Lynn,
I have a 62 261 in my 51 truck. I used the 216 bellhousing and clutch setup, sm420 transmission, original 6 volt stomp starter, I modified the original 261 front plate but modified it to be a 216 plate so it bolted right up (so I assume using the 216 plate is what to do) and I also used the stock rear cross member. I do not have any additional support for the transmission. It is just hanging from the four 1/2”Bolts off the back of the bell housing. I have 770 miles on my truck since rebuild with no issues.
I didn’t have to figure out driveshaft stuff because my truck is a 1 ton and it had a bolt in shaft already.
