Triumph Repair: TR7 4 speed bearing removal, thrust bearing, hub assemblies

Question
QUESTION: Howard,

  Just to let you know I got the rear bearing out of the gearbox by tapping the output shaft back in as you suggested to free it from the bearing.  Thanks again for all the invaluable tips !  I'll probably replace the bearings and synchro rings etc, I also noticed the 3 layshaft preload springs in the front of the gearbox were missing.  Do you know if anyone sells a rebuild kit or do you just replace what's needed ?  My problem is popping out of 3rd on decel - you mentioned a while ago that could be from worn spacers, shift forks, beveled splines etc.   

  Thanks,

  Steve.

ANSWER: Hi Steve,
There are quite a few TR-7 parts suppliers on the net so you should use a search engine like Google or Bing to locate them to see if any of them have the parts you are looking for. I doubt the springs on the thrust bearing have anything to do with is jumping out of gear. I would look more toward the end play in the gears and sliding hub assemblies and the ware on the ends of the splines of the hub assemblies and gears and the ware on the shift forks. Most of the "popping out of gear" problems I ran into over the years were ware on the ends of the splines that engage to gear. (most noticeable on the end of the splines of the gear.) However, when any bevel is noted on the gear spline you need to replace both the gear and the hub assembly.

I found that most were caused by incorrect shifting practices by the driver and by clutch problems.

You should read my "Tech Tip" on my web site on how to make a gearbox last longer.  http://mg-tri-jag.net/tech4.htm
Howard

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Howard,

  I got a rebuild kit at a good price from Quantum Mechanics.

  I think I may have found the problem with 3rd gear – the circlip in front of it had jumped out of it’s groove and was sitting on the mainshaft ¼ inch in front of 3rd. I hope this is the problem and not something I did while banging off the bearings !

   What would you recommend to clean everything before reassembly - the manual suggested parafin or gasoline !  I was thinking of brake cleaner ?  Also, what's good to remove gaskets and do you use any gasket sealer ?

Thanks again,

Steve.


ANSWER: Steve,
I use Mineral spirits to wash parts. Gasket removal is usually done with a gasket scraper and pocket knife. If you run into one that has been glued and difficult to get clean you can get a small disk called a "fuzz buster" They work well but you MUST clean everything before reassembling, because the abrasive in the disk gets into everything and will cause harm if not cleaned well.

Howard

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Howard,

  Thanks again, do you ever use a sealer with a gasket or is it overkill and just makes future removal more of a hassle ?

Steve.


Answer
I do at times on some gaskets use a sealer on one side. (not head gaskets) Some times I do it just to hold the gasket in place for assembling and other times when I am not 100% sure of the sealing surfaces. Like car manufactures that put the bolt holes too far apart on a sheet metal pan etc or if the gasket is too thin etc. I use silicone sealer mainly. I use a very thin coat so there is little to no squished out bead of sealer when bolted up. Keep in mind that if you see a large bead of sealer on the edge when you bolt the surfaces together there is the same size bead on the inside.

Howard