Pilot Bearing FAQ

[scubasteve321]

hi all,

edit; type 1 engine for am early bay bus

edit 2; I am referring to a felt o-ring thats about the size of a quarter, found on the "front" end of the pilot bearing side, i.e. the furthest out point, NOT the "front main seal " (commonly called the rear main seal, the big red seal)

been building up a long block from a great ol timer engine builder; first time I have ever seen a felt o ring on an engine, as I can see from the blow up diagram it should be there

using the clutch alignment tool I noticed it wasn't going into the receiving hole, due to the felt o-ring so I shaved down the clutch alignment tool until it would fit

then it struck me last night, the input shaft on the transmission will not be able to fit as of course the clutch alignment tool mimics that

took some measurements with calipers and sure enough same same

however, as I have said, my input shaft won't go on, should I pop the felt o ring off or am I missing something like just grease and push? I am afraid if I push it will unseat the felt o ring

suppose I could grease the clutch alignment tool and try to push on?

anyone else run into something similar?
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1971 Campmobile Tin-Top
1971 Campmobile Pop-Top
1974 VW Bus

[SGKent]

I dunno, the proper parts always came in a replacement gland nut when I replaced it. When I built type 1 engines is was just easier to replace it rather than try to rebuild it.
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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

[scubasteve321]

FINAL EDIT

tl;dr, it may seem that the input shaft is too large for the felt oring that is contained within the pilot bearing gland nut, however, it does fit quite snugly in there

I found another, new in package, gland nut, took my clutch alignment tool and put a little bit of white lithium grease around the end,and wacked it a couple times, it popped in there.

with the almost 300 lb engine and a little pushing I can see it being a non-issue, just was an additional stresser on top of the rest in my life at the moment


thanks for your prompt reply; the felt o ring is within the gland nut/pilot bearing

sounds like you are suggestingget another gland nut because the felt oring may be defective i.e. a bit too small

edit, found this nugget on another thread, whereas they are referring to a type 4, principle is still the same I suppose

The input shaft from the transmission compresses the felt ring upon installation, so even though the felt ring looks like it has way too small of an i.d., the input shaft fits through it rather easily. No cutting or trimming of the felt ring was necessary for installation.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...p;start=60


although, I would hate to install it and be wrong so I am going to put a tad of grease on the clutch alignment tool, give it a couple whacks with a rubber mallet and see if it goes in there
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1971 Campmobile Tin-Top
1971 Campmobile Pop-Top
1974 VW Bus

[SGKent]

no - I am suggesting that if anything has gone bad in the gland nut just replace it and don't get involved in the hassle of rebuilding one. Just make sure to get it from a known good source and not some cheap part. All the felt ring does is keep the grease in the pilot bearing there. Just put a little moly grease on your little finger and coat the pilot bearing needles with it.
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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

[scubasteve321]

copy, thanks as always sg
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1971 Campmobile Tin-Top
1971 Campmobile Pop-Top
1974 VW Bus

[What’sHisName]

Type IV Without Felt ring and Felt Retainer (spacer).

I am reinstalling my flywheel, and the crank looked just like this when I took it off… no evidence of a felt ring at all!

Is this common for some rebuilders to not include the felt ring? The engine was last overhauled by VW sometime in the 80’s or 90’s.

The needles on the pilot bearing itself look in great shape.

[Wildthings]

I can't tell from your picture, but if the bearing has an integral rubber lib seal and the flywheel has been cut to accept the slightly longer bearing then the retaining ring and felt seal is not needed.

If your pilot bearing has more than 50K miles you should be replacing it no matter what.

[SGKent]

don't know about those flywheel bolts but they are not stock. Be sure the tensile strength is within spec. I have seen a racing car cut in half by a loose flywheel. They work just like a giant circular saw blade going round and round until they can exit, like something out of a science fiction movie.
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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

[What’sHisName]

Oh, should have clarified… this picture was just copied from an earlier post in the thread. Not sure why it didn’t show up correctly as a quote.

I’ll post of pic of my setup tomorrow, though now that I look at it it seems I was wrong. It has everything there except for the felt ring… which maybe simply fell off on removal?