Non a/c car: "cold" air slider connection

Just throwing out alternative ideas as I can't help with the stock controls. I had gutted my X interior including no dash. When I decided a heater would greatly extend my driving season I reinstalled my X non AC heater box but had to work out my controls. For the heater valve I just used a "Help" brand generic bowden cable, I believe for carb chokes. I bolted the bracket to the underside of where the dash would be, used about an 8" section and hooked it up to the heater valve. Pull to close the valve and push to open. For the heater/defroster flap I just reach down and open and close the flap by hand...almost all the time it's just heat so I rarely have to adjust the flap. For the air intake control I used a section of a 124 spider control lever/cable and bolted it to the front firewall in front of my GPS speedometer....looks silly but fits the vibe of the interior. I can take pics of the two controls if you want. The point is, think out of the box and maybe you don't have to use any of the factory levers.
 
The levers can be repaired with steel wire and glass fiber. I repaired them +3 years ago and they are still working.
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carl said:
Just throwing out alternative ideas as I can't help with the stock controls. I had gutted my X interior including no dash. When I decided a heater would greatly extend my driving season I reinstalled my X non AC heater box but had to work out my controls. For the heater valve I just used a "Help" brand generic bowden cable, I believe for carb chokes. I bolted the bracket to the underside of where the dash would be, used about an 8" section and hooked it up to the heater valve. Pull to close the valve and push to open. For the heater/defroster flap I just reach down and open and close the flap by hand...almost all the time it's just heat so I rarely have to adjust the flap. For the air intake control I used a section of a 124 spider control lever/cable and bolted it to the front firewall in front of my GPS speedometer....looks silly but fits the vibe of the interior. I can take pics of the two controls if you want. The point is, think out of the box and maybe you don't have to use any of the factory levers.
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Hello Carl
yes that is a good philosophy in the final analysis. If you feel like posting pics of the controls, please do. I do try to think out the box and by sharing the ideas, they can be tested in debate here before committing. Then others can chime in with good suggestions, see Bjorn's pics and ideas above.
 
thanks Bjorn that was very helpful to see and is very creative. I think that is applicable to more kinds of breaks than my poor idea.
 
if anyone is interested, the Lada slider knobs have arrived. I feel a little underwhelmed though; they are of very thin flexible material and I doubt they will actually stay on the lever when used.
 

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RDS said:
if anyone is interested, the Lada slider knobs have arrived. I feel a little underwhelmed though; they are of very thin flexible material and I doubt they will actually stay on the lever when used.
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Those look a lot like the later model x19 heater knobs that were modeled for 3d printing by a user here, jvandyke. I printed one to test and found it is not a good substitute for the early knob. But I can tell you the printed part was pretty strong.

His 3d model is on thingiverse.com if anyone needs it.

Also, I made files for the early knobs that are uploaded somewhere on the xweb site, in case anyone needs those.
 
Ernie said:
Those look a lot like the later model x19 heater knobs that were modeled for 3d printing by a user here, jvandyke. I printed one to test and found it is not a good substitute for the early knob. But I can tell you the printed part was pretty strong.

His 3d model is on thingiverse.com if anyone needs it.

Also, I made files for the early knobs that are uploaded somewhere on the xweb site, in case anyone needs those.
Click to expand...
Thanks Ernie it looks like I will have to try these earlier than anticipated if I cannot get the original knobs off without damage.

Is the tried and tested method to use a hairdryer to warm up or to get eg dental floss behind the tabs and pull forward?
 
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