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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Stuck in 1st gear

Hi folks
On the way down a 3/4 mile rough farm track to the parental house last night, I had to stay in 1st gear as usual, creeping down to avoid grounding it on big potholes.
When I wanted to put into neutral however, the gearstick refused to budge. Completely stuck in 1st. Took quite a bit of persuasion / wriggling to free it off. Clutch works fine. Once free it went smoothly enough into reverse, back into 1st and into neutral as normal.
Any ideas what could be the cause?
Should I be unduly worried?
I have the final 250 mile leg of my journey home today...
Dominic Excell

I expect your balls are sticking out too far. (Ahem!)

http://www.spritespot.com/gallery/toomanyspridgets/first_jammed

...compared to...

http://www.spritespot.com/gallery/toomanyspridgets/first_good
r thomas

It happens with gearbox wear. As Rob's photos show, the gear hub slides across too far allowing the dentent balls to pop out, or at least partially pop out. It is likely to get steadily worse, sticking in first gear more and more often. Commonly, trickling along in first gear in traffic for any length of time is more likely to make it happen. And if you rest your hand on the gear lever whilst doing so it is even worse.

Initially, with a bit of brute force, the lever will pull back out of first, but this also gets harder the further out the balls have popped. It can get so that it needs one to really haul back on the lever whilst alternately accelerating and breaking, in order for it to release.

The fix is to add a washer as a shim on the selector shaft between the casing and the first gear selector to stop it travelling over so far. Gearbox out job to do that, although the fix is very simple. I think I have also seen someone who made up a "U" shaped shim that could be inserted via the inspection plate, so in theory without removing the gearbox, but I cannot remember the details.

The other fix is to fit a type 9 !
Guy W

Guy, you are correct.

Here's one I made earlier...

Dave O'Neill2

Pic 2

Dave O'Neill2

That's it Dave. Looks like you have telepathically downloaded my memory to your 3-D printer
Guy W

That's great, thanks chaps! If it persists, as I'm sure it will.. I'll make up a shim, that is if you don't mind me copying your idea Dave!
Dominic Excell

Not at all.
Dave O'Neill2

Happened to me in heavy traffic in Le Mans last year. Not happened again yet and I'm not planning to get the box out just for a quick fix....I'll just be a bit quicker to be brutal with the gearstick (if there is a) next time :-)
Dean Smith ('73 RWA)

Happened to me too before I converted to a 5 speed.

I wish I'd thought of that brilliant quick fix of Dave O'neill's". Instead I spent half a day on a Crete building site fixing it with a regular washer. :(.
Lawrence Slater

This thread was discussed on 16/06/2013

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