Hi can anyone help me diagnose the source of a loud "whirring noise" on my Gold Flash. The noise is present while riding along in 1st , 2nd and 3rd gear and increases with engine speed, but if I pull in the clutch in these gears the noise stops. Additionally when I select 4th gear the noise disappears entirely. When I come to a standstill and select neutral the noise is still there and the note changes with engine speed. I have tried slackening and tightening both the primary and secondary drive chains but it makes no difference. I've also checked the primary chain case and gearbox oil levels and they are ok, plus the final drive chain is well lubricated and doesn't seem to be catching anywhere. Has anyone else experienced this phenomenon? Has anyone got any idea what could be causing it? I'd be grateful for any suggestions. Cheers, Cliff
is the clutch nut loose?
cheers
Could be simple gear whine.
There will always be some noise in 1st to 3rd, Cliff, because they are straight cut gears (remember first and reverse on Morris Minors? ;)) how much noise will depend on how well theyre matched. Top is usually silent because the drive is direct so theres no load through the layshaft. If it sounds excessive then its worth checking the layshaft bushes. If they are worn then it can allow the layshaft to dance around enough to affect the meshing of gears. If left for too long as it had been on my '37 Sunbeam, it will eventually damage the gearwheels. It cost me 800 quid to restore the serenity of the Burman BAP box! BSA spares should be cheaper and more easily obtained. Hopefully you will catch it early.
Steve
Thanks for the replies so far; I didn't speculate what I thought it might be in my original posting as I wanted some fresh ideas. However I think Greybeard is probably right and its a problem with the gearbox lay shaft bushes. I checked the gearbox oil with a magnet today and there are a lot of ferrous particles in suspension in the oil, so the gears are probably chewing away at each other. Looks like I'm going to have to take it off the road sooner rather than later; I had hoped it would see me through the summer . Cheers, Cliff