Hope someone can help me out with this. I have a 1979 F150 longbed 2WD with a 3speed. Trying to convert it to a T18.

Here is the problem. The 3 speed driveshaft has a slip yoke going into the tail shaft of the transmission. The T18 I am putting in is setup to have the driveshaft U-joint bolted directly to the output shaft. The T18 came from a 78 short bed, so I can't use it.

Did Ford make a "1" piece driveshaft with a slip joint long enough for my application, or am I stuck with having to go to a 2 piece shaft?

 

This thread is headed for the drivetrain forum where professionals are standing by to help with this.

 

Hello-

The longbed truck with that short T-18 transmission will require the 3 piece driveshaft with carrier bearing. Unfortunately there is some plain old physics going on here with the length of the shaft and harmonic vibrations etc. Find the driveshaft for a longbed with the carrier bearing and bolt it up. You may need to match the rear U-joint to your application. Any GOOD parts store or driveline shop can get the right U-joint by matching the cap diameters and distance across.

 

Thanks for the info.

Just out of curiosity, where is the carrier bearing suposed to mount? I went to my local salvage yard, the gentleman there handed me a front shaft with bearing to verify on my truck (I already bolted the tranny into the truck). Only problem is, the bearing from that shaft lines up with the back of the cab, not the crossmember 4 or so inches in front of it.

There is a crossmember behind the transmission mount, near the back of the cab. It has several holes drilled in it, I am assuming Ford made 1 longbed frame with all holes necessary no matter which shaft is used. I just want to make sure I'm not missing something.

 

Hey, I just looked at my pictures, and you can sortof see the carrier bearing in the underside pics in my galleries. The carrier mounts to the crossmember that has the rear cab mounts on it. There should be a drop down bracket. I think you are looking for a driveshaft that I have laying out in my back yard. If you need more info, let me know and I will look and measure for you. Ted

 

Hey, I just looked at my pictures, and you can sortof see the carrier bearing in the underside pics in my galleries. The carrier mounts to the crossmember that has the rear cab mounts on it. There should be a drop down bracket. I think you are looking for a driveshaft that I have laying out in my back yard. If you need more info, let me know and I will look and measure for you. Ted

Hey, I just posted twice