Hi guys, Firstly I live in Ireland so please forgive if my terminology is a little different to you guys.

I have bought a barn-find 1961 F100 Step-side. It has a 292 motor which I managed to get fired up. There is no radiator so I only ran it for a few seconds, didnt sound too bad. The plan is to pull the motor and transmission & give them a bit of a refresh, but I was wondering, is there any way I can test the transmission without the engine running?

I have never worked on an automatic transmission & dont have the first clue about them, but I am a quick learner. I know these trucks are popular in the USA, but getting someone who knows anything about them in Ireland is difficult!.

The shifter on the steering column moves the linkage which is connected to the gearbox... sorry, transmission... The little arm moves up and down and sounds like it's clicking in and out of gears, however it doesnt matter what gear I select, the drive shaft can be turned by hand (rear wheels off the ground). Usually this means no gears are being selected....
That gives you an idea how clueless I am with auto-trans.... On the steering column the shift indicator has P-R-N-D-L Im guessing this is a 2 speed fordomatic box?
Is there anything I can do to test the transmission before it gets pulled?

Any advice or general ridicule will be gratefully accepted.
Thanks in advance

 

The only way to test an automatic transmission is with the engine running. I doubt that they would have put a 2 speed in a truck. I think it is most likely a 3 speed. The way to tell the difference in a 2-speed cruise-o and a 3-speed is look at the transmission. A 2-speed has a converter housing, "bell housing" and a one-piece transmission. A 3-speed cruise-o-matic has a converter housing, transmission housing and a tail shaft housing.
If the engine runs just start it up and put it in R and D and see if it moves. Just don't run through anything. Hopefully at least the emergency brake still works. It won't hurt the engine to run for a very short time without coolant.