[Big D]

Gidday again,

An update on where I am at with this problem.

I went back to scratch and removed all the moving parts (bar the transmission top cover) associated with the gearshift.

Ultimately I think the problem has been a combination of about 5-6 little problem areas which have combined to cause the bigger problem. Here's what I have done:

* enlarged very slightly the mounting holes in the brass bushes holding the gearchange rod and ball joint and adjusted these slightly to where the rod slides most freely.

* opened up the hole in the leather cover that covers the hole in the bulkhead where the long gearchange rod goes through. This was rubbing on the rod as it moved back and forth through the bulkhead, and giving off a wee vibration as the rod moved through it.

* put a little grease on the rod where it goes through that same hole in the bulkhead. The rod was showing signs of paint scraping as it has gone through this hole.

* put a little grease on the underside of the hull cross-shaft where it sits above the gearchange rod. Again, the rod was showing signs of paint scraping away where it goes under the cross-shaft.

* stripped down and cleaned up the gearchange linkage next to the driver's seat. I further cleaned up the rod and the inside surface of the sleeve that it fits into. I believe they slide a little better again than before.

* I also found that the end of this rod was quite a loose fit into the bush that mounts on the hull beside the driver. Upon inspection I found the channel in the end of the rod was quite worn. I can recall this provided a bit of backward and forward slop (and clunking) in the gearshift when you were searching for a gear. The rocking at the bush also tended to make the other end of the shaft rise as the gear lever was pushed out of 1st (or 3rd) thereby throwing out the alignment of the whole thing.

I fitted an O ring to the rod on either side of the hull mounting bush and then filled up the bush with grease. The O rings stopped that excess grease coming out and this has tightened that whole end of the assembly up.

I fitted all the moving parts back into place and tried it out. It is now a darned sight better than it was. There is not the binding there now that was in 1st and to a lesser degree in 3rd.

I can feel it drag ever so slightly though coming out of those gears and I feel this dragging is in the gearlever mechanism (in the front) in that rod and sleeve assembly and in particular the angle of the gear lever when it is in 1st and 3rd.

Do you guys use a particular type of grease on these moving parts and also the brass bushes where the gearshift rod and ball joint is mounted? I use a standard sort of automotive molybdenum grease but I just wonder if there is a better product that isn't quite so sticky? I still reckon these parts don't slide as well as they could and I'm thinking a better type of grease would further help the movement.

Going into all the gears seems much easier and smoother now and I put that down to tidying up the shifter rods in the top cover.

The next step now is a road test and just seeing how it is from there.


Cheers
Darryl