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Date:         Thu, 3 Nov 2005 22:03:18 -0800
Reply-To:     Robert Fisher <refisher@MCHSI.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Robert Fisher <refisher@MCHSI.COM>
Subject:      Re: Power Steering Pump Squeal
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
              reply-type=original

Out here in the desert, George, you learn to never ever stick an appendage into any space into which you cannot see clearly... this of course is mostly due to spiders and snakes (shades of Jim Stafford), but the lesson carries over elsewhere. I recently drained some gas from my Vanagon and as I began I was greeted by the sight of hundreds of 'baby' black widows all 'round the fuel line. I've heard of people nearly being killed by 'swarm biting' from those little bastards.

I was thinking that one could perhaps notch a 2"x2", say, and put their sandpaper in the notch so as not to get the hands involved.... but then you risk getting impaled by the flying lumber should things go badly. How 'bout disconnecting the coil wire and sanding the belt by means of intermittently cranking the starter? Still dangerous, but perhaps not as much.

Or you could buckle under and just buy a new belt- I personally agree with the previous advice of just not locking the steering over. Don't these vans have an switch on the power steering system that slightly increases the idle if the steering is locked over, or am I imagining things again?

On an unrelated note, when I was training for my Master Helmsman in the Navy we were taught that if you turned the ram all the way to the stop you risked getting it stuck there, also risking the wrath of the command and your shipmates for getting them stuck going around in little circles out in the middle of nowhere.

Cya, Robert

----- Original Message ----- From: "George Goff" <THX0001@AOL.COM> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM> Sent: Thursday, November 03, 2005 8:31 PM Subject: Re: Power Steering Pump Squeal

> In a message dated 11/3/05 10:24:54 PM, crescentbeachguitar@TELUS.NET > writes: > > << If you just want to see if its slipping, hold a folded piece of 150 > grit > sandpaper against it while it is running. This will dress the belt in > situ, > removing the glaze. Do both friction surfaces, and be VERY careful. >> > > I'd probably go with 80 grit for this, the 150 will gum up too readily. > And > I have to say that "be VERY careful" is an understatement. > > The good Lord watches over fools and idiots. > > Many years ago I came home from school and immediately paid a visit to my > beautiful sister. Whenever I landed at her place I found her surrounded > by a > mountain of laundry, a broken washing machine and three squealing urchins. > The > hero that I am, I sprung into action and told her I would fix the machine. > Applying what I had just learned, I determined that the motor was stalled > and > unable to reach synchronous speed, in other words, the motor wasn't > turning. > Since I didn't want to dirty my freshly starched khaki's, I reached > blindly into > the cavity on the bottom of the washing machine, grabbed the drive belt > and > tugged it. The motor took off so fast that it dragged my finger into the > pulley > before I knew what was happening. No, I didn't lose the tip of my finger, > but I did get the blood blister from hell, all of an inch long and half an > inch > wide. I also learned a valuable lesson. > > George


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