When I did my rotors last year I reused the old bearings-they looked
pretty good, and I wasn't having problems with them. The tricky bit was
getting the bearing free of the rotor. The ball race came out easliy
enough, but there is a bearing pushed into the rotor itself. Bentley
recommends a special tool. I consulted my mechanic, then  went to the
local plumbing supply store,  got a couple of left over bits of copper
pipe ( 1.5"-2" diam) used them as a drift with a  hammer to get the
pressed in bearing out, and reseat it  in the new rotor. Lots of
tapping. And a few good bangs! The copper is nice and soft, but still be
careful not to scratch the bearing face during removal installation, and
be carefull when seating that the bearing seats evenly. Seemed to work
for me. 
Give yourself an afternoon.
Good luck

Bill M
82jetta powered

-----Original Message-----
From: Shawn Clark [mailto:firefly1@INTOP.NET] 
Sent: Thursday, August 15, 2002 9:19 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Replacing Rotors

Volks:

Please excuse me for this.  I've done several brake jobs, but I'm new to
Vanagons.

I just ordered new rotors and pads and was planning on doing the brake
job this weekend.  While studying Bentley last nite I realized I may not
have all the parts I need.  I also spent a couple of hours in the
archives.  Do I have to replace the bearings and/or seals when replacing
the rotors?  Any other tips would be appreciated (such as how to remove
the bearings, if necessary, etc.).

Thanks.
Shawn Clark
84/90 Westy/Soob