Gear indicator

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eskasteve

eskasteve

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What activates the gear indicator on my 73 850. Just bought this one and the darn thing always returns to indicate neutral. I don't know if there is something broke or just sticky. It shifts fine.
 
I f you just bought a 40+ year-old machine and this is your primary issue... wow!
Mine is missing. No big deal. There are only FOUR gears and a neutral. Not too hard to keep track of....
:twisted:
 
take it off, save more weight, you always know what gear you are in

it was just another fashion statement, like the electric shaver plugin thingy
 
I thought something looked weird on your bike 1u3d ! that's it.. I like the one on my bike, even highlighted the numbers (and 1 letter) with black paint. Plus, if i get confused....all i gotta do is look down to check what gear i'm in ! With binoculars !
 
eskasteve said:
What activates the gear indicator on my 73 850. Just bought this one and the darn thing always returns to indicate neutral. I don't know if there is something broke or just sticky. It shifts fine.
Click to expand...

Sounds like it's moving with the shift lever instead of with inner shaft as designed. Check if the shifter is too far out, and the pointer must be tight onto the end of the inner shaft.
 
I know that the gear indicator isn't a necessity. I was just interested in how it works, not if you think it's important. I had hoped to tap into the experience base of this group not this "I don't know, so it must not be important" segment.
 
What concours said,

http://www.oldbritts.com/1973_g8.html

It's supposed to move with 3. If 10 or the gear lever are too far out it sticks with them and follows them instead. If your gearbox is shifting right, then 99% it's just that the indicator is rubbing on one of the, Check that the bolt in the middle is tight and a bandaid fix is to slip a washer/o-ring underneath big enough for 3 but small enough to fit inside 10.
 
eskasteve said:
What activates the gear indicator on my 73 850. Just bought this one and the darn thing always returns to indicate neutral. I don't know if there is something broke or just sticky. It shifts fine.
Click to expand...
Thanks for some useful advice. I checked the interference with the shift lever and that wasn't the issue. I'm thinking that the inner shaft is corroded and fused to the outer gear change shaft. I'll wait until the riding season is over before I dismantle it. A PB Blaster bath and a little heat ought to free things up. Thanks all.
 
the shaft the gear indicator connects to is broken. I had one break there at the o-ring groove. Rust is holding everything together.
 
What baldy said is correct. If the bike shifts correctly, the inner portion of 3 from the diagram should not move with the outer portion of the shaft. If they're fused together, it means 3 is broken, likely at the place Baldy indicated.
 
While you are looking at a gear indicator, you are not looking ahead. In my own situation, when racing I often find it extremely difficult to even glance at the tacho. Learn to count your gear changes to keep track - after a while you will keep count automatically. And if you race make sure you are in the same gear for the same corner every time, and work up to them until you start to lose control then back off a bit the next time.
 
acotrel said:
While you are looking at a gear indicator, you are not looking ahead. In my own situation, when racing I often find it extremely difficult to even glance at the tacho. Learn to count your gear changes to keep track - after a while you will keep count automatically. And if you race make sure you are in the same gear for the same corner every time, and work up to them until you start to lose control then back off a bit the next time.
Click to expand...
I've ridden and raced for the last 45 years. Knowing what gear I'm in is not the issue. How the damn thing works is.When you sweat the little things big issues just seem to stay away Wished I'd never started this thread. This Norton is the fifth one that I have owned and after much time and money it is showroom perfect and yes I do ride it. Just rode it to the Norton rally-1600mi round trip. .
 
eskasteve said:
Just rode it to the Norton rally-1600mi round trip. .
Click to expand...

No wonder you sound irritated, your ass must be killing you.
 
Guido said:
eskasteve said:
Just rode it to the Norton rally-1600mi round trip. .
Click to expand...

No wonder you sound irritated, your ass must be killing you.
Click to expand...
Okay. That comment was just plain funny.
I was surprised how fun the Norton was coming home from Ashland. I took two days to get there, but needed to get home in one. 90 degrees and a constant 65-70mph and it never missed a beat. My ass was a bit sore but not near as bad as I was expecting. I have a Corbin seat on it which helped delay the discomfort.
I have received some good advice on this gear indicator question and some interesting insight as to the makeup of this group via private messaging. My wife did help put things in a better light when she told me that "If you get something for nothing, that's usually what it's worth".
Thanks all for sharing your knowledge!
 
You're welcome.
If there's anything I can do to keep you laughing let me know.
 
It's been some time since I started this thread but I wanted to post an update. I've finally had an opportunity to tear into my gearbox. Guess what? Just as a couple of the more informed and helpful members suggested, the shaft on the ratchet plate assembly (#3) had snapped at the o-ring groove. New parts are on the way. I cleaned the bore in the pawl carrier assembly (#10) with a brass rifle barrel cleaning brush and some Hoppe's gun cleaning solution. Seemed to treat the bore real well. Smelled good, too. Brought back memories of dad and I cleaning our 22s after a day of plinking. While it's apart CNW is doing their seal trick and throwing a nice spit polish on it. I may have forgot to tell my wife that between CNW and Old Britts I've ordered about $2000 worth of replacement parts. Fun stuff should start showing up any day. Hope to have it all back together by December. Take care all!
 
Mine works but it is the most useless thing I have never seen. At least while I am riding.
 
I am glad that you managed to sort out your problem. I also had the shaft snap on one of my bikes, but fortunately managed to get a good second hand replacement from Rabers in San Jose during a trip to the US.

To paraphrase a quote I have seen previously "My biggest fear is that if I die my wife will sell all my bikes for what I told her I paid for them!"
 
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