Gearbox & Transmission; Vibrations Of The Flector - CITROËN Amicale 5 HP Manual

2 – GEARBOX AND TRANSMISSION
The gears are straight cut (very noisy), so the gearbox tends to "sing" in 1st and 2nd; the noise being
annihilated in 3rd (direct ). The gearbox is even noisier if the pinions show wear, but also when the bearing
between the primary and secondary shafts has too much play. The latter causes the primary gear to be off-
center with respect to the 1st – 2nd reduction gears, and induces an exaggerated play between these pinions
which then work at the end of the teeth, resulting in increased noise and premature wear.
The capacity is about half a liter of SAE 90 or SAE 90 EP oil which is not aggressive for bronze. Avoid overfilling.
The box of a 5 HP is rustic, simple and robust.
Its restoration is easy: all you have to do is change the two bearings... but...
- Take the opportunity to replace the output bearing, on the flector side, if possible with a sealed bearing.
- Check the condition of the bronze bushings of the upper and lower gear
If a gear "jumps" while driving, it may be because of the bad condition of the pinions or very often because of
a faulty fork lock.
In the latter case, turn the sliding axis of the offending fork by 1/2 of a turn.
If you have dismantled it, take the opportunity to check and tighten the screw that maintains the centering ball
of the fork by means of a stack of three blades *
In the event of wear, the slopes of the forks are matted and it takes little effort to change position.
By turning the fork rod a quarter of a turn, you can find an unmated area.
In the event of rotation previously carried out several times (possible in 90 years), a change of the forks is
necessary...)
2 a - Vibrations of the flector
It is a common phenomenon on a 5 HP to have vibrations at the end of the gearbox at a certain engine speed.
If they are strong it is high time to remedy them.
They can come from two places:
- From a deterioration of the condition of the flector to be checked from time to time, either from below, or by
extracting the board from the body (after removing the lower aluminum sheet). The vintage flectors were made
of fabric, they can be transformed into "cauliflower" . The current flectors are made of rubber reinforced with
fabric (Renel) and can split...
- From the transmission shaft which is warped.
How to be sure? Check that the gearbox is in neutral and place a jack under the axle, until the rear wheels are
lifted.
After making sure that the car is not in danger of falling, lie down under it and look closely at the flector.
Now is the time to involve an assistant who will turn a wheel by hand.
If the end of the transmission shaft is warped you will immediately see that the reaction tube jumps with each
rotation when it should stay still.
If this is the case, it will be necessary to remove the axle and replace the transmission shaft with a new one, it
can also be bent back in shape but it risks resuming its position ...
Doc: RTA p38-39 and 123 a125 and Citroen-5hp.ch Site - Repair manual then: Gearbox
Photo blog: Boxes / Gégé & André Charron: (LINK)