When it rains...

Sorry to see this Stan. Hopefully this is the last issue for the rest of the season.

OUCH!!  You seem to be snakebit this year, Stan.  Sorry to see this.

@Lane Anderson posted:

OUCH!!  You seem to be snakebit this year, Stan.  Sorry to see this.

Losing one's hearing is less fun than it sounds when you're an old-school mechanic who listens for problems.

Any chance you could get the car, less engine, to a really good welder to close that hole?  I know it's not heavily structural, but that area was built up to give the shaft's bushing/bearing strength so restoring the integrity might be a good thing.  It would be pretty easy to TIG.  Just thinking out loud, here.

@Stan Galat -- you'll have it on the road before you know it. If we can help expedite any parts from Kalifornia, let us know. @Pat Downs is coming over for dinner tonight with @Teby S and @Robert M, so if anything is back ordered, I can see if Pat can get it. FedEx is a wonderful thing. 

Anand

Anand is a stand up guy for sure!

Did the flywheel throw those loose ball bearings around in the bellhousing?  Everything looks shot peened.  Excuse for a Berg 5 Speed maybe?

Sorry to see this, @Stan Galat. The throw out bearings themselves usually don't come apart unless something else is wrong- is it possible a clip failed? Those ball bearings (and other pieces) sure did make a mess! I don't think the hole is structural, either, and your choice of JB Weld is probably as good as any.

@WOLFGANG- With the center torsion adjusters in an IM frame, Stan can't do a Berg 5.

So sorry for what happened, Stan.  I know you will do what is right to get this fixed...

Look at the bright side: it didn't rain 

Remind me Stan, what transaxle gearing are you running? You mentioned you were enjoying your new gearing.

Stan, you're a great guy and I'm really sorry to learn what happened to you; however, hopefully with your skills combined with some of the fine suggestions provided by other members of this forum you will be back on the road soon.  

We'll be keeping our fingers crossed for you.

  Cliff

@Gordon Nichols posted:

Any chance you could get the car, less engine, to a really good welder to close that hole?  I know it's not heavily structural, but that area was built up to give the shaft's bushing/bearing strength so restoring the integrity might be a good thing.  It would be pretty easy to TIG.  Just thinking out loud, here.

I thought so as well, but it's hollow behind it. It'll have to do with epoxy for the summer.

@WOLFGANG posted:

Did the flywheel throw those loose ball bearings around in the bellhousing?  Everything looks shot peened.  Excuse for a Berg 5 Speed maybe?

Yes to the ball bearings, no to the 5-speed in this car (we've talked about why before, so I'll not get into it).

@Panhandle Bob posted:

Anand is a stand up guy for sure!

Yes he is. 

@Jimmy V. posted:

Remind me Stan, what transaxle gearing are you running? You mentioned you were enjoying your new gearing.

Stock Super Beetle mainshaft, 1.3 third, .93 fourth, 3.44 R/P.

Thanks for the kind words. I appreciate you guys. The purpose of the post was 3-fold:

1. To relate that reusing normal wear parts is something that almost never pays. There's a lot of damage there that a new throw-out would have solved.
2. To admit that I did something stupid, and to serve as a cautionary tale.
3. To complain a bit about a missed month of summer. They are precious.

I know what I need to do. Welding on a piece that close to a machined bore is not something I want to deal with while the transaxle is in the car. It'll be back on the road as soon as the parts all get here. We'll address the transaxle case this winter when the engine is out again.

@Stan Galat posted:

Sunday was a beautiful day, the kind that Speedsters are best in-- mid 80s, sunny, beautiful. We drove the car to church in Peoria (about 10-15 minutes down the interstate). The car has been running great with the spare 2110 and the newly regeared transaxle is loosening up nicely and seems to be as good as it can get for a 4-speed in Illinois.

This spring, I had put the car back together with my old throw-out bearing and pressure plate. I had the new bearing in my hand, but the old one felt good and I decided not to be "belts and suspenders" Stan and just reuse it. I regretted it almost immediately after install when I heard it squealing "a bit". My hearing is pretty awful (I wear hearing aids, but I'm still nearly deaf), but it didn't sound that bad, at least to me. Jeanie commented on it a couple of times, then let it drop. 

The thing about living where the weather is awful for half the year is that when it is nice, you live with small problems to keep going. This seemed like a small problem.

Last Sunday, it became a "not small" problem.

After church, I started the car and motored through downtown Peoria stop-and-go traffic. The clutch seemed to be not disengaging fully, and became worse with every stop. Shifting was really, really hard. I drove across the river, and had lunch in downtown East Peoria. I tried not to think about it during lunch.

We had a lovely meal on the patio of the restaurant (which is the only thing possible, as per the Lord Governor's decree) and the day seemed almost normal, after 3 months of being anything but. After dinner, I got in the car, pushed the clutch in... and felt a mighty pop. My clutch was now 100% not there. I got the car in 1st, started it in gear with the starter, and drove home (15 miles or so) in 1st gear. It was a leisurely drive. I figured I had broken the clutch cable (and posted so on Ed's thread).

I have a spare cable, and ran it thorough the housing. The old one looked fine, but looks can be deceiving. Still no clutch. I checked the Bowden tube, as well as the tube in the center of the car (no tunnel in an IM). All good. I knew what I needed to do, I just didn't want to do it in the middle of prime driving season.

I pulled the engine last night, and found this:

I knew it would be bad. That's almost as bad as it can be. Flywheel is still good, transaxle case still good (as far as I can see). The hole is non-structural, and I'll fix with an epoxy (recommendations welcome, or I'm just using JB Weld). 

Parts (PP, H/D cross shaft, cross shaft bearing, etc.) on order from Kalifornia. I just lost the rest of June, most likely-- all for a $20 throw-out bearing (which I have in my stash!).

It's the small things that become big things. I tell myself I love this car. Sometimes, however...

 

What's that old saying? "For want if a penny, a pound was lost?" 

I feel for you wrt "driving season," though. For the second year in a row, I've procrastinated my "winter projects" until my car sits on jack stands on a perfect 80° day. This time the front discs I ordered are back ordered, and I don't really feels like reassembling the front end to drive it. (My beam being if unknown origin, I had to tear one side off to verify the size of my spindles to order the correct wheel bearings). 

Well that surely sucks rocks ! IMHO you'll be ok with filling in the small hole with JB as there is plenty of meat remaining on the bone. Regretfully with that damage you'll never be 100% sure what went first and took out the "neighborhood" so to speak, but I would say it's was the throw out bearing clip. Replacing everything is best and won't set you back to the point of 3 squares of Ramen noodles. 

Until I read this, Stan, I really didn't know why your head has no hair apparent.

But now, I am wise in the ways of Stan.

"...Then Stan arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, “Without clutch I came from my mother's womb, and without clutch shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”

In all this Stan did not sin or charge God with wrong..."

@Stan Galat posted:

Sunday was a beautiful day, the kind that Speedsters are best in-- mid 80s, sunny, beautiful. We drove the car to church in Peoria (about 10-15 minutes down the interstate). The car has been running great with the spare 2110 and the newly regeared transaxle is loosening up nicely and seems to be as good as it can get for a 4-speed in Illinois.

This spring, I had put the car back together with my old throw-out bearing and pressure plate. I had the new bearing in my hand, but the old one felt good and I decided not to be "belts and suspenders" Stan and just reuse it. I regretted it almost immediately after install when I heard it squealing "a bit". My hearing is pretty awful (I wear hearing aids, but I'm still nearly deaf), but it didn't sound that bad, at least to me. Jeanie commented on it a couple of times, then let it drop. 

The thing about living where the weather is awful for half the year is that when it is nice, you live with small problems to keep going. This seemed like a small problem.

Last Sunday, it became a "not small" problem.

After church, I started the car and motored through downtown Peoria stop-and-go traffic. The clutch seemed to be not disengaging fully, and became worse with every stop. Shifting was really, really hard. I drove across the river, and had lunch in downtown East Peoria. I tried not to think about it during lunch.

We had a lovely meal on the patio of the restaurant (which is the only thing possible, as per the Lord Governor's decree) and the day seemed almost normal, after 3 months of being anything but. After dinner, I got in the car, pushed the clutch in... and felt a mighty pop. My clutch was now 100% not there. I got the car in 1st, started it in gear with the starter, and drove home (15 miles or so) in 1st gear. It was a leisurely drive. I figured I had broken the clutch cable (and posted so on Ed's thread).

I have a spare cable, and ran it thorough the housing. The old one looked fine, but looks can be deceiving. Still no clutch. I checked the Bowden tube, as well as the tube in the center of the car (no tunnel in an IM). All good. I knew what I needed to do, I just didn't want to do it in the middle of prime driving season.

I pulled the engine last night, and found this:

I knew it would be bad. That's almost as bad as it can be. Flywheel is still good, transaxle case still good (as far as I can see). The hole is non-structural, and I'll fix with an epoxy (recommendations welcome, or I'm just using JB Weld). 

Parts (PP, H/D cross shaft, cross shaft bearing, etc.) on order from Kalifornia. I just lost the rest of June, most likely-- all for a $20 throw-out bearing (which I have in my stash!).

It's the small things that become big things. I tell myself I love this car. Sometimes, however...

 

This so reminds me of myself and my Ducati custom track bike I built.  My quote from then was, "I love the bike, but I'm beginning to hate myself..."

@JMM (Michael) posted:

This so reminds me of myself and my Ducati custom track bike I built.  My quote from then was, "I love the bike, but I'm beginning to hate myself..."

That's why I keep my 968. When it gets frustrating, I just turn the key and go.  

Stan, fill the hole with JB Weld and forget about it. Most of the stress on that bushing is going forward away from the hole. Sucks to lose the throwout and suffer the damage.

My stupid trans mainshaft circlip failed last year and caused me to miss the summer. Of course, because I decided to do the cylinders and heads(my choice). My circlip was a less than $3 part.......Now I know they are NOT re-usable!

FYI, I get HD throwout bearing spring clips from Weddle, and they haven't failed me yet.