4 speed suggestions

heh.. i haven't even gotten my 69 back on teh road yet but it looks like that will happen with just the tierods, intermediate shaft and one borgeson steering universal to go!

and of course i am already thinking of another potential upgrade. ( there really needs to be a 12 step program for this "hobby" )

currently have a t14 trans (3spd) the low end isn't as low as i might like. the dana 18 xfer case w/warn od is fine. diffs are 4.88 as my signature says. 225 v6. any good suggestions for an "straight forward" 4 spd swap with a nice decent low 1st gear.

not looking to do any extreme rockbashing just like to be able to crawl along when needed and "feel the torque" that and there's nothing like the grind and whine of kaiser in first gear lowrange 4wd... sigh...

just want to be prepared in case the right tranny comes to me at a too good to pass up price ( aka free or almost)

 

Do some searches here for SM420, SM465 and T18. Should answer all your questions or confuse the stink outta ya so you have some more questions.

 

A t-10 will also work but not very desireable.. SM-420 is the way to go (easiest).. adapter is $$$$ though

 

Lots of good tranny info on the Novak sight.
The short answer is SM-420 but don't pass up a cheap or free SM-465.
I first looked in to lower low range gears in the t-case but the SM-420 is way better for me.

 

sm420 is the best choice imho. lowest of the low first gears, second is synchronized and if used from a slow roll, or if yer on a steep hill and the engine dies and you are in low range and in granny low, you can climb a short distance by using the starter motor untill the engine fires.
The internal parts are so robust, they look like they were injected with steroids :evil:
The pic below is a T86 T90 cluster gear next to an SM420 1st and Reverse gear. The old jeep is so much easier to drive with a synchronized first (actually second) and a low first, that will crawl without locking hubs and shifting T-case.
Dont believe it when they say parts are hard to find. Seriously it is a robust transmission that was used for many years, up to dump truck sizes, and everything in the drive train will break before it does.
Many jeepers have slammed bearings and gaskets into a 420 with 200k on the clock and never had a problem.

 

here's an off nominal reply. A friend and i went halves (75/ea) on a 1978 ford f350 single wheel. it was a ranch truck it's whole life with low miles and donated for a charitable write off. long story short I've got an np435 4 spd out of it. it was spendy but I bought the novak kit to adapt it to the 225 and dana 18(replaces the main shaft and provides an adaptor to d18, a REALLY nice kit). sold the 460, the front and rear axles, and my buddy stacked the t-case with another in his 70 blazer. Junked the rest. net out of pocket not a heck of a lot and you get a tranny with a really low first (6 something I think but my memory is slipping)

since fords are so popular with ranchers and farmers it can't be a big trick to repeat the above feat if you try it... good luck...

oh and I have a ford front clip to shorten to about 6 inches and mount to a garage wall when I get around to it................

 

The T18 is a good way to go. Eliminating the stock trans bellhousing adapter will keep the overall length within 3/4 of an inch. A nice plus since I didn't have to cut my drivelines. I found a Scout T18 cheap and used the stock output shaft and adapter on an old Ford T18. By taking my time and waiting for the good deals, I was able to do the swap for about $400(was about 15 years ago though, probably a bit more now).

 

i really appreciate this stuff. thanks! keep the ideas coming if there are any more.

the $400+ pricetag of the novak adapter is a bit out of my league right now. but since this is going to be a long range plan.... who knows? it's just nice to find out about all the possible options. i wondered about the t18 with the 225. not as heavy duty as the muncies? since the t18 was meant for the 4 cylinders ( i think?) is it heavy strong enough to take the extra hp and torque of the 225 v6? i guess i can look up the gear ratios.

 

The t18 is a granny geared truck 4 speed used in 3/4 and 1 ton Ford trucks, it is comparable to the sm420, sm465, np435. jeep used the t98 version in the 4 cylinder models but it was still the same basic t18 as always with minor interior parts change.

 

You can't go wrong with any of the truck 4-speeds with granny-low: SM420, SM465, T98, T18, T19, NP435. If you want to do this cheap, you have to do your homework and take advantage of the parts that come your way. Some of these transmissions in their original configuration and from specific vehicles can be done cheaply (ie $400 or $500 total) and some cannot. It would take pages and pages of text to list every possibility for every combination, and very few people (Nick?) knows the details for all these combinations.

For example, if you can find a free SM420, your major expense will be the adapter for the transmission to transfer case connection. If you have a T18 from a Jeep truck or Wagoneer, you need to buy the Ford input shaft to get the right stickout for a GM bellhousing. If you have an NP435, you pretty much have to buy the transfer case adapter. Lots of possibilities.

Again, if you want to do it cheap, you need knowledge. Start with the Novak site: http://www.novak-adapt.com/knowledge/transmission_gateway.htm ... Their products make the changeover easy, but not neccessarily cheap.

 

there's no doubt that the novak kit is pricey. but it's well made and very complete. that's why I mentioned the creative financing, don't just get the tranny, get a whole truck and off all the other parts to pay for the kit. but there's tons of other 4 speeds out there like everybody has mentioned...

 

thanks for all the input. i am archiving this thread to my notes locally. everything is a great help. i read novak's site a while ago and revisited as well as reading and printing the techs from ecj5.

should be fun planning this. i'll probably gather the pieces slowly. ( i mean i might actually want to drive this cj before i tear into it for the second time. )