MTFCA Forum

Do you have to take hh off to put kevlar bands in? Josh.

Should not have to. Feed the reverse band in first and work backwards. Also, that depends on if you have quick change or not.

Yes, you should if you want to keep them ROUND !

Assuming you have removable ears on your bands & the later HH my experience is it can be done as Mark stated. be careful not to force or
twist the band & get it out of round or shape. Some will disagree, I've done it several times. I have done this for someone that got reverse
band all the way up up in the triples and it took 2 hours to get it out. The band tool is a great help. stuff rags in so not to loose any nuts or
washers. Count the rags.
Craig.

YES DEFINITELY Kevlar bands must be perfectly round conforming to the drum.
Any deviation risks rubbing, friction, heating & a broken drum. DO NOT take that chance.
Remember that kevlar lining is unforgiving, but lasts forever.

Kevlar bands properly installed & operated will go many thousand miles.
So the install job with removal of the HH is basically only once.

My Humble Opinion.

I have Kevlar on 2 of my cars. Be sure the notch and ramps are good on low and ramps on reverse and low are good and that the pedal is tight about an inch above the floorboard and completely releases in neutral. When I am waiting at a red light I like to pull the parking brake into neutral until it is time to move, then start out in low and release when I want to shift to high. It is very easy to have the pedal down just a bit too far when waiting in neutral and that could heat the drum. I have wood bands on my other T. They also last a long time but tend to chatter. All bands should be as completely round as you can get them and also the correct length with the end rivets installed first and the lining pushed against the band so there are no spaces where the band is stretch between 2 rivets. They must be completely against the band all the way around. They last a long time when correctly installed and used properly.
Norm

You can do it with the hogs head in place, but it’s far from “easy”. They tend to snag just before popping up from the deep. Many new cuss words can be learned, etc. A heavy wire, bent just so, with a hook on the end helps to pull that them thru that sticky spot. Keeping them round is very unlikely in the process. Round is much better than not-round. They’ll still work but…. Now, on the other hand, removing the hogs head in the car is a whole ‘ nother level of suck. Taking it off is easier than putting it back on and lining up the clutch dog. A chain fall and an improvised lifting band makes it more civilized and less finger damaging. Now a days, I prefer to pull the engine out, mount it on my stand and go at it in an orderly fashion. Remove the HH, re-line and put it all back together. It takes time, but it’s a winter time thing anyway. 4 hours out, 4 hours in. Bands are round. And, I still have 10 fingers.

There is some good advice on some of these posts. You can shove them in with the hog's head in place, but the spring steel bands will not be round when done this way. Cotton bands make it easier with the hog's head on, but with Kevlar, just save yourself time and pull the HH to have concentric bands and a job that will last for many years. Make certain to bend your bands to a good round shape before relining - you will find many bands sprung too far open. And then keep them this way during installation by removing the hog's head. It only costs a nickel more to go first class in a case like this one. I like Dave Young's post about pulling the motor as landing the hogs head on a motor stand is some much easier than leaning over a running board and working inside a passenger compartment. Also, an aluminum hogs head is much easier than the later model steel cast pieces which get heavier each year with age it seems. If anyone is interested, there is a procedure to help land the hog's head after installing new band.

I wouldn't mind learning your procedure to replace the hogshead, Stu.