vacuum pod repair

[RichC]

just as well it was a bright evening yesterday , as the driver's headlamp failed to rise and the passenger side just about shone over the bumper as we were coming home from a very nice visit to the Red Lion in Manningtree which has just been given a makeover & reopened.
Transpires that the driver's side diaphragm had split & today Susan Miller gave me the bad news that it would be a couple o weeks before stock comes in .

Despite posts to the contrary I thought I'd have a bash at deconstructing the pod to see if a repair was possible .It was & pictures below show how it can be possible to undo the seam , access the diaphragm for repair with cycle inner tube patch and then knock the seam back together again . I decided it wasn't necessary to redo the seam quite as tight as before , which will make it a little quicker to access the diaphragm next time. To ensure correct location of the diapragm between the two halves I smeared a little silicone sealant on top half before reassembly. I've just painted the seam with hammerite so will refit tomorrow

The diaphragm had failed along a crease line I suspect caused by the pod plunger being out of line with it's anchor point , causing a slight twist in the diphragm on tightening

[ardee_selby]

Rich,

Well done. I think that's a first!

Looks like the diaphragm wasn't perished, as such, due to any fuel contamination for example.

Cheers - Richard

[gazzamuffin]

hmmm interesting I have a pair of pods which have seen better days, after reading this i think i might have a go at dis-assembling them to see if i can save them (and the ?75 each I have been quoted for new ones!)

[worzel]

Hi

Years ago I actually went to the trouble of making these in grp using, of all things, a Sainbury xmas pudding container (only because it was the correct size). I added a flange on both halves where they meet so they could be bolted together and fibreglassed in the necessary bracketry in stainless steel. The steel connecting rods I replaced with brass and used silicon to seal the 4 halves when bolting together. Worked fine for years- until I went for electric lift. The guy who bought them from me is still using them (untouched) 15 odd years later. Cost- about ?15 in materials plus lots of time and patience.

John

[Henry VIIII]

Just how did you open the seam Rich?

[RichC]

sorry Henry , you've probably worked it out by now, (ahem!) but for those others of you, just try peeling back the lip of the 'equator' fold... that's all it is , no spot welds or glue. I used a decent screwdriver blade, little and often all round . Getting it started is the trickiest .

[ethanlance]

I recently took my vacuum pod apart.

Years ago my dad had cut the top off to get to the rubber diaphragm and he repaired a tear. Well 40 years later the repair failed and the old diaphragm was too far gone so I decided to replace the rubber with a inner tube and lots of rubber cement.

Figured I’d share my results.

[baileyman]

I recently took my vacuum pod apart.

Years ago my dad had cut the top off to get to the rubber diaphragm and he repaired a tear. Well 40 years later the repair failed and the old diaphragm was too far gone so I decided to replace the rubber with a inner tube and lots of rubber cement. ...

Brings back memories of my own dad rebuilding a 69 Plus 2 in the '80s, which I subsequently enjoyed for some 15 years. Wish the car were still with me. And the dad.

John