Gear linkage rod re-imagined

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This has been rattling around in my head for too long and the parts have been cramping my bench, so yesterday I took a day off from the HPE resto and got on with what is hopefully a long term solution for my cars.

First up, the jig. Some re-purposed metal from a floor standing whiteboard and something useful appears.
The first thought I had was “how accurately made are the factory rods?” and “where are all my spares?”
Well I only had one to hand so that will have to do for now. If the new rod isn’t quite right then I’ll have to find more and adjust the rig.

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With the jig done I decided to start by cutting out the joint at the seesaw end of the linkage rod.
The plan was to replace the original plastic knuckle ball joints with some COM10 spherical bearings with studs. The difficult thing was finding COM10 spherical bearings with enough articulation. Regular bearings do not have enough movement. Then these studded bearings appeared on eBay.
Having tracked down some housings for the bearings that have circlips to secure them, it meant I could tack weld things together without subjecting the bearings to welding heat. Then remove the bearings and fully weld the housings into the linkage rod.

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With both joints cut out and replaced it was time for a coat of “battleship grey” paint (this makes everything stronger) and fitment to the Berlina to see if it works.
I have some reservations on this setup namely vibration and how the joints will tolerate muck and heat. I have ordered some rubber protection boots, so only time will tell.


Ian

[Nigel]

Very interesting Ian, and a worthwhile experiment.

I'm sure you've thought of this, but sound and vibration are
possible factors.

The rod carrying the 3rd bush is more involved to remove, you doing that
one as well?

Great work,
Nigel

[squiglyzigly]

Hi Nigel,
Yes the bush on the end of the gearstick linkage rod was done when the engine was out for rebuild.
It’s easy to do in situ. Just cut the end of the rod off and weld an M10 nut in place. Then screw a rod end straight in with a lock nut. Again the hard part was finding a rod end with enough articulation. But they are available with an M10 stud ready fitted.

I have driven the car a couple of times now with the fully rose jointed linkage and so far it’s faultless. No noise, no vibration and as you would expect it’s a lovely positive movement. Things may change in time depending on how well the joints last.

I’ve ordered spares to make duplicates for my other cars. Its the way to go for me.

Cheers
Ian