Mark 4 Engineering in Lagos was in the past cited as one of the very few workshops in Nigeria where spin balancing of drive shafts was performed in the past, but today that service is no longer offered at that location.

If any of Nairaland's automotive gurus are aware of any facilities located in Lagos, where reliable equipment for spin balancing of drive shafts is available, I would be very grateful for any details that can be offered on a reputable workshop location and company name.

https://www.driveshaftshop.com/driveshafts-101

It is so hard to believe that Nigeria, the Giant of Africa, cannot boast of one single engineering workshop, in its commercial capital, that is equipped to perform dynamic spin balancing of car drive shafts.

A drive shaft that is out of balance will cause major vibrations through the entire drive train, so I just don't want to believe that absolutely NO facilities exist in Lagos Nigeria, that are capable of performing this vital fix.

As a last resort, I suppose I could either purchase a new drive-shaft for the vehicle here in the US, for export to Nigeria, or, if one is not easily found due to the age of the car, I could ship the unbalanced drive shaft to Europe for this very routine balancing operation, and then ship it back to Nigeria to round off that very cumbersome and costly adventure, but that drastic step would only be necessary IF it is in fact true that there is not one drive shaft balancing workshop in Nigeria, a nation of 200 million people.

The project I am working on is a 1985 Mercedes saloon that started out as a 280SE, with a puny little 6-cylinder lawn mower engine, but is now a 500SE, fitted with a newly rebuilt 5-liter M117 V8 motor that makes this car take off and fly like a bat out of hell. All that needs to be tamed is that annoying propeller shaft vibration, that would take just ten minutes to remedy in a properly equipped workshop such as the one in the link I posted above.

I would have addressed this question to Engineer Siena right away, but he resides in Blighty, so may not be aware of such a facility in Nigeria. All the same I have invoked his much respected name in the hopes that he may know someone in Nigeria who is familiar enough with the engineering workshops operating in Lagos, to point me in the right direction for a workshop equipped with a propeller shaft balancing rig.

Once again thanks in advance to all yee car gurus, and here's hoping y'all can help a brother out.

Siena:
Your project sounds awesome. Nothing that tickles me more than an older, stock-looking family sedan that surprises much newer (and expensive) cars on the road.

Unfortunately, I have no knowledge of any shops that perform dynamic propshaft or driveshaft balancing in Nigeria. Of course here in the UK, just like in the US it's pretty common, and a routine procedure. I always get all mine checked, and balanced if required each and every time I remove and reinstall them, even if I marked the couplings at each end for correct orientation.

Is it best to get one balanced in the US and shipped? That's a long haul, and of course if it's dropped or rough handled, it may render the balancing it received pre-shipping useless.

Your reply is much appreciated Oga Siena. Your mention of possible damage to the drive shaft's balance during shipping is something I didn't factor in at all, and that, added to the cost and time considerations, makes the shipment of the drive shaft a lot less attractive of an option now.

As a last resort, there is a workshop close to where the car is located that simply uses a lathe to perform a very rudimentary, and of course imprecise version of balancing for drive shafts, where the lathe operator visually notes and corrects any obvious out-of-roundness on the shaft, so I may in desperation go ahead and try that option if it turns out that a drive shaft balancing shop just cannot be found in Lagos.

How about buying a replacement shaft? unless it's not available.

HOTARIO:
How about buying a replacement shaft? unless it's not available.

This was the first option I considered, Hotario, but, due to the vintage of the 1985 Mercedes W126, and the extreme rarity of V8 versions of this car in Africa, finding a replacement drive shaft anywhere in the world has turned out to be one very difficult task.

Anyway, for now, the shaft has been handed over to a lathe shop where a rudimentary balance has been carried out by simply turning the shaft at slow lathe speeds, and shaving off any aspects that are obviously out of round. Road test comes up soon, as I set this project aside for a while in order to handle other obligations.

There must be a place where it is done in Lagos. My mechanic still did propeller balancing for me in Ilorin recently when I had a flex disc failure on my w123.
However, I don't know if what you described above is what was done. I didn't observe any scraping marks on the propeller but I noticed some yellow and red paint which source I can't tell. Probably, it was on the propeller before.