Can the tailhousing of the SM420 be removed without draining the transmission? First time disassembling one, and I don't have much information on them. Thanks in advance.
GW
"The duty of a patriot is to protect his country from its government." - Thomas Paine
If you're talking about an enclosed driveline, there's (supposed to be) a little oil where the universal joint is, but it's separate from the transmission oil. Here's a picture of mine after rebuild, with fresh transmission fluid.
If you look at Greg Brown's pic, you'll see the fill plug way on the right hand side. I would look at the elevation of rear tail output shaft versus the fill plug. That should tell you how much oil to expect to come out when you open up the rear end area. I expect very little if any.
Craig
My '50 Chevy 3100 5 window, '62-235cu, 3:55 rear My truck ....... Respect The Rust If I'm not working on my truck, '65 m00stang or VW camper, I'm fishing with the wife or smoking Salmon.
That back cover, which I think is called a "bearing retainer", is all one piece and when removed will also expose the rear countershaft bearing. I guess it's possible you won't loose much oil, as long as the bearings/shafts stay in place. Here's an internal view with the mainshaft removed. The rear of the transmission is on the left.
