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OK, I'm going in. I have two C6 trannies. One is the original one from my '72 F-250 Camper Special, and was behind a 360 FE. The other one is later (I don't know the year) with the small bell housing to fit my 300 six. I've heard that some of these trannies are more heavy-duty than others. What are the chances that one of these is better than the other? How can you tell? I need to tear down the small block tranny, as I'm putting the shorter truck tailshaft on it You can't remove the long tailshaft without disassembling the tranny anyway, so I'll go ahead and clean things up and put in new wear parts while I'm at it. I'm just wondering if there's any point in tearing down the '72 tranny as well, or should I just rebuilt the small block unit and call it good? Do all of the internal parts fit either case?
AFAIK, you can stick the guts of any generation of C6 into the case of a different. I *don't* know if you can mix/match parts. Hopefully one of the guys that knows more will chime in.
Yeah, I wouldn't try to mix parts. Later units take a different rebuild kit than earlier ones. There must be a reason. I don't know the year of my small block one, but I believe it was from the 80's.
Ford made some changes late 71 or early 1972. There is a difference in input shaft splines 66-71 are 31/31 and 72 an up are 30/31 probably to keep mechanics from putting them in backwards. Also the earlier transmissions had the shifter detents in the valve body the later ones have the detents as part of the case. Other than that there isn't much of anything that won't swap. But if both of those transmissions are 72 and newer you should be able to swap anything in there. If the tags are still bolted to the servo covers that will tell you what they have in them. But odds are the C6 from the F250 is going to have more frictions and steels in the clutches than the I6 trans. A #9 needle bearing kit would be a good investment it will free up a lot of HP lost to friction in a C6.
My truck was built in May of '72, so it's a fairly late one. The smaller tranny I believe is much later. I have the tag from my truck, but don't have a tag from the small block tranny. Where does the needle bearing kit go?
My truck was built in May of '72, so it's a fairly late one. The smaller tranny I believe is much later. I have the tag from my truck, but don't have a tag from the small block tranny. Where does the needle bearing kit go?
The kit from Ford came with a new reverse ring gear hub, "stronger with more spline engagement" the bearing and a new one way clutch hub. The one way clutch hub is the last part come out when you take one apart. Actually you can use the original reverse ring gear hub with a #9 needle bearing kit even though it has notches in it for a thrust washer. Here is one on e-bay NEW OEM Ford Clutch Race Overrun Kit E9TZ-7D164-B F-150 F-250 E4OD 1989-1996 | eBay
Or call these folks and ask them about this part. 1989 on model years, Low Sprag Race & Bearing Kit (transmissioncenter.net)
If you plan on overhauling the trans yourself and you haven't done one before you will need a few special tools and at the very least a Haynes Ford transmission overhaul manual. They are actually quite simple to work on with a little guidance and attention to detail.
You need to decide in advance what you expect out of the trans and build it accordingly. They can be built to just go down the road and shift gears or to soak up 500 ft lbs of torque and put your Slurpee in the back seat every time it shifts.
I have the Haynes manual, and it looks like something I can handle. I'm a retired tool maker, so I'm used to working with complex precision stuff. It looks like cleanliness and attention to detail are key. Since this is going behind a fairly mild six, I think a quality kit should be able to handle it fine. No drag racing; more likely to haul a heavy trailer once in a while. The truck has a 3.73 Dana 69, so lots of low-end grunt.
I have the Haynes manual, and it looks like something I can handle. I'm a retired tool maker, so I'm used to working with complex precision stuff. It looks like cleanliness and attention to detail are key. Since this is going behind a fairly mild six, I think a quality kit should be able to handle it fine. No drag racing; more likely to haul a heavy trailer once in a while. The truck has a 3.73 Dana 69, so lots of low-end grunt.
About the only major suggestion I'd make, would be to throw a Heavy Duty-style shift kit in it, if you're going to have it apart anyway. I put a transgo stage 1 in the C6 in my 75, and it's certainly made it a more pleasant shifting transmission, instead of feeling like a bunch of slush.
Possible big set-back. In cleaning the crud off of the small block tranny, I see that the housing has been broken and repaired (welded) by one of the bell housing bolts. How exactly does one break such a place? The repair looks decent, so I'm going to start tearing it down this week. I need the small block housing, so it's gonna have to work, unless I can get another one cheap.
Honestly, it's a bit of a shame you're not closer, I've got 2 Windsor Pattern C6's literally sitting here. I'm always amazed how some people can manage to break things that you wouldn't think are breakable.
Possible big set-back. In cleaning the crud off of the small block tranny, I see that the housing has been broken and repaired (welded) by one of the bell housing bolts. How exactly does one break such a place? The repair looks decent, so I'm going to start tearing it down this week. I need the small block housing, so it's gonna have to work, unless I can get another one cheap.
Originally Posted by SFaulken
Honestly, it's a bit of a shame you're not closer, I've got 2 Windsor Pattern C6's literally sitting here. I'm always amazed how some people can manage to break things that you wouldn't think are breakable.
Well I'm one of those who broke a mounting ear off a C-6 transmission, 1968 Shelby GT500. I had pulled the engine but not the transmission so while trying to align them did not have them precisely mated, tried wrestling them together by hand laying under the vehicle on jack stands, thought to pull them together with the transmission bolts---SNAP.
I did find a stellar welder who was able to fix the case and that transmission lasted at least another 5 years before the entire car was sold. Yes I was dumb and inexperienced so that's ONE way such crap happens. BTW I've never again had that same issue---learned a lot from that screw up I did.
Well I'm one of those who broke a mounting ear off a C-6 transmission, 1968 Shelby GT500. I had pulled the engine but not the transmission so while trying to align them did not have them precisely mated, tried wrestling them together by hand laying under the vehicle on jack stands, thought to pull them together with the transmission bolts---SNAP.
I did find a stellar welder who was able to fix the case and that transmission lasted at least another 5 years before the entire car was sold. Yes I was dumb and inexperienced so that's ONE way such crap happens. BTW I've never again had that same issue---learned a lot from that screw up I did.
Yeah, that'd be a way to do it, alright. Glad it's a mistake you only made once.
I got it torn down yesterday; so far, so good. The one-way bearing is shot, as a lot of the springs are broken off, so I'll be replacing that. Some of the splines are broken on the clutch discs, but I'll be replacing them any way. I haven't taken apart the sub-assemblies such as the clutch packs. I figure I'll do those once I have a rebuild kit in hand. Any suggestions on a quality kit for a street tranny? Prices seem to range from $100 to 'you've-got-to-be-kidding!'
The more expensive ones generally contain more of the parts that you will need. The $100 kits usually only have the frictions and seals and not much else. You get what you pay for. I would go ahead and tear down those clutch packs. That way you can tell what condition the pressure plates are in. If you put in a #9 needle bearing kit you will get a new race for the one way clutch. If those rollers and springs are damaged they can mess up that race. That one way clutch and the forward clutch are what holds 1st gear in drive. If you are going to put a C6 into a hard pull it needs to be in low that way the forward clutch, one way clutch and the low reverse clutch are holding in 1st.
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