Mullendore Port

[Steve M.]

[Wildthings]

[TheMonk]

[jkmusik]

Ok...I'm getting ready to try this. I drilled 2 1/2 inch holes and I'm going to try some PB Blaster to see if it unfreezes the motor! Yikes, I'm a little nervous...any tips?
jill
87 2.3ltr automatic

[dobryan]

[Igeo]

I did this by linking up a couple of the red straws that come with cans like that to reach the shaft end.... maybe I used shrink tubing(?). You'll need a flashlight to see where to land in there...
_________________
1987 Westfalia 2.1 WBX Manual

[jlrftype7]

[IdahoDoug]

I did what LGEO says - link up a few red straws. I used a short piece of wire where I'd pulled the copper out of a half inch piece, leaving a flexy tube to join the straws. Pretty quick to find the right size wire if you have a few sizes around.
_________________
1987 2WD Wolfsburg Vanagon Weekender "Mango", two fully locked 80 Series LandCruisers. 2017 Subaru Outback boxer. 1990 Audi 90 Quattro 20V with rear locking differential, 1990 burgundy parts Vanagon. 1984 Porsche 944, 1988 Toyota Supra 5 speed targa, 2002 BMW 325iX, 1982 Toyota Sunrader

[jkmusik]

Ok...no luck. I let it sit all day yesterday then gave it a few blasts of tri lube. Decided to crank it and see, and it still popped the fuse. Am I spraying it the right place? I can see the motor and it looks like I'm hitting where I need to. could it be something else?

jill
87 westy 2.3 ltr.

[jlrftype7]

[Sodo]

Following member Jalan's recommendation I drilled two 3/4" holes farther to the right.
I think it's a better location.
And I put a snake-light over the top into the next cavity.

It has been 8 or 10 years since I last lubed it with WD40
You laugh. But WD40 can reconstitute existing lube.
But anyway, it was still spinning nice and free after many years.
This time I lubed the bearing with motorcycle chain lube.

Here are some pics.

I covered the holes with some super-thick clear tape that I have.
_________________


'90 Westy EJ25, 2Peloquins, 3knobs, pressure-oiled GT mainshaft, filtered, cooled gearbox
'87 Tintop w 47k 53k, '12 SmallCar EJ25, cooled filtered gearbox
....KTMs, GasGas, SPOT mtb

[DuncanS]

If the fan is still frozen I'm guessing you could drill a 1" hole farther to the left by about 2" in line with the ones you have and with a flat blade screwdriver be able to pry on the squirrel cage blower itself. Rock it back and fort without too much force and it should break free. Anyone with an unmounted fan could measure what is needed and can advise. The fan is about 5" long and hitting it anywhere along this length will work, so location as precision as the initial Mullendore holes. The squirrel cage is inside a plastic shroud, so once through the tin, go through the plastic with a 1/4" drill which can be resealed with hot melt glue when you are done.

I have done this on a couple of fans, but I come in from the top and then put an oil tube in. It gets a couple of drops of used motor oil once a year.

But be prepared that you may have a corroded shaft which can eat some of the bearing and wind up with a wobble and a really loud noise. But it will be free and give you defrost and or foot heat when necessary.

Duncan

[Sodo]

[SyncroHead]

My experience was that the shaft was too frozen/rusted to turn after I oiled it. I was concerned that I hadn't gotten enough oil (or the right type) to the right spot. After pulling the dash and removing out the entire heater assembly, I still could not turn the fan by hand. Rusted solid and it wouldn't matter how much or what type of oil I got in there. Fans that have recently stopped working should fare much better.

My advice is to implement the port and oil when you hear it start to squeak.

Jim Davis
_________________
"A Vanagon? It's not a car or a van. It's a hobby!"

Check out:
www.VANAVATION.com
www.SyncroSafari.org and
www.Vanagons.org

[DuncanS]

No, That's too late. If your fan is still running do it now and pull the tape and do it again every fall, or better yet add a Steve M oiler cap and tube.

Duncan

[Sodo]

[DuncanS]

Doesn't the PNW get tons of moisture and misty rain? The problem is rain or moisture entering and lodging in the bearing and rusting the shaft. With the blower not been used during the summer, moisture will accumulate in this poorly designed spot. The worst is following someone too closely and their wheels throw up water plus road schmutz.

Duncan

[Sodo]

I only have one van's experience (my own PNW van).

Mine squeaked 10 years ago.
I lubed it with WD-40. Instant quiet. I thought I had drilled a Mullendore® port (but found no hole). I may have shot it from the ashtray? I don't remember.
I do remember it bugging me that I needed to re-lube someday with "actual oil".

Recently the fan quit working. I thought it had froze up - so drilled StereoMullendore® ports to lube the bearing.
But found that the medium and high speeds had quit.
But found that on low speed the fan was spinning (silently). Good!

So I lubed the bearing properly with motorcycle chain lube.
Still gotta fix my medium and high speeds.

Gonna add a PWM speed controller)

That's all I know.
_________________


'90 Westy EJ25, 2Peloquins, 3knobs, pressure-oiled GT mainshaft, filtered, cooled gearbox
'87 Tintop w 47k 53k, '12 SmallCar EJ25, cooled filtered gearbox
....KTMs, GasGas, SPOT mtb

[Wildthings]

Just reread much of this thread, have to say I miss TK in a way, as he certainly saw the world differently.

13 years and still a spinning for my Mullendore relube job at this point, though I admit it has needed a touch up for a long time at this point.

[DuncanS]

Hit it now or you will soon be dropping the dash. Once the bearing has worn oversized, instead of the motor shaft rotating smoothly in the bearing it will bounce from side to side in a polygonal way eating the bearing even faster and make road noise seem like an after thought.

Ask a man who has had this condition in several different T3s without oiling capability.

Duncan