Date: Mon, 23 May 2016 23:26:57 -0700
Reply-To: Mark Drillock <modrillock@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Mark Drillock <modrillock@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: finding crack in Amsterdam, part 2
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After spending the 3 day weekend at the campground in Amsterdam I went
early Tues morn to the storage place to let them know I was expecting parts
to be delivered there from Van-Cafe.The parts had already been dropped off
by DHL and they were shocked at how fast that happened from California.
Since the new head and gaskets were now in hand they said I could use part
of their shop starting Wed afternoon and would come tow me back from the
camp before lunch. On Wed this happened and they put my van on their only
lift. I started pulling the exhaust and then the head, hoping there would
be no other issues along the way. It all came apart without too much
struggle and nothing broke in the process. Alas, once the head came free
there was a visible crack all the way through the cylinder wall itself,
making the cracked head the least of my worries. I could catch my
fingernail in the crack and clearly would need to replace the piston and
cylinder to get the engine running again, not just the head.
I called the shop guys over to show them the ruined cylinder. The manager
asked if I was able to make the fix if the parts could be had. I said yes,
but I would need a little help. He called around and found a parts place an
hour away that said they could get a set the next day, Thursday. I would
need to go to pick it up from the parts place Thursday once it was. Then I
cleaned my work area and they pushed my van outside to a place where it was
not in the way of their very busy operation. I rode my bike back to the
campground where I had rented a small cabin to stay in while my Westy was
at the shop.
So early Thurs we went out to the town where this VW parts store and repair
shop was. I wanted to see their shop and ask about the possibility of them
taking over the job if I couldn't manage it. The place was called
Bus-Brothers and there were lots of bay window buses as well as what we
call Vanagons parked out front and in the shop service stalls. I liked what
I saw but it turned out that they were booked up solid for a few months
with no chance of helping me with my problems any time soon. He also said
that what I was trying to do wasn't a job many shops would try, as they
would just tell the customer to get a rebuilt engine instead. The new
piston/cylinder set was delivered during lunch while I was talking to them
so I paid for it and went on my way back to my dead van.
Once back at the shop, I asked if there was a place I could work on the van
where I would be less in the way. I would need all my wits about me to do
this fiddly job and didn't want the time pressure of being in the way of
their main service lift and their guys working around me. They opened a
nearby garage door, pulled out the vehicle parked inside, and pushed my van
in. So I had a nice covered work area with level paved surface to work. Did
I mention it was raining?
I spent about 4 hours at the shop, getting both right side cylinders and
pistons out of the engine. The shop closed before I was done doing this but
they let me stay after hours, alone in the shop, and go about my work. I
told them I would need to make a tool to pull the piston pins and they
showed me where they kept lengths of threaded rod and other materials. I
would need to cut one to length and use spacers and nuts to press the pins
out of the rod ends to free the old pistons. It all came apart fine, just a
little tedious and complicated. I could have stayed later but I wanted a
fresh day to begin putting the new parts in. I was beat by this point
anyway, as I hadn't been sleeping well with all the worries in my head.
Here I was, engine apart on Thurs night and my wife was flying from Calif
to Berlin on Sat where I was to pick her up at the airport. This seemed
unlikely as that was over 400 miles away and me with no van.
Mark