6speedmanual Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 Hi all 6 speeders There have been a few threads on here regarding gear changing difficulties on the Caterham 6 speed box. I have just had an issue with mine which was quite easily fixed. Over the winter I was getting a slight hint of stiffness in the lever movement. This never stopped gears engaging or disengaging but deprived me of that wonderful well oiled rifle bolt feeling. This Spring the problem got worse and I noticed that if the lever was pushed left in N into the 1-2 plane it would not spring back to the 3-4 plane on its own. As it was time for Spring service and gearbox oil change, I decided to fill with Redline MTL as it has been highly praised in TechTalk. On my first run after the service the stiffness was worse than ever, the lever now not springing back from the 5-6 plane. I was having to be quite conscious of my gearlever path to avoid the possibility of a wrong slot. When 'box was cold again it eased slightly. Dreading the prospect of having to get the box overhauled only a few weeks before St.Moritz w/end, I decided to investigate a little. I removed the gearlever assemby from the 'box [3 13mm hex bolts and pull out vertically]. It was immediately apparent that the pivot point of the lever felt quite stiff. I checked the selector rod in the 'box and this could be slipped in and out of gear and across neutral (twisting of rod) very easily with a light push. I stripped the lever assembly from the pivot [circlip holding reverse selector detent spring on lever]. With the lever out of the pivot, which is a spherical bearing, it was impossible to move it in any direction by hand/finger pressure. I removed the spherical bearing pivot from its housing [internal circlip] and cleaned it up. On the top side of the sphere, the surface has tiny black pinholes in the surface. It looks like corrosion holes in chrome. I spoke to Phil at Road and Race Transmissions to ask if he can supply a replacement. He advised to go direct to Quaife who make the lever assembly. Quaife were most obliging and posted one out at modest cost. The new spherical bearing can be moved (fairly) easily by hand in stark contrast to the seized original. I reassebled the parts and hey presto! Greased lightening shift quality restored! In order to preserve the new spherical bearing I coated the top of it in a a big dollop of grease to protect it from road dirt, and moisture. (There is no protective gaitor) If suffering any kind of stiff gear shift issue it has to be worth checking this. Have heard from Phil that people have extracted 'boxes from the car and delivered to him requesting full overhauls for nothing more than this minor defect which can be fixed in situ. Hope this may keep you sweet shifting and avoid unnecessary trouble for minor problem! Cheers Peter 6SpeedManual *tongue*There's no such thing as too much BHP per Ton 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative paul richards Posted June 12, 2008 Area Representative Share Posted June 12, 2008 Good post. I'm sure a number of 7s will benefit from a little grease on the gear lever. It's certainly good advice to check this before you start taking gearboxes out for refurb. In my 5 speed the gear lever is a standard Ford part (pressed metal with a plastic bearing). I came across a gear lever with a nice spherical bearing and a nice cast part. Is this the standard part used on a 6 speed box? Paul Richards Area Representative - L.A.D.S. (Lancashire and District Sevens) LADS Website Growing old is compulsory - Growing up is optional Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Gavel Posted June 12, 2008 Area Representative Share Posted June 12, 2008 6speedmanual You should consider writing a manual for the entire car! I have a related question and hope you don't mind the hijack: why do I struggle so much to select reverse? Is there some technique I need to employ - double declutch - deft flick of the wrist 😳? All hints gratefully appreciated. Chris Reckless with caution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Support Team c7trp Posted June 12, 2008 Support Team Share Posted June 12, 2008 Peter, I had the same problem with my 5 speeder this winter. It started with problems selecting reverse and steadily declined as you describe. The description you give is very similar to the 5 speed. The only problem I had was getting the lever out of the gearbox casting. It was a *very* tight fit. Gavel - yes this is a similar problem - the whole things gets cacked up and rusty making things stiff 😳 HTH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative paul richards Posted June 12, 2008 Area Representative Share Posted June 12, 2008 Gavel As Tim says - start by making sure the gear lever is clean and not stiff. Is there a grating noise as you engage reverse? If so, you might also want to check that the clutch is working properly. The cable may need a little adjustment to ensure the clutch fully disengages when you depress the pedal. For some reason, this manifests itself most on reverse gear. Paul Richards Area Representative - L.A.D.S. (Lancashire and District Sevens) LADS Website Growing old is compulsory - Growing up is optional Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Gavel Posted June 12, 2008 Area Representative Share Posted June 12, 2008 Paul Thanks for the advice - first stop clutch cable. Chris Reckless with caution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6speedmanual Posted June 12, 2008 Author Share Posted June 12, 2008 If it's the clutch adjustment and the clutch is not clearing ie "dragging", there will tend to be a cruch or graunch as the un-synchro'ed reverse pinion engages. If there is stiffness in the lever when going for reverse, this could be due to the push-down action being stiff (shaft sliding up and down through pivot) or general stiffness in the ball ( !) as I had. The lever assembly on the Caterham 6 speed is a Quaife quickshift unit. The lever and fork at its base is all one piece machined from solid (not cast). I guess the same (or a very similar) part will have been fitted to various 5speeders over the years. I tried cleaning up and greasing my spherical bearing pivot before removing it, but the pitting damage was already done. P 6SpeedManual *tongue*There's no such thing as too much BHP per Ton 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative paul richards Posted June 12, 2008 Area Representative Share Posted June 12, 2008 Thanks 6speed. I meant to say machined out of solid and not cast. I suspected that this part might be standard on a 6 speed. It looks a nice bit of kit. I expected a much sweeter change when I fitted it, but was disappointed that I couldn't tell the difference from a standard stick. Paul Richards Area Representative - L.A.D.S. (Lancashire and District Sevens) LADS Website Growing old is compulsory - Growing up is optional Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vertew Posted December 22, 2015 Share Posted December 22, 2015 Just a quick note - I had a stiff gear change with my six speed, getting stiffer with heat. The advice in this thread totally nailed the problem for me. I ordered a replacement gearlever and 'plastic saddle' from CC and fitted. Gear change is now rifle-bolt smooth.Additional note for any CSR owners with modular dash ...I was advised by CC that the CSR uses the standard 6 speed gearlever with an extension adaptor for cars with the modular dash. If your car already has the modular dash, then just re-use the adaptor.However - also note that the standard gearlever (designed for flat dash) needs some work in order to get the correct bends in it so that it fits / clears the modular dash bars. Just use the original gearlever as a guide to re-create the simple bends / shape. I used a vice, a blow torch for some heat and a jack extension to apply bending force -- which worked fine.Or - if in good condition, you may be able to re-use your original gearlever shaft and just fit the new 'ball socket bearing' for the new assembly. The old bearing is very likely to be the main cause of any stiffness.In fact - if someone found a replacement for just this 'ball socket bearing', then this would probably fix the stiffness in many cases at a fraction of the cost for the entire CC assembly. I might take a look at finding a proxy part myself ...Hope this thread continues to help people out. A stiff gear change is REALLY A smooth gear change is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6speedmanual Posted December 26, 2015 Author Share Posted December 26, 2015 Nice to see a seven year old thread still providing value. The whole thrust of my story was that the bearing IS avaiable on its own, even nominated a source, without getting ripped by CC for the unnecessary higher assembly. Other sources could be even cheaper but Road and Race were convenient and posted to me next day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vertew Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Yep, just shows what a great resource this is. I wasn't sure whether the stiffness in my gearlever was gong to be all down to the spherical bearing, so I ordered the entire lever from CC. But as noted - the bearing was the sole culprit. Should probably have gone to Road and Race straightaway.Anyway - for info, the gearlever spherical plain bearing is sized as follows: Bore = 14mm External Dia = 34mm Bearing Width = 13.5mm Spherical Ball Width = 19mmThis appears to be an exact match for these part numbers: MAC 14 (Rose) GLXSW14 (Fluro) COM-M14T (Aurora) PB14 (IKO Pilloball)These bearings do vary on whether the bushing material is (eg) copper or PTFE, so worth checking. Think the originals are PTFE lined.There are some of the (high quality) Rose bearings up on ebay at the moment here for £30 and can probably be found cheaper elsewhere. I've bought one as a spare - I'll update this post if it fits. Finally - as always when fitting a non-OEM part, there's a chance it won't fit, so make sure you can return. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R400CAT Posted February 22, 2019 Share Posted February 22, 2019 Did you try that bearing you linked from Ebay. Been a few years, but worth a bash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjmmarsh Posted June 15, 2023 Share Posted June 15, 2023 I am on my way down to Italy in the CSR (waiting at the tunnel) and googled "Caterham six speed shift stiff when warm" and it brought me here. Reading this thread I know what to do, but hope the shift will hold together for the next 2000 miles of the trip!All seemed well on my pre-trip checks, but the longer journey in hot weather has brought the problem to the surface. The problem will be partly down to age (2007 car) but mainly to the dousing the car got when I hit a flooded road in the dark last November... that is turning out to be an expensive puddle to hit.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjmmarsh Posted June 15, 2023 Share Posted June 15, 2023 I am on my way down to Italy in the CSR (waiting at the tunnel) and googled "Caterham six speed shift stiff when warm" and it brought me here. Reading this thread I know what to do, but hope the shift will hold together for the next 2000 miles of the trip!All seemed well on my pre-trip checks, but the longer journey in hot weather has brought the problem to the surface. The problem will be partly down to age (2007 car) but mainly to the dousing the car got when I hit a flooded road in the dark last November... that is turning out to be an expensive puddle to hit.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vertew Posted June 15, 2023 Share Posted June 15, 2023 Hi Steve, bad luck on the timing of this. As you can see from above, it wasn't a complex repair. If it gets bad, you could order the spherical bearing (3rd party part) and get a local garage to fit. In the interim, might be worth removing the gaiter and adding some lubrication to the spherical bearing. Best of luck with it, cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Vine Posted June 15, 2023 Share Posted June 15, 2023 I recently wrote a guide on this very topic:https://www.caterhamlotus7.club/guides/maintenance/maintaining-quickshift-gearleverThis also includes info on fitting a protective gaitor.Note that Quaife advise that the spherical bearing does not require any lubrication. If the bearing is stiff, replacement is the answer.JV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Geoff Brown Posted June 16, 2023 Area Representative Share Posted June 16, 2023 If one home builds one of the actions is the big blob of grease before assembly.R400 nearly 11 years & counting, shift still like a rifle bolt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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