Having given the errant Escort baulk ring a bit more of a hone, reassembly got underway again & this time everything was fine. No locking of gears on the synchro rings.
The nose cone, which is modified to take a concentric clutch release bearing, had a new oil seal fitted before being bolted into place.
The plan is to turn the bellhousing into a quick release unit but the method of running the hydraulics to the release bearing need sorting first.
The existing system uses a plate bolted to the bellhousing, with bulkhead unions. These have to be undone before the gearbox can be removed & then the pipes on the inside of the bellhousing have to be undone before the release bearing can be removed. Not a recipe for a quick box change.
