How do i adjust the 3 speed properly? Until i receave the 4 speed tranny that comes in august this year i still have to drive with the 3 on the colum. After ì have installed the 235 engine and the connections to the gearbox everything just looks working when i moove it by hand. But it is very hard to get it into second and third and reverse? Some suggestions to help me out with this one? Thanks Martinius
Put your shifter into the neutral position and then take the 7/8" (22mm) sized plug off the top of the selector box that is at the lower end of the shifting rod on the column. It has spring teeth just like a chassis plug and usually pops right off with a thin bladed screwdriver. Use several shop towels to reach through the hole and wipe the grease off till you can see the notches in the 1st and reverse and in the 2nd and 3rd selector levers. These notches are about 3/8" to 1/2" wide (9.5 to 12.5mm) and must be aligned to each other. If one is out of alignment then loosen the clamp nut on the top of shifter rod--either one, and move that arm till the notches inside the selector box are aligned. This will make the transition from 1st to 2nd through the neutral gate be correct. If there is still binding take both shift rods that go down to the shift arms on the transmission loose at the column and work by hand and also work the shift lever in the cab while the rods are disconnected. This will isolate where the binding is. When working the rods by hand be sure to leave the opposite one in the neutral position or the other one can't work since you'd be trying to put into two gears at the same time. Also, I still can't get to my parts trucks to measure the brake drums. It has rained around 16 inches, since May 1st, at the shop while my home 40 miles to the soutwest has had 2 inches.
3 speed adjustment Well thank you Sir.I will start working on it to day an see how it works out. Martinius
Question for Coilover along those same lines. My 3 speed column shifter functions fairly well, but if I let it, second gear will engage okay, but the shifter can keep on going and swing around to the other side of the steering column. What is up with that? I don't remember it doing that before my restoration? I did, btw, shorten the 1st/revrse lever to accomodate an Offy intake. You are most helpful and thanks for any light you can shed on this minor anoyance. terry
The shortening of one lever could be the problem if it lets the 2nd/3rd selector (inside the box) move far enough past the 1st/reverse selector to give a gap big enough for the tang that engages the selectors to pass through. The other possibility is there is too big a gap between the 1st/reverse and 2nd/3rd selectors inside the box. If the gap is greater than the tang is thick then it could pass between them. Next time the lever is swung over to the other side why don't you take the cover off the box and see where there is a gap large enough for the tang to pass through. If the gap between the selectors is too large you can put a shim between the bottom selector and the housing to move it up closer to top one.
I make my shims to size but realize most home shops don't have a lathe. After you see how much play you want to eliminate by using a feeler gauge between the housing and the lower selector then here is a trick that works well. Find a washer that is the correct thickness and the right outside diameter. Lay the washer on top of a socket that is just slightly smaller than the OD of the washer and grip with a properly adjusted Channel-Loc pliers. If you have a drill press you can have the socket/washer/pliers on the table and do the drilling yourself but if not one person can hold the setup and another do the drilling. This is the only way I've found to make a large hole in a small washer without the washer bending and wrapping around the drill bit. Other sources for shims are valve spring shims that come in many sizes and thickness and if a thicker ones are needed the washers that come with aluminum wheel lug nuts might fit the bill. A Dremel tool will also enlarge a hole without twisting it all up. Before getting deeply involved I'd make a "U" shaped shim that could be temporarily slipped into the gap by just removing the top cover. If it helps then proceed, otherwise look somewhere else for the problem.
Hello, I'm new here and just bought a 1949 pickup. It is all original. I have had it for a week. The 3 on the tree was working great for two days and then it wouldn't shift into 2nd and 3rd gear. If I got it into 2nd and 3rd, it wouldn't go back to 1st/reverse. I took the steering shift housing cover off and saw the mechanism described in this feed. I also found what used to be a shim in the grease. With the cover off, I could move the shift lever between all gears. When I put the cover on and took it for a drive, I couldn't get it out of first gear. I suspect worn or out of adjustment parts. Is there a place I can buy a whole new housing? What are the clearances I'm looking for if I have too much slop in the housing? Thanks
