<blockquote>
"The only spring in the shift box should be the one that holds the lever 'down', or on the 2nd/HI shift arm. To engage 1st/REV, you have to pull 'up' through the gate. Is this right."</blockquote>
Yep, absolutely right.
I do have to say that whoever designed the linkage on these things really found a way to overcomplicate the concept. The more parts that have to be aligned, the more margins of error exist. I like the novelty of the three on the tree, but man... a floor shifter seems like it would be far more practical.
<blockquote>
"The detent springs could be broken, but I am doubtful about dirt or crud holding anything from meshing. The spinning gears and washing action of the gear lube usually keep the moving parts clean."</blockquote>
It's been a while since I looked at the inside of the side cover of the transmission case, but as I recall the detent works via a spring/ball mechanism that sits between the shifting forks and the housing. The shop manual shows these parts, albeit removed and laid out. I believe the ball at the end of the spring has to seat into a small indentation for the detent to work properly. Since these parts are on the vertical side cover, I wouldn't think they are necessarily in the direct path of the swirling oil bath that washes the gears and synchros. So it was my guess that a buildup of sludge from old gear oil could concievably get packed in the little indentations, making the detent less effective.
I could be wrong, but if that were the case it would help explain the sloppiness of the 1-R gear detent and possibly even gear 2's poor behavior all of a sudden.
Speed's recommendation of adding washers is yet another "fix" I have planned for the linkage. I noticed a little more play in the 2-3 linkage than I would like, and in 1-R, the linkage is definitely tighter. There's also wiggle room in the 2-piece pivoting mechanism that attaches the upper rod sections to the lower ones, but there's not enough space to squeeze another washer in there. So I may have to live with wobbliness in that mechanism. The original post that protruded out from the bell housing was replaced by a previous owner with a section of a bolt which for all intents and purposes may be a hair smaller in diameter than the original post, and that could account for the extra play there.
Well, I guess the best answer is to take the side cover off when I have the time to devote to that, and see what shape the forks and detents are in... and poke around in the gear assembly to see if there's some other reason that 2nd gear is not mating properly. But if anyone has any other ideas, please go ahead and post them. Since the truck is my daily driver, I'm hoping this problem can be solved without a full tranny rebuild!
Thanks for your input guys. Most helpful!
