End of restorarion shifting problems

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aerojack7654
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Oct 22, 2015 1:39 am

End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby aerojack7654 » Fri Jan 27, 2017 3:03 am

Hello all,
I've posted on the forum a few times as I've been restoring my ebay bike over the last year and finally got close enough to start and try a ride around the neighborhood.
Ducati 350_2_med.jpg
A Rickman front fairing is going on as soon as I can get the paint to my liking.
A little history - I picked up the bike from a ebay sale that was basically a newly rebuilt race engine, built for AHRMA racing by a previous owner in 1992, who never finished the project. The engine was never started after having $4k spent on it's racing renewal ('92 dollars, he kept all his receipts). It came with a crusty frame, nice wheels and brakes (a Grimeca up front) and a lot of beat up old parts from its past life. Lots of dollars and work brings me to now.
So even though the thing had never been started since before it's rebuild, it fired up on the third kick and after some fiddling ran nicely even though I had more or less slapped on a new Mikuni 34mm carb untouched from the vendor. With it's high compression piston and 564-X9 cam, it was surprisingly docile, and I slipped into gear and attempted to take off. I had to slip the hell out of the clutch to get going but got it moving and off I went in 5th gear! I was able to up shift to 4th(?) and that was as far as it would go, but it was bellowing around the neighborhood like a beast...
I got on the forum and saw Dew Cat Tee Bob's instructions about synchronizing the selector, did that and now I can use 1st and 2nd gear - and that's it. Also note that I've reversed the shift side to the left with the through the swing arm shaft linkage. So at long last - questions - I see there is an adjustment screw under the shifter spline and that as I rotate it[, the shift arm moves, but what am I really doing? I've seen an older posts about adjustment for improved shifting, is this the adjustment, and if so what should I be doing? Also, since I've reversed the shift side, I'm trying to get it to shift like today's standard pattern, but sofar I've gotten more like a GP pattern, 1st up and 2nd down with neutral in between. In the normal stock gear shift orientation (right side), is the shift pattern 1 down and 4 up, or is it reversed? When I try to shift the gears with a vice grip on the transmission output shaft and turning the wheel (plugs out), after a fashion I can go through the gears, but it is hard to get the shaft in the position so that the selected gear actually engages - normal?. When I'm riding the bike and I try to shift up past 2nd, it just stops and won't go any further. In my searching of past posts, I saw reference to a method of shifting that was supposed to help, (" hold down the shifter until you start to engage the clutch"), I haven't tried yet...
Anyway, any insight as to what I might need to do to get a larger gear range (!) would be greatly appreciated. After more than a year of sweating over this thing, the short blasts around the neighborhood have left me with a serious itch to scratch.

Thanks for any help and suggestions

Regards,
Jack
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Eldert
Posts: 771
Joined: Sun Nov 01, 2009 3:23 pm
Location: Hazerswoude Rijndijk Netherlands

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby Eldert » Fri Jan 27, 2017 7:50 am

Hi Jack

with being able only to shift into 2 gears it look like your selectorbox ( or shifting drum ) is 180 degrees out

just turn one of these 180 degrees and you should have all the gears .

Eldert

Bevel bob
Posts: 1043
Joined: Thu Apr 15, 2010 8:01 am
Location: Bromley Kent UK.

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby Bevel bob » Fri Jan 27, 2017 7:32 pm

If you take off the selector box you should be able to turn the camplate with a pair of pliers at the same time rotate the wheel you should get all the gears, this will at least satisfy you that the problem is outside the case.

Jordan
Posts: 1380
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 11:29 am

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby Jordan » Fri Jan 27, 2017 11:21 pm

Your Ducati's standard gear shift pattern is just as Velocette invented it - on the right hand side, 1st up, all the rest down.

The 6mm adjustment screw near the lever shaft is adjusted so the 2-way ratchet selector system works properly.
On some bikes the correct position is visible with a side cover removed, but not in this case.
A practical way to adjust is to make a small adjustment in one direction, then test the shifting to see if it is improved.
If yes, then keep adjusting until all gears can be selected, up & down.
If no, then move the adjustment in the other direction, etc.
When the lever is released, the spring will move it to the normal position and you should hear the selector fork click into place, ready for the next shift.
When it's not behaving properly, you don't hear that click. Often it works well in one direction but not the other.
Mount the box in a bench vice, screwed to a flat steel plate. Then if all is well you can see the output shaft rotating progressively as you shift.
Adjustments can also be done with the selector box installed on the bike, with test runs to confirm - take a screwdriver and 10mm spanner with you.
It's a fairly crude piece of engineering, but if things aren't too worn inside you might have some joy.
Last edited by Jordan on Mon Jan 30, 2017 8:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.

amartina75
Posts: 347
Joined: Tue Aug 21, 2012 1:13 am
Location: Cincinnati, OH. USA

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby amartina75 » Sat Jan 28, 2017 12:34 pm

When I adjusted mine I found it was easiest to do off the bike holding it in my lap. Once it's working smoothly and it sounds right put it back on, making sure what gear the bike is in matches the box. DewCatTea Bob described its operation very well in that post you referred to, use that to judge what the box sounds like and feels like.
As others have suggested you should verify you get all the gears with no box installed, you need to do this anyway to make sure what gear the bike is in.
Good luck
Aaron
1966 250 Scrambler
1970 450 Jupiter

Bevel bob
Posts: 1043
Joined: Thu Apr 15, 2010 8:01 am
Location: Bromley Kent UK.

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby Bevel bob » Sun Jan 29, 2017 8:00 pm

The gearbox and selector box both need to be set in the same position .If the selector box is worn there are "experts " who can refurbish it.

aerojack7654
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Oct 22, 2015 1:39 am

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby aerojack7654 » Sun Jan 29, 2017 8:23 pm

Thanks everyone for the suggestions, they have been very helpful (in addition to the responses that I have been able to dig up on the forum). The good news is that I did spend a good bit of time playing with the gear selection with the gear selector box off and plugs out turning the wheel, and after a fashion (getting past the significant "neutral spots" in between each gear) I was able to verify that all gears were operational and could be selected. The other good news is that after looking closely at my extensive linkage in place to reverse the side of the gear selecting to the rear set on the left, I had been confusing myself and my foot with the selector box's operation, my current linkage direction reversals and the original non-contemporary gear order. Gaaa! After getting everything semi-straight in my head, I was finally able to go through the gears on the road with less than optimal shifting (a couple gears needed some extra "prodding"). The gear order was still a GP(?) shift order for the left foot shifting - one up and four down - but happily I was able to go hurtling around the short straights and turns of the neighborhood scaring dogs and children. Didn't venture beyond the neighborhood since I am waiting on a new title application given that a title did not come with my purchase of parts - thus no license plate. But at least it appears that I should be able to shift once I get the selector box tuned up. I'll also thank the forum, present and archive, for the notes on the use of the adjuster screw - and also note that the Mick Walker resto book did not say a helpful thing about adjustment other than "Many owners think that this (the adjustment screw) will solve the problems of poor selection - it will not. All it does is alter the angle of the gear lever!" I'm glad the conversation on the forum helped me get that straight!
I'm going to go and clean, check out and lube the box, then go through the adjustment process ya'll described, hopefully getting this thing sorted so it will be back to a nicely functioning shift. I the meantime I need that title!

Thanks again for all the help, greatly appreciated!

Regards,
Jack

Dave450
Posts: 45
Joined: Wed Jul 17, 2013 12:42 pm
Location: Dublin, Ireland

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby Dave450 » Thu Feb 02, 2017 2:35 am

Any chance of a photo of the left side of the bike, showing the shifter linkage and gear pedal? And the detail of the steering damper and linkage? It looks quite a tidy build (except for the exhaust!).

Dave

Scrambler
Posts: 104
Joined: Mon Sep 19, 2011 4:08 pm

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby Scrambler » Mon Feb 06, 2017 11:19 pm

You may really like the pipe as built. When I got mine done the Megaphone just looked too plain and straight.
So........... the simple fix was to cut it up and rotate across under the bike. I was able to keep the same cone and header pipe length. made it look a lot more race like.

Mike Mc
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Dave450
Posts: 45
Joined: Wed Jul 17, 2013 12:42 pm
Location: Dublin, Ireland

Re: End of restorarion shifting problems

Postby Dave450 » Tue Feb 07, 2017 12:07 am

I do like the pipe as built because it's out of the way of the gear pedal. Thanks for posting the pics - and what a backdrop!

Dave


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