Gearbox rebuild

[mowog101]

Hi all,  I appreciate that the club probably can't be seen to be endorsing any particular suppliers or services over another, but I wondered if anyone has any particularly strong recommendations for good gearbox rebuilders, especially in the north of Scotland? 
I'm rebuilding from the ground up and need to correct some play in the main shaft but just generally check the box over before I progress to the next phase.
I can travel the box if required!  Obviously other gearbox rebuilders are available too......

Many thanks indeed. John.

[GlenAnderson]

The last time I paid for a gearbox rebuild was with Whitehouse in Brum. It's a long time ago now though.

[mowog101]

Cheers Glen. Appreciate you taking the time to reply. Seems like no one else has used a commercial transmission service and has been happy with their work? 

[diffwhine]

Having rebuilt a lot of transmissions over the years and some for club members, I can probably add something to this.

There are a few companies who do this, but I've not heard anybody speak positively about any gearbox commercial operations. In their defence, the problem is how to build them economically. Even doing it privately, it is impossible to quote accurately until you actually have the box stripped down fully. Therefore many charge full whack, but rebuild with substandard parts. So much choice over sourcing quality parts means that the only way to do this is to work with the client all the way through the build to work out the most affordable solution. You can't rebuild these cheaply - I don't care what anybody says.

[BradfordS2]

Having rebuilt a lot of transmissions over the years and some for club members, I can probably add something to this.

There are a few companies who do this, but I've not heard anybody speak positively about any gearbox commercial operations. In their defence, the problem is how to build them economically. Even doing it privately, it is impossible to quote accurately until you actually have the box stripped down fully. Therefore many charge full whack, but rebuild with substandard parts. So much choice over sourcing quality parts means that the only way to do this is to work with the client all the way through the build to work out the most affordable solution. You can't rebuild these cheaply - I don't care what anybody says.

Very true. I rebuilt the gearbox on my restoration project, fully overhauled using as many original parts as I could, any new parts fitted were NOS or Genuine and it cost just short of £800. This has built the box into as good a box as possible without going to the expense of just replacing everything. Anyone who says they can get a reconditioned gearbox for around the £800 mark will be getting the bare minimum replaced with the cheapest parts possible.

[William]

I can't help for the north of scotland but don't discount local old school gearbox places - i've had good experiences with two: Bexhill Gearboxes in Hastings (which did an engineering report following a contretemps with a rogue in Northium) and Hardy Engineering in Leatherhead (which did some work on a Salisbury diff). Our gearboxes are simple affairs...although as noted above I can imagine rebuilds can be expensive.

[Sunny Jim]

I have a Whitehouse gearbox, but it was done about 17 years ago now! You get what you pay for, and their website offers quotes, so you may have some choice of what standard it is built to. It might depend on your anticipated mileage as to whether parts are replaced - a Land Rover gearbox will keep working for a long time in a very run down condition but may often end up with few or no salvageable internal parts!

I don't know what the supply of genuine old stock parts is like now, nor what currently available reproduction parts are like.

Definitely talk to Whitehouse to see what they say!

Sunny Jim

[Serious Series]

Hi all,  I appreciate that the club probably can't be seen to be endorsing any particular suppliers or services over another, but I wondered if anyone has any particularly strong recommendations for good gearbox rebuilders, especially in the north of Scotland? 
I'm rebuilding from the ground up and need to correct some play in the main shaft but just generally check the box over before I progress to the next phase.
I can travel the box if required!  Obviously other gearbox rebuilders are available too......

Many thanks indeed. John.

Main input shaft has a C3 clearance bearing so always some play at that point.
Was it the main shaft rear with the play?
What else is wrong with your gearbox?
Have you thought of stripping it down to have a look at what is required?
Quite a few videos on youtube showing how to strip down and repair.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=series+land+rover+gearbox+rebuild+

[mowog101]

I'm pleased to report that the encouragement to tackle the gearbox rebuild was fruitful. I am always reminded that generally things are never as bad as we big them up to be!  It's usually the anticipated to be easy or quick jobs that give us grief?
Box stripped and just of pitted bearings and gears replaced inc bushes, seals etc.
proof will be in the eating but all appears to be well with a pleasing firmness to selections and a smooth feel!  Anyone considering a box rebuild, take heart and have a look in there: it's not rocket science if you take it step by step, though a press helps a great deal! 
Now what's next on the to do list.....,

[Calum]

Having rebuilt a lot of transmissions over the years and some for club members, I can probably add something to this.

There are a few companies who do this, but I've not heard anybody speak positively about any gearbox commercial operations. In their defence, the problem is how to build them economically. Even doing it privately, it is impossible to quote accurately until you actually have the box stripped down fully. Therefore many charge full whack, but rebuild with substandard parts. So much choice over sourcing quality parts means that the only way to do this is to work with the client all the way through the build to work out the most affordable solution. You can't rebuild these cheaply - I don't care what anybody says.

Exactly why I don't really advertise doing gearbox rebuilds. I will do them, and enjoy doing them (once they're clean and on the bench!) but sourcing quality components is getting harder in some cases. As you say you really don't know what it'll need before you strip it and I'd rather let the customer decide where they want to spend the money. Agreed they can be very costly indeed in parts alone.