Looks like some serious work going on in Massachusetts! Looking good, Gordon.
I ran my thermostat in the main on/off circuit in series with the on/off switch. I didn't like it very much at all. I am now thinking you should put it in the fuel pump circuit, fuel pump on when the thermostat senses low temp, and off once the desired temp is reached. But all other functions/safeties remain. That is what I plan to do when I reinstall the thermostat, appears to be exactly the same as yours....
Yup, that's the plan. Running it that way insures, as you said, all of the safety features, keeps the cockpit air flowing and just calls for fuel/heat as it needs it. If it takes a long time for the cockpit temp to drop enough to turn on the fuel pump, the flame detector will have already switched over to start the glo plug when it calls for heat, too. Best of both worlds.
The original thermostat switch and timer for the VW did the same thing. Analog and looked really cool with a green light. 
Yup, those timers are cute, and I've seen them for over $300 at swap meets. I'll stick with my digital jobbie.
Gordon
Check with this guy. He might have one at a reasonable price. He restores VW heaters as an avocation. He did the complete install of a BA6 in my Westy years ago. Probably know more about these things than anyone. He is in Seattle.
Rober Kezer
warmerwagen@yahoo.com
Actually, Jack Crosby has something with a similar look in his VS. He has a modern version of the heater that Danny and I have, and his dash knob, rather than working a timer, works like a "normal" heater knob - turn it to the right and it makes the heater produce more heat. Just makes sense.
Remember, that these BN2 heaters and their various controllers were made in the 1950's - 1970's so we're lucky to find parts and most of the heaters coming available are pretty sad looking. The state-of-the-art has improved quite a bit since then, but new Eberspachers are BIG BUCKS!
And I've got your friend Robert on "speed-email". He's a good resource.
Well, it's been a while, but I've resurrected some of my semi-dormant metal-working skills and ended up with something I think almost "Factory" looking.
Here is the photo that Sacto Mitch posted of a dealer-installed gas heater in a 356 B-series Carerra. Not exactly the same as my heater, but this photo served as my inspiration, even though I couldn't, for several reasons, duplicate it precisely:
Instead, I ended up with this, below, which is the final fit. I still have to do the electrical connections to the car (heater power and grounds, switched power and glo-plug light) and fuel delivery from the main tank, but I'm definitely in the home stretch. I was also inspired by Mango Smoothie's round duct trim on his car, so I found a 4" recessed light fixture trim that looks mint on the inlet side:
I suppose that I could keep the spare tire in there (it still fits), but left a space for a can of "Fix-A-Flat" next to the new battery and plan on using that, instead. I also have to install new main power cables to the battery. The alternative is to do something to get them across the heater and over to the forward battery position, but I think running longer cables around to the sides would look far neater.
That's it for this week. Been a good fabricating week!
Congratulations, just in time for the warm summer weather.
I am impressed, Gordon! That's a mighty fine looking installation, and should keep you nice and toasty, if not toasted.
Gordon, are you sure you weren't influenced by this photo?
This is a scene from my youth - an early 1950's local TV show in Philadelphia. The character was called 'Mr. Rivets' - a moniker that might suit you as well.
Mitch, you never cease to amaze me - And you're just as nuts as I am!
I wonder if Dick Clark was in that robot suit before he got the Bandstand gig?
It took years for the Boston viewers in the '50's and 60's to realize that their favorite 'normal' announcer, Frank Avruch, was really Bozo the Clown....
Gordon Nichols posted:Mitch, you never cease to amaze me - And you're just as nuts as I am!
I wonder if Dick Clark was in that robot suit before he got the Bandstand gig?
It took years for the Boston viewers in the '50's and 60's to realize that their favorite 'normal' announcer, Frank Avruch, was really Bozo the Clown....
Joe Early played the part of Mr. rivets.
Moving on from Mr. Rivets, I've custom-made an under-dash panel to hold both my air/fuel meter and the thermostat for the heater. It's important to be able to see the heater control for the light that comes on when it's running, and it's OK for the A/F meter to be partially hidden - I seldom really use it. I decided to place both to the left of the steering column in a convenient spot, but now I'm torn between leaving it as brushed steel or painting it ivory, close to the dash color. I'm also looking into getting a custom rattle-can of my pearlescent paint for a better match, if possible.
What do you guys think? Brushed steel or Ivory? (I know - it's like asking who's gonna win the World Series...)
My vote leave it as is 
Ray
I think I'd paint the template as a test, first.
You could try ivory, black, or match the interior color.
I'd go for a dark color too minimize it a bit. Either black or something close to the vinyl (leather?) color. In fact, you could cover it with the upholstery if you have any scraps left.
Hmmmmmm......... Cover it with burgundy vinyl. Interesting. Never thought of that...
Thanks for the thoughts... Painting the template never occurred to me - Duh...
My thought was that the silver metal might draw attention to it, while ivory paint might make it blend into the dash color and be less noticeable. The trouble with that is getting a really close color match on 28 year old paint 
OTOH, it looks pretty cool in silver, too.
Maybe....... I can do two more photos, one in burgundy and one in Ivory and compare them. Maybe I can even do it in Photoshop! That's what Sunday afternoon's are for! That, like when it took me over an hour to cut that rectangular hole in it with a Dremel and a small tube of cut-off wheels. Hydraulic metal punches are so "way-cool"....... Just wish I had one.
My vote would be to either leave it or cover it in vinyl. If you added a little passing, it might save your knee someday.
Here ya go:
And the ever-popular leopard print:
Ooooo, leopard print!
You can get some round mosquito screen spline, split it down the middle, and slide it on the edge of it. Hitting that with a knee would not be fun. I used shoe goo on the back side to secure it.
I did this to my license plate, more for looks than knee protection.
Nice horn button.
CG
Mitch:
Can you do one with the ivory of the dash? Grab a sample right under the Tach, if you could.
Thanks! BTW, I sprayed the template in Ivory and then, as I was removing the vise grips which held it as I painted it...... I dropped the damn thing face-down on the floor. WTF?!?!?!? Quickly wiped it off and re-sprayed and will see what it looks like right after the Masters coverage ends. $#!+ happens.
Carlos: Great idea on the screen spline - And I have some in stock! (If the mice haven't found it)
The horn button is a Celtic Knot with a Turquoise center button. A kilt pin just happened to be the right size. I found it hard to justify a Porsche button, but this looks cool and I think that it would have made many ancestors proud - Or at least given them a chuckle at the Pub. Tough holding my kilt together without a kilt pin, but I'll cope. It feels good.
Vinyl if you got it. Darker is better.
By the way, NICE JOB! If I made that I'd want it to stand out. But it does look better darker.
Here's what I did with my own heater control panel. Tried to match the center cluster. It's sort of OK.
Carlos,
Whose nice looking exhaust pipe and muffler?
Thanks
Art
Art,
Stainless, with Magna Flows from Seduction Motorsports.
CG
Gordon Nichols posted:Mitch:
Can you do one with the ivory of the dash? Grab a sample right under the Tach, if you could.
Gordon, this may be closer to what you had in mind:
Gordon Nichols posted:Mitch:
Can you do one with the ivory of the dash? Grab a sample right under the Tach, if you could.
Thanks! BTW, I sprayed the template in Ivory and then, as I was removing the vise grips which held it as I painted it...... I dropped the damn thing face-down on the floor. WTF?!?!?!? Quickly wiped it off and re-sprayed and will see what it looks like right after the Masters coverage ends. $#!+ happens.
Carlos: Great idea on the screen spline - And I have some in stock! (If the mice haven't found it)
The horn button is a Celtic Knot with a Turquoise center button. A kilt pin just happened to be the right size. I found it hard to justify a Porsche button, but this looks cool and I think that it would have made many ancestors proud - Or at least given them a chuckle at the Pub. Tough holding my kilt together without a kilt pin, but I'll cope. It feels good.
That's what Jordan said!
You know.... ya really gotta feel for Jordan Spieth. THAT is the reason I gave up Golf (OK, that and after I retired I then had to pay my own greens fees - Bicycling is cheaper).
MITCH! Thanks. Now I can begin to decide. Each one has it's own "look", even the Leopard. BTW, Dave, My guy at "Sunshine Signs" tells me that Leopard pattern is easy - he'll do it as a small wrap. Got me thinking..... I could do Ostrich or Lizard leather, or maybe seasonal backgrounds, like on my Roku home screen? A Road Racing course outlines going around the gauges? That ubiquitous "carbon fiber" look? The possibilities are endless.
Gordon, keep in mind your car is a Porsche replica.
The leopard print finish can only be added to cars with the Sport Chrono package, Dynamic Chassis Control, and ceramic composite brakes.
So, bottom line is the leopard print will run you about $18K.
Leopard?? Ostrich??? I think cabin fever has taken its toll on your brain. You need to go take a walk and a few deep breaths.
I do think your knee is going to be at risk, so will need to consider that. Otherwise, looks really cool all around. Just in time for summer -- good planning.
My muse, Sacto Mitch, wrote: "The leopard print finish can only be added to cars with the Sport Chrono package, Dynamic Chassis Control, and ceramic composite brakes."
Or, to any Porsche from the 1970's. They did some really funky interiors back then.
I think they were influenced by Austin Powers....... YEAH, BABY!
Maybe box it in, I think it would clean up the look. I don't think your knee is in much jeopardy though.
"Box it in"? Don't understand...
The knee should be fine. I put the A/F meter in there "temporarily" over ten years ago and, even though the gauge bracket was only stuck on with silicon caulk, it's lasted (mostly) all this time. The only time it was in the way was when I was sticking my head under that side of the dash, messing with stuff. Other than that, it's up out of the way, 'cuz I'm short enough that my knees will never reach it.
I'm leaning towards just leaving it brushed, but will do the wiring and fuel lines in the meantime while I let the bracket idea steep.....
Maybe a 1/2" strip along the bottom and side edge.
So lately, I've spent HOURS integrating the wiring and fuel delivery for this silly heater into the existing wiring harnesses for the car. Without a doubt, the most time-consuming and frustrating thing I've done on this project as I try to make it totally integrated with the rest of the car. It has involved finding the optimal route for control wires and fuel line, drilling more than a few holes here and there, adding a bunch of cable clamps to hold everything up and finding suitable, flexible cable tubing to dress everything off and make it look semi-factory.
All I can say is:
Nice weather we are having right about now Gordon......if the car gets wet inside you'll be able to drive the moisture out at least...
So for my latest update: I found that my local "Thermo King" service shop had a connector kit for my fuel pump (why didn't they TELL me this? I even had to give them the part number for the kit!), which includes a new, water-proof connector shell, new crimp contacts and new waterproofing plugs for the wire entries. All for ten bucks! Whoo-Hoo! This is crucial because the pump is on the shelf next to the passenger front wheel and is SURE to get wheel spray and such. I was also told to make sure I mounted the pump at about 30 degrees positive on the outlet end to make it self-priming. Done.
The past two weeks have been one of flogging myself to get this thing done in between normal Life things. I chose to go with the brushed steel control panel - I like the look and am looking for a well-appointed sort of trim to go around the edge.
The integration of wiring has taken a LOT longer than I expected (Because I'm an OCD - Old Cycling Dude) but is turning out great. I soldered the last two connections this afternoon and dressed off the new ground cable to the frame before picking up Grandson #1. The battery cables have been re-routed to provide a better look and better connections, including a 600-amp butt-splice on the hot side to gain 15" in length, rather than running a whole, new, front-to-back cable - that's one helluva butt splice! I have to finish the battery connection clamps and covers, wire up the constant +12V from the battery to the heater (it goes through its' own fuse) and then...... Clamp off the fuel hose near the tank outlet and install the "Tee" fitting in the fuel line to tap gravity fed, filtered fuel to the heater through my infamous lawn mower fuel shut-off. I left that for last because the gas tank has been full-to-the-filler all winter to prevent rust inside the tank - I may drain some off to (a.) lessen the amount in the tank while messing with the fuel line and (b.) get the 5-month-old fuel out of there for some fresh stuff. My Rogue loves running on old, stabilized gas so that's where it'll go.
I'm close, but I've felt that way several times already. This wiring stuff really blew me away for time consumption, but I truly believe that I could be doing an engine oil change and getting out on the asphalt later this week and then will visit the Thermo King techs with the car so they can check things out to make sure the heater looks well installed and safe, both for me and the car.
The next thing after that will be to install the Blaze Cut fire suppression tubes near the heater and the engine and I'm done. There's a light at the end of the tunnel..... It's been dim, but getting brighter.
Wiring is now done and checked out (to the extent that the thermostat drives all of the relays properly).
The big, honkin hose clamps I got for the air ducts have to be made slightly smaller and will go in tomorrow to keep the ducts from rattling. Then, I'll be adding a "Tee" to the fuel line downstream from the filter and get some fuel over to the heater fuel pump and pump it the 27" over to the heater.
Once that is done, I can visit the Eberspacher techs to check it all out, give me the "Thumbs Up" and finally try this puppie out.
Still have to change the oil (on both the Speedster and my D/D) and have some other things going on, so it might drag out into next week.
Pretty close, though, and is looking really good........
Well that solves your hot air problem for sure.
Yup, Some of these Politicos got nothing on me!
