At 13:03 4/15/2000, Woody Halsey wrote:
>Dear List,
>
>The excellent mechanic who is replacing my brakes for me tells me he has
>broken three tools and bent a 7-foot piece of pipe trying to loosen the
>axle nut on the left rear wheel of my 83.5 V'gon. He's about to throw up
>his hands in despair.

You don't have to take the hub off to do brakes, even though Bentley says
to (unless you're taking off the backplate).  It's more convenient if you
do, but taking the hub off is not convenient!

If you really hafta get the sucker off, heat it red hot and it will come
off sweetly.  Then throw it away and get another one, you've ruined that one.

Bus Depot (and others no doubt) sell a stamped/forged wrench that you're
supposed to beat on with a hammer.  Tough to keep from hitting the rim, in
my experience.  But if you weld that to a piece of half-inch x 4 bar about
four feet long you may find results of the finest.  I figured out the
numbers and grooved mine to hang a stirrup so that people of weight 120 < x
< 200 lb could put the stirrup in the designated groove and stand on it to
produce the tightening torque.  I heated the bar and offset it an inch or
two where it goes by the fender lip. (my tool weighs 26 lb*, don't forget
that when figgering torque).

david
*no smot remoks (as we say in RI), it ain't Friday <g>.

David Beierl - Providence, RI
  http://pws.prserv.net/synergy/Vanagon/
'84 Westy "Dutiful Passage"
'85 GL "Poor Relation"