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Fri Apr 06, 2007 6:28 pm

Fish wrote: Hopefully he knows what he doing. This is the #1 reason why I end up doing things myself.

WW rents the reamer.

Should I be looking for the "drift VW 131 a" or is there a common tool for the job?

And is getting the bushings in a trick in itself before I am even ready to ream them? If so... again... "drift VW 131 a" necessary or is there a trick / common tool?

Fri Apr 06, 2007 7:26 pm

I used a socket slightly smaller than the OD of the bushing, and pulled them both down and out the bottom using a piece of threaded rod. I installed the bottom one first, then the top, pulling then into place with the threaded rod and washers. Don't be daunted by the job. I worried about it for a long time before I finally did it. It was very easy and didn't take long. Definately get the right reamer though.

Fri Apr 06, 2007 7:54 pm

I did this last weekend. NOT hard at all. I took some pics. I wish i took more.

Old Pin

Took bolt out

Inside old bushings with out pin

What i used to take it out.

The new going in.

I did use a reamer but i didn't take pics of it.

Like i said. not hard, Made my steering nice and tight.

Fri Apr 06, 2007 7:55 pm

Fri Apr 06, 2007 10:26 pm

I got a used bushing driver set, some years ago; it has several shafts and a whole slew of end pieces with lips so they will not slip off of the bushings. A great set to have. I just used one for the umpteenth time to remove the link pin bushings from a set of king pins. A 1962 frontend and all four link pins were in real good shape. :D
Earlier, I had mentioned that the top bushing has to stick out the width of a nickel; that is for the older ones. [deleted]
Remember to remove the nipple since you will be driving one bushing into the rear of the other to remove both at the same time.
I use an adjustable reamer and the bushings have to be reamed after they are installed. Just make sure that it doesn't remove too much material or you will have to get new bushings. If the fit is too tight, you can always ream them again.

Sun Apr 08, 2007 6:33 pm

Great help all around, thanks folks! 8) Really looking forward to tighter steering, its a great motivator.

Sun Apr 08, 2007 6:39 pm

Campy wrote: Earlier, I had mentioned that the top bushing has to stick out the width of a nickel; that is for the older ones. I take it from all of the above, that a '65 would require the nickel offset? Just want to confirm...

Sun Apr 08, 2007 9:50 pm

From what I have seen on my older frontends, they have a washer on top of the torsion tube where the center pin sticks out; the top of the upper bushing would stick out, there, slightly. The 1962(?) frontend that I recently took the link pins and king pins off of had it sticking out above it, slightly.
[deleted a screwup]

Sun Apr 08, 2007 10:03 pm

Campy wrote: My 1967 frontend that I am rebuilding has the center pin housing (tube) sticking out above the torsion tube even further, so the upper bushing would be flush with it. If your frontend has that, then the bushing would be flush with the end, and not stick out above it.

i have never heard that, never seen it referred to in service books, and i have done quite a few center pins on 67's and installed bushings sticking out ~1.5mm and have never had problems, binding, or other issues like the swing arm not fitting back on (which i would presume would be a symptom of a bushing sticking up too far and the arm hitting it upon installation).

can you please take detail pics and measurements of this longer tube, like how far it sticks up, etc?
greg, you have a service bulletin that talks about this?
thanks.

Sun Apr 08, 2007 10:26 pm

Thanks for coming to the rescue. I had, earlier, run out into the garage and looked at the frontend upside down. The 1967 frontend has the same flat washer on top of the center pin housing as the 1962 frontend, which has the bushing sticking out, a little.
When I put a thread in a post about having the upper bushing stick out about the width of a nickel, someone replied that on certain frontends they don't stick out. I will have to look at the thread to see what it was. I'm sorry for the screwup.

Sun Apr 08, 2007 10:27 pm

don't be sorry, if this is something we should all know about it, better the info get out there.
they don't stick out on wolfsburg built post barndoor busses.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=206373

is this the part you were referring to? i am pretty sure this was a 67 beam:

Sun Apr 08, 2007 10:28 pm

Quiet Hazetguy, its my turn to post bish! :lol:

I ordered a beam over the web and they didn't even supply me with a new center pin set up so I had to figure this out on my own and after a few phone calls I got the tools needed to doit and went to work., Taking the old bushings out with a socket just a tad smaller then the brass bearings and tapped them out finding out you need to take the zirk fitting off before you start, inserted the new bearings and reamed them. Before I was satisfied with the fit and clearance I polished the insides of the brass bearings with chrome polish then the center pin went in with ease!

Mon Apr 09, 2007 4:35 am

hazetguy wrote: don't be sorry, if this is something we should all know about it, better the info get out there.
they don't stick out on wolfsburg built post barndoor busses.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=206373
Is it me, or is that bushing in upside down? The end of the diagonal notch should be on the zirk end of the bushing?

Mon Apr 09, 2007 7:59 am

polo wrote: hazetguy wrote:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=206373
Is it me, or is that bushing in upside down? The end of the diagonal notch should be on the zirk end of the bushing?

yeah. that's why it's noted in the text/caption for the picture.

hazetguy wrote: This is how an early style center pin sleeve looks. Very different from the later style. This is from a 1956 (Wolfsburg) axle beam. It does not use the metal cap, o-ring, sealing ring, or spring washer from the currently produced center pin kits, and the upper bushing does not protrude out of the top of the sleeve.
I am not sure when they changed this to the later style.
Notice how the sleeve mounting is also very different than later axles.
Also notice how the old bushing is installed improperly (upside-down).

Mon Apr 09, 2007 3:43 pm

hazetguy wrote: yeah. that's why it's noted in the text/caption for the picture. Woohoo! I got a question right on the test! :D

So... after all this... should the 65 top bushing protrude out or not? It looks like it does in twinwindows photos.

Mon Apr 09, 2007 3:54 pm

polo wrote: hazetguy wrote: yeah. that's why it's noted in the text/caption for the picture. Woohoo! I got a question right on the test! :D

So... after all this... should the 65 top bushing protrude out or not? It looks like it does in twinwindows photos.

yes, the upper bushing should protrude 1.4-1.7mm.

Tue Apr 10, 2007 4:13 pm

Thank you!

Sun Apr 29, 2007 2:57 pm

Is the Bentley the VW Shop Manual? :?:

Sun Apr 29, 2007 11:51 pm

hi

my steering play is due to the swing lever shaft, not from the steeringbox.... so in the next weeks I will be under the front of my bus... :)

I'm always reading of using a reamer or sandpaper (!!)... isn't it? So the people that used the sandpaper can explain how they did to sand the bushings? I mean how they do to sand it in an equitative way...

thanks!
xavi

Thu May 03, 2007 8:44 am

Thanks all for the help, it was invaluable, really. Just completed the job successfully.

Two points of note:
1) The WW reamer I was sent is NOT designed to do the job with the beam in the vehicle. The length of the final cutting blades is insufficient to ream both bushings in place at their correct locations. And WW was not clear about this when I asked before renting it. They were cool about helping me through it once I'd reamed and discovered the problem, but be aware. If the final cut blades dont' have at least 4" long cutting surfaces, it won't catch both bushings in one ream.

FYI one CAN use this reamer to do the job with the beam in the car, but its twice the work. You install the new bushings, but push the top one down tight to the bottom one, ream them, then pull them back out, and re-install to the specified bushing separation distance. I can't say it'll work every time, as the reamed bushings may not align when re-installed, but in my case they did.

Thanks to Master Clay's efforts from afar, the Force was in fact with me. 8)

2) When on the final step, with the C clamp having pressed down the swing lever, aligning the notch in the pin is obviously necessary to get the locking bolt in. I found two ways to do this, but both involved a large adjustable pipe wrench gripping the bottom pin head (watch out! Don't grab the new spacer above it, its slightly large dia.) At first I couldn't rotate the pin with the wrench, but could hold it in place while pushing the tires to turn. Once the pin loosened up a bit in the swing lever this way, I could then turn the pin with the wrench while peering into the locking bolt hole to look for the alignment.