Pierburg Fuel Pump Rebuild Problems

[wcfvw69]

[my3bugs]

thanks for your help Baldy i didnt realize the pump jig i bought the seller is away till the 22nd Grrrrr so ill have to wait for that ...........but i went ahead n started the rebuild . ya it took me 3 tries to get the main diaphragm in without puckering . its nice n flat but those screws are not tightened yet .

im not the most patient guy .

cant i remove my working Sparkwerks pump . rotate the engine till the pump rod is at its highest , snug this pump down and then tighten the 6 screws ??? seems to me that should work ???

ok i want to comment on how i cleaned this up , i think it looks FANTASTIC without any bead blasting or re plating parts ........my TRICK is to use hot citric acid , toss my parts in for a bit and then start rubbing em out with 0000 steel wool till the desired look ........the citric softens any discoloring or corrosion on most any metal . then the steel wool cleans off the discolored corroded areas . it will completly remove any rust on the screws n such this way . i been doing it for years in my other hobbys ...........you should see what it can do to 50 year old VW ashtray interiors , they look like new afterwards !!!

anyways im pretty proud of how it looks ???

[67rustavenger]

That fuel pump looks fantastic!
Where would one buy citric acid?

I don't bother with using a jig to assemble my fuel pumps.
I place an 8mm socket on my work bench and push down on the pump body while I tighten the screws. Mine never leak at the diaphragm.

On the square top. The corners are often bent down toward the pump body due to over tightening. I had to cut a thicker top gasket to get one to seal correctly recently.
_________________
I have learned over the years.
Cheap parts are gonna disappoint you.
Buy Once, Cry Once!

There's never enough time to do it right the first time. But there's always enough time to do it thrice.
GFY's Xevin and VW_Jimbo!

[my3bugs]

wallmart sells a small bottle of citric acid in the canning section . i buy mine 10 lbs at a time off ebay , that much lasts me years . its not very expensive , i used maybe a tablespoon here , but its still good for something else , i didnt ditch it its on the bench in case i need to de rust something else soon .....i mix it with as hot a tap water as you can get , the hotter it is the faster it works . but even cold will get the job done ...........in the early days i used a package of KoolAid instead as it contains citric too BUT it will die your hands purple LOL

ya i saw my corners sorta turned down . when i took it apart those werent very tight at all . i made sure i didnt over tighten em ....

[my3bugs]

somehow i missed your last post Bill about using the engine as my Jig i think thats what im gona do .......Thanks again !!!

[67rustavenger]

Thanks.
I'm not a former serviceman but, I heard from a friend that the Navy used orange koolaid on the brass to bring a good shine out of it.
I guess I forgot that little tid bit.
_________________
I have learned over the years.
Cheap parts are gonna disappoint you.
Buy Once, Cry Once!

There's never enough time to do it right the first time. But there's always enough time to do it thrice.
GFY's Xevin and VW_Jimbo!

[heimlich]

That looks really nice.

[my3bugs]

OK success i got er done BUT at 70 years old that was a lot of ON YOUR KNEES work my knees dont like that !!!!

it was NOT EASY !!!! first finding the 13MM high lift on the pump rod , tightening that rear pump mount bolt is a BEAR and THEN tightening the 6 upper pump screws some are darn near impossible to get to , i used a flexable cordless drill shaft with a bit in the end for most , one i had to tape a short bit into a 1/4 inch wrench to finally be able to turn that one good ....

fingers crossed , it fired right up like nothing ever happened

so to test my work where do you get one of these fuel pressure testers so i can test this to feel totally satisfied ???

i really appreciate all the help support you guys gave me here .

here it is installed n working/running in this pic , i dont see any leaks ill keep an eye on it for a bit to be sure . im calling it a day that much bent over on my knees and i am just feeling WHOOPED !!!

ya i used mostly all the original springs , shafts n stuff .....

feeling pretty SATISFIED !!!

[viiking]

I've been advocating the use of citric acid on here for years. It is extensively used in the chemical and food industries for passivating stainless steel.

It is a "safe" chemical that is used in food (food acid) and is a good slow rust and corrosion remover. I am able to immerse my hands into a 10% solution without ANY effect or burning to my skin. Of course read the SDS and you'll find even drinking excess water can kill you so make up your own mind.

I have removed rust and corrosion from within door cavities and doors by filling a kiddies pool up with a 10% solution and leaving it for several days. The rust just falls off it and the solution can just be reused over and over again. The resultant surface however is very active and can quickly re-rust so needs immediate protection. When you are finished, you can decant the material into containers and just reuse as you need.

The issues to contend with however are that you WILL end up with a "plimsol mark" i.e. a hard line in any material that is part immersed and part in air so you need to try to ensure all of the part is submerged. Secondly there will be a certain deterioration in the solution as natural biological process starts to ferment the citric acid. This results in white globules of I assume bio-growth. I just scoop these out but leaving them in doesn't cause a problem.

Using it with alloy, as described above will re-passivate the alloy. However, you need to experiment with how long you leave it in the solution. It's probably days, not hours.

The resultant finish can become blackened, but this is easily removed with cleaning with a mild detergent and fine scotchbrite.
_________________
1968 1500 RHD Lotus White Beetle since birth. In the hospital for major surgery
1966 Lancia Flavia Pininfarina Coupe - in the waiting room
Discharged: 1983 Vanagon, 1974 1800 Microbus,1968 Low Light,1968 Type 3

[Glenn]

[heimlich]

That's really nice. It looks really good too. Fuel pumps are some of the simplest parts to rebuild and the quality of the rebuild kits has gotten to be good too.
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[Glenn]

[bsairhead]

I love the no clamps on the braided fuel lines. As VW intended.

[Glenn]

[Cusser]

[my3bugs]

it was FUN rebuilding that pump n seeing it working . i know a guy with cores HeHe so i got another one . it had more of that white powdery oxide inside than the first one but the citric cleaned that right up .

i had since bought the preload tool and it sure makes it a lot easier to get the diaphragm in the flat position before tightening all the screws

now i have a spare .

[my3bugs]

i think i know my answer here . i rebuilt this pump ABOVE to be kept/used as a spare sometime in the future ......... im not using the fuel pump pre load tool any longer so i figure if i just leave t on the pump till needed its gone keep the diaphragm in neutral NOT up NOT down but right in the middle putting less flex or stress on it will it waits its turn . does that make sense ? or does it not matter ?

[baldessariclan]

[my3bugs]

OK ya i followed your advice and had to have it semi loose on the tool so it didnt pucker up the diaphragm when trying to install all the screws .....

so for storage maybe i loosen it on the preload block to remove any tension on it ......thanks for explaining AGAIN

[kreemoweet]