Author Topic: new control lever too short  (Read 2366 times)

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rtillery02

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on: February 09, 2014, 03:30:07 pm
I enjoy the handcraftsmanship of my bullet as much as the next guy, but am I really gonna hafta stretch my NEW foot control lever so that it'll reach into its centering spring?
  Any thoughts on this issue would be appreciated. pete snidals' work IDs the spring as #56 with no references to it...do I still need it?  hmm..
  hitchcocks prts book IDs it as part #2, & it's still there even on a right side shift, so, to stretch or not to stretch? any thoughts?
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Blltrdr

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Reply #1 on: February 09, 2014, 04:02:44 pm
Your RS conversion kit should have had all the parts you need. Where did you get the kit?

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mrunderhill1975a

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Reply #2 on: February 10, 2014, 04:39:43 am
See the parts diagram below from hitchocks site.  The small end of the foot control lever spring (part2) should fit in the tab of the foot control adjuster plate (part 3).  If it does not, there is a problem.  Are you certain you have part 2 and not spring 5 ?  They both look the same but are different length and size.
If you could post a photo, that would be helpful.


rtillery02

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Reply #3 on: February 10, 2014, 12:41:19 pm
 Well Blltrdr, the kit is a Hitchcock RS kit & it does have all the needed parts for the transition(except the new size drain/fill plugs), but the tab on the foot control that locks into the longer centering spring behind the rear plate is just too short, any movement of the foot control and it pops right outta the spring, the old LS ft. control lever had a much longer tab that fit well into this centering spring, this new one barely catches onto the spring( maybe 1/16 ")
  I may try to locate the spring outward to try & secure around the shorter tab before I start fabricating things. Does that clarify my situation any?  I'm guessin this is not a typical problem.
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rtillery02

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Reply #4 on: February 10, 2014, 01:12:27 pm
Oh yes mr underhill1975a, Wow,I'd be "hard pressed" to swap those two, but then I've seen some amazing errors in the last 30 yrs. lol whew!  Yes, the spring is right where it needs to be, the new foot control lever tab just wont fit far enough into the spring, any lever movement & it jumps right out of the spring, it barely fits into the spring about 1/16 of an inch.
  visually comparing the old & new lever SPRING TABS, the new tab is about 1/4 inch shorter than the original. The Hitchcock image didn't show the RS foot control lever or I'd be more specific with the "spring tab" that I keep referring to. it's not the "fork" part or the "spline" part, it's the part that would fit into the spring that helps keep it "centered in the correct place.
  I hope this clarifies things a little bit.  so....any thoughts on my delimma? any thoughts would help, otherwise, I'm thinkin welding on it is only going to "weaken" the whole lever. I'm tryin to NOT do that. Thanks, in advance, R.Tillery
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mrunderhill1975a

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Reply #5 on: February 10, 2014, 06:19:28 pm
If the tab on the foot control adjuster plate is shorter than the original, that is likely the problem.  But before you start welding, are you certain there are no washers or spacers behind the adjuster plate that is preventing the plate from seating onto the cover and getting closer to the spring?  Has the inner cover been milled to allow  the adjuster plate "hang" on a lip of the inner cover.

As a side note, there are several "pirate parts" vendors that have less than OEM quality control.  The pirate parts even come in a plastic bag with RE logos. I'm wondering that you may have one of those kits.  The kit I recieved had a bushing that was not long enough, I had to shim the bellcrank and detent plunger with washers to take the slack/lash out of bellcrank and gear selector.
You may have an inner cover that was not milled to the correct specs, perhaps you can compare the old and new inner cover.  If all else fails, you could try shimming the spring (part 2) such that it would engage the shorter tab.


rtillery02

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Reply #6 on: February 11, 2014, 05:44:22 pm
mrunderhill1975a, you are right on track, I fabricated a shim to fit behind the rear plate to keep the spring from moving away from the lever tab, works great, but even so, there's less than an 1/8" of lever to spring contact, SO... as a last resort I contacted Hitchcocks by email with some photos of the issue & wouldn't ya know...turns out some of those cast levers left the shop with 11mm tabs instead of the proper 14mm tab, well, there's my missing 3mm reach problem right there. I measured up & sure enough, mine is 11mm.
  So Hitchcocks is going to send me a proper lever with a 14mm tab @ no expense to me. "AT-A-BOY HITCHCOCKS" How bout that?
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ERC

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Reply #7 on: February 11, 2014, 07:23:11 pm
They are great to deal with, never had a problem with them.  ERC
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rtillery02

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Reply #8 on: February 12, 2014, 05:32:29 pm
 So far, this is the very first issue of concern I've had with anything purchased from them, & their really coming through for me. IMO that is a positive sign of noble character(which is rare now-a-days)
  Earlier this season I purchased a top end rebuild kit for my BULL from them with the alloy barrel upgrade, all the new parts tolerances are within specs with each other, though I may not get to install them till next winter.
  The first/previous owner just didn't properly "break-in" this new engine, add a couple of East Texas 115 deg. summers & ya got what I'm dealin with now, but I'm optimistic :) 
 
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Reply #9 on: February 12, 2014, 09:57:41 pm
I got their Flyscreen kit and the chrome started promptly falling off the headlight ring. I sent them some pictures of it, but since the spots were mostly out of sight I didn't complain too much, just wanted to show them what was going on. They sent me a new one that I hadn't even asked for. They are a great bunch!
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