The gaskets have arrived from Blighty so a quick departure to the garage after dinner saw the ball housing installed… with all the recommended components.. read on!
Whist reading the workshop manual on how to refit the bellhousing, I was somewhat flummoxed by the instruction to, “refit the main-shaft roller bearing”! Eh?
I’d stored the parts I’d taken off the gearbox in sequential order and there was no roller bearing amongst them. What did I miss? Did it fall out on the floor. I checked under the workbench and surrounding cobwebby nooks and crannies… no roller bearing. I could only conclude I’d rebuilt the gearbox without this bearing inside… which would account for the situation I was now in.
This was confirmed when I went through my spares shelf and found a brand new roller bearing still in its box!
I wasn’t sure if this was a “eureka” moment… or a, “I don’t f#cking believe it” moment! I went with the latter as I kicked the cat round the garage.
Assuming I’d have fitted the bearing, the nose of the main shaft would be supported correctly inside the primary pinion and the shaft would always run true.
With the bearing missing, it leaves a gap and the nose of the shaft is rotating in free space… and under acceleration, it would not run true. The only thing keeping it running true was the outside of the synchromesh. The inner part of the synchromesh on the main shaft would always be compensating for the missing bearing. Therefore, under regular / constant fatigue, the springs snapped and the synchromesh failed.
I had noticed periodically, a vibration under hard acceptation in 3rd gear…. it’s not unheard of for this to happen but the missing bearing would account for this.
Lets get back to fitting it all back together… with all the required components…
*No cats were harmed in the making of this feature.
Little Green Landy 