Haedlight motor disassembly instructions

[waltmail]

I am trying to remember how to remove the plastic gear from the housing to replace the rollers. I have the gear exposed. Is there a step I am missing. I thought it would lift right out.

 

I also can't seem to find a "search for" feature on this forum. Am I missing something?

Edited November 17, 2016 by waltmail (see edit history)

[handmedownreatta]

see if this helps http://reattaowner.com/roj/component/content/article/63-lighting-system/headlights/300-padgett-s-headlight-repair-kit-review

[Barney Eaton]

Your picture shows the passanger side motor......the white gear has a lip on the back side and that is catching on the motor worm.   It will pull out by holding the motor and wiggle while pulling on the shaft.

I put a nut on the shaft threads to protect them, then with pliers or vise grips grab the nut and pull and wiggle....it will pop out.

The drivers side is reversed so the gear lip is on the front side and that side pulls out without effort.

Here is a picture of the gear....notice the teeth do not go all the way across the face of the gear.

[waltmail]

Thank you for the able assistance.

[Jim]

I didn't read the link to Ronnie's site but do as Barney says but in addition, when you try and put it back in you will have difficulties. Take a knife or better yet a hack saw and cut that ridge away on about four teeth. When you put it back together align the cut ridge with the motor ( pinion ) gear and the white large

( ring ) gear will then slide past and go into place.

[waltmail]

Ok. I have been wiggling and wobbling on that piece till I am blue in the face. At this point I am wondering if I back the motor off the assembly am I opening up an unfixable can of worms?

[Jim]

Do not take the gear box portion of the motor assembly off the motor, only as a very last resort.

Problems can arise because there is the adjustment on the end of the armature and this needs to be precise and also there is a small ball between the end of the armature and the adjustment screw and very often this ball cam be lost.

The easiest way is to put the shaft  in a vise and then with a little wiggling and pulling it will come right out.

[Ronnie]

Don't remove the motor if possible. Here is how I got mine out. I had mine in a vice but you can do it by hand if you pull on it the right way.

 

Grab the shaft by the end with the nut as described previously. While pulling, rock it in the direction away from the small gear as shown in the photo below. Note that you are pulling the bottom end of the shaft out of the bearing at the same time so you need to pull it out as much as possible before trying to to rock it to the side.

 

 

When you start to put the gear back in, start the big gear meshed with the small gear and in the bearing as shown above with the same rocking motion. Then put a deep well socket over the shaft as I did in the photo below and pop the gear back in, or... you can grind the gear on the shaft to give the gear clearance to go back in.

 

 

Hope this helps.

 

 

Edited November 19, 2016 by Ronnie (see edit history)

[waltmail]

Thank you for your patience and guidance. Stuck it in the vise as suggested and it is now free.

[Barney Eaton]

I have replace the plastic rollers in the parking lot of several National meets....it certainly helps to have done at least one before...in the parking lot, I put the motor on the ground and step on it with my foot and start pulling.

Ronnie's method above helps when reinstalling....you can get the end of the shaft started into the bronze bearing before you push in the gear....also if you locate the gear so it is touching the worm "between" to rollers you get more give/flex in the gear..

 

Walt that started this discussion lives in Florida and probably had no problem removing the 3 hex head screws....if you live in the rust belt, there is a good chance you will twist off at least one of the screw heads.   The screws are "thread forming" screws,

meaning they form their own threads when installed, the screws are case hardened so they will cut the threads and cutting their own threads, there is no clearance between the screw and the threads in the hole.   A little salt water getting into that thread freezes them solid and when you try to remove them they break.   Now you have broken, hardened screws to remove...on top of that they are small 8-32 so not a lot of room for error.  normal drill bits will not drill them out, I use carbide bits...start small and work my way up to the minor pitch diameter of the threads and hope the threads break loose.....in 99% of them they do not.   So then a slightly larger drill will catch the remaining threads and pull them out.   Extreme care must be taken when using the carbide bits because they will snap and now you have a very hard drill broken in the hole.    I have tried penetrating oils, heat, and prayer....none seem to work if the screw is frozen.

 

The picture below is one that broke and the owner tried to repair but he got the hole drilled off center but made it work...then when it needed repair again that owner broke off the screw and sent it to me and I got to take out both broken screws.

[Barney Eaton]

I see you had the misfortune of breaking both the screws that hold the motor to the gear-case. 

Same procedure on those screws but they are tapped thru the casting so you can try penetrating oil on both ends of the screw.

The picture below shows the wood dowels I found in one that I repaired....they don't hold up any better than the plastic

I think I showed it before but I also made a tool to hold the brushes in place when installing the motor shaft....it works but I switched back to fishing line.

Also notice in the tool picture I had to put in a brass insert....sometimes the hole has been damaged so badly by someone it is best to drill it out larger and install the insert.

[waltmail]

Hey Barney. Where did you get the brushes? After taking my unit apart to replace the rollers I purchased from you, I discovered they were in very good shape. I may have even replaced them awhile back. I need to log my repairs so I don't replicate repairs. My driver side works just fine. The passenger works intermittently. A little manual boost and then they work fine for awhile. Let them sit for a week and they become balky.

[waltmail]

Whoops. Sorry. Thanks for the link.