Colin returns

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Birdibus
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Location: Inland SoCal
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Colin returns

Post by Birdibus » Tue Sep 16, 2008 8:21 am

Since Colin was in soCal again I decided to have him help me with some more VW issues. It was a hasty decision compounded by communication delays, and I ended up having only Sunday to shop for parts. The stores I needed were closed, and the FLAPS were problematic, but I mapped out a strategy for Monday's half day session.

The 71 bus was first. I have been dancing the pedal dance at every stop trying to keep it from dying. It was intermittent but always frustrating. First discovery was a vacuum tube disconnected from the ... thingamabob. Now why couldn't I find that nipple? The tube was too small in diameter, so Colin rustled up a better piece of tubing. He showed me some adjustment screws on the carb and found a loose solenoid. It was tightened and the idle was increased. We went for a drive and he immediately noticed that every time the brake was applied, the idle dropped. Aha! The brake booster was malfunctioning, borrowing 'air' from the vacuum system, but not shutting down when finished. So, brake booster needs rebuilding sometime. For now, he adjusted the idle and fuel mixture screw to compensate.

OK Colin, please correct me if I used the wrong names for parts.

We drove the 71 bus to a local independent auto parts store and picked up brake pads I had ordered at 8AM. The 71 was finished early, good thing, because we needed to replace rear brakes on the 74 Westy and did not know what issues lurked. The right rear brake was locking, screeching the tire loudly, and one star adjuster was frozen.

The first issue was over tightened lug nuts thanks to Pep Boys. I had specifically requested they crack those loose and reset to a certain torque. Did they do that? Noooooooo.... jerks. Colin's long breaker bar to the rescue!

Next issue was removing the right hub which was a bit rusty. The bus has been sitting for a long time. Once he finally removed (lots of banging with a hammer) and cleaned it, anti seize was applied to the contacting surfaces... good thing Colin knows exactly where to paint it. The brake pads were barely used, but once the left hub was open we could see it had been contaminated by a leaky wheel cylinder. I located two wheel cylinders at a VW repair that has a small retail shop (neglected, dusty, grubby place with faded empi blister packs on the wall and a jumble of boxes behind the counter). It's about 6 or 8 miles away, so I go fetch while Colin works on brakes.

I took quiet back roads and discovered a freeway crossing that had no light or stop sign. Pipeline Ave., yeah! I spotted a really clean early bay hardtop westy with neatly pleated curtains. I saw a field planted in louffas hanging from trellis wires. I drove past some old businesses from Chino's agricultural past, at the interface between suburb and farm, between old and new... a creamery, a wholesale nursery, collections of old farm equipment, feed stores, abandoned poultry barns. The 71 bus did not die once!

Colin was done preparing the Westy's brakes when I returned. He set about reassembling them, me helping when I could. I bolted in the cylinders and attached the brake line. Time was ticking and Colin needed to be on the road, but it would have taken me forever to do it myself. I am seeing these VW parts for the first time in my life. I WILL figure it out one day.

I got a lesson in adjusting brakes. Handle position against the stars: Left up, right down to tighten. What was that phrase again? All was good until I got mixed up because I was grabbing the wheel backing instead of the wheel hub and thought it was already tight. I was overheating in the sun so Colin took mercy on me and finished the adjustment. Colin loves the sun! Me, I cook in the heat down here all the time... it's getting old. It was about 95 or 96 degrees.

Oh yeah, then we bled the brakes, me on the pedal. I've done this procedure before, me underneath, so at lest there is something I know how to do. A very high splitty driver at a Dead show crawled underneath with me to point out the bleeder valves... Muir helped with the rest.

Suddenly we are done. I put the hubcaps back on. We test drive until the brakes heat up. Colin works them out. All seems good. No more screeching tire. No pedestrians look alarmed. The engine sounds good, the carbs work great. Hooray, The Beast is tamed and is now a purring pussycat!
71 bus, 74 westy

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Ritter
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Re: Colin returns

Post by Ritter » Tue Sep 16, 2008 8:32 am

Birdibus wrote:What was that phrase again?
Up yours unless you're right.
1978 Westfalia 2.0 FI

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bretski
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Re: Colin returns

Post by bretski » Tue Sep 16, 2008 8:57 am

Ritter wrote:
Birdibus wrote:What was that phrase again?
Up yours unless you're right.
LOL. I gotta try to remember that one...I always end up contorting my head to align with the bolt, so I can picture the clockwise turn.
1978 Deluxe Westfalia - "Klaus"

"transcripts are overrated. hardware store receipts: those are useful." --skin daddio

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chitwnvw
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Post by chitwnvw » Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:25 am

Birdi, I have a brake squeak, and only after I've been driving awhile, on one of the back brakes, are you supposed to do a final adjustment when you've warmed the brakes up?

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Birdibus
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Post by Birdibus » Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:36 am

chitwnvw wrote:Birdi, I have a brake squeak, and only after I've been driving awhile, on one of the back brakes, are you supposed to do a final adjustment when you've warmed the brakes up?
Colin said I should do another brake adjustment soon, but not right away. You'll have to ask him about squeaks. He put anti seize on some small raised metal 'pads' inside the hub to prevent some sort of sound... a thunk or squeak.
71 bus, 74 westy

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chitwnvw
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Post by chitwnvw » Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:42 am

Birdibus wrote:
chitwnvw wrote:Birdi, I have a brake squeak, and only after I've been driving awhile, on one of the back brakes, are you supposed to do a final adjustment when you've warmed the brakes up?
Colin said I should do another brake adjustment soon, but not right away. You'll have to ask him about squeaks. He put anti seize on some small raised metal 'pads' inside the hub to prevent some sort of sound... a thunk or squeak.
Thanks, I'll start another thread. Thought maybe he passed on a bit of knowledge that you could pass on to me...

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hambone
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Post by hambone » Tue Sep 16, 2008 9:45 am

I get occasional squeals from the brakes too, I think the metal gets a shiny glaze on it. Never seems to be much to worry about.
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Amskeptic
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Post by Amskeptic » Tue Sep 16, 2008 6:33 pm

Rear brake warm squeaks are usually a hard glaze and shoes not properly chamfered at the leading edges.

Cold squeaks you just gotta get on them harder.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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chitwnvw
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Post by chitwnvw » Tue Sep 16, 2008 6:39 pm

I don't hear it unless I am driving next to a retaining wall with the window open. My braking, since going over the cylinders and hose, bleeding is pretty good.

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