Lee's Garage

[Gordo]

That's the major drawback of dog boxes - dog wear - some manufacturers have the dog and gear as separate parts to cut down service costs, these look to be a single piecve? Don't forget the other half of the dog, that'll also be due for replacement.

There's one of the specialist gearbox oils that uses Nanotechnology that supposedly has reduced dog wear by a half to a third - may be worth trying it. Can't recall exactly which one it is, but I've mentioned it before - try a rearch for "nano'?

[jonlem]

Redline heavy shock fluid is used by some people I know of that have rwd dog boxes, I know Andy Lloyd advises something else for them but if the plated diff is ok to be used with the redline fluid then that would be my choice of lubricant.

[lee303]

i run the stuff andy recommends as he did the nurburg 24 hour using it in one of these boxes, which is good enough for me! i think the damage probably occurred when the gear was on the verge of breaking into pieces last year, as it was having trouble selecting 2nd before that, the other dogs all look like new

[Gordo]

I was looking over at the Hewland site for something else and found this bit - Hewland Engineering Ltd | Advice
The oil I was thinking of was this Gearbox Oil | Fully Synthetic Oil | CRX LS 75w90 NT

[lee303]

same viscosity and spec as the stuff i run, just a different manufacturer

anyway, this evenings entertainment consisted of meshing the new vents like so


arty shot(ish, :lol

also moved the coil pack so it looks neater and is more out of the way for the next bit


then i thought i'd do some CAD as a start to the 'box' i'm gonna make to feed the vents

bent some ally, came out pretty nice, as you can see it seals the rad in, will be sealing off the underneath too



did the CAD work on the other side but need to have a bit more of a play so left it at that

can see how it works sort of here

gearbox rebuild soon...

[MikeITB]

Looking good Lee.

Safe to assume CAD = Cardboard Aided Design? I like it...

[Gordo]

Sometimes the back of an envelope just won't cut it

[vidas]

Is there enough space to tilt the radiator abit forward on the top side and place the shields you create not vertically but a bit inclined? Like the radiator setups we see in drift cars like RX-7. I will try to find a photo...

IMHO, it would work much more sufficiently. It could even help the drag coefficient as less air would escape form underneath the engine bay.

[lee303]

yeah i know what you mean, but there’s not much room because of the front grille/bumper, however i will be fitting a lower shield section that will have a bit of an angle and also seal the bottom of the radiator and incoming air from the rest of the bay, so at least some of the air flow coming in will be diverted upwards and out the vents a bit more efficiently

[Benn]

I like the vents. Sealing off the front is a nice idea.

[lee303]

so, finally got enough motivation to strip the gear set down today...

said gear set…


started by removing 5th and 6th

laid all the parts out like a pro, i think most top teams use an old kitchen worktop cut off too

then removed the selectors, and then the two shafts from the sandwich plate

can leave the bearings in which makes it easier

then wrapped up all the bits i don't want to lose

and started to strip the input shaft, all slides apart so nicely, nice bit of kit to work on

seems someone who built it originally had some humour, lol

the problem…

bit of wear here too so may bet one of them also

some gratuitous Hewland logo shots and part numbers for my reference, the last one being the main culprit for the issues



so, will order the bits then when they arrive it can go back in and i can actually use it possibly maybe

[jonlem]

Nice boxes aren't they. I was gobsmacked at the quality of the spares that came with the one I got, I bet they were mentally expensive new!

[lee303]

they are so much nicer to pull apart than a quaife or whatever, the machining is amazing!

[vidas]

It's always a pleasure watching a gearbox being taken apart for rebuilding

[lee303]

still rather not have to do it though!

[spanishfly]

this done now? Need to come up when your next out in it!

[lee303]

no not yet, had a few things going on of late so not even got round to ordering a new dog ring yet, probably be a couple of weeks yet, still, at least i’m not missing the sunny days out in the car, poxy rain! you are of course welcome up even when its not done

[Gordo]

they are so much nicer to pull apart than a quaife or whatever, the machining is amazing!

That's nice to know - when (not if!) the LOTTO comes up I've plans involving their SL gearbox...
Then again, for the money, and considering who many of their high end customers are...

[lee303]

yeah there is no doubting Hewlands quality tbh

i finally got some motivation and ordered a new gear today, should be here this week, so will fit that on saturday, might even stick the gear set back in too and see what happens

[lee303]

gear turned up

shiny, also in the next two pics you can see the wear that has occurred on the old one making the box jump out of gear...



might have a working nova again this weekend....

[jonlem]

Good call lee.

Out of cuiousity how much was the gear ?

[lee303]

£120 which was very reasonable i thought!

[jonlem]

That's more than reasonable considering the quality !

[lee303]

yeah was quite pleased, some guy andy lloyd put me on to

[Paul]

If your ever stuck for any bearings, give me a shout