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A 521 in Massachusetts


Crashtd420

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On 11/17/2018 at 9:59 PM, wayno said:

This is the stock height for a 4 speed.

DSCN2215.jpg

This is the height needed for the 5 speed.

DSCN2218.jpg

I finally got around to getting the swap going.... you are definitely right about this... I'll need to drop the mount about 3/4", thanks for the heads up, I definitely missed that..... easy enough to fix....

And it looks like I need to order the 56mm bearing and a gasket....

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1 minute ago, datzenmike said:

With the adapter plate bolts out and trans horizontal, hammer forward on the flat part of the case around the starter.

So basically dont be a bitch and hit it.... 

I suppose I really dont need the old case if I get to aggressive ..... I'll get at it later with a bigger hammer and see what happens....

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I would not take the rear case off if it worked flawlessly like you said before, just take the front case off, replace the big bearing with the small bearing, maybe put a very thin layer of sealer on the case mating surfaces and put it together, I have never had one leak and I put nothing between them, I have never replaced the front cover gasket either, I have replaced the rear seal in a couple of them, but I have had a couple dozen of these transmissions apart over the years.

Do not hammer that front case with a sledge, I normally use a rubber hammer but have used a hammer also, I set the input shaft on a 4 inch long 2X4 so the case is unsupported on all sides and tap on it all around the edges till it drops down/off, then I take one of the bolts that hold the cases together and put it thru the tail housing and center piece and tighten them finger tight so they do not separate, that way I can test shift it before putting the front case on, I do this when looking at an unknown transmission.

I actually lost teeth on 5th gear the other day and had to remove the transmission and take it completely apart, there is a small pin on the shifter rod that you have to remove so you can get the shift mechanism to move to the side far enough to get it out of the selector section to get the rear case off, I suppose if one does this all the time it would be easy, but it was not easy for me to get it back together properly after replacing the bad gear, I do not take that til housing off unless I have to. 

Edited by wayno
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I don't know much about the 5 speeds, but the 4 speeds had needle bearings on the lay shaft that would go bad and wreck the shaft in the process. Just something to be aware of. I'm the type of person that would just rebuild the whole damn thing because I don't want to have to take it back out later.

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5 minutes ago, mainer311 said:

I don't know much about the 5 speeds, but the 4 speeds had needle bearings on the lay shaft that would go bad and wreck the shaft in the process. Just something to be aware of. I'm the type of person that would just rebuild the whole damn thing because I don't want to have to take it back out later.

I'll have a good look at it for anything obvious.... I ran this transmission before mounted all wrong obviously but I had zero issues with it.... shifted good and no weird sounds, and nothing on the drain plug, so I'm crossing my fingers..

hoping to avoid a full rebuild.... 

Worse case I'll always have the 4spd as backup.... I have an original mount and bracket on a parts 4spd i have, so once I mod the one in the truck to accommodate the 5spd it would be real easy to swap between them if neccessary..... 

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An yes wayno I'm pretty much doing it as you described... trying to keep it simple...

The 2 seals are cheap insurance and the cover gasket was only $7, so I bought that too..... 

The case is just being stubborn, I have it set up like you described, and I can see a sealant was used, but it just wouldnt crack loose... 

I'll keep at it....

Any thoughts on the little oil groove in the front cover?

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Can't hurt to cut one in yours. It just drains that cavity the shift rod ends are in.

 

The front case should part with light hammer blows.

 

Yes keep the rear case on unless you need to work on it. Getting the shifter back between the shift rod ends is a bitch. The first and second time I had one apart it was stuck in 5th. Good thing I checked.

 

 

7 hours ago, mainer311 said:

I don't know much about the 5 speeds, but the 4 speeds had needle bearings on the lay shaft that would go bad and wreck the shaft in the process. Just something to be aware of. I'm the type of person that would just rebuild the whole damn thing because I don't want to have to take it back out later.

 

Yup the 521 and the 510, 610, 710, A10 F4W63 4 speed has a needle bearing supported counter shaft. The 71B 4 and 5 speeds were ball bearing supported.

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nice. You win!

Is that trans removable without pulling the engine? I don't think I'd be able to worm my KA 5 spd trans out of mine very easily. I have looked at the frame to see how difficult it would be to make (or modify) a crossmember to be able to drop out for ease of servicing (and engine/trans combo install) I hate installing them separately and fighting to line things up.

So far all I have done is look and ponder...

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I sure hope it is,  I did it once before when I first bought the truck so I'm kind of going on that..... 

With the driveshaft,  rear mount and bracket removed I was able to slide the transmission far enough back putting the tail shaft over the crossmember then rotated and dropped the front down and out..... 

Hopefully it goes that easy.....

Edited by Crashtd420
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17 hours ago, greenthumb said:

nice. You win!

Is that trans removable without pulling the engine? I don't think I'd be able to worm my KA 5 spd trans out of mine very easily. I have looked at the frame to see how difficult it would be to make (or modify) a crossmember to be able to drop out for ease of servicing (and engine/trans combo install) I hate installing them separately and fighting to line things up.

So far all I have done is look and ponder...

This is one of the reasons I put a 750 chassis under my 520.  I now have a removable crossmember.

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Completely forgot to take any pics tonight..... nothing to interesting...

Friend came by tonight with a puller for that bearing, so I was able to get that removed.... still waiting on the parts to put it all back together....

Also got the truck up on jack stands to get ready to do the swap and keep things moving along.... my list of winters tasks seem to be a bit bigger than I thought.... just need to keep checking things off... 

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I think if you are removing the front case, you should also remove the rear case (tailhousing). Most times when trying to save the time, you actually create more of a job because now the rear section is likely to leak since the RTV got disturbed by all that banging.

 

FYI - I use a putty knife to split the cases, and if any burrs arise from that, I simply file them down before reassembly.

 

Use the right stuff RTV when putting it back together, and do not use a gasket on the front cover.

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On 12/6/2018 at 5:23 PM, Crashtd420 said:

Completely forgot to take any pics tonight..... nothing to interesting...

Friend came by tonight with a puller for that bearing, so I was able to get that removed.... still waiting on the parts to put it all back together....

Also got the truck up on jack stands to get ready to do the swap and keep things moving along.... my list of winters tasks seem to be a bit bigger than I thought.... just need to keep checking things off... 

 

20181204-132456.jpg

 

Looks like the 56mm is already on. Did you change it or is this the original because it sure looks like a 56.

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35 minutes ago, datzenmike said:

 

20181204-132456.jpg

 

Looks like the 56mm is already on. Did you change it or is this the original because it sure looks like a 56.

You had me second guess myself for a minute... no that's the 62mm bearing, I just remeasured it, and it definitely doesnt fit the L case.... 

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1 hour ago, Stoffregen Motorsports said:

I think if you are removing the front case, you should also remove the rear case (tailhousing). Most times when trying to save the time, you actually create more of a job because now the rear section is likely to leak since the RTV got disturbed by all that banging.

 

FYI - I use a putty knife to split the cases, and if any burrs arise from that, I simply file them down before reassembly.

 

Use the right stuff RTV when putting it back together, and do not use a gasket on the front cover.

I'll give it some thought but I really didnt wanna take the tail housing off.... but I see your point.. 

 

And I have the gasket stuff  you mentioned, I plan on using it... also to finally seal my oil pan...

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Removing the tailhousing is not a big deal. You will have to wiggle it around a bit to get it loose, but once you do, you can now see how it goes back together. It's always easiest to assemble everything while the trans is not in a gear, then the shift rail fingers all line up, making it easy to install the tailhousing.

 

This is not a corner I would cut.

 

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