Sliding door handle lock

[Blaizefed]

Yes I searched.

My door lock in the slider has never worked. Key fits in the hole and turns ok, but doesnt lock or unlock the door. Removed the handle today, sprayed it all with grease and got it working pretty smoothly, but still no joy. As any of you who have been down this road will know, the key rocks a little square shaft from side to side, that shaft in turn moves a ring that encloses it when fitted to the door. Well, if I have the handle out in my hand, and use my fingers to return the square shaft to center, the key actuates it just fine. But in the door, when i turn it left for example, I cant then turn it right. SO the little shaft is not returning to center on its own. Same thing in the other direction. If I really wiggle the key I can actually get it to work in both directions, but this is 10-15 seconds for wiggling the thing in the handle, so this cannot be right. Seems to me what is needed is a rubber band, around the handle shaft, covering the square lock shaft, thereby returning it to center when the key is released, and also taking up a bit of the slack between it and the lock ring it is actuating.

Hope that all makes some sort of sense. Anyway, nothing is broken, but its not working properly either. So before I go scorched earth and replace everything, what seems to be the usual culprit here? I would have thought that little square shaft that the key moves back and forth? is it available? do I have to buy a whole new handle? are they the same terrible quality as all aftermarket VW door handles? Should there be a rubber band as I described? how else is it meant to return to center on its own?

This is an 86 fwiw so the later long handle.

Any Ideas?

[Plasticman]

its cvommon, at least you have the peg moving freely, but if you you take the lock out and reassemble on bench you will note that there is slack here ive welded a bit on the ring assembly that the peg pushes against but again no two are the same so this might not work in your case
mm