Date:         Fri, 22 Jun 2001 09:40:45 -0600
Reply-To:     Zoran Mladen <zmladen@AVOLENT.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Zoran Mladen <zmladen@AVOLENT.COM>
Subject:      Re: Oil Drain Plug Leaking
Comments: To: Larry Alofs <lalofs@ENTERACT.COM>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

Thanx!  I can't take credit for it.  My father was a lifetime machinist and
VW mechanic and it was his idea/recommendation.

I purchased the pipe tap at Home Depot for $5.  Lowes did not carry pipe
taps.  Just be sure it says pipe tap, not plug tap.  You will know easily,
as pipe taps are measured in some other increment, so 3/8 is not 3/8 of an
inch, it is much larger.

As far as metal shavings, they adhere to the tap well.  You can also lather
the tap with grease to catch the shavings.  When completed, we dropped a
half a quart of oil into the engine without the drain plug so drain out any
shavings that had remained in the case.

Z

-----Original Message-----
From: Larry Alofs [mailto:lalofs@ENTERACT.COM]
Sent: Friday, June 22, 2001 9:34 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: Oil Drain Plug Leaking


Zoran Mladen wrote:

> Just made a fix for a fellow list member.  His threads were completely
> stripped out.  We used a 3/8 pipe tap to create new threads, and then used
a
> 3/8 pipe plug as the oil drain plug.

Sounds like an excellent solution.
Was there any question of metal shavings getting into the case?
Can a person buy a single pipe tap?  I have dies, but have never needed a
pipe
tap.