B2610 Torrington update for early Harley four gear ratchet top transmission

Here is a good option worth considering if you are considering a transmission rebuild.

The hardened bushing where the loose bearings run on the fourth gear need to be line lapped to insure the exact tolerance and perfect alignment between both the rollers and cage at this end and the sealed ball bearing from the other. To do that you will need to have the correct lapping tools and a bit of time.

To modify the loose bearing early style Harley transmission to a newer style Torrington bearing,  like a late 4 speed tranny, you will need to have access to a machine shop or have a friend who could take care of the work for you. Start with the race itself, either you take it apart and machine the inside with a ceramic insert due to the hardness of the sleeve (I've also tried that option in the past) or simply make a new sleeve bushing out of good quality steel.

Here I'm pointing to the inside of the race to be removing.

After prying out the circlips from the inside, you will have to press the inside race outside the case with a custom made shaft or some kind of big insert. You can only push from the inside out.
Seen here is a custom made tool to press out the race.

Once out, you can measure the inside of the case and determine the size of the new bushing to be made, or measure the old one to give you an idea (inside ID versus press fit) you can take measurement of the old cage and check the inside of the case also.

Here is the hardened sleeve out with the newer style bearing, you decide if you want to machine the inside of the hardened sleeve or make a new one.

When the machining is done, clean everything with brake cleaner and use Loctite primer 7649 on both parts then press the new sleeve bushing by pressing from the outside to the inside. Then secure the snap ring on the outside of the sleeve from the inside, check to see if measurement is within specification at 2.000 inches inside diameter to fit the newer bearing.

Then you need to press the new B2610 Torrington style caged bearing, so the next time you or someone else rebuilds that transmission, you will only have to take that bearing apart and press a new one in.

Note: In this case I also have to machine a small step in the inside face of the new Andrews gear to fit the newly install inside race. The customer had ordered a newer style gear for the older style bearing, here is the gear also machine.

Note: if you want to reuse older style gear you will have to remove .004 inches of material from where the loose rollers run on the gear (older gear with loose bearing have a dimension of approximately 1.629 inches compare to newer one at 1.625 inches). I am normally doing this a the same time I machine the step to bring another small main shaft seal at the end of the fourth gear to stop them from leaking.

I know some still prefer to use the loose roller bearings and line lap the race to fit oversize rollers. It is always a personal choice, I had used both methods and now prefer using the caged Torrington bearing to run on the fourth main gear. I also use Torrington style B1212 on both ends of the counter shaft cluster gear, even for early trannys that used to run with loose bearing. Sorry, but I I don’ t have pictures of those.

Hope this helps those of you in the process of rebuilding your old ratchet top tranny.

Ray Duguay (Saddlebagrail)