2.1 MV rebuild

[MarkWard]

Couple reasons to use studs. One, it makes aligning it way easier. Also, if a stud snaps some day, it will snap below the threads and you'll have something to grab to remove it. A bolt that seizes, will likely snap flush with the case, and then you'll wish you had used a stud.
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[90weekender]

Thanks Mark,

I did not consider that when putting bolts on the water pump.

What about metalurgy:

In replacing studs with bolts in my engine case are there issues with material of bolts reacting with the case?

OEM look of zinc yellow is nice, but also recognize that the zinc will evaporate eventually and rust.

I've heard SS can seize inside the case and be very tuff to remove later.

Should I put ant-sieze or locktite on the bolts?

Any experiences to share?

[90weekender]

I've taken Marks advice and reinstalled the water pump studs.

And to improve clearance on the high volume oil pump I've used bolts and copper washers to hold the pump cover on.

[90weekender]

Case nut sealing: Rethinking

A few posts back you can see I used the Victor Rienz sealant and blue locktite on these case nuts, but I believe the factory used only the yellow pasty stuff that comes with the engine gasket sets.

Should I reseal it with the yellow stuff or leave the Victor Rienz sealant in there?

Here's my original pic for referene:

[DanHoug]

i think you want something plastic and non-hardening on head nuts... you said case nuts but are holding a head nut. i don't like the yellow goo because i've found it to be very dry and flakey after less than a year. much less.

something like Curil T2 fits the bill nicely as would Hylomar.
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[90weekender]

Thanks Dan,

My thumb is covering how long the nut is...maybe 40mm long?...but I promise it's a 15mm case nut. It is one of 4 that go inside the case to secure main bearing saddles.

If "plastic and non-hardening" is better than the yellow goo, then this Victor Rienz stuff should be suitable.

Detials here on the Victor Reinz site: https://datenblatt.reinz.de/web1/en/produkte/Dichtmassen/reinzosil/td_reinzosil_e.pdf?bct=21

R

[90weekender]

How to seal the steel cylinders to the case?

Loctite 518 (pictured below)
Silicone RTV (recommended by my machinist with 50 years building vw boxers)
Grease (as per TencentLife 2.1 engine build comments)
Silicone Grease (Just curious if this is better for Noobs like me, as it never dries...give me infinite time to eff up and start over when installing the pistons)

Loctite 518 being used to seal up the pistons to case as seen on Bens Place web site:

[DanHoug]

remember... like dissolves like. you want to NOT dissolve the o-ring so petroleum grease on a silicone seal, and silicone grease on a non-silicone seal.

what i DON'T know is what the base o-ring is made of... i suspect nitrile instead of silicone so i would use a silicone like SilGlyde. but this is all immersed in oil so it really doesn't matter too much as it will be washed away.... you essentially are trying to get the o-ring to slip a bit and slide into position as the cylinder is clamped down. once that is done, it is the tension of the o-ring material that does the sealing. i'm not a fan of RTV stuff inside an engine but that's me and there's builders with far more emperical history that like it.
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[90weekender]

Dan

Here is the silicone I'm considering:

I'm not sure what the "rubber" piston o-rings are made of...can anyone out there tell us?

[90weekender]

[90weekender]

Bled my new lifters. Used Christophers' method here:
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=331065

Here are the tools I used:

[DanHoug]

[90weekender]

Thanks again Dan,

I'll use the JetLube on the fat o-ring. I'm surprised how unimportant he green o-ring is.

FWIW, the only other engine I've rebuilt myself is a mazda 13b wankle. (Perhaps the simplest ICE engine rebuild EVER.) If I recall correctly the factory spec assembly lube is Vaseline!

[AtlasShrugged]

I would not dismiss the green top cylinder "O" rings as unimportant. I've seen engines that had those "O" ring nicked during reassembly and the top cylinder metal seal failed some time later.

Vaseline works great for both the bottom and top "O" rings
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'Let's Go Brandon'

[90weekender]

Thanks Atlas!

Unfortunately my sealed case is leaking. Good news is...I found it before installing the pistons.

Not so good news...I'm not certain why it leaked. My best guess is that I sealed with the gascacinch...then turned the case 90 (meaning right side up) and so assembly oil dripped down into the center seam.

But what do I know? Upon disassembly today, it had no obvious dirt or surface issues that would allow a leak.

Here's a pic: You can just see the shiny wet oil seeping out from the center seem

[AtlasShrugged]

For the engine cases I would use Loctite 518 Red. It is an anaerobic gasketing material. I have used it with Porsche 911 engines and VWs too. No leaks with a good seal that lasts for decades.

Available from most FLAPS or online.

You will need to remove all the old sealant, clean the case with lacquer cleaner and use a ANAEROBIC sealer.
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'Let's Go Brandon'

[MarkWard]

[DanHoug]

for those that have done numeous cases... is Loctite 518 preferred over say Dirko, Curil T, Curil K2 or Hylomar? it is appearing so!
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[MarkWard]

Until anaerobic sealers were available, we used Permatex aviation sealer. It was non hardening but did seal the case halves. I’ve had problems with hylomar period. I don’t think they sell enough of it anymore, and it sits on the shelves too long.
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[90weekender]

OK....message is clear:

Clean off old sealant...can I use acetone?

Use Loctite 518: I have a tube and have read the directions...but you guys always seem to spring some critical tribal knowledge on me that is NOT in the directions.

Can you tell me how YOU use Loctite 518 to seal the cases? (If any different from the directions)

Thanks,
R