The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop engine and trans swap questions, 235 and 3spd OD

what will it take to put a 235 with the 3 speed OD trans into my 52 3/4 ton currently sporting a 216 with a 4 speed that is essentially a 3 speed due to the granny 1st gear?

i am aware of the t-5 swap; however i found an engine with the trans locally for what i consider a good price. definitely competitive with the t-5 and less reengineering. if it's an easy swap i might do it.

thanks

Should be a straight up swap...the only thing I can think of is the rear end. If your new tranny is of the open driveline design, you will have to swap out the rear end. I'm not an AD guy so I don't know if your truck is open or closed rearend. If it is a closed design, it just might drop right in.

What is the 3spd OD out of?

Isn't the 3/4 ton driveline enclosed for part way back, and then open the rest of the way to the rear axle? If so, you should be good to go although you will probably have to have the length of your drive shaft modified or simply get a new drive shaft. You will probably have to go with a short shaft water pump also. The short shaft water pump solution is less than ideal as it puts the fan down lower than it was resulting in cooling that is not as good at low speeds. Somebody makes a kit that puts the water pump back where it belongs when doing the 216/235 swap, or you could just go to an electric fan. I'm using the short shaft pump in my '37 truck with a 235. It works ok, I just have to keep my eye on the temp gauge at low speeds and idling.

hummm

the driveshaft is part closed, part open.

what if i just put the 3 speed OD in to start with. the 216 humms along nicely and i douby 19 cubic inches is worth the hassle at the moment. i'll keep the engine for when the 216 dies (a long time from now i hope)

the engine/trans is from a '56. it had a column shifter, how hard is it to retrofit a floor shift?

Your '56 235 has a pressure oil system, which is a significant improvement over the 216 splash oil approach.

Finding the correct floor shifter might be a trick. I've seen several with an H pattern floor shift where 2nd was over and down and 3rd was over and up, because the column shift levers are different than what the floor shift expects...

hummm
maybe the 235 is worth the price alone and the trans will be the latter thing to fiddle with. thanks for the good info

the engine reportedly has had the top end recently "overhauled" though no details are given

the column shifter is inculded, assuming enough parts are there can i retrofit that?

does $600 seem like a good deal?