How I finally removed both of my rear wheel castle nuts

[veedub1969Cali]

To make a long story short I purchased Donna aka "The Champ" in 2004. In 2013 my wife joined the US Navy Medical Service Corps as a Psychologist. Consequently, we had to pull up stakes and move around the US and the world. Unfortunately we could not take Donna so she was put in storage - first at my friends house, then my brothers, and finally at my in-laws. Seven years later our life had finally stabilized enough and we were able to bring Donna home.

Seven years in storage is not easy on any vehicle especially one that is 51 years old. One of her tires was totally rotten and needed to be replaced so we could get her on the trailer. The passenger side carb was clogged and the other barely worked. The engine oil was black as tar. The transmission was leaking like a screen door on a submarine. And the brakes did not work at all.

I ended up replacing the master cylinder and both brake fluid reservoirs as well as the line between them. That was a much bigger project than I was expecting. Then Covid hit and the repairs ground to a halt.

Fast forward a few months and got to work on the brakes again. That is when I discovered that passenger rear wheel cylinder was leaking oil. It was time to get those castle nuts off.

I picked up two iron bars for concrete foundation work as well as a titanium 1/2 drill bit at the local hardware store. The 1/2" bit was just a smidge to small for the lug nut so I had to file out the hole to get it to fit.

Bolted the bars onto the drum brake and proceeded to snap a pipe wrench in half jumping up and down on it...

My good friend and next door neighbor is a wrenching nut and helped me with pretty much every step of this project. He also happens to be the maintenance officer for an Amphibious Assault Vehicle Battalion. So, he brought home a torque multiplier that they use to repairs tanks. Put 200lbs of torque in and it outputs 1200lbs of torque!

Turns out those iron bars were not nearly strong enough and the castle nuts were STILL not loose.

Back to the drawing board....

Turns out a tow strap attached to the tow hitch on my vehicle provided enough tension to keep the wheel from spinning and finally got the castle nuts off!

During this whole ordeal my wife was on me saying once I got the brakes fixed it would be time to sell Donna. I had mixed emotions about it... Turns out my friend the maintenance officer's wife has a thriving photography business. She desperately wanted to do a photo shoot with our bus as a prop.

During the shoot my wife leaned over and whispered in my ear: "I have been thinking... I want to keep Donna." So, that settled that - we are keeping her... and now the brakes are working.

Big shout out to my friend who stayed up way too late more nights than I can count helping me get the brakes fixed. It was a fun project... Next up is to replace the wheels and tires and replace the transmission.

[Abscate]

I’m glad this worked out for you but it is horrible practice. The way to break bound fasteners is not more torque, but my instead, you break the binding Up.

Penetrating oil, applied over days
Vibration - 100 taps with a hammer
Heat
Propane
Mapp
Oxy

Let candle wax seep back in while cooling
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[SGKent]

they can be a b^tch to get off. I broke a 1" breaker bar off bouncing on one of mine. Did the math later and I was putting about 1800 - 2000 lbs on it as I recall when I bounced. I was hanging onto the gutter rail with gloves on when it broke so that helped save me from a fall.

Came to the conclusion that this tool is probably the easiest solution. One can apply a steady pressure and then shock the nut with a sharp blow. There are two different sizes of this tool for the different years.

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"Most people don't know what they're doing, and a lot of them are really good at it." - George Carlin

[veedub1969Cali]

[veedub1969Cali]

[alman72]

mapp and oxy are gas for a torch

[jtauxe]

mapp = mapp gas

oxy = oxyacetylene (not oxycontin)
_________________
John
"Travelling in a fried-out Kombi, on a hippie trail, head full of zombie..." - Colin Hay and Ron Strykert
http://vw.tauxe.net
1969 Transporter, 1971 Westfalia, 1976, 1977, 1976, 1977, 1971, 1973, 1977 Westfalias,
1979 Champagne Sunroof, 1974 Westfalia Automatic, 1979 Transporter, 1972 Sportsmobile, 1973 Transporter Wild Westerner, 1974 Westfalia parts bus, 1975 Mexican single cab *FOR SALE*, 1978 Irish 4-door double cab RHD

[telford dorr]

Aeromech has a battery-powered 3/4" (?) impact wrench which (when used with a shot of spray lube) takes those nuts off right now - no delay!
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'71 panel, now with FI
'Experience' is the ability to recognize a mistake when you're making it again - Franklin P. Jones
In theory, theory works in practice; in practice, it doesn't - William T. Harbaugh
When you're dead, you don't know you're dead. The pain is only felt by others.
Same thing happens when you're stupid. - Philippe Geluck
More VW electrical at http://telforddorr.com/ (available 9am to 9pm PST)

[TomWesty]

[telford dorr]

HEAT is the answer. Hit it with a torch to warm it up good. It'll then come out. (Don't overheat - don't want any metallurgical changes.)
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'71 panel, now with FI
'Experience' is the ability to recognize a mistake when you're making it again - Franklin P. Jones
In theory, theory works in practice; in practice, it doesn't - William T. Harbaugh
When you're dead, you don't know you're dead. The pain is only felt by others.
Same thing happens when you're stupid. - Philippe Geluck
More VW electrical at http://telforddorr.com/ (available 9am to 9pm PST)

[Abscate]

You are chemically breaking up the rust when you heat, not just expanding stuff.

If you needed 2000 ft lbs of torque to remove it, you may as well throw that fastener out anyway,so no need to worry about overheating.

I would Dremel that off for a new one. I’m doing hardened steel front end bolts in 30 seconds with the reinforced wheels
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[TomWesty]

[timvw7476]

[Youcanguruyoucan]

Since we're all here and this looks like this is a fresh subject, does anyone know where I can find the pivot pins that hold the parking break lever to the break shoe inside the drum? All I'm able to find is the pin that holds the rod on the emergency break lever under the cab. By the way I also removed a castellated nut today myself. No place in town had a 46mm socket so I used a pipe wrench and a long piece of heavy walled steel tubing I had at my shop (sorry no pictures). I got the nut off and bent the pipe wrench to boot. I'll be replacing the nut and maybe buying a new pipe wrench. Also that little wrench thingy someone was looking for is available at JBugs. They call it an "Axle Nut Removal Tool".

[SGKent]

[crukab]

That ^^^^^^^^^^^ is some crazy assed shit right there !!
I never would have thought of that move, glad it worked out.
My wife bought me a Oxy/Acc. torch set up when I graduated Culinary school in '85, and I grew up cutting w/ a torch on old cars ect. w/ my Dad, so heat was the 3rd go-to after wd-40 type spray, and power.
And VERY COOL that your buds wife sunk the VW hook into your wife, kind of saved your project !
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Tom

My Pops:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=604100&highlight=
I know you will always be with me, rest in peace with no more pain. 8/13/14.....

In the yard right now:
'51 Dodge 5 window truck
'65 Bug
'66 Singlecab
'82 Rabbit Truck Diesel from CALI
'86 Doublecab W/T
'91 Vanagon carat/wolfsbrg.Tiico
'88 Dodge Ram pickup
'11 Jetta Wagon

[Manfred58sc]

Interesting solution. Glad your wife let you keep your possessions. If you are wondering where your balls are , they are in her purse next to the appointment book....
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Fat chick owner/operator

[Wildthings]

Now buy Vanagon castellated nuts for your rear axles and use the Vanagon torque specs verses the Bay spec. The Vanagon nuts have extra castellations which allow for a higher minimum torque to the nut, but often much less torque by the time you get the castellations aligned with the hole in the axle.

[alaskadan]

[Wildthings]