After finding leak after leak, I decided to take the motor out of the ol truck and rebuild it. Replaced a lot of worn out parts and such, no major issues gettin the motor back together. Here comes the issue though: Upon dropping the motor back into the engine compartment, getting the transmission and engine lined up, and starting to slide the pilot shaft into the engine....it will not go in the rest of the way.

No amount of wiggling, pushing, re leveling or any of this will do any good. That last inch or so will not go in. Out of ideas, so I come you the people of FTE.

86 f150, 300 I6, 4 speed manual 4x4.

 

Hello...Is it the right pilot bearing? Does shaft have any burrs from moving it around? Sometimes a man has to put the bolts in that will thread up and slowly and carefully cinch it together by wrenching the bolts on either side and top and bottom the same number of turns keeping it aligned until it slips in or bolts all the way up.

If you do this...watch for anything that may be getting in the way...

All this advice is just a thought...Good Luck,

Pete

 

I made two studs out of bolts (cut the heads off, cut a slot to use with a screwdriver) and
screwed 'em into the two top holes, THEN attached the transmission using the studs as
a guide.

 

did you put the motor plate back on?

 

In this case it is my suggestion to get someone in the truck cab and push in on the clutch pedal while you are pushing and wiggling on the tranny. That should make it go if it's just an alignment problem.

 

What Franklin2 just said.... what I did is rotate the output shaft of the tranny to get the splines
to line up (or so I seem to remember).

 

put the trans in gear and turn the tailshaft while pushing in on the trans. should slip in. did you use an alignment tool?

 

thanks for all the replies. I've already tried the bolt on either side trick. It still didn't want to pull together. I did put the plate back on before droppin the engine in, and I used an alignment tool when putting the clutch plate back on.

 

Also, its a new pilot bearing and I made good and sure to clear any old debris and the like from the shaft.

 

I have used the alignment tool before, and still had to get my wife to push in on the clutch to get a stubborn one to go in place.

 

sounds like a plan for tomorrow then...will let yall know what happens

 

Be careful pulling it in with the bolts. If the splines aren't lined up with the shaft, you can bend the plate. This you won't know it's bent, until you go to put the truck in reverse, and it grinds, instead of going into gear.Take a small dab of grease and coat the end of the shaft, to help it slip a bit when you push it in.

 

Possibly dumb questions here.. Did you wipe a very thin film of grease on the input shaft splines, and the input shaft where it contacts the pilot bushing/bearing? You mentioned using a clutch alignment tool - when you were done tightening the pressure plate, did the alignment tool slip out easily? If it was difficult to get out, that might indicate the clutch slipped a little from center. Did you lightly grease the tranny nose (aka input shaft bearing retainer) - where the throwout bearing rides? Sometimes the throwout bearing can get cocked and hang up. If you've pulled the tranny completely out after an unsuccessful attempt, does the pilot bushing/bearing show any evidence of the input shaft hitting it? Mis-alignment and then trying to force it a little might have raised a burr or dinged it..

 

Havn't gotten out to work on it today yet, but yes, the alignment tool came out easily after the bolts were tightened. I did put a thin coating of grease on the input shaft to make sure that it could slide in easier. It just seems that when the teeth on the input shaft get to where the pilot bearing is, it just doesnt go any further.

 

OK, light grease is good. Another maybe dumb question - did you test-fit the pilot bearing on your tranny input shaft before installing into the crank? Maybe you were given the wrong bearing? But anyway, assuming the pilot bearing is the correct one, the suggestions others made above are your next things to try, and you may need to do them both at the same time.

1) shift the tranny into gear and turn the output shaft while wiggling/shoving it forward.

2) have a helper push the clutch in (assuming your clutch release mechanism is hooked up) while you are turning the output shaft and pushing it forward.

If everything is reasonably aligned, and it sounds like it is, it should go, at least as far as to where the input shaft bearing retainer meets the bell housing bore.