Starter gearbox.

[everard3902]

Hi chaps. I’m fixing up the starter on my 500. New worm drive, new skf bearings, new oil seals. All lovely now, but it still leaks oil like a sieve. Had anyone tried semi liquid grease? My bearing supplier reckoned this is the answer. If so can anyone recommend a brand/type. Apparently the new ep type oils and greases are much kinder to the brass worm.
Tony.

[3potjohn]

Mine now only leaks via the somewhat badly fitting rubber. filler plug. I have the roller bearing with a separate O ring seal

[everard3902]

My way of thinking that if I use a suitable semi liquid grease,‘I reckon k48 by morris oils’, it will provide adequate lube and not leak out. I’m going to give it a go. It’s not like the starter is wizzing round for long. As it is at the moment it’s unusable. The narrower roller bearing and oil seal was considered but I’d just bought a new Bearing and my bearing chap couldn’t see why liquid grease wouldn’t work. The seal around the original bearing is only a grease seal, it was never designed to hold back oil. Rubbish design.

[everard3902]

Got that wrong k400 semi fluid grease.

[MickeyMoto]

My way of thinking that if I use a suitable semi liquid grease,‘I reckon k48 by morris oils’, it will provide adequate lube and not leak out. I’m going to give it a go. It’s not like the starter is wizzing round for long. As it is at the moment it’s unusable. The narrower roller bearing and oil seal was considered but I’d just bought a new Bearing and my bearing chap couldn’t see why liquid grease wouldn’t work. The seal around the original bearing is only a grease seal, it was never designed to hold back oil. Rubbish design.

How could you insult the brilliant design that was thought up by Heath Robinson. Although the later design on the Dart etc was a lot better it has other problems. See sprag clutch for details.

[3potjohn]

No no don’t mention sprag clutch. Mine has been perfectly behaved the past fortnight…. because I have been too busy rebuilding a brace of 4 speed BMW gearboxes to get out and about.Such fun.

[everard3902]

Rubbish design starter update.
The worm drive has now been half filled with semi-liquid grease, I used penrite steering box grease. Hopefully this is ok. Anyway, so far it seems to be still in the gearbox and not all over the inside of the housing, so I think this is probably an improvement. I’ll keep you posted, it’s early days and could still go wrong.
Tony.

[everard3902]

On checking the starter today can can report that grease is leaking out, also that the grease that was still inside looked like very expensive liquid gold, so that confirms to me that my idea is rubbish, just like the design, so I’m going to try the narrower bearing and oil seal method.
Tony.