Rear lever shock rebuilding in CA?

[[email protected]]

Does anybody know of a place that can rebuild my Barndoor rear lever shocks, in san diego, or LA area?

Has anybody tried rebuilding them themselves?
Mine are dead as can be..

Also, any source for the eyelet grommet where the shock arm attaches to the link?

[npbusguy]

Hey Josh,
Did Lionel loose the cush in the tush?

[[email protected]]

picket, the cush was gone a long time ago, it's the big ol' Cragars with Torque Twister tires that are gonna require the extra cushioning......
still nobody throwing out shock info..

[gatorwyatt]

josh, i just aquirred a full set of four of the barndoor lever shock bushings from nos parts(aka..david fuentes)he is on the samba.


todd

[Clara]

You can take off those slotted screws and take off the cover. Fill the shocks with hydraulic jack oil (from your FLAPS). Pump the lever up and down, fill some more till it is all full of oil. careful of the old seal you broke taking off the cover, put the cover back on. Could help. It'll probably still leak out by the shaft, the seals are over 50 years old.
Might need more than that to make them work, though.
_________________
The Obsolete Air-Cooled Documentation Project http://oacdp.org/

[Rusting Hulk]

Has anybody taken one apart fully? On the ones i have i can't see how this could happen without some serious surgery.
_________________
64 356 C Coupe

[Scotty]

[52panelvan]

I did get so far with one, from memory basically you press out the pin the arm rotates on, one end has a round 2 or 3 part seal that can leak the other end is a sort of core plug affair that sits in the case . Inside there is a rocker arm which is splined (so is the rod that goes through it - that you have to press out) that attatches to the two pistons, the whole lot is held together at the pivots by strong split pins i think i the best way of describing them.

I tried to budge a siezed one with a long bar and basically just snapped the split pins so that method may not work.

To be honest if you lever arm is siezed solid then the best of luck to you as i cant see a non destructive way of getting those stuck pistons out but a shop may well be able to.
Other failures seem to be the spline failing on the rod and the arm then flapping about (good use of a siezed one for the spare parts), cracked or broken off bolt mounts (the ones that mount it to the van).

Cleaning out and refilling them to the top is about all you can do with a unsiezed one.
I think jack oil or ATF can be used, i cant remeber what i used now.

Cheers

Mark

[npbusguy]

For what it's worth, I came accross this lever shock cut away display used in VW factory training when I was in Austria. The photo may help you rebuild the shocks. They look pretty simple, kind of like an oil filled mountain bike shock. If you need the full size (3mb) picture, PM me and I will email it to you.

Neil

[52panelvan]

Sorry to dig up an old thread but i found these pictures i completely forgot i had taken and they may help someone out if they want to rebuild the lever arms. Easy to see how they come apart, although you will have to press the arm out but thats no real problem.
Dont think i have posted them before.

And this is what you dont want to find..

Hope it helps someone

Mark

[VolksWoute®]

I found this drawing of the Armstrong absorber , hope it helps.

[Two Glove Boxes]

Taping back, does anyone know who's rebuilding them? It doesn't seem too complex, but just checking.
_________________
1950 Deluxe Sedan Build

1951 Split Standard Hoffman Build

1960 Dove Blue Double Cab Patina Build

Two Glove Boxes IG

[Fast Eddie]

I've had Apple Hydraulics rebuild a few sets and was happy. Not cheap but they do a good job.

https://www.applehydraulicsonline.com/collections/...ocks-links

[gatorwyatt]

Same here. Apple does a nice job. Pretty quick too. Not inexpensive.
_________________
www.blastserv.com

wanted:
Nothing!

[Mr. OGPaint]

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=2729357

Here's a kit, they are very easy to rebuild. They are an extremely simple device. Servicing with gear oil can breath new life into them also.

I put new bushings on mine I'll look where I sourced those and post.
_________________
https://instagram.com/mr.ogpaint
-
Patrick Hall

[sgellis]

Be aware that these are cast iron and very brittle. Do not put strain on the casting when removing shaft. Use a puller on the arm and then push the shaft out of the rocker by supporting the casting directly around the shaft.

Some heat cycling may be necessary if seized on. If they look rusty it would be a good idea to let some penetrant soak in.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...;start=132

_________________
My 64 Kombi restoration
My camper interior build
My 54 standard restoration
The Nova Scotian Barndoor (YouTube)
The Nova Scotian Barndoor (CAD drawings)

[MLockwood]

Just back from Apple, rears for my 48 beetle. Nice job but be aware price on the website is for EACH shock. Thanks for the tip Ed...

[Two Glove Boxes]

Thanks fellas for the responses I may try to tackle them since Patrick posted the seal kit.