i replaced the brushes without needing to remove the squirrel cage; is the reason you want to remove the squirrel cage to replace the bearings?

i used brushes from **************.com--spendy, tho. elsewhere here is referenced buying some from an electrical shop and grinding down:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/archive/index.php/t-98946.html

good luck with that cage!
-n

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1980 300D (non-turbo, 421k miles)
1984 300TD (turbo, 305k miles)
1985 Vanagon (170k miles)