good evening - just a quick update here.. i know this thread has somewhat ended.. i just wanted to post the pictures of my process in hopes that in either helps or inspires others who may experience the same thing. hope this helps and please bear with me as i post a handful of photos. cheers ya'll.
oh yea, and some things to add from my experience - i didn't have a transmission jack, which i really worried about, but once i got all six mounting bolts removed from the bell housing it really wasn't that bad to move around (i even left the transfer case connected!). re-installation was a little more a pain in the @$$, but, with patience and hardworking, i was able to get it slid back up to the engine nice and tight. only had about an 1/8" gap between flex plate/flywheel and torque converter. i thought that was going to be an issue but it bolted right up. i use one of those 500watt construction lamps - WHOA. so much 'warm' light!! the damn thing is HOT!! burnt myself a couple of times.
but i'd rather have the light any day. overall - i enjoyed this process. learned a lot about myself on this journey!!
went with an authentic DENSO starter from CNC fab up in Defiance, Ohio... i'm from a small town southeast of there called Bluffton. it was nice to deal with a small business back near my hometown.
enjoy the photos.. hope it helps! cheers.



this happened right from the beginning of the project - i took it as a sign of things to come and new i was doomed.. i wasn't! just a tired old claw hammer.

working to improvise my floor jack into a transmission jack

HOT work lamp with plenty of light!

getting started and sizing up the trans...

plenty of workspace and cardboard to help absorb the mess

shafts out, plates out, all the jacks and shoring in place..

two floor jacks, two jack stands and a bottle jack! overkill! though, i was nevous b/c i opted to leave the transfer case connected. that's a lotta' weight up there..

belly of he beast!! success!! i only slid the trans backwards about 6" or so.. just enough to get a ratchet up there on the flywheel.

it was nice to see a reminder of the work JWT did for me back in 2016. helluva guy, what an experience visiting his shop. totally recommend to all!

shoring to the max!!

shoring to the max again. once i had it all supported, i found i really only needed the orange floor jack buildup to help manipulate the trans. one thing for sure - BE CAREFUL UNDER THERE. it's a lot of weight if it all came wobbling down.

 

Great pictures and notes.

How did you move the transmission backward away from the engine when the wheels of the floor jack were perpendicular to the direction of movement?

 

i thought about that too when i was designing the transmission jack. initially i inch-wormed the bottle jack, jack stands and AFT floor jack and then moved the front floor jack a little bit. once i got to the point of pulling the trans from the engine i realized it was all or nothing once i pulled it.. and when all my shoring supported the trans/xfer case, i slowly removed the floor jacks and the bottle jack and was left with mainly the orange floor jack up under the trans. the AFT black floor jack was there for support too, but i was able to just wriggle and wiggle and somewhat shimmy/slide the entire assly AFT and down about 3 inches. worked out pretty good with just the orange floor jack. i'm stoked it all worked out.