Modified Drive and Clutch gears

kipharley

kipharley

New Member
Hi,All!
Has anyone softened the edges of their drive and clutch gears?
I got to looking at mine and the edged on the clutch gears are all pretty sharp.
I figured if I broke the edges it would make the gears run smoother with less friction which means I might even get 5-10 sp out of the deal.sp=squirrel power.Kip.
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  • Modified Drive Gears and Clutch 030.JPG
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Kip,
I have to wonder what would happen if you painted on some 'valve lapping compound' then spun the gears for a few minutes. It is an abrasive that is meant to grind valves to their seats for a good close fit. You'd have to experiment with this but you might be onto something as far as reducing gear noise. Not sure about any noticable power increase but a quieter engine might be the ticket.

Years ago, early 70s Pontiacs had some trouble with noisy timing gears. We used to fill the thing with Ajax cleanser, take it out on the highway and run the peediddles out of it for a few miles then bring it back in and flush the oil and put in new. It would quiet the cast iron gears down a lot. Then...they started putting nylon teeth on the cam gear and that's when the troubles started. :(
Tom
 
Honda makes a "Moly Paste" that has 60% Moly in it, it's used on all shaft drive motorcycles on the drive hub that transfers all the HP to the wheel, I bet if it was used on the reduction gears you wouldn't have the wear problem that you do.
 
2door said:
Kip,
I have to wonder what would happen if you painted on some 'valve lapping compound' then spun the gears for a few minutes. It is an abrasive that is meant to grind valves to their seats for a good close fit. You'd have to experiment with this but you might be onto something as far as reducing gear noise. Not sure about any noticable power increase but a quieter engine might be the ticket.

Years ago, early 70s Pontiacs had some trouble with noisy timing gears. We used to fill the thing with Ajax cleanser, take it out on the highway and run the peediddles out of it for a few miles then bring it back in and flush the oil and put in new. It would quiet the cast iron gears down a lot. Then...they started putting nylon teeth on the cam gear and that's when the troubles started. :(
Tom
Click to expand...

Tom,It's a little before my wrenching days but I heard that when the 1955 265 Chevy V8's first came out they were having problems with the rings seating so the factory told the Dealers to pour some Comet into the carb!
I never heard of your fix!
Your theory might work but wouldn't that "lap" the whole gear to gear surface?
They seem to fit fine(a little sloppy).
It's the sharp edges I dremeled I also radiused the outside edges.
I don't think it'll hurt nothing?

Ted,It's not a wear problem it's the noise problem of the two gears meshing together.
Your idea might work better than the grease I use, that has Moly in it!
I'm also going to try using a syringe that we get from the Vet.
I'm gonna cut the tip 45 degrees both sides., And see if I can't suck up some grease and inject some into the bearings in the clutch basket!
Without getting it all over the puck surface!
Did you guy's notice anything in the first pic that was unusual?
Here's a hint!Kip.
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  • Modified Drive Gears and Clutch 026.JPG
    Modified Drive Gears and Clutch 026.JPG
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When my son was BMX racing, some of the racers would put valve grinding compound in the crank and wheel bearings and ride for miles laping and adjusting. Flush out and replace with machine oil. I don't know how much was gained but it makes sense if there's burrs on gear teeth and they're making contact, wire wheeling and lapping would be a good thing. I would like to get a thread going on the best grease for those gears. I'll search the forum archives. McMaster Carr and other industrial suppliers sell different clutch and brake materials. It can be carefully shaped into our clutch pucks. I know the stock ones usually need to be trimmed or sanded so they float a little better.
 
Kip,
You're right about the early small block Chevy. Also Olds and Pontiac had some issues with undersized main and rod bearings. Cold, the engine would start just fine but when it got up to temperature the bearing clearances would tighten up and the darn things wouldn't turn over.
The Ajax/Comet trick worked on those too...but we NEVER told the customers what we did.
Tom
 
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