(ET) RE: Transmission Trouble

["Byars, William" <wbyars MPCProducts com>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: billglic juno com [mailto:billglic juno com]
> I finally got around to removing the transmission from the tractor
> tonight and discovered that my E10 Prototype has an electrically
> activated brake system that
> had its wires cut for some unkown reason.
> Does anyone have a description of how the electrically 
> activated brakes
> are supposed to work ?

Hey Bill,
        Could you describe what the brake system looks like? The electric
brakes I am familiar with are those fitted to many trailers. They are
drum-type with two shoes on a common pivot and have a solenoid where the
hydraulic wheel cylinder would go in a "normal" brake setup. Energize the
solenoid, it expands and presses the shoes into the drum, same as with
regular single-acting drum brakes. Not much to them, AFAIK, but they use a
decent amount of current. 

> Is there a parts list for the gearbox, rear axle or are there any
> replacements available ?
> I will not be taking the gearbox apart until atleast tomorrow night.
> Should there be some markings on the gearbox indicating make, model,
> manufacturer ???
> Any words of wisdom on taking apart the transmission / rear axle ??
> Thanks.
> Menlo Park II,
> Bill
>
> My 36 volt GE Electrak E10 Prototype decided to stop moving today.
> The motor, all belts and pulleys turn, but the rear wheels refuse to
> engage no matter what gear I use (reverse, low, drive-1, or drive-2).
> Has anyone had this problem.
> I suspect that something is wrong with the shifting mechanism in the
> rear.
> I am contemplating removing the entire rear axle, 
> transmission, wheels in
> one module and then investigate further.
> Any words of wisdom would be appreciated.
> Thanks.
> Menlo Park II,
> Bill, Glastonbury, CT

Can't help you much with the transaxle problems, at least not in specific. 

Some general advice, though, is don't be afraid to take it apart! Barring a
nice workbench, get yourself a nice large piece of cardboard so you can do
it on whatever floor/table surface you wish without damaging said surface.
First step is drain the gear oil! Man does that stuff make a mess. If you
have the misfortune to have no drain plug, what you do is break loose all
the bolts holding the case together and separate the halves just enough to
break the seal and get it pouring out. Drain well. Get yourself a bunch of
baggies and/or margarine tubs and/or coffee cans and/or whatever so you can
keep track of all the little bits and pieces you're going to pull out. Get 
a
nice marker, too, so you can label stuff. If you have access to a Polaroid
type instant-print camera, USE IT! Film is cheap, the little 9V battery in
the empty film pack is fun to play with and the photos are an invaluable 
aid
when you get around to putting all those parts back together. 

Anyways, on to disassembly. Closely examine the case and remove all visible
bolts, keeping track of which ones go where. Look for lock rings, plugs,
pins, etc. that might be holding it together as well. Try and separate the
cover and case and/or separate the case halves. (not sure what type you
have...) If no go, check again for bolts you may have missed and see if
shafts start binding when you start trying to pull something off. Sometimes
these things are pretty interconnected. If it comes apart okay, great. 
Watch
that spring! (There's always a little spring or a needle bearing or a pin 
or
some other small part that comes out at this point and flees to the nether
regions of that haystack in the corner of the garage... :-) Putz around 
with
the shafts and gears and cogs and bits and see how they interconnect. 
You'll
probably figure out sooner or later which piece has to come out first. As
you take bits out, wipe them off and lay them down on the cardboard in the
manner of an "exploded diagram" so you can look at them in approximately 
the
relationship they have to each other when inside the case. As you take it
apart, wiggle things, slide things, feel things and generally try and 
figure
out how sloppy/pitted/chipped/worn everything is. Don't be scared, 
remember:
it worked when it was together and/or it was broken already! It's a lawn
tractor, it can't be too complicated or it would be too expensive to make. 

Your biggest bugaboo is going to be seals, snaprings, roll pins and other
things that tend to self-destruct when removed. An inside/outside caliper 
is
a great tool at this point as you can measure the shaft OD, seal bore ID 
and
overall thickness of the seal, run down to an industrial parts supply place
and say "I need a seal that is this size, what do you have?" Chances are, 
it
will be something really common and cheap, since it makes sense for a
manufacturer to use the cheapest/highest volume parts they can get. Ditto
for standard-looking snaprings. Some bearings can even be got this way,
though that's where you'll find any wierd sizes if there are any. If you 
get
it apart, and it all looks pitted and worn and you start to despair that
you'll never find parts for it, remember: if it still spins it can still
work, it just may be a bit noisy! Noisy/clanky bits can be quieted by
substituting a nice GREASE in place of the gear oil you usually have in
there. This is also great for leaky seals you can't find. It will be a
little less efficient, but it will work. If you don't wish to use grease,
your gear oil can be thickened by using banana peels, including the stem.
2-3 work for an auto differential, you may need more or less depending on
the quantity of gear lube you need to "treat". (Not joking, incidentally,
this is a trick used to get a noisy diff to last long enough for the rest 
of
the clapped-out rustbomb car it is in to fall apart or get scrapped...)
Alternately you can just use regular gear lube and "shift softly" and don't
bang the gears. 

And now the dreaded "assembly is the reverse of disassembly". :-) Gaskets
can be approximated using cereal box cardboard (great for ICE drain plug
gaskets, don't drip! :-) or some variant of RTV silicone goo. I suppose you
could also leave the seals and gaskets off and run veggie oil as a "total
loss" lubrication system... 8-) 

Anyways, the main point is that it isn't as hard as it looks. If you get
stumped, call a buddy over and have him/her take a look. Failing that, get
some 8 year old kid to come over and take a peek, he/she'll probably point
something out that will make you slap your forehead... :-) 

Have fun!
-Will 

 
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