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[Mark M]

Art, I have measured a spacer and I think I might have the answer. The outer diameter of the portion of the spacer where the felt seal sits is .035" (35 thou') LESS than the inner section. What this means (I think!) is that the spindle tightens the whole assembly through the inner race which seems right when you think about it. If you faced off the widest diameter of the spacer you made on the same plane all the way across it would clamp onto the wheel bearing outer race, locking it just as you describe. Wouldn't it? Over to you!

REgards, Mark

[Alan R]

Hi Guys------MARK M, yes-- that's correct.........You need the inner portion of the spacer to just stand proud of the outer section so only the inner is compressed against the bearing.....No need to machine a new one, a suitable washer will give the result required..

[arty70]

Thanks Guys, Off to my restoration club to turn /modify spacers/ washers will report back later on progress.

Art.

[arty70]

Thanks Mark back wheel sorted, added shims to speedo end just slight nipping of the wheel when final tightening , the one of the guys suggested tightening the chain side first ( as would be the case for a standard QD wheel) this produced slight binding of rear wheel so we took it to bits and added a thin washer against the existing washer and spacer this did the trick nice free movement of wheel. Speedo drive stops in the correct position when spindle is fully tightened .

Last job to tackle is the rear change , I seem to be able just to select first and second gear when turning the rear wheel, I removed the outer case to check operating mechanism and the inner ratchet teeth looked a bit worn, my first though was to as a start, replace the inner and outer ratchets as a pair to see what improvements that makes. I have already stripped and cleaned the clutch but will strip it again if it if not disengaging . Any advice as I am new to these gearboxes?

[Mark M]

Good progress! As to gears, ratchet position is vital, with the outer cover off, move the gear lever to one extreme, measure gap between ratchet inner teeth and ratchet outer teeth and do the same at the other extreme. Loosen pillar screws and centralise mechanism. That should do it. If you can't get it to centralise try another inner ratchet plate, they can vary quite a lot in manufacture so selective assembly can help. Don't get too worried if not exactly central, the best test is staying in gear under power, this can be tested with the engine running on the centre stand. Instructions for this are in the manual although they are a bit vague about substitution of parts, I have found this from experience. (I really should be charging for this!)

REgards, Mark

[arty70]

Thanks Mark, Gear change now sorted , purchased new inner ratchet ( and gear change spring as the teeth looked worn )and changes gear ok on the ramp, dropped the clutch cover to reset the clutch, to find the clutch basket running out of alignment due to in being just a bit slack. Centre nut was slack and minus a spring washer. This confirms my suspicion that the bike has been well messed about with, prior to my purchase. I then decided to check the gear change side inside the cover, the cheese headed bolts which hold the end cover in place were all hand tight and the stud at the top right was missing the hexagon nut. All nice and tight now with spring washers. Just waiting for a club member to bring in his universal clutch locking tool to tighten up the clutch basket , rebuild clutch test then MOT time . Last question ( honest) should the two clutch rods have a roller bearing between and is the clutch pad with the ball bearing end a good modification?

[Mark M]

Ha ha, no problem! Cutting the clutch pushrod in two and adding a bearing is a common modification to stop the long rod bowing and binding inside the mainshaft. Most use a ball bearing but I found a suitable roller is better as there is no point loading which otherwise causes premature wear. Make sure the cut ends of the rod are hardened by heating and quenching. The Hitchcocks clutch pad with radial roller bearing can help but to be honest it's a marginal improvement if everything else is well set up. I have one fitted to my Trials bike on the basis that everything helps when you need fine clutch control but on a road bike I think you'll be fine. The clutch centre nut may not tighten fully with a spring washer, H's do a Nyloc nut for this job or a dab of Loctite will do just as well.

REgards, Mark

[arty70]

Hi Mark, When I said last question not quite, but I will come back to that , clutch sorted got nylock nut from hosts and a decompresser cable,fitted nut with special lock washer supplied by club member , made locking tool and added a drop of locktight, rebuilt clutch , working fine case back on and oil topped up. Bit of adjustment with the chain guard all ready for MOT. The compression has been improving so I thought sort out the decompressor, seemed to be simply missing a cable,one came with the bike so a few weeks ago I tried to fit it but the inner seemed to short , fitted the adjustable end then tried to fit the handle bar end to short so left it. When I ordered the locknut for the clutch I ordered the cable listed for the bike but still no joy to short.
I could cut the inner down but seems a bit drastic, could always send it back to Mr H . Any advice other than dont be a wimp and just wear heavy boots as some of my mates have said.

[Mark M]

How short? It may be that the decomp lever you have is too large, the ones originally fitted are very small between the nipple recess and the cable abutment. These early levers look more like a trigger than a cut down ball end lever if that helps. A trick that might work is to remove the lever, fit the nipple and then refit the lever. This will only work if the cable is only just too short, obviously! Having said that, (sorry Mr H!) I have found that the cables Hitchcocks sell are very variable in length, for instance, I have a front brake cable at the moment where the inner is so long I have had to use all the adjustment to get it to work at all.

REgards, Mark

[arty70]

Good news is the bike has a MOT but only two gears , I have sent the cable back to Mr H outlining the problems, took the bike for MOT on my trailer as 4 gears on the ramp but only 2 on the road .The bike changes alright using a spanner on the neutral selector, one of my so called mates suggested I make a hand change lever!. After an evening reading the gearbox tech notes posted here, the penny dropped the screwdriver slotted bolt at the top right hand corner had no locknut on it strange. The tech notes revealed is the gear operating plunger that the previous owner must have messed about with, will take the cover off again and check this out this is getting like the rear wheel saga. last request oil for gearbox, when I drained the oil weeks ago watery sludge drained out I topped it up with some engine oil to act as a flushing oil, once the gear change is sorted it will be drained and refilled , gear oil, or 00 grade grease ?