Darth,

I just got off the phone with Paul at LiteMachines. My replacement engine is on its way

I also asked him about the clutch bell squeal. He was familiar with this problem and suggested the following:

Remove the clutch shaft from the engine and clutch assembly.
Coat the surface of the shaft in oil or LiteLube.
Thoroughly sand the oiled surface of the shaft via twisting and sliding the clutch shaft in fine sandpaper.
Keep oiling the shaft while sanding, effectively sand the oil “into” the steel.
It is not important to remove all sanding marks or scratches, the shaft surface will still be very smooth.

He also suggests running more vertical play with the clutch bell, rather than less. His suggestion was between 1/8” and 1/16” of slop. I told him I was running about 0.015” and he thought I should loosen this up to 1/16”.

He made no suggestions involving the gear mesh. He did suggest that the squealing could be caused by a small burr on the shaft, which the sanding would cure, or an improperly oil treated shaft, which the oil/sanding would cure.


For what it is worth,
Spiro