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vwsteve
Samba Member
Joined: March 18, 2004
Posts: 1047
Location: Virginia
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 Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 9:09 am Post subject: 1200 cam bearing install |
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| I have been thinking of using a adjustable reamer and cutting the case myself for cam bearings. Any one ever tried it? It seems if you ream the case out to the dimensions of a 1600 and then carefully dremel the place in the case for the bearing tangs, it might be possible. Doing it this way, the thrust surface would still be on the case and not the bearing. You would also need two sets of bearings in order to get a no thrust set. Any cheapskates out there ever tried it? I know most of you think I am crazy, but the case is no good otherwise and it is not worth sending away to a machine shop. |
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glutamodo 
The Android
Joined: July 13, 2004
Posts: 26324
Location: Douglas, WY
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| Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 10:16 am Post subject: |
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I think I'd want a way to be sure the cut of all 3 saddles were in line with each other, perfectly straight. If you think your method will accomplish this then I don't see why it wouldn't be OK to do.
I've never seen how a machine shop that is equppied for this mod does it though. I've seen those bars they use on later cases to "chase" tthe center cam saddle out - it's is supported by the other two saddles. For modding earlier blocks, I've always assumed there was some kind of bar with different attachments that was used to progressively cut all three saddles. |
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DrDarby
Samba Member
Joined: May 12, 2004
Posts: 6534
Location: Northern Illinois
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| Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 11:14 am Post subject: Re: 1200 cam bearing install |
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| vwsteve wrote: |
| I have been thinking of using a adjustable reamer and cutting the case myself for cam bearings. Any one ever tried it? It seems if you ream the case out to the dimensions of a 1600 and then carefully dremel the place in the case for the bearing tangs, it might be possible. Doing it this way, the thrust surface would still be on the case and not the bearing. You would also need two sets of bearings in order to get a no thrust set. Any cheapskates out there ever tried it? I know most of you think I am crazy, but the case is no good otherwise and it is not worth sending away to a machine shop. |
I can't think of a better way to ruin an otherwise rebuildable case. Have them done professionally, they all need to be cut on the same plane on the milling machine.
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Midwest Autosavers, Inc. Woodstock, IL |
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Zundfolge1432
Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2004
Posts: 12468
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| Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 11:35 am Post subject: |
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| For the 3rd time double thrust cam bearing sets have been available for about 20 years just for the asking, about 12 dollars ..... Imagine that a box of bearings from Mahle with six bearings inside, no more no less just what you need.......... As for cutting I'd only trust RIMCO , Forrest are you listening??? |
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vwsteve
Samba Member
Joined: March 18, 2004
Posts: 1047
Location: Virginia
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| Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 4:10 pm Post subject: Re: 1200 cam bearing install |
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| DrDarby wrote: |
| I can't think of a better way to ruin an otherwise rebuildable case. Have them done professionally, they all need to be cut on the same plane on the milling machine. |
I've got piles of 1200 cases. No big deal if I ruin one. It is wierd, but I enjoy taking what others would throw away and "patching" it back together and then try to see how long I can drive it before it flies apart again. It is not that I am cheap, I just like being self sufficient. I would rather spend a $1000 on a tool to fix something than to pay someone $100 to do it for me. I just bought a Chevy cavalier for my daughter to drive to school that had a rod that sounded like it was ready to break loose from the crank. I dropped the oil pan, took off the rod cap, and found the bearing spun, crank rough and .030" out of round. Another guy stopped by, took a look, and said I would have to pull the motor and replace the crank. I decided to file the crank back into round, by filing and measuring and filing and measuring while laying on my back under the car. I got it as close as I could and then polished it with fine sandpaper strips. I bought a single set of .030 rod bearings for $3, siliconed the pan back on and she's put a couple hundred miles on it so far. Never hurts to try something. |
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drscope
Samba Member
Joined: February 19, 2007
Posts: 15273
Location: Baltimore, Maryland USA
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| Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 4:41 pm Post subject: Re: 1200 cam bearing install |
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| vwsteve wrote: |
| DrDarby wrote: |
| I can't think of a better way to ruin an otherwise rebuildable case. Have them done professionally, they all need to be cut on the same plane on the milling machine. |
I've got piles of 1200 cases. No big deal if I ruin one. It is wierd, but I enjoy taking what others would throw away and "patching" it back together and then try to see how long I can drive it before it flies apart again. It is not that I am cheap, I just like being self sufficient. I would rather spend a $1000 on a tool to fix something than to pay someone $100 to do it for me. I just bought a Chevy cavalier for my daughter to drive to school that had a rod that sounded like it was ready to break loose from the crank. I dropped the oil pan, took off the rod cap, and found the bearing spun, crank rough and .030" out of round. Another guy stopped by, took a look, and said I would have to pull the motor and replace the crank. I decided to file the crank back into round, by filing and measuring and filing and measuring while laying on my back under the car. I got it as close as I could and then polished it with fine sandpaper strips. I bought a single set of .030 rod bearings for $3, siliconed the pan back on and she's put a couple hundred miles on it so far. Never hurts to try something. |
When a rod comes through the side of the block after your fix, and your daughter is stuck somewhere on the road, then come back and tell us it "never hurts to try something"
Not to be a hard ass, but why would you ignore the experiance of hundreds of thousands of engine builders that have come before you, just to try something that they know will not work for long? This is just a lot of work for very little reward.
Why not do it right and then spend quality time with your daughter in place of laying under the car in the drive way?
Now back to your VW case.... The cam journals need to be line bored. The bearing tang slots need to be milled on a milling machine. Things need to be the proper dimensions AND in the proper place. You CAN NOT do this by hand!
Will it work if you use the dremil? Probably. Will it work right and last a long time? HELL NO!
Is the reason you have a pile of blown up 40 horse cases because you have fixed others like this? Again, I'm not trying to be a hard ass, I just think you could make much better use of your time and effort.
Your transportation is supposed to transport you safely from home and back again. Why add in the additional risk of not making it back?
There's never time to do it right, but there is always time to do it over!
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Mother Nature is a Mean Evil Bitch! |
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vwsteve
Samba Member
Joined: March 18, 2004
Posts: 1047
Location: Virginia
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| Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 5:06 pm Post subject: |
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| Hell, if I fixed em right to start with, what would I have to work on next week? |
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