Is it possible to restart a cntrelink rebuild thread?

[kps70]

Hi Shawn,
I replaced my rubber damper bush - vw heritage part number 113-425-117
Beetle part. Just make sure you use plenty of fairy liquid to get it in!
K
p.s. I tested a 25mm circlip under the filed down lip and it was fine - nice and solid.

[wshawn]

Cheers Kieron, a job for tomorrow!

[raygreenwood]

Yes, you can lightly grind the ID of the crimped lip/rim area so that the diameter of the bronze bushings can slip through. Also....its good to bear in mind that the crimped over lip/rim area is fairly malleable steel. It started out as a bead that was swaged over with a hydraulic press at the factory. Prying it up slightly will be no problem.
This is why in my pictures you see that I cut a slot at 12, 3, 6 and 9 o'clock. What you could not see is that these slots continued all teh way across the cap. So the rear cap was cut into pie-shaped quarters.
By using a small thin bladed screwdriver...staret at each slot in the lip....with a mallet...I was able to ever so slightly pry up and relieve the crimp just enough that pulling on the pie shaped cap segments with vice-grips allowed me to work them out.

The ledge under the crimp I ground out slightly and and made deeper with a cut-off wheel.

You should always use the fiberglass cut-off wheels...not the plain aluminum oxide wheels...as they do not shatter. But you must use a dust mask with either. The fiberglass that wears off the wheels will cause serious breathing problems...so can aluminum oxide.

Also keep in mind that the snap ring is not structural in nature. By that I mean...that even if one segment of the crimped edge somehow gets cracked off...itwill not hurt strength any. The snap ring is only to secure teh cap and keep the guts tightly loaded together.
Once the arm is installed....since its captured from teh other side...the snap ring could fail altogether and nothing could come apart and cause issues. Ray

[kps70]

What about this guys?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/VW-411-4 ... ccessories

[sharkskinman]

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/x,carco ... VOLKSWAGEN
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=2012104
$41.89

i think that because i only drive my 71' 411 a little
i think this would be a good thing
i mean i know that it can be rebuilt for about as much
but when you think about time money and use
its not bad

[raygreenwood]

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/x,carco ... VOLKSWAGEN
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=2012104
$41.89

i think that because i only drive my 71' 411 a little
i think this would be a good thing
i mean i know that it can be rebuilt for about as much
but when you think about time money and use
its not bad

DO NOT use the stock centerlink..even if its NOS. Yes...it will do fine....for an unknown period of time. Its old....it has teh same defective internal parts as it did 30 years ago. When it craps out...sure...you can rebuild it.....if you figure out its bad. The only way you can test for a worn type 4 centerlink is to remove it from the car which destroys it. Meantime...a bad centerlink will destroy your ball joints, tie rod ends, idler bushing and control arm bushings.
The one that is already on your car is undoubtedly shot...but no less so than one you spend money for very quickly could be. Leave it for a littel while and just rebuild what you got. It saves lots of dollars and you will never have to do it agaon. Ray

[dawie]

What type of grease would be best to use with the rebuilt centerlink... Normal Lithium based, maybe CV joint grease, or something else?

[raygreenwood]

I don't like white lithium as it dries up. Black lithoium or lithium aluminum (wheel bearing grease) will be fine. I use a synthetic called superlube. Its clear and FDA clean....extreme pressure, has Teflon and stays semi-fluid like petroleum Jelly down to about 40 below. Most any long term grease that performs well in cold weather will be good. Hot weather is not an issue. Not much high speed friction in this joint. Ray

[dawie]

Did a centrelink rebuild according to the Greenwood method. (Thanks Ray).

While there was no noticeable play, some white powdery stuff was coming from the joints, and probably just a matter of time left. So preventative maintenance was required.

Opening the caps useing dremel was the easy part. Finding a bronze bush of the correct size was... nearly impossible in my country. After 2 weeks of many phone calls and visits to bearing specialist places, i found a bronze bush 16 inner, but only 22 outer. They only had the one, and could get no more. They had an "adapter" from 22 to 25mm.


The round adapter was "C" shaped, (small opening on one side). I used shim stock of about 0.1mm right around the outer to ensure a tight press fit. Not the best way, but had no better option. Made new end caps. An old microwave oven supplied the 0.5mm stainless steel used there. (Otherwise i had to buy a huge sheet).

Reaming the bushes to about 16.15mm inner was the difficult part. (Not having access to a reamer). But useing pieces of fine sandpaper around a 16 mm drill bit and carefully turning by hand, eventually did the trick. To get the bushes's width correct, i used sandpaper on flat plate glass.

For spacers i used brass nuts, shortened after measuring the required gap with a vernier. (Inside the brass nuts they were filed to suit the required taper).
I am aware that the different types of metal making contact may not be ideal over long term exposure to dampness. But do not have much of a choice.

Result is zero play in both directions.

[raygreenwood]

Very nice! By the way did you file a few lateral grooves in the washers and spacers to allow grease in? Ray

[reluctantartist]

This has been great reading and I discovered at ouindependent hardware store a lot of bronze bushings. Does anyone have a list of the sizes needed to do this or is this something that requires unique sizes for each center link?

[raygreenwood]

I got all of mine out of the jandorf bushing selection box at Ace Hardware, For the flat bronze washers I got them oversize. Then clamped them together on a threaded rod, put it into a drill and reduced the OD with a file checking repeatedly with a caliper.

The bushing that slips through the hole around the shaft was a flanged bushing. I reduced teh OD teh same way and the ID with sanding drums and teh dremel...measuring with caliper to make sure that the hole was centered and the wall section even.

The once its assembled...I use a jewelers band saw (about $20) to trim the flange sticking out flush with the hole in the arm.....then put a stack of bronze washers...agianith OD opened up to fit the shaft...and filed them to get the exact thickness stack. I will be doing another one in January and will post a pictorial. Ray