hey guys! haven't posted in a while, but i've been reading quite a bit of what you guys are posting! anyway, this weekend, my dad and i took a drive down to Casa Grande and visited Patrick's. met patrick and his son, and all the guys at the shop. very nice people and a pretty cool shop. they've got tons of stuff in the back lot, too. they gave me all kinds of ideas about fixing up my 235! (dual carbys, split exhaust, offy valve covers) they were talking up the saginaw conversion. any experiences or opinions on that? jon
I have patrick's Saginaw conversion, I am very happy with it. My 47' appears to be stock by retaining the closed shaft system. But....the Saginaw is already an obsolete tranny, they are getting scarcer and more costly. Replacement parts are hard to find in my experience. Tallying up the expense of the tranny, the conversion kit, still changing out the rear end gears and still having the leaky closed shaft....??? For my 53' I am going with the T5 overdrive tranny, someone already put in an open shaft drive in it. So some driveshaft shortening and a bolt in tranny seems easier and it is still a currently in use tranny and plentiful. Just Sayin'. Flashlight
Saginaw 4 speed conversion. Hi Jon Its Flashlight that inspired me to do the conversion but i have not installed the Saginaw tranny yet , i have weather non experiences of driving it myself , but i know it is a well proved solution many other truckdrivers recommend it. Combined with your 235 Ci engine and the 3.55:1 rearend conversion it should be great combination. In the mean while i am waiting for an answer from a US shop owner Greg Miller whom delivers manual overdrives. Normally these overdrives are bolt on solutions for the SM420 Munchie tranny but it seems that the overdrive can be installed in front of the Saginaw with a spesial adapter plate ? In that case i will go for that aswell. The leaking problem that Flashlight referes to is not commen but comes after normal wear and use as with any other closed system or transmission use. I went to overhaul the rearend , the shaft and the tranny before i start using the truck. I have some threads and pics. about the Saginaw tranny at this forum. Say my best hello to Patrick and Danise Dykes if you meet them again.Great people to deal with. Good luck and be happy to see your results. Martinius.
thanks guys! maybe i'll just stick with what's working now instead of making more work for myself. jon
