AMC Gearbox leak (P11) LEAK IS FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE BOLTS

Information relating to the Matchless G11 or AJS Model 30 600cc twin
Locked
charlski
Member
Posts: 186
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:45 pm
Location: NORTHAMPTONSHIRE UK

AMC Gearbox leak (P11) LEAK IS FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE BOLTS

Post by charlski »

EDITED MESSAGE PLEASE DROP DOWN 3 MESSAGES THE LEAK IS NOT FROM THE GEARBOX SHAFT AS I FIRST POSTED BUT FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE BOLTS< I FOUND THIS OUT AFTER I HAD POSTED THE ORIGINAL MESSAGE >>>> SO ANY HELP HEAR GREATLY APPRECIATED (AND THANKS AND SORRY FOR THE HEAD SUP ON WHAT I BELIEVED TO BE MY ORIGINAL PROLEM).


Hi having just refilled my P11 after a lay off and a rebuild (not gearbox though !!) i have noticed a steady slow small pool of oil collecting under the bike over night, not a torrent but a slow steady drip, using the process of elimination it looks as if it is coming from the gearbox, on the primary side, so i am presuming at this stage that the oil seal has gone.

So question ... is it possible to replace the oil seal on the gearbox on the primary side without removing the gearbox ?? im aware that i will need to take off the inner / outer primary case / clutch basket etc etc .... but can i keep the gearbox in the frame ??

If so how tricky is the seal to replace in situ ??

Thanks

KC
Last edited by charlski on Tue Jul 09, 2013 8:22 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Don Madden
Member
Posts: 2882
Joined: Mon Jan 01, 1990 12:00 am
Location: USA USA

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11)

Post by Don Madden »

It is easy to replace the seal behind the sprocket but it will still leak if left on the side stand. The splines that drive the sprocket extend through the collar that the seal bears on & will pass oil. My solution it to clean the sleeve gear & sprocket well & coat them with silicone sealer where they fit together, then let sit overnight on the centerstand or propped upright. The collar tends to wear a groove where the seal contacts it. It can be reversed once for a new surface or replaced. Cheers, Don. 8-)
User avatar
PGGuse
Member
Posts: 350
Joined: Fri Oct 15, 2004 1:00 am
Location: Frankfurt / Hessen GERMANY

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11)

Post by PGGuse »

attachment for better understanding of Don's instructions
Paul
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
charlski
Member
Posts: 186
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:45 pm
Location: NORTHAMPTONSHIRE UK

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11)

Post by charlski »

stop press ....... Leak is not from gearbox shaft !!

Well i must apologise to all, as before i left work today i left a covering of talcum powder on my gearbox to ensure the leak was from primary side gear box ... returned home and as dry as a bone .... but the mystery leak is now coming from the other side of the gear box (funny how oil can travel when leaking !!) and is actually coming out of a bolt at the front of the gearbox, which when i look in the manual is called a spindle bolt (one of 2) and the leaking culprit is the one on to the outside of the gearbox not the inside. Now if i try to tighten this up (which is a bugger to get it) the bolt seems to just go round and round.

Now to be honest i dont know what this bolt does or what its fixed to, but the one thing i do know is that its leaking.

So can anybody please enlighten me as to what this bolt does, and why it will not tighten, and how can i stop it leaking.

At least i have now 100% traced the leak ... so i guess thats a start !!

thanks

KC
User avatar
robcurrie
Member
Posts: 957
Joined: Fri Dec 09, 2011 5:33 pm
Location: Limpopo SOUTH AFRICA
Contact:

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11) LEAK IS FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE B

Post by robcurrie »

That bolt holds the selector quadrant. There is an oil seal ( o- ring) on the spindle, but would require a lot of disassembly to get to it. You may prefer to live with the occasional drip. Don't try fitting fibre washers etc. under the bolt head, because it will hamper rotation of the spindle. This goes for both those front bolts, the other one is for the camplate.

Rob
User avatar
clive
Member
Posts: 5657
Joined: Mon Jan 01, 1990 12:00 am
Location: LONDON UK

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11) LEAK IS FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE B

Post by clive »

Oh I wish my oil leaks were just from one place. Still I am still using less oil than petrol so i will carry on thrashing the bike. Sorry if that's not helpful.
clive
if it ain't broke don't fix
charlski
Member
Posts: 186
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:45 pm
Location: NORTHAMPTONSHIRE UK

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11) LEAK IS FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE B

Post by charlski »

robcurrrie .... cheers for that, so if i drained the gearbox, degreased the area and applied a liberal coating of silicone, to the bolt head / washer i presume that would do the job ??? thanks KC
charlski
Member
Posts: 186
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:45 pm
Location: NORTHAMPTONSHIRE UK

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11) LEAK IS FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE B

Post by charlski »

Hi all the front bolt, will neither tighten or loosen, it appears to be just turning on itself, you cannot turn it by fingers only by spanner' I therefore presume the spacer tube it screws into is turning inside the gearbox, with the bolt seized in the spacer tube, ........ Is this safe to ride ???? I don't think the bolt is going to just drop out as it is contained by the spacer tube, but I'd rather be safe than sorry, I guess some liberally applied silicone will stop the leak,...... But has anyone else had this issue, and worst case scenario can this be fixed by stripping gearbox on the bike or will the gearbox have to come out .... Or am I concerned about a something that will quite simply neither get any worse or better if left in situ, thanks.
g80csp11
Member
Posts: 1567
Joined: Mon Jan 01, 1990 12:00 am
Location: WEST SUSSEX UK

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11) LEAK IS FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE B

Post by g80csp11 »

I've stripped the gear box on my P11 many times in the past ( well at least twice ) without removing the gearbox from the bike .
Once when I lost a gear tooth in Italy at the IJR , nothing better that riding gently back to the campsite to investigate a ticking noise .
30 minutes later gearbox in pieces and fault found a broken tooth on the 4th gear on the layshaft

So , when the rest of the run arrived back at site , Bob Piper very kindly agreed that I disabled his bike by borrowing the gear to get me riding again ( he was trailering his bike back to UK)
all done and rebuild in a couple of hours

and of course the same back in the UK to retrieve his gear and rebuild his bike

http://www.oldbritts.com/gearbox_a.html
charlski
Member
Posts: 186
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:45 pm
Location: NORTHAMPTONSHIRE UK

Re: AMC Gearbox leak (P11) LEAK IS FROM ONE OF THE SPINDLE B

Post by charlski »

G80csP11 ... thanks for the attachment, that makes what i thought looked like a daunting task quite feasible .... if only all manuals were written that way !!!

KC
Locked