Re: Stuck Gear

Posted by HH56 On 2022/7/12 10:50:04

It sounds as if the WD-40 might be doing something so maybe just let it sit and soak for a bit longer -- and dose the upper lever a couple of more times. With luck it will free up without needing major disassembly. When it is free, follow up on the WD-40 treatment with a good lube with motor oil.

Not sure about the cotter key but it might be wrapped in both directions around the rod end and will be easier to cut it off rather than try and unbend to remove. New cotter keys are available at almost any hardware store. All you need is one in the proper diameter and long enough so the key can go thru the hole and have enough sticking out of the hole to bend.

Without seeing or feeling the shift, it it is hard to say what to do about the sloppy motion. Worn rod ends and bushings that fit into lever holes have been an issue on high mileage cars so that could be some of the sloppiness. There is a detent block which holds the interlock and detent mechanisms inside the transmission that can also become loose.. Both detent and interlock functions have had issues if the parts get worn or damaged and that could be something that needs looking into.

The interlock part is a solid round bar that slides in one of the holes in the detent block. The bar has rounded ends that fit into notches in either lever. When one lever moves, a cam like affair forces the bar to move its other end into a notch in the other lever to prevent the not in use lever from moving. When you need the next gear, moving the original lever back to neutral unblocks the bar so it can move and the brief pass thru neutral lets the cam affair on the second lever force the bar in the opposite direction and then the process is repeated so the original lever used is now blocked. It all happens quite quickly and seamlessly but does require a bit of finesse from the driver. That is one reason Packards do not do well with the so called speed shifting where the mechanism is quickly slammed from one gear into another without an attempt at going thru neutral..

The detent portion fits in another hole in the block and just consists of a strong spring with a round ball at either end. When a lever moves the round balls slide into slight depressions in the levers and the detent is because you feel the action of the spring as it pushes the balls into position.