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shadetreemech Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2005 Posts: 777 Location: Claremont, CA
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Posted: Sun Sep 26, 2021 1:07 pm Post subject: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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Back in late March this year I posted a Trip Report:
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=751966&highlight=
that ended with a crack in the case at the alternator bracket:
In August I posted a topic showing the start of the crack
and the tools and materials I intended to use, as an experiment, to repair the case.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=757586&highlight=
Turns out, the cracking was more extensive than I first thought.
I cut a piece of 1/8" aluminum plate and contoured it to fit inside the case behind the extent of the crack. I drilled 1/8" holes through it, then buttered it with the Devcon Putty mixture 3:1, making sure the putty oozed out the holes to the other side. I figured, once the putty dried, the putty in the holes would act as rivets to hold the plate in place. I clamped the plate to the case leaving a margin for the head gasket;
I've since filled the voids at the end of the plate.
I ground the crack into a "V" starting with a round head bit on the Dremel, switching over to a conical one as I got farther in:
I applied putty in layers, grinding out voids and peaks in between each layer:
As of this morning, I've ground, filed and polished the area around the crack to where I'm close to starting reassembly:
I purchased all the aftermarket heavy duty brackets and bars available. I'm set with a head gasket kit and the proper tools. My next post will be a follow up on how the Devcon Putty performed.
Happy Trails & Best o' Luck
Dan _________________ '84 GL 1.9
'01 Volvo V70 T5
'88 Westy - "MZDRTHY"
Last edited by shadetreemech on Sun Sep 26, 2021 5:37 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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dobryan Samba Member
Joined: March 24, 2006 Posts: 16473 Location: Brookeville, MD
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Alaskaberrys Samba Member
Joined: June 19, 2016 Posts: 1000 Location: SE Alaska
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Posted: Sun Sep 26, 2021 1:51 pm Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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I love it when sculpture comes into play
Hoping it works out successfully, looking forward to the results. _________________ '91 Westfalia, Bordeaux Red Pearl 2.1L 2wd Auto
'91 T3 Syncro Doka, Escorial Green 1.9L TD AAZ “Gremian” (to provoke, irritate, exasperate, vex...) |
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djkeev Samba Moderator
Joined: September 30, 2007 Posts: 32432 Location: Reading Pennsylvania
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Abscate Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2014 Posts: 22568 Location: NYC/Upstate/ROW
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Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 3:31 am Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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thats going to last 62,8496 miles according to my analysis run on a Cray. The standard error of the MTBF calculation is still running.
Enjoy it, worry free. _________________ .ssS! |
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danfromsyr Samba Member
Joined: March 01, 2004 Posts: 15129 Location: Syracuse, NY
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Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 4:51 am Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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nice work but I'd figure out how to mount an alternator (maybe a smaller one) on the AC mount side of the engine. _________________
Abscate wrote: |
These are the reasons we have words like “wanker” |
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shadetreemech Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2005 Posts: 777 Location: Claremont, CA
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Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 7:58 am Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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djkeev wrote: |
Me?
I'd worry about that repair failing every mile of every journey I took.
Any failure is tow truck worthy. There is no roadside repair possible.
Dave |
It's an experiment, just like everything else I've never done before.
Epictetus said, "It's not what occurs but how you respond that matters."
I'm in. Forward.
Dan _________________ '84 GL 1.9
'01 Volvo V70 T5
'88 Westy - "MZDRTHY" |
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?Waldo? Samba Member
Joined: February 22, 2006 Posts: 9752 Location: Where?
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Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 8:45 am Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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I appreciate your willingness to experiment. I recently purchased a Primeweld TIG225X for $825. Plus consumables, gas, cart, table, some additional safety gear I'm at ~$1000. That's ~10X the cost of the putty but the machine is very highly reviewed, the warranty is excellent, and the ongoing operational cost for being able to weld aluminum is much lower than the cost of the putty. If you experience a failure and ascribe any value at all to your time, then it is likely your single use of the putty will end up being more expensive than purchasing a similar machine. If it succeeds, then it will obviously be significantly less expensive for that single repair. Again, I appreciate your willingness to experiment and I'm not saying there is anything wrong with your approach. We each strike our own balance between time, cost, risk, etc... |
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djkeev Samba Moderator
Joined: September 30, 2007 Posts: 32432 Location: Reading Pennsylvania
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dobryan Samba Member
Joined: March 24, 2006 Posts: 16473 Location: Brookeville, MD
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sanchius Samba Member
Joined: May 03, 2007 Posts: 1446 Location: IN
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alaskadan Samba Member
Joined: January 09, 2013 Posts: 1849 Location: anchor pt. alaska
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Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 7:31 pm Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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That's killer! I've had a few jb weld type of fixes that have held up well and some not so much. I apologize for laughing when I saw the second putty sculpture pic. |
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Abscate Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2014 Posts: 22568 Location: NYC/Upstate/ROW
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Posted: Tue Sep 28, 2021 5:58 pm Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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I’m on my sixth season running a British Seagull outboard engine with a cracked crankcase fixed with 3M 5200 putty. _________________ .ssS! |
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4Gears4Tires Samba Member
Joined: October 08, 2018 Posts: 2982 Location: MD
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Posted: Wed Sep 29, 2021 7:34 am Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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It's not quite as a vital repair, but I fixed my aluminum thermostat housing with Steelstik. 10k miles later it's holding just fine.
I'm thinking OP is going to be just fine. I sure hope so anyway! _________________ '87 Syncro
Ferric Oxyhydroxide Superleggera Edition |
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Bulli Klinik Samba Member
Joined: January 16, 2005 Posts: 2065 Location: Bulli Klinik, Colorado Springs
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Posted: Wed Sep 29, 2021 9:43 am Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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I waterproofed the screen door on the hull of my boat with Flex Seal. I’m halfway to Hawaii and no leaks! Also replaced my traditional coffee with Sanka and feel like 100 bucks!
Good luck with your repair. _________________ I've never met a Bus I didn't like.
Mike K
Bulli Klinik
Colorado Springs |
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Butcher Samba Member
Joined: December 05, 2015 Posts: 1285 Location: Right Here
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Posted: Wed Sep 29, 2021 9:49 am Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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You do know that that Hawaii is pretty strict about Covid. Once you get there, expect to quarantine yourself and have a proof of a vaccine. If not, they will have you turn back. |
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Abscate Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2014 Posts: 22568 Location: NYC/Upstate/ROW
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Posted: Wed Sep 29, 2021 3:34 pm Post subject: Re: Crack in the Case meet Devcon Titanium Putty - Part II |
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I think you need to enter “ metaphor” into Waze….. _________________ .ssS! |
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