Hitchcocks Forum

Thanks to you all for your words of wisdom, I've taken it on board, first of all I must admit that I'm no mechanic, I lack confidence to dig to deep. Ok I'll change the oil to see if that improves the gear change. If its still troublesome I'll think about the the clutch plates. As I'm a spannering dummy how difficult is it to change the plates, (it looks easy), do I need any special tools, are there any do's and dont's (there must be) do I replace just the plates? As I'm a retired joiner I'd find it all much easier if it was all made of wood .......

hi dennis to change the plates you need no special tools i would plump for the 3 soft 3 hard hitchcocks spring kit too ,i,ve got ep90 gearoil in my 5 speed atb paul

Dennis, as Grunda says there are no special tools required to remove just the plates. Once the primary case is off you just need a 10mm socket/ spanner to remove the 3 bolts securing the pressure plate. Just be careful to replace the plates in the same order they came out and in the case of the inner and outer dished metal plates the same way round. The inner dished metal plate has the raised centre facing towards you and the outer plate away from you. To check for warpage place the plates on a flat surface, a piece of plate glass/ window will do, and make sure they lay flat all the way round with no raised edges. 15w/40 oil in the primary case and EP 90 or 80W/90 in the gearbox works best for me.

well said frank ,i was a bit brief nice to see some electra threads ,i was going to use mine this weekend but due to having shingles i,m missing out ,hopefully by mid next week it will hit the road for a spin atb paul.

Hey Dennis if you could understand the workings of a sash window or the angles of a roof pitch i would say your over qualified to work on the average enfield.

If the metal plates seem flat and everything seems in order then scrub the plates in paraffin or petrol and reassemble... often improves things as the friction parts get a bit sticky with old oil and wear..

Check the angle of the gear lever as fixed to ensure its movement is compatible with your foot/ankle.
Just moving it a few splines can make a difference...

I'll mention technique, which can help with these constant mesh boxes, When changing down pull the clutch and blip the throttle to bring the engine speed to near gear speed, select gear and hold with the foot untill clutch released and throttle wound back on.. You'll often feel the gear fully engage as the power brought in, if you only dab the gear as in honda it will often bounce into false neutral, the dogs not having time to fully engage the slots and will be thrown out again as torque increased.. If you think about it there has to be a neutral between each gear to prevent two gears being selected at the same time.
Dogs have to clear one gear before engaging the next... Before the nay sayers say they haven't got time for this, remember this is not a racing clutchless teqnique but is used for smooth changes on A/B road riding. cheers gwilly

Many thanks to Norm, Frank, Paul,Bryan and Gwilly for taking the time and trouble and replying in such detail for the help I need, it's now given me confidence to deal with the work needed. I might as well change the plates, springs and oil as you've recommended. I must say I like every thing working properly, they're great bikes and well worth taking the time and trouble to have them in good running order. Thanks to you all ......... Dennis