Four-speed rebuild

[Camshaft78]

I found a transmission rebuild kit on ebay. Since the previous owner beat the snot out of the tranny, I figure that it might be worth it to rebuild. Anyone used this kit before? Also, should I get the brass synchros?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=46103&item=7983961457&rd=1

 

[Blue Thunder]

Get a good rebuild service manual, too!

 

[Addicted_2_II]

I am afraid that I am not going to be a lot of help! I also purchased this kit with the Syncro's but eneded up not using them! I had 2 tranny's and thought they were both bad. But I broke into both of them to find that one had just been rebuilt and then sat on a shelf for 5 years. So I kind of lucked out.

I will just warn you that I looked and looked for someone to do the rebuild for me and no one would touch it, everyone said it was a very tricky rebuild and I did not want to try it myself!

Not sure if that was any help but I thought I would try,
Chad

 

[eaglecap]

I rebuilt my 4-spd. this year. Did not get the kit from Spencer but I should have. His would have been cheaper. I did not find him until after I bought my kit thru the local Car-Quest auto store. I also needed an input shaft and worked with Spencer. He could only find a used one but his prices were good and the kit on e-bay looks like the kit I got. Car Quest also found me a new input shaft. Tx kit with gaskets and synchro rings cost me $77.01. Input shaft and bearings cost me $172 for a grand total of $242.01.

Tranny rebuild is a pain but doable. Lot of knuckle skin left behind. I had to tear it down and put it back together 3 times because I 1.) put a gear in wrong and 2.) smashed the oil feed ring keeper when I put it together the 2nd time.

Hints: Get a GOOD Strong pair of ring pliers. Pay close attention to how things come apart. Get some very sticky grease to put the needle bearings back in.

 

[Camshaft78]

Thanks for all of your help guys. Right now I have money but no time, but the opposite will be true in a few months, so right now i'm collecting parts for a full teardown and rebuild of my engine, transmission, and rear axle, which I plan on doing during the long Ohio winter. Another question, occasionally I see Hurst shifters popping up here and there on eBay, what should I expect to pay for one?

 

[Dano78]

Yeah I've used his kits on more than several occasions. Transmissionexchangeco or use to be knowns here locally as All-Trans is right here in Portland, about 15 minutes from here.

These really aren't all that bad at all, and actually really easy. True, the snap rings are stiff as all heck, so cheapie snap ring pliers are useless.

For that needle bearing issue, I just got a small chunck of round stock steel that's the exact diameter as the intermediate shaft and cut it the exact length of the intermediate gear assembly. With that chunk of steel installed after the needle bearings are put in, drop in the whole shebag and just push out the dummy shaft as you're feeding in the actual shaft. Works slick as ice.

As far as the synchro rings are concerned, you may or may not need them. Hard to really tell till you rip it apart. If you're having trouble getting it into certain gears like 2nd for example, i've actually found that a trashed output (or input depending on the bad gear exchange) will also cause what could be mistaken as a bad synchro. Since the mainshaft is a 2 piece unit (as most are) each bearing take a different type of load. And being that they are large ball bearing type bearings, they're not really good for stress. I could go on and on about all the faults and things I've found with the RAD but don't really have the desire to type it all out!

It's really not a big deal as long as you take your time and pay close attention to where everything goes.

 

[innocentfool]

thats some good info, my KC is hard to get into second gear when in the torque curve and pops out when deaccelerating, sound like i gotta take it apart to find the fault, although it is summer.......

 

[Camshaft78]

Thanks for the tips. As far as a service manual, all I have are the Chilton's and Hayne's books. Will these suffice or will I have to track one of these books down? Another question, has anyone found a really nice aftermarket clutch for these cars? I was thinking about upgrading that as well. Does Centerforce make a clutch for our cars?

 

[Dano78]

The Haynes one is the one i used, I believe. As long as it has a really good picture where you can tell what's what.

Clutches, well, I'm not sure. I think mine was a Ram Performance clutch. To be really honest with you, don't waste your money. If the clutch won't absorb the abuse you're gonna put on it, the tranny will and let me tell ya, it won't last long at all. Those RADs are REALLY light duty. Step up and get at least a Motorsoprts T-5.