Well, I completed the vac pump replacement that I started this thread with. It was pretty uneventful and took about 1hr.

I ended up using the black gasket with the dam and removed the basket like the paper instructions said.

When I took the old pump out for inspection, on one side of the roller bearing, one of the bearing retainers was broken, allowing the ball bearings to move around a little too freely in the old roller bearing races. It probably would have been ok for a while longer, but I could easily see a catastropic failure coming when the bearing retainer more thouroughly broke apart.

There is a little less rattle to the engine idle now.

thanks everyone.

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84 300TD - 235k - Farbe "Surfblau" bought at 213k
87 300SDL - 131k - Farbe "PimpGold" bought at 115k
00 Klepper Faltboot Expedition Double