I’ve been away for a work project for a couple of weeks, so no tangible work on Buzz during that time.

As is often the case, however, I’m always working on something, usually at least related.

I have borrowed a decent MIG welder and I am learning to use it. I have not yet done anything practical, but I have been practicing skills I will need to make my next manifold, whatever engine it goes on. It’s pretty easy to weld a nice bead so long as you don’t have to stop and restart. It gets ugly then. Welding a piece of pipe to a piece of flat, for example; I can only keep the wire feeding in at the proper angle for about 75 degrees around the pipe until I have to stop and reposition the piece. Then when I restart the weld, she’s not so pretty. I’m sure its just a matter of practice. I’m running out of practice pipe, though!

Assuming I can muster adequate skill to assemble a thin steel manifold, will I really need to? I have not yet spent the necessary time to see if connecting the vacuum line to the fuel pressure regulator will bring the fuel mixture into line. If so, I will instead need to make an adapter to let me put the twin throttle body on a Weber/Delorto manifold for the VW instead. That will essentially be a plate with adapter rings that will either fit around the outside of the TB and seal with an o-ring, or more likely, connect with a short length of hose and two clamps, kind of like on Buzz. The second also gives better physical support, so that’s probably how I’ll end up doing it.

Yesterday and today have been pretty riding days. At lunch yesterday, I got Buzz started with the intent of taking him to and from work, but he was idling funny. I checked and fuel pressure was a tad over 80 PSI. I’ve not seen that kind of pressure except when I had the regulator return line pinched off accidentally, which you may recall burst the pressure relief valve on the old pump. Hopefully, this one has not suffered the same fate. I verified that the return valve is open, but otherwise didn’t have much time for troubleshooting. Perhaps I can take another look tonight.