it up & test compression. Hmm ... only 50 lbs on #3 ... let's see what a valve adjustment will do... Wet compression test results are #1 - 125lbs, #2 - 100 lbs, #3 - 85 lbs, #4 - 90 lbs. Hmmm.... Well, the endplay is good, and it's been sitting a long time -- let's go with the theory that we just have to work out a lot of rust & carbon. Let's get all the tin off, strip it to a longblock , clean it up, and re-mantle it with stuff from the old engine & rebuild a 34 PICT-3 that I have on hand to go on the dual port manifold.. Oh, & get the generator working, & come up with a workable mounting plate/fan/pulley combo. Modify the generator stand to work with a dual port manifold... Clean.
De-rust. Clean.
De-rust. Deal with all the mouse nests & mouse nasties stuffed into every crevice.
Give up on de-mouse-nesting the fan housing;
use a generously donated one (Hi, Dan!) with a generously donated flap spring (Hi, Andy!) and generator parts (Hi, Albert)! Develop a new hatred for mice. Curse the entire species.
Clean.
De-rust. Repeat.
Snap an exhaust stud.
D'oh!
Drill out, re-tap.
Turn my entire driveway into an outdoor garage.
Looks like Redneck Yard of the Week!
Engine-less Bus, looking forlorn...
It's coming together, at last!
Work all night...
Work all day...
Bus waits, expectantly...
FIRST FIRE!!!!!!
Ready for installation.
Sue stopped by to lend a hand...
CALENDAR SHOT! In she goes... This was actually a failed first attempt. Note that the ears on the support bar are BELOW the supporting brackets on either side of the engine compartment.
D'oh!! It can't be done that way. Had to take it out & try again. Here's the engine bolted in, without the rear valence. Note the mounting bar, with it's "ears" above the brackets, the RIGHT way. Check that gas line...
Let's gas her up & take her for a drive! Links to YouTube videos: Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZ_WvFmDsN4 Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNn9pR5FMfE
Bowman Lake , in August '09, was our first camping trip with the refurbished "barn" engine. 
We made reservations a couple of days early, & brought our Kia Rio ("Smurfette") as a chase car, just in case. 
We took advantage of the extra days, & took Smurfette on a trip to the Ommegang brewery in Cooperstown. 
Mmmmm.... Beeeer......
Later, with the Empire VW Camping Club, we went to the classic car museum in Norwich, & saw a lot of really cool old cars, tractors, & machinery. 
I tried to cram myself into a Model T, with mixed success. I think people were smaller then.. 
One of the cars, the 1930 Franklin (air cooled, built in Syracuse) belongs to a friend of ours. Hi, Hank! 
On the way back, we stopped at the Petrified Creatures Museum in Richfield Springs, where I grubbed around in a fossil pit for an hour & a half in rain showers & broiling sun. 
Sherrie , quite wisely, read in the shelter of a pavilion, & expressed amazement at every obscure piece of rock I brought her. Somewhere here, I'm staring at a fairly well-preserved trilobite, but I have no idea where the closeup pic got to. Gotta love those neon dinosaurs... Eventually, even I'd had enough of the fossil pit, & we headed home. both Putt-putt & Smurfette made it home without incident. Not even a hiccup out of the "barn" engine.
