I am told I broke the driver side axle in my swing axle tranny. So I am lookin for an honest tranny shop near west covina CA. Or how hard is it to do it myself. Thanks for the help

it's not a terrible job if you have a decent amount of mechanical ability. the toughest part is dealing with the parts inside the side cover. the fulcrum plates can be tricky and the large snap-ring is a major pain in the a$$ if you don't have a Very Good set of snap ring pliers. i wound up taking a pair of long reach needle nose and grinding the tips down to get the snap ring out (and back in). there are several web-sites that have schematics of how things go together.

good luck!

call sam @ RANCHO

i done mine years ago not a big deal, pm me if you want and we will talk on the phone, later farmdog.

Foreign Parts Unlimited in Long Beach?

Hardest part (IMHO) is getting the bearing out of the end casting. Harbor Freight has some BIG snap ring pliers that work GREAT at removing the snap-ring on the side-gear and only cost about $6. (I had tried the ground down long needle nose first...but only managed to bend my need nose.)

The fulcrum plates aren't that bad - just put some white grease on the back and slide them into position. The grease will hold them there while you fit the axle in. Just have a steady hand with the axle so you don't bump the fulcrum plates. Or you can do it the way I do...put the plates in so they're in the recesses and open to the front...but slid closer to each other in the back - do this BEFORE you put the sidegear back into the tranny. Then reach through the hole in the back of the sidegear and help the plates slide into place as you work the axle in. Then slide the whole setup into the tranny.

Remember to buy some new gaskets for the sidecover. You may need one or two more or less than were on there before as some vary in thickness. Too few and your axle won't move...too many and it will have too much play.

This was the first repair job I ever did on my rail and with no experience and just a Chiltons VW manual I was able to do it in just a few hours.





Most annoying part of the job...getting the axle boot back on

when mine broke i took it to Rancho and had the sway aways put in there..I also had it gone thru since metal can get into the trans it only had a broken/cracked spider gear cheap easy fix once apart that could have cost me alot more if i just replaced the axle.Total cost was around 4002 years ago.The axles alone were about 250-275 i think.

Thanks for the info. I will take a look at it but I will probably take it to rancho and have the sway aways put in
Thanks again

My axle snapped just like the pic posted above.It was only a 1776 motor but it was my fault driving which had alot to do with it.

My snap was the very first time I had the car out...learned a valuable lesson about letting friends drive it. It was a friend (who I know know is notorious for breaking things) dumping the clutch to do wheelies that snapped it. He promised to help me with the repair...but never even picked up a tool...did a good job of emptying our fridge of beer though

My repair was super cheap - I got a replacement axle from the guy who sold me the car. I think he felt bad for me breaking so quickly and didn't even charge me. Biggest mistake I made was re-using the snap ring even though it was bent up a little from me using the needle nose on it. That caused it to come loose a few trips later which let the side gear pop out and get damaged. Replacing the $3 snap ring would have saved me the cost of a new side gear (thankfully ORBS had a gently used one for $25). Once that was fixed I didn't have any other problems until the day I took out reverse trying to get unstuck (despite knowing better.)

Too many duners are afraid of repairing their own rides anymore. It's not a difficult job and really isn't something to be scared of. And knowing how it all goes together can make the difference between getting your buggy back to camp or paying out the rear to have a snocat tow you out when you break deep in the dunes. (And I don't care how well you maintain your vehicles, sooner or later you WILL break something deep in the dunes...unless your idea of duning is sitting at the base of olds draining the cooler.)

Jason mine broke because os stupidity also was making a turn in the small dunes near the store thought i would show my cousin how i can slide a little and throw a roost while using turning brake and dumping the clutch i found out it doesnt work to well.LOL i do evertyhing on my buggy except the trans something i didnt want to mess with i started to work on it but got to the snap ring and said F it off to rancho.Loke mentioned i had a bad spider gear and did have some metal from the axle so i feel i made a good choice.

Luckily someone was able to pull me to their camp and drive me back to gecko so i could get my toyhauler to bring buggy back I offered the guy 40 bucks he took it then hands me back 20 saying that will cover the gas for his truck.(way worth an hour of his time)

Im assuming that you are running the diff with the snap ring, or dual snap ring, there is another type with a threaded retainer that is locked in place with roll pins, hopefully you have the snap ring type or youll have to pull the entire center section out of the tranny to repair it. Definetely put good axles back in it:)

hey guys, new here and new to VW.. working on rebuilding a railbuggy (62 VW swing axle) and have a question.

right now i'm replacing the rear wheel bearings. I got one side done but after bolting everything back on up to the brake backing plate i noticed the swing axle doesn't move. I noticed here someone said the too few gaskets will cause this, although I measure the thickness and thought i matched it pretty well.. it's very possible this is my problem. before I go pulling it off again though, is there anything else I should keep an eye open for that could cause this?

the axle spins, just doesn't "swing"

Thanks.

You need to more gaskets between the trans side cover and the axle tube retaining cover. One thing to make sure is all surfaces are absolutley clean.
If you do not have any gaskets, go to any shop which carries VW parts and get a transmission gasket set. It's generic for swing axle or IRS.
Start by adding one gasket and re-torque the tube retaining cover. Then move the tube up and let it fall. You should feel a little drag, but not a lot.
It's similar to adjusting valves. If you think the drag is too much, pull it apart and add another gasket to the stack, re-torque and check the play again.

Also, make sure the white nylon slider is sitting into the side cover completely. It has a ridge on the inside which positions it onto the side cover. If this is not seated, you will notice a lot of drag when trying to move the tube.

Ok, thanks for the help.. I took the bearing and backing plate back off and as soon as i did the axle moved freely. I went ahead and put another gasket in and everything if is fine until I tighten down the bolts that hold the bearing in place (same as without the extra gasket). It's better than it was. I can actually hold the trans and pulled up on the axle and get it to go up, then I have to give it a good shove for it to go back down. I thought I may have gotten the inner spacer 'kinked' but it isn't. Any suggestions?


2nd problem:
the other side of the trans. I can't even get the inner spacer on.. looks as if the axle tube is bent. Can I heat/bend it? take to a shop and have it straightened?

thanks again.
Paul

One good thing to do to your swing axles ( or any axle )to make them stronger is to sand the casting marks out, and the sharp edges. The smoother and shiner the better. This will eliminate all the places that can cause the axle to start a crack and brake.

Are you having binding at the swing (where the axle meets the tranny) or at the bearing (where the brakes mount?)

At first it sounded like it was binding at the swing, but now it sounds like it may be binding at the bearing. I assume the spacer you're talking about is the one behind the bearing correct?

There are two different end castings available with two different end caps to go with them. One has the bearing sitting deeper in the end casting the other has it supported more by the end cap. But unless you swapped out the end caps I doubt that's the problem.

I guess the question is - is your axle binding (the actual axle itself that goes inside the tube) or is the axle tube (the big outer bit that doesn't rotate with the wheel) binding?

I don't "see" any binding. It deffinately isn't binding on the swing end cause without the brake plate on it swings smooth.



Yes



Yea, haven't swapped anything. But this end was much much more difficult to get the bearing off--which is why i'm leaning towards the fact that the tube or axle one is bent. I held a straight edge to the tube and didn't see anything major, guess i should do the same w/ the axle shaft.



ok, this is tough to describe. My wife has the camera w/ her so here's my crude drawing
in this picture the red is the inner spacer. It should sit in there but it won't go because the shaft isn't centered. No matter how i rotate it it's the same.
Click to view attachment

It sounds like you have two problems, the first sounds like you dropped a fulcrum plate, the second appears to be a bent axle tube (by your diagram) However if the fulcrum plates are droped it will look the same. If at any time while the retainer is off and you pull on the axle you stand the chanch of dropping a fulcrum plate. If this is the case you need to remove the axle tube and reset the plates, if not you will damage possibly destroy the diff. If you want more info call me at 559-313-3301

I'd agree. Except I've never managed to get the snap ring for the side gear back on if one of the fulcrum plates is off...but I've never used the Sway-away axles either so they may have a smaller spade end that could allow that.

I'm not convinced it's a bent axle tube though - if the fulcrum plate did shift then the axle may be wedged into a position where it match the description even if the tube is still straight.

I'd take it back apart to the side gear again and double check that the fulcrum plates, snap ring and retainer behind the snap ring are all in properly before anything else.

And make sure you really clean up the surfaces that the bearing and spacers slide on
(life is easier with clean shiny surfaces)

thanks guys. I never removed the big snap ring.. but i guess the fulcrum plate could still be out of wack (???). Regardless, it sounds like I should take the axles out and check the plates and the axles for straightness while they're off. I just found this as well (http://www.transworks.biz/installation.html) lot of good info there--more specific than my haynes manual. Between that and all your info I hope I can figure it out. I'll give it a shot after work tomorrow and let you know how it goes.

I really appreciate the feedback. As always, I'm learning as I go.

Ok, that explains my confusion. I didn't notice that charger500 was someone different from the person who started the thread in the first place

In 1999 I couldn't tell you a swing axle from an IRS or a bus from a Type1 and thought dune buggies only existed in cartoons and ads.

I got my buggy in 2000 for about $3k and have rebuilt it from the ground up twice on a very tight budget - the only non DIY tasks were those done by friends or in trade for other services. I had to replace an axle after my first weekend and before the end of my first year had started my first motor rebuild. Finding a local friend or two who will mentor you is priceless - but thanks to the internet it's not quite as vital as it used to be (though still the best idea!) Since then I've turned wrenches on around 10 motor rebuilds for myself and friends and gone through a number of vehicles for the sand and street that I never would have dreamed of trying to fix 10 years ago.

Even if I had the money to have a lot of the work done - I enjoy doing it enough that I'd rather just do it myself. Just haven't had much time the past year so projects are sitting


Just to clarify did your axles turn before you took things apart?

Did the axle tubes swing at the tranny?

What all did you take apart?

It may just be that the axle has slid forward a little and the fulcrum is starting to tilt. If you're gentle and wiggle the axle a little as you push it back in the plate may slide back into place. It sounds like you're just wedged up a little bit.

hah, sorry for the confusion.. this thread just caught my eye, so i jumped. ditto on everything you said about DIY. I learned most everything I know when I rebuilt my '70 charger from the ground up.. but VW's are quite a bit different fun though..

they worked fine ~3 years ago when i brought the buggy home from my brothers. my brother was rough on it though.. (ie the front axle beam was broken) so it's entirely possible the rear axle was bent or damaged too.

Yes the axles turned fine and 'swayed' fine before I tore it apart.
I took the brakes, backing plate, bearing, and axle tube off. I did not remove the big snap ring to pull the axles themselves.

My uncle is actually a mechanic.. but I bug him too much, so i always do my best and then ask him to bail me out when i get totally stumped.
I'll toy with it tomorrow and see what i can do.

here are some pictures of it what i'm working on (no recent trans pix tho)
buggy pix

Well it's always something else. I did have one fulcrum plate that had fallen, I removed the snap ring and axles and found each side had one fulcrum with a corner chipped so now i'm stuck until I can pick up a new set tomorrow. I was able to remove the snap ring and washer, but couldn't get the gear out??? Everything I read says to just pull it out. I can get it 1/2 way but then it gets stuck.. I tried putting something in the center hole and pulling gently and it didn't move; can I do this without hurting anything? should I just not even worry about removing them? Being this far, I would like to have a look at them.

I've been running with a few chipped fulcrum plates for about 7 years now

The gears do sometimes stick a little at that point. I've tapped it out with a wooden dowel from the other side - just gently. There may be a burr on the side or a little piece of broken metal stuck in there causing it to bind. Best to get it out and clean it all. I'd also suggest draining the tranny to make sure you don't have any metal in the gear oil.

I finally got the new fulcrum plates in from cip1. Installed them just fine. Axle 1 is great. Axle 2, is deffinately bent
I had a 62 beetle out back, so I gutted it hoping to use those axles. Turns out tho that the axles in it are about 1.5 inches short than the ones in the buggy. So know i'm not sure what to do. If I use the axles from the '62, i'll have to use the axle tubes as well; i guess the rest will still bolt right up tho (??) but i'm not sure how well the shorter tubes will mount to the swing arms. I think i'd have to make a spacer out of thick piece of steel.

am i better off buying new axles? thoughts/suggestions are appreciated. Thanks.

The shorter axles and axles tubes will bolt right up but since they are shorter you will need to check and make sure tires/wheels dont rub on anything. Also make sure the axles are put back on the same side that they came off of.

well, they bolt right up, but the axles don't swing at all, even with _no_ gaskets on the transaxle housing.

now what?

Fewer gaskets = less clerance = binding.

Try putting 2-3 gaskets in and see how it does.

d@mn I feel stupid. I knew that.

No harm in writing that down for reference next time.