upd 7/5 Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

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upd 7/5 Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by Amskeptic » Thu Jun 28, 2018 10:07 pm

Now I am now in Missoula Montana, where I have just spent an enjoyable day discovering:

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I adore this evocative view. What does it evoke? It evokes The Quintessential Summer Afternoon on Planet Earth:

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I also discovered on this fine day,
a) I never did inflate the left rear tire after the last rotation, so it was 38 instead of 48. From New Mexico to here, I have wondered about that unsettled steering that truncated many little video clips because of unacceptable wander in the switchbacks.

b) I never did get that last quart of 85-90wt StaLube into the transaxle when I changed it on CA-299, checked this morning because of a notchy feeling in my hot shifts

c) finally attacked those frozen bolts on the nose cone mount, and discovered that late VWs seem to use left-over scrap bar stock to hold their transaxles in. Look at this! Barely not even square on the edge:

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All the while, there was jet engine testing going on across from my work site. That is a little freaky, to hear what sounds like an airliner spooling the turbines and hammering the reverse thrusters . . . . in a field. I imagined the dialogue:

"Rock it back and forth."
"Naah, it's stuck."
"Just try it. I don't want to call for a tow."

I camped just up from those two little tire tracks:

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upd 06/28 - Appointment with mtcamper in the morning happened. Missoula has terrible road engineering and plenty of time to photograph my fellow cars:

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Mtcamper has a camper, a 1979 Westy:

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Our simple job of replacing the push rod tube seals with Viton got a little challenging. This engine was build by Dan Hall. Someone was in some kind of bad mood the day these push rod tubes were smashed into place. Many of the seals were cut into ribbons:

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And they were so done with it all, that they didn't care that they put the rocker support on upside down:

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I had to razor machine each push rod tube bore in the cylinder heads to restore the very nice factory chamfers that help get these poor push rod tubes in without violence and bashed in seal grooves and peened head aluminum. We had a day of it, sanding rocker shafts, cleaning rocker arms and head bores and case lifter holes, and adjusting the valves.

The test drive, with the new 150 mile-old quiet Rancho transaxle was a pleasure, and I don't think there was any actual oil leak from any of the push rod tubes when I peeled off to the Livingston whc03grady call, and he prepared to drive down to the Gorge "John Mayer Cover Band" :blackeye: concert:

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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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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by BusBassist » Fri Jun 29, 2018 6:14 am

Hearing the details of this job is inspiring since I just did this task myself and am loosing some oil on the 1 / 2 side. Will do as you've suggested and give the tubes a little twist to see if I can fully seat the two loose seals.
Late 73 Bay w/a transplanted 914 Engine.

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by mtcamper » Fri Jun 29, 2018 9:00 am

This was a really great visit this year. I was hesitant about doing the pushrod seals and work on other stuff with Colin. I'm so glad we did them . I don't think I would have caught the upside down parts and know what to sand and straighten. Plus having an razor blade machinist on site always helps! This is now a procedure that I know, and that will carry on with my VW ownership. Thanks again Colin!
We made it to Coeur d alene and they seem dry so far. That pesky leak probably from the flywheel is back, but that's another story.

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by Amskeptic » Fri Jun 29, 2018 8:01 pm

I have been suffering pesky leaks all day:

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High temperature in Deer Lodge, Montana was 58* here on June 29.

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Engine ran very cool, and the oil cap showed signs of moisture that tells me that it never really did get above boiling. I'd screw with the adjustments, but I will be in Boise ID in three days, and it is supposed to be 95*. That'll clean the oil of any moisture. My poor little NaranjaWesty is entering middle age. The engine has loosened up after all of these punishing American West hill climbs:

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All of our summer warmth occurs within a couple thousand feet of the surface of the Earth, just a little radiant heat. Those mountains were telling me something about the entire Universe. The cold of space invades every night, it shows up if the sun's rays are blocked by a little dust or too many clouds, it seizes our atmosphere and freezes all water vapor above about 7,000 feet:

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I huddle in my scuttle along the surface of the Earth here in Montana. Had the heat on all day:

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I have arrived at tomorrow's appointment with whc03grady. I can't even whine about the cold. This is *summer* to these hardy mountain folk. It is supposed to be 46* tonight. That is Florida *winter* to delicate lil ol me. Wish me luck that I do not perish overnight:

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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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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by asiab3 » Fri Jun 29, 2018 10:36 pm

Montana is looking just as beautiful as last month, when I ripped my right door apart in Billings to chase a corroded speaker wire… Any notable campsites near there? I had a beautiful pull-off of I-90 near the MT/ND border where I took exactly zero pictures.

Still suffering leaks? Or have you eradicated both?
Robbie
1969 bus, "Buddy."
145k miles with me.
322k miles on Earth.

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by Jivermo » Sat Jun 30, 2018 5:59 am

Montana is such a beautiful state. I love being out there, during their 8 week summer. Those push rod seals you guys dealt with are a real discouragement. With the recent memory of how we installed new ones on exoticdvm’s bus, with so much care, and attention to fine detail, it dismays me to see such shoddy work. Someone calling himself a “mechanic”, working on one of these beautiful machines, just threw the pieces together with no concern at all. “Finish this one up, and get the money!” It is beyond my ken.

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by Amskeptic » Sun Jul 01, 2018 6:26 am

Jivermo wrote:
Sat Jun 30, 2018 5:59 am
Montana is such a beautiful state. I love being out there, during their 8 week summer. Those push rod seals you guys dealt with are a real discouragement. With the recent memory of how we installed new ones on exoticdvm’s bus, with so much care, and attention to fine detail, it dismays me to see such shoddy work. Someone calling himself a “mechanic”, working on one of these beautiful machines, just threw the pieces together with no concern at all. “Finish this one up, and get the money!” It is beyond my ken.

In the middle of the whc03grady Squareback/Westy call. Got pictures. Got stories. Got no time. As soon as we wrap up, I have a drive (....!...) to Boise ID coming up.
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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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by Happyfolk » Sun Jul 01, 2018 8:40 am

mtcamper wrote:
Fri Jun 29, 2018 9:00 am
This was a really great visit this year. I was hesitant about doing the pushrod seals and work on other stuff with Colin. I'm so glad we did them . I don't think I would have caught the upside down parts and know what to sand and straighten. Plus having an razor blade machinist on site always helps! This is now a procedure that I know, and that will carry on with my VW ownership. Thanks again Colin!
We made it to Coeur d alene and they seem dry so far. That pesky leak probably from the flywheel is back, but that's another story.
How was the John Mayer cover band?
79 CA FI Westy
Mexico Beige
"Sandy"

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by Amskeptic » Thu Jul 05, 2018 8:43 am

The start of any appointment with whc03grady (if it is not snowing) is always promising. Look at that pretty Squareback, Gertie, and that famously well-traveled Ludwig the Westy:

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We dove into a quick disassembly of the left carburetor's choke assembly so we could tighten the housing/crossbar bracket:

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I busted the spade terminal clean off the choke as I removed the throttle link. Vent windows, spade terminals, my trail of wreckage grows. Why, I think it was at this very garage that I glued the choke plate to death to the profound disgust of my two year-old supervisor:

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Mitch thankfully cleaned up after me and we soldered the spade back onto the choke housing:

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Not photographed, due to the high levels of stress experienced, was the investigation of a pretty severe transaxle leak. The entire front of Ludwig's transaxle presented a multi-focal systemic generalized hemorrhagic gastropathy, and we needed to perform a quick differential diagnosis (ha ha get it, differential?) to narrow down the source.
Plan A replace seal in situ. Should be easy enough, said so on theSamba.
Plan B remove engine and transaxle and nose cone. This is a time eater.

I went for a replacement of the nose cone shift rod seal in situ.
I found out that my special Transaxle Care Package is actually in Atlanta sitting in the back of Chloe. You know, what good does it do there? No replacement brass bushing if I ovalize or crack or gouge the bushing here in MONTANA. . . :pale:
Scarfed the back-up seal for NaranjaWesty from under the passenger seat and dove under Ludwig with visegrips and two baby allen wrenches.
a) No. Brass refused to budge, and it wanted to go oval under the visegrips - abort. Stared in disbelief.
b) No. Allen wrenches punctured the original seal and bent to spaghetti under the slightest pull. Stared in disbelief.
( "hello, yes, are you the spouse? We performed the surgery, but if you thought the hemorrhage was bad before, wait until you see it now! Don't forget to pay the bill, our collection agents are really good.'Kay, bye." )

Eventually, and with great great relief, I got the seal out with two of Mitch's hook tools. Mitch, meanwhile had taken apart all the required hoses and clamps and lines and push rod clevis on the booster/master cylinder. We put a moment or sixty into checking Gertie the Squareback's D-Jet engine which would not start. After a little breaker point adjustment and static timing to compensate for the failed DVDA can, we got Gertie to run with an enema of gasoline trickled down into the auxiliary air regulator hole. This told us that the ignition system and basic engine air pump was fine, but we are not getting fuel.

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Provided a nice blue ATE box of a new ATE master cylinder to present to Mitch as we determined that his old master cylinder was leaking slowly and had destroyed his brake booster control valve with advanced rusty braky fluidy slime. But when I opened the new master cylinder box, I only then remembered that the new master cylinder was already installed in Naranja, and that old crusty mess in the box was Naranja's original "rebuildable master cylinder". Stern rebuke to my parts inventory clerk. We decided to put in Mitch's old master cylinder on the new booster, and it was a sorry looking rusty undertaking, but we did good. HE did good. I was very not helpful with his reinstallation of the booster/master cylinder because I was all over Gertie's refusal to fuel herself. We did a simple bleed at the fittings and the pedal was good. He has a week or so to enjoy true power brakes before replacing the master cylinder with a real new ATE replacement. It'll be FINE, Mitch:

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Gertie told us that she had a locked fuel pump. Removed it. Disassembled it. Made it spin. It spun itself under electricity. Re-assembled it:

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Installed it. It spun. No fuel pressure. Removed it. Said hello to lilpig88:

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After another failed re-rebuild of the original Gertie pump with hoses and buckets and wires where the electricity was to be found behind NaranjaWesty's bumper, we embarked upon an insane Bunch Of Boys mad experimentation. It was mad:

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We used lilpig88's spare Type 4 pump and my spare filter AND the original pump (to be used as a return manifold) and we wired up the pump and we stuck what we thought was the correct R (return) hose into a gas can.
Yeah, we thought it was pretty funny . . .
"Get a fan to help evaporate this explosive vapor":

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But, Gertie ran. Gertie ran and ran, got warmed up and ran. Gertie needs a fuel pump. It'll be FINE, Mitch:

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Ludwig's test drive was all that I hoped. Nice power brakes. Decent enough engine with the failed DVDA advance compensated for. Didn't see any hemorrhage from the transaxle, but I will let Mitch chime in on that one.
The Livingston Crew pulls it together for a final second:

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But just for a second:

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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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Re: upd 7/5 Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by whc03grady » Fri Jul 06, 2018 4:00 pm

That was a powerful appointment. Thank you Colin!
Thank you also to lilpig88 for showing up with that fuel pump and his know-how. I was starting to flag by that time, as the pictures attest.
Ludwig--1974 Westfalia, 2.0L (GD035193), Solex 34PDSIT-2/3 carburetors.
Gertie--1971 Squareback, 1600cc with Bosch D-Jetronic fuel injection from a '72 (E brain).
Read about their adventures:
http://www.ludwigandgertie.blogspot.com

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by Amskeptic » Fri Jul 06, 2018 6:25 pm

asiab3 wrote:
Fri Jun 29, 2018 10:36 pm
Montana is looking just as beautiful as last month, when I ripped my right door apart in Billings to chase a corroded speaker wire… Any notable campsites near there? I had a beautiful pull-off of I-90 near the MT/ND border where I took exactly zero pictures.

Still suffering leaks? Or have you eradicated both?
Robbie

Oh hey, Robbie, no leaks from the car. Just leaky skies. Bad enough, say I. Now it is only 101* and sunnysunnysunny here in Salt Lake City? Where are you?
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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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by mtcamper » Fri Jul 06, 2018 7:06 pm

Happyfolk wrote: How was the John Mayer cover band?
It was really a great show. He is actually a really good guitar player and often times I forgot it was even him up there with the rest of the guys. I met more ac VW people than I have in a while.
Made the 700 mile trip fine. No detection of pushrod seal leaks. Had a headwind the whole way to the gorge. The first night after Colin left and we headed out 20 minutes later was a little nerve racking as we just had rockers off, pushrod out etc. The bus did great though. Even got 18 mpgs on one of the legs back home. It was a really enjoyable trip.

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Re: Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by Amskeptic » Fri Jul 06, 2018 8:41 pm

mtcamper wrote:
Fri Jul 06, 2018 7:06 pm
Happyfolk wrote: How was the John Mayer cover band?
It was really a great show. He is actually a really good guitar player and often times I forgot it was even him up there with the rest of the guys. I met more ac VW people than I have in a while.
Made the 700 mile trip fine. No detection of pushrod seal leaks. Had a headwind the whole way to the gorge. The first night after Colin left and we headed out 20 minutes later was a little nerve racking as we just had rockers off, pushrod out etc. The bus did great though. Even got 18 mpgs on one of the legs back home. It was a really enjoyable trip.

Glad to hear the bus did well, and glad to hear that John Mayer behaved himself.
No push rod tube seal leaks is a worthy result for labor performed with respect.
So, what is up with the allegation of a flywheel seal leak?
ColinInSaltLakeCity
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

mtcamper
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Re: upd 7/5 Itinerant Air-Cooled Greetings From Montana

Post by mtcamper » Sat Jul 07, 2018 3:51 pm

The allegation is a piddle of oil about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter on the ground, right below the bell housing when stopped. I kept checking my oil level the entire trip and really only added a quarter quart just out of being vigilant. I don't think it even needed it. I need to get under there and investigate some more. I will solve this leak though. I'm on a quest for a leak free motor. :salute:

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