AJS & Matchless Owners Club

hi , loose clutch basket ,second time now since rebuild, so i'm thinking anyone use a thread sealant when putting back on the shaft, I was reluctant to first time because it was a hell of a job to get off but perhaps that is better than coming loose, the splines seemed ok previously, anyway should have it in bits again soon, more anon probably.
Rob.

Hi

Is the centre retaining nut coming loose? if so are the threads in good order?

Not very familiar with lightweights but if there isn't a tab washer installed is there room enough to fit one, (or a lock washer)?

If you decide to give thread locker a go don't use it on the splines, use it on the threads only.

Regards Mick

Are the splines in the clutch centre OK? These tend to wear and can cause the basket to keep coming loose.

Here's a picture of a worn vs. new centre:
http://www.jampot.com/forum/viewtopic.p ... 20#p142193

hi, the nut was loose on the gearbox shaft,the gearbox shaft splines are good but the splines on the clutch are not good
but not as bad as pauls pic, going to put back together with some thread lock applied to the outer side of the nut which hopefully will keep it fixed,i had previously only replaced an original plain washer with it .i'll be on the lookout for a clutch centre.
Rob

Makes sense. If the centre is a bit worn (i.e. not as bad as my old one!), the movement seems to work the centre nut loose.
My bike has two 1/2 thickness retaining nuts on the mainshaft. Presumably this was a modification by the P.O. but I've kept it as it seems like a neat way of locking the clutch centre in place...

PS: newly manufactured clutch centres are available from club spares (and nowhere else as far as I know). They're not cheap, but are very well made.

clanger9 wrote:Makes sense. If the centre is a bit worn (i.e. not as bad as my old one!), the movement seems to work the centre nut loose.
My bike has two 1/2 thickness retaining nuts on the mainshaft. Presumably this was a modification by the P.O. but I've kept it as it seems like a neat way of locking the clutch centre in place...

PS: newly manufactured clutch centres are available from club spares (and nowhere else as far as I know). They're not cheap, but are very well made.

You're spot on Paul. We had the centres made as they are very scarce and unobtainable from any other outlet. The LW's are nowhere near as popular as the HW's and small batch production means that the unit cost is high. Having said that, if it's the only part that keeps the bike off the road or being reliable then it's got to be worth the cost.

hi, would that be part 040365 amc clutch centre.
rob.

It's complicated!

You need either 043186 (early) or 043509 (late). The correct clutch centre depends on whether you have an “early” or “late” mainshaft. These things get swapped around over the years, so you really need to measure the end of the mainshaft.

More info:
http://www.jampot.com/forum/viewtopic.p ... 11#p184000
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/AJS-Matchl ... 77#s171910

hi, reassembled with thread lock on the gearbox shaft seems nice and tight ,(probably be ordering the new clutch centre next week) after I take for a run and recheck.i saw on another thread chaincase part number discussion mine is 044060 -L
any reason why I can't use some of my 20 grade oil that I have lurking in the shed somewhere in the chaincase ??.
Rob.

Can't see any reason why you can't use SAE 20 - though thicker oil will leak less!