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36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair?
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72vwtype2
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 6:01 pm    Post subject: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

Real simple question (I think?).

Can the pitting on the engine case of my 36hp engine case be fixed?

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janerick3
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PostPosted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 6:33 pm    Post subject: Re: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

In theory, if you pressed melted body solder into mating surfaces without doing anything stupid that would start a magnesium fire and filed the lead even, it might be salvageable.

If it's not numbers-matching to your car, I wouldn't bother.

I had an Oct '54 case where one half was hot-tanked and nobody neutralized the caustic soda, so it was full of pits (the other half was pristine). It made a lot of noise when I tossed it into an empty dumpster.
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72vwtype2
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 15, 2023 12:11 pm    Post subject: Re: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

It's not a matching number engine, but it is the correct month and year of the car. So I would like to save it if possible.

Thanks.
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67rustavenger Premium Member
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 15, 2023 12:14 pm    Post subject: Re: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

72vwtype2 wrote:
It's not a matching number engine, but it is the correct month and year of the car. So I would like to save it if possible.

Thanks.

If you can't save it. There's at least 2 in the engine classifieds for sale, CHEAP!
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esde
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 15, 2023 2:21 pm    Post subject: Re: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

If it isn't clean, have it hot tanked to get any oil out of the voids, and then fill them with JB weld. If you are careful to pack the voids, (I like to use little dental tools similar to what is used to work on fillings) you can use a straight razor to shave the epoxy flush when it's started curing. You want to cut it when it's set, but still slightly pliable; it cuts like cheese. Fill everything that could cause an oil leak, or anything that is deep. Some of these 36hp cases have had a rough history and we need to figure out how to keep them going.
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72vwtype2
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 16, 2023 3:57 pm    Post subject: Re: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

Thanks for the reply's.

I was hoping that one of the possible solutions was the use of JB welds as this is one I was considering. The only thing I was unsure about was how well the JB weld would adhere to the magnesium case. I think I am going to try this a solution.

Thanks.
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scrivyscriv Premium Member
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PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2023 1:28 am    Post subject: Re: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

There is no real fix for mag corrosion, in my opinion. You could try jb weld, it might work, or it might not. At least one topic here had a guy fix his sump plate area with JB weld, and it peeled completely off after curing.

Here's a topic with what looks like a successful repair.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...p;start=40
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esde
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 19, 2023 6:32 am    Post subject: Re: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

scrivyscriv wrote:
There is no real fix for mag corrosion, in my opinion.

I agree, though because most of these pits will be covered by oil or case sealer I think the OP will be fine. It will be pretty much completely isolated from moisture and the atmosphere, which is what most commonly causes Magnesium to corrode.
scrivyscriv wrote:
You could try jb weld, it might work, or it might not. At least one topic here had a guy fix his sump plate area with JB weld, and it peeled completely off after curing.


The problem with many of the guys making sump plate repairs from JB Weld is they expect that a large mass of the epoxy will stay put, when it is only keyed into the base material on one side. Magnesium expands and contracts and the epoxy does not. And you have the stress from torquing the sump plate against it, the failure is not surprising. That amount of corrosion needs to be welded for a strong repair.
I've got 7-8 years on two JB weld repairs to engine cases, below the oil level. No issues, but both are keyed into a hole or crater, so that they are "locked in place". I would do it again without question.
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lardawge
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 19, 2023 7:43 am    Post subject: Re: 36hp Engine Case Damaged Beyond Repair? Reply with quote

If this is the original numbers matching engine to the car, I would use JB weld and risk it.

If it wasn’t, I would not even be having this conversation. A 36hp case is not a diamond. They aren’t rare. Go find one that isn’t a pile and put your engine together. I have two cases sitting in my garage that are rebuildable that I paid next to nothing for. I know a few folks with piles of cases.

Same month numbers mean nothing to anyone really. Either they match or they don’t. BTW, nobody at a car show or gas station checks engine numbers so the only time it matters is when you are selling the car. Close is not original.
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