81-84 4 speed manual in a 67-72

[davidh]

Okay a few days ago I saw a thread where people are talking about manual trannies. One person said they like the 4 speed overdrive manual from a 81-87 truck. I think I know where one of these is laying and I can get cheap.
some questions
1. Is the tranny compatiable with the stock clutch or is it hydraulic?
2. What's the ration of 4speed final drive? It says OD on the shifter. Most 4 and 3 speeds share the final ratio (1:1 I think)
3. This tranny is behind a 6cyl my truck has a 6cy but I may go to a V8 later will it handle this okay? Is it a light duty tranny?
4. Who else has done this with their truck? What tranny mounts were used? and changes in drive line? Shifter mount okay in the truck? Any issues and how did you like it?

A overdrive would be great. anything for a little extra mileage.

[Green Machine]

I did the swap and it seems good to me. Overdrive ratio is .73. Pretty much a bolt in deal and they are a very beefy tranny, bigger than a Muncie for sure. My shifter sits in a good spot, but the 6 cylinder mounts about 3 inches father back which move the shifter back toward the seat, might have clearance problems with a bench seat. Do a search under my user name, I have several posts about this.

The shifter is in the neutral position in this pic, you can just barely see the edge of the seat at the bottom of the picture, My setup is a V8 mounted in the "correct" forward position.

[69_hafton]

Hey David,

I'm in the middle of doing this right now. Depending on the tranny you use, you can either use the stock 67-72 bell housing and mounts (for a 4 speed - don't know if 3 speed is the same). There are 2 different bolt patterns for mounting the bell housing. Early trans had half chevy half dodge bolt pattern. Latter trans had all chevy bolt pattern. You can use either tranny, but with the early trans you have to use an automatic crossmember in your truck. With the chevy bolt pattern, the stock clutch and flywheel should work, at least with the 67-72 bell. If you want to go hydraullic, you could with a different bell.

These trannies came in 1/2 ton trucks, beyond that I don't know about their durability. Should be fine behind a stock 350, but not as strong as the 3 or 4 speeds that came in these trucks originally. You could probably replace the rear gearing for less $ for better mileage. If you do go with one of these, make sure you get the shifter and linkage (and preferably the bell housing also). This is probably more info than what you thought you wanted, but there's alot to these swaps. Your driveshaft will need modified, unless you've got an automatic with a 26 spline slip yoke.

Here's a good link for more research:
http://www.inliners.org/cgi-bin/ulti...c;f=2;t=000453

I've attached a photo of how dodge did their shift in their truck with this tranny - wish I could find one of these shifter surrounds, along with the tranny I rebuild with the oddball bolt pattern.