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Mon Apr 15, 2024 10:01 am

Does anyone have a source for wheel cylinders that last more that 7 years? Partsgeek.com appears to have actual ATE brand cylinders (I have ATE brakes) but they also have 3 different parts... Which may all be the same part of course. Does anyone have a trusted source?

https://www.partsgeek.com/catalog/1984/volkswagen/vanagon/brake/wheel_cylinder.html

Mon Apr 15, 2024 10:07 am

I have installed these from Van Cafe. No expiration date that I’ve experienced, but they’ve only been installed since late 2018 or early 2019.

https://vancafe.com/rear-wheel-cylinder/

Mon Apr 15, 2024 10:48 am

ATE RWC are the best.

But you also have to clean your hydraulic circuit, the reservoir, the proprotioning valve and replace the brake fluid on the recommended interval. That's what will kill them.

I found an old VW original cylinder the other day on a parts van.
Made by FAG. Been sitting for ages. Damn it didn't look half bad, I'm sure some new seals and polishing would get it going :lol:

The boots 211611461A were still in good shape!

The piston part number, which was nowhere to be found online bc it's NLA, 211611677C

It's sad to think the slightest parts were rebuildable back then.
Such a wastefull throw away society we live in now :x

Mon Apr 15, 2024 10:51 am

Understand that many of the online places don't actually stock much, they are just salesmen for various larger wholesale parts suppliers.
So they can show the same part with different prices and descriptions because they are coming from 3 different suppliers.

I hope you give some business to Vancafe and other VANAGON parts places as that helps us all in the long run.

Mark

jwallis wrote: Does anyone have a source for wheel cylinders that last more that 7 years? Partsgeek.com appears to have actual ATE brand cylinders (I have ATE brakes) but they also have 3 different parts... Which may ask be the same part of course. Does anyone have a trusted source?

https://www.partsgeek.com/catalog/1984/volkswagen/vanagon/brake/wheel_cylinder.html

Mon Apr 15, 2024 10:55 am

This photo shows a WRONG position of the adjuster forked end.
The long side of the fork go inside so it can bottom out in the shoe slot.

Mark

ALIKA T3 wrote:

Mon Apr 15, 2024 3:11 pm

crazyvwvanman wrote:
I hope you give some business to Vancafe and other VANAGON parts places as that helps us all in the long run.

Yeah I get that some sites have listings from multiple catalogs all kind of thrown together, it took me a few viewings to figure that out.

Haven't shopped there in a while, looks like they offer true ATE. I've been over GW for a long time, they sell way too hard for my taste. If you don't buy this particular seal from them and them alone, you are sure to spontaneously combust, even if your van doesn't.

Thank you both-

Mon Apr 15, 2024 7:13 pm

Looks like Bus Depot has ATE wheel cylinders:

https://www.busdepot.com/211611047fat

Neil.

Mon Apr 15, 2024 7:52 pm

If you pay for shipping, I will send you my wheel cylinders. They were maybe 2 years old. I swapped to GoWesty rear disc brakes. I had zero problems with them.

Mon Apr 15, 2024 7:54 pm

crazyvwvanman wrote: This photo shows a WRONG position of the adjuster forked end.
The long side of the fork go inside so it can bottom out in the shoe slot.

Mark

ALIKA T3 wrote:

THANK YOU THANK YOU!! For this little tidbit of precious info.
I have always slightly, wondered if I had my vanagon brakes assembled correctly, despite what i saw in the bentley...
I DID/HAVE!!

I have now printed this pic with your note, and added it to my bentley as proof positive.
Than you!

Tue Apr 16, 2024 2:46 am

Wed Apr 17, 2024 5:10 pm

crazyvwvanman wrote: This photo shows a WRONG position of the adjuster forked end.
The long side of the fork go inside so it can bottom out in the shoe slot.

Mark

ALIKA T3 wrote:

Yeah, well, it's a parts van, so of course it was mounted wrong, they all are :cry:

Wed Apr 17, 2024 5:34 pm

but why is the adjusting hole so frickin' off center of the star wheel teeth you need to get a tool on??! pushing the tang out of the way is easy, iff'n you need to loosen things up, even if the hole was centered over the teeth.

Wed Apr 17, 2024 5:48 pm

I've been wondering about the practicality of drilling a hole in the face of the drum for access to the adjuster wheel.
Anyone tried it or looked closely at the possibility?

Mark

Wed Apr 17, 2024 6:23 pm

crazyvwvanman wrote: I've been wondering about the practicality of drilling a hole in the face of the drum for access to the adjuster wheel.
Anyone tried it or looked closely at the possibility?

Mark

the metal on the face of the drum needs to handle the torsion of vehicle stopping but even tho it is thin, there is a huge surface area to spread the load, just like an automatic transmission flex plate. jeez that'd be nice to adjust things from the front side, on a stool, and no contortions.

so why hasn't a hole been made on the drum face instead of the backing plate? a bit of googling shows that mid-sixties to seventies Chev trucks had access holes in the front of the drum. as did someone's '37 Chev Coupe. a lot of that era replacement drums came with knock out holes the installer had to punch out.

dunno. i would have no issue drilling a hole in the drum face. seems like the backing plate hole is meant for service garages with a lift, not someone DIY'ing it. even then, it is in the wrong location.

Wed Apr 17, 2024 6:25 pm

Previous generations of VWs had holes in drum face for adjusting.

Mark

Wed Apr 17, 2024 6:30 pm

i'll bet they stopped the front hole because it was making people's wheels dirty!

Wed Apr 17, 2024 7:55 pm

When I got My most recent T3 it had many needs, I could not get the drums off. The drums had a big lip and the shoes would not retract enough. Even with the adjusters backed all the way off. It turned out that the brake cables had been way too tight for a looong time. The parking brake levers were rusted in the on position.

I looked at a hub I had. The original hubs are not symmetrical. There is a single notch in the hub. Hub in hand I was able to determine where I could drill a hole in the drum and not the hub. Through that hole I was able to pry the parking brake levers back. It seems that the engineers were thinking ahead to just the situation I encountered.

I did not think about it then but I do not think it would improve access to the star wheel. I always remove the wheel when accessing the star wheel. The relative positions of the star wheel and the access hole used to bug me. Those days are long gone. With my Toyota brake spoon and experience it is not an issue. This is just one of the many small skills that add up to mastery of the drum brake system.

That bus got ATE cylinders and shoes and Zimmermann drums. It is amazing how the right parts fit and function. It does not seem difficult to get ATE cylinders, IMC has them, RME has them. For a while I couldn't get Zimmermann drums but they are back now. And the ATE cylinders come in a box that says "Classic" on it.

Thu Apr 18, 2024 6:13 am

Yes, I have done it through the backing plate hole plenty of times in my 35 years of multiple Vanagon ownership but I'm ready for an easier way.

Here is a video of bay window rear drum adjustment, with stock hole in the drum face.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdNBsoWTRvI

Mark

DanHoug wrote: ..... jeez that'd be nice to adjust things from the front side, on a stool, and no contortions.

so why hasn't a hole been made on the drum face instead of the backing plate? .......

Thu Apr 18, 2024 7:13 am

Done it, here's where it goes, works nicely:

Thu Apr 18, 2024 8:20 am

DanHoug wrote: but why is the adjusting hole so frickin' off center of the star wheel teeth you need to get a tool on??! pushing the tang out of the way is easy, iff'n you need to loosen things up, even if the hole was centered over the teeth.

now you know why I ditched that whole self adjuster abortion and back dated my brakes to the late bay style and have 2 adjusters at the bottom which are easy to get to now