Carrier gearbox problem - any advice?

[Lynn Eades]

Tom, you need to remove the lid (as per Michael R's picture and put it in a vice. Maybe you can hold it by the two cast horns. Movement of the gear change mech. toward or away from the housing (lid) should be relatively easy across the three selector fork slots while all are in the neutral position. If this is not the case, I would pull the gear lever from the housing to establish why. It has to be at the lever.
under the nut is a washer and spring. Remove them and the lever and check the small pin that engages the slot in the lever. It is fitted from the inside.

On the gear change clamp: it will be a post service mod. The early ones had an adjustable left and right threaded bolt like the ones in your linkage adjustment, only bigger. They were a dumb idea and by the time of the building of the U.C. I think they had moved on to the fixed arrangement as Rob and others have mentioned

[Ron Pier]

Reading with interest! Sorry to but in though. I've realized that my MK2* is missing the stiffener 13451. Has anyone got one surplus or an accurate drawing please. Ron

[Tom Millward]

Hello Ron,

I'll be stripping my Engine & gearbox out over winter to restore the inside of the hull. You're welcome to borrow my stiffening plate as a pattern. The Carrier is only up at Larkhill, so not to far from you. That or I can post it.

[Ron Pier]

Originally Posted by Tom Millward

Hello Ron,

I'll be stripping my Engine & gearbox out over winter to restore the inside of the hull. You're welcome to borrow my stiffening plate as a pattern. The Carrier is only up at Larkhill, so not to far from you. That or I can post it.

Great Thanks Tom. Let me know when you strip it.....I came up to Larkhill earlier this year on an invite from the WW2 gun crew. Ron

[Petr Brezina]

Ron, it's quite easy to make, you don't need a drawing at all.

[Ron Pier]

I think you are right Petr. But nothing like having one to copy if it's near to hand. Ron

[Tom Millward]

Thought I post an update on my gearbox problem, which I’ve now managed to solve. Thank you to you all for all the advice.

The interim solution was to have a third man in the back who’s job was to pull the gear selector lever hard over to the right every time I put my hand in the air, not a long term solution but it got me through the veterans parade I was attending. I covered the gear linkage liberally with penetrating oil and slacked off the gear selector rod bolts (the rods were rusted up and wouldn’t budge). My gear linkage at the front end is adjustable, like a split collar and pinch bolt.

The Carrier drove very well, in convoy with several Morris gun tractors and guns, apart from spinning out on a corner, much to the amusement of the gun tractor behind me.

The journey back was a different matter! Firstly I ran out of fuel. Secondly, the heat from the engine and the efffect of the penetrating oil completely freed off the gear linkage and with the bolts loose I lost all the gears, the gear lever was loosely slopping about in the gate. After setting the gear position roughly correct and tightening up the pinch bolt I had all the gears working again. But now the battery had gone flat and I couldn’t start the engine...

The problem with the gear change must have been that a heavy gear change had caused the rod to become misaligned and neutral at the gear change gate didn’t align with neutral at the gearbox. It’s nearly working properly again now, just a bit of fine tuning required, and I’ve got to work out why it isn’t charging properly.

[Tom Millward]

Originally Posted by Lynn Eades

Tom, you need to remove the lid (as per Michael R's picture and put it in a vice. Maybe you can hold it by the two cast horns. Movement of the gear change mech. toward or away from the housing (lid) should be relatively easy across the three selector fork slots while all are in the neutral position. If this is not the case, I would pull the gear lever from the housing to establish why. It has to be at the lever.
under the nut is a washer and spring. Remove them and the lever and check the small pin that engages the slot in the lever. It is fitted from the inside.

On the gear change clamp: it will be a post service mod. The early ones had an adjustable left and right threaded bolt like the ones in your linkage adjustment, only bigger. They were a dumb idea and by the time of the building of the U.C. I think they had moved on to the fixed arrangement as Rob and others have mentioned

Thanks Lynn,

I will take the top off the gearbox on Friday and see if I can ascertain the issue. The little pin sounds like it could be the guilty culprit!