MTFCA Forum

Hi folks,

A friend bought a rebuilt engine from someone on here with an untouched transmission (but new bands). There does not appear to be any bolts holding the hogshead down, and there are no bolts or nuts holding the bands together... Pedals are loose.

Can anyone please direct me to what parts he will need? Photo attached. Also need the bolts that secure the hogshead to the pan.

That transmission and cover look nasty. The bolts are the least of the problems. You (or owner) need to get some books - start with the black Service Manual and the Transmission booklet, both available from the regular vendors. If mine, I'd be taking that assembly apart, cleaning and inspecting, and then plan on spending some money on parts. If not comfortable doing that work, you need either a hands on mentor to advise and assist or someone with experience to rework it for you. Good luck with this.

At a minimum you'll need 3 #3425 springs, 2 #3415 lock washers, and 2 #3426 nuts these parts on the brake and reverse, , the low pedal uses the just a spring, as the adj. screw outboard does the work.

Get a gasket set too, #3416GS for the hogshead. The bolt set with lock washer and hex nuts, for the complete pan, is #3100BS-RE, 84 pieces.

Above are Lang's Old Car Auto Parts, www.modeltford.com

I am with Walt.
There is nothing in this picture that says to me: "Please just button me up".
The list of items I see is long...the list I suspect is longer...just looking at the low and brake drums looks like they are rusted and pitted and if that is the case, it's operational life will be very short. Mind you, as they shred the Kevlar, that very tough fiber will be deposited throughout that rebuilt engine.

Buy a book and plan on spending a surprising amount of time and money.

sorry

This engine was supposedly rebuilt by Bill Stafford in MA and was bought from John Iaccino. Hopefully he is trustworthy? He said the transmission was in excellent running shape, but has been sitting with a loose cover for a decade or longer. Pretty sure it's just dust youre seeing but I can check another day when I'm by the engine. I don't think the drums are pitted or rusty, it's just grease and dust sticking to it. The small photo size doesn't help either.

There is also the possibility of swapping the rebuilt block to the old transmission. It looks to be in good shape

Since the engine and transmission are not in a car it would be good time to remove the transmission cover since it’s not bolted down. Now would be the time to check out the condition of the drums and etc. Just sitting over several years and not covered it accumulated dust, grime and started to rust. That being said dirt, rust and grime doesn’t make it a bad transmission.
I would remove the cover and bands and clean the drums the best you can and inspect closely for anything you can see. If things check out buy the necessary parts as was suggested.
Before you put it back together buy the Ford service manual, and the MTFCA transmission book to guide you in reassembly of the engine. They can guide you in what you need to do or repair.

I'm going to go check the engine out now and verify the condition of the drums. Hopefully it is indeed just heavy grime.... Don't see why someone would change the bands if those drums were that bad. I'll update soon.

John A

best of luck and good choice to inspect/clean everything. Time spent now will save lots of time later.

If by chance it has oil slingers instead of mag ring check to see if the bolts on slingers have locktite on them. I purchased a trans ready to,install without checking. Less than 300 miles on it one came loose. From now on I will do my own repairs. Learned the hard way.

From the picture it looks like the middle drum has some wear in the center. So be prepared for that. It’s doesn’t mean it’s not usable. That’s fairly normal for a used transmission. It’s got a lot of life left in it. Good luck.

The gentleman bought the engine and tranny from me. I told him that the tranny was in good shape, but not rebuilt. I also informed him the all the hardware for the bands was not installed. The Kevlar bands were given to him free of charge, which was not part of the original deal. He was also informed that the hogshead was only put on the engine to keep out the mice. I had figured that if I used this engine and tranny on one of my own cars, I would put a good hogshead on at that time. I also told him the I did not do anything with the magneto due to the fact that I run a distributor. The condition of the magneto is unknown. I would not hesitate to install the unit in one of my own cars, but have not needed it for over 10 years so I figured it was time to let it go. He also has been told the I will offer a full refund with no questions asked if he decides not to keep it. I can't do more than that. This is a small hobby and I have been involved in it for over 50 years. My word and reputation are worth more than the cost of an engine.

John

Thank you John for your response! Sorry if I came across as rude, I didn't mean to sound like that. He didn't tell me the details, so I wasn't sure what the condition was.

No problem, johnny, my offer to refund the money stands. John

Engine looks nice so far, I might blackwash it (thinned black paint). Can't even turn it by hand so I know it hasn't been run! Can't wait to hear it when I get it in for him. Haven't heard a new t engine purr yet.

John I. - My comments above reflect what I would do if this transmission were mine. It was not intended as a reflection on you as the seller. The photo doesn't do the unit proud and just as a general rule for myself - when I get used parts I always take them apart, clean, check for fitness, and then reassemble. It gives me a feeling of confidence and it is just so much easier to do any potential repairs before the assembly is installed and in the car. I just went through that on a used V8 transmission that was destined for my Model A. While it looked good one thrust bearing was tired and the input shaft bearing was a little noisy. Easy to resolve on the bench where I ended up replacing all the bearings out of general principles.

Walber, no offense was taken by your comments. If I were in your shoes, I would probably do the same. Having worked on T's for 50 years, I was confident that the tranny was in good shape. I have seen these Model T trannys run when they looked like they could fall apart. This tranny is not new, but it is tight and very usable. John

Just checked it out in detail yesterday.

Reverse drum is smooth, brake drum has very minor roughness, the high low drum has some pitting. Light rust coating everything inside. Might just take the bands and swap them into the old transmission which has smooth and shiny drums and move the block to the other trans.

Either someone burned the drums and didn't know how to drive or it sat in a leaky barn without a cover on.

John, I'll take your word on this... Would you use this transmission as is with all the pitting with Kevlar?

If you have a tranny with smooth drums, I would use that one.