C: Clutch Comet Clutch

Matty

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VOC Member
My gears grind when I try to find first gear but the clutch frees up when operated when in gear.
Are the plates needing cleaning and if so how please -would petrol be OK
Matty
 

chankly bore

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More likely notches in the slots if you've a standard clutch, or warped steel plates. Petrol and very light abrasion of the corks worked for me, but the last clutch I built had the later ribbed drum and SURFLEX plates. It seems to be perfect. Do you free it with the kickstarter before initial engagement?
 

Matty

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Thanks - yes I have always freed it first with a kick with the clutch pulled in and even then after spinning free it still graunches into gear so I push it into gear quickly.
It always goes in OK but has never been really quiet since I bought it in 1956 and 110,000 miles.
I have rebuilt the gearbox/clutch 2 or 3 times and sometimes the gears have gone in quietly for a week or two but soon graunch again.
All parts of the clutch have been renewed including the cage over the years, so maybe I will just have to live with the small graunch/grind into gear.
I hear automatic transmission fluid in the primary chaincase may make an improvement any comments welcome.
Matty
 

Comet Rider

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Hi Matty,
On my dad's Comet and mone we have Honda clutches, and it can still be hit or miss.
Mine is usually quiet, except when very hot
Dad's was always noisey on the first engagement what ever we did.

Best of luck
Neil
 

Bill Thomas

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When I fitted Normans roller bearing on the outer plate ,
Mine was Perfect for a short while,
I think it needs a cover round the outside of the basket,
To keep most of the oil away, I think the plates get too wet ?.
 

Hugo Myatt

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VOC Member
Thanks - yes I have always freed it first with a kick with the clutch pulled in and even then after spinning free it still graunches into gear so I push it into gear quickly.
It always goes in OK but has never been really quiet since I bought it in 1956 and 110,000 miles.
I have rebuilt the gearbox/clutch 2 or 3 times and sometimes the gears have gone in quietly for a week or two but soon graunch again.
All parts of the clutch have been renewed including the cage over the years, so maybe I will just have to live with the small graunch/grind into gear.
I hear automatic transmission fluid in the primary chaincase may make an improvement any comments welcome.
Matty
I know that some Comet owners will disagree but I have found that ATF works initially but it too eventually sticks up the plates. This never used to happen when the bikes were used daily. The best solution I have found is to use Motul oil in the chaincase. I have forgotten the exact grade and as I am away from home at the moment I am unable to check. I am sure someone will post the correct grade on here before I get home. Hugo.
 
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greg brillus

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The crunching into gear with these boxes is solly a clutch issue....... On the new "A" twins that Neal and Rodney made, these use genuine pre war Burman gearboxes, but use a dry multiplate clutch, using a diaphram like a Norton clutch.........these snick into gear with no crunching at all, and the boxes shift quickly similar to a modern gearbox........Perhaps on these bikes it might pay to simply lower the primary oil so only the chain gets lubed, and change the oil a bit more frequently........worth a try.
 

Colin

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VOC Member
Check the plates lift squarely. Kick over with clutch lifted and see if any wobble. Adjust screws to lift square. Check the slots are not badly worn and the ears of the plates, are not ragged.. You can back the screws off a bit but not so far that the clutch slips.
After fiddling with my Egli Comet clutch and making sure it ls freed up before starting. my gear changes are silent and smooth.
 
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