The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline SBC T5 in a 47?

Spent better part of a day putting in the screw in weatherstrips. Seems like every screw fought me. I also bought new floor strips for the weatherstrip that butts up to the doors. The screws were to short but I found some sheet metal screw and used those. Got em all in and thought maybe the heads stuck out to much so I test closed a door and sure enough those wouldn't work. I was able to get a couple shorter screws to work but it's not quite right. Typical.

Since I had earlier put in a black headliner, I decided to use the black door panels that I had laying around. I really liked the look of the black with the bronze until I put in the carpet. Ugh, looks to orange. Now I wish I had put in black carpet. Oh well. All in all I'm pretty happy with the results. Especially for the amount of money invested. Still a few things to wrap up inside, but it's close.

It was almost 70 degrees here so I was able to was off the winters dust and crud. Couple random pics.

Thanks Jay!! Been praying for you folks in the medical field! Thanks for that too! (and anyone else on the front lines so to speak)

Mark, looks GREAT!

Good Luck with the remaining details.

Enjoy,

RonR

Thanks Ron! Hoping to take it for a nice ride soon.

Update: I've been wanting to get some miles on my truck. Couple weeks ago set a goal to drive it 200 miles that week. I know, sad that I'd need to set a goal to drive my truck. Anyway drove it to a buddy's place 75 miles away. Took all back roads there and back. Ran great. (plus another 50 miles bumming around the area here) I did hit a nasty set of railroad tracks that shook the truck pretty good and shoved the rear vertical arms of the shocks into the bed. Bent em pretty good. I shoulda took a picture of that, didn't think of it at the time. Clearly I miscalculated the installation of those. Anyway I pulled them out, straightened them, then cut 2 inches out of the middle, welded them back together with some reinforcement. I think they're good to go for now.

Last week I drove it 180 miles to the Detroit area and back. Took it on the expressway about 70 miles total. Ran great. Got it up to 75MPH. At 75 it's turning about 2500 RPM. Seems perfect to me. The truck felt a bit floaty at that speed. The sweet spot seems to be 67 MPH at 2100 RPM.

Planning on taking it up to Coleman Michigan to pop in on the guy I got the motor from. He was a nice guy and wanted me to show him the truck when it was up and running. Of course that was pre-pandemic. Seems like a good place to turn around and head back. Looks like about 90 miles from here. I recall there was a stovebolter or two from that area. If I can remember who and where they are maybe we can meet up.

Planning to change the steering grease. Got new grease from fellow 'bolter DrDoug. I also ordered an anti-sway bar from CPP. Should be here in another day or so. Not sure when I'll do those projects.

Changed the shifter knob. Barb liked this one! The crappy plastic thread insert stripped out so I made up an aluminum one.

Well, it's been quite a while since I added to this "blog". Life seems to get in the way. I don't think I've driven this truck more than a couple miles since my last post. The weather here in Michigan is shaping up and I wanted to get something done. The exhaust manifolds have been a bit of an eyesore on this thing so I figured that'd be a good place to start. I dropped the exhaust, pulled the manifolds, had them sandblasted and promptly found a crack in the left one that almost splits it in two. My welder buddy is attempting to weld it back together, but I'm not expecting a miracle. Likely to be scouring the Flint junk yards for another one. We'll see.

Anyway, I got the right side done and think it's a big improvement for a minimal cost.

Finally got the left manifold painted and installed, and the exhaust buttoned back up. My welder buddy wasn't able to fix the old manifold. I couldn't find an exhaust manifold in the Flint area junk yards. It's just a squarebody manifold, you'd think there would be a million of em. Was able to order one from O'Reilly for a hundred bucks. I trimmed a little off the end of the manifold near the rear bolt to make sure the brake pedal cleared.

I bought a sway bar last summer but wasn't able to put it on. The weather was decent this weekend so I got to it. Naturally the '47 front crossmember didn't look anything like the photo in the not-very-good instructions and the bracket didn't line up with holes that were supposed to be there. I've got a buddy with a '52(ish) so I stopped over his place with the bracket and it lined right up with holes in the frame crossmember that looked exactly like the photo. I decided to make up some brackets that would work and drill the frame as needed. I also had to open up the holes on the brackets that go to the U-bolts. It all worked out pretty decent. Haven't driven it yet so I don't know if there's any difference. I take the seat out during the winter because I get mice in my back barn and really don't want my nice seat chewed up. Just got the seat back in last night so I'm hoping to get it out for a ride this week.

I was planning on changing out the grease in the steering box but decided to swap out the entire box. It's not in the budget at the moment, so that'll have to wait.

Too bad you are not closer, I have a couple pairs that would be free to get out of my space. Oh well. Good progress on your truck!

Thanks Kevin. I appreciate the thought.

I finally got a minute to drive this thing last week. Got a few miles from home and the clutch started to feel a bit strange. Had trouble putting it in gears etc. I was able to start the truck in gear but not shift gears. I was hoping it was an adjustment issue, but of course that's just crazy talk. The linkage has always been a bit wonky and definitely the weak link in the system. I got a good look under it and the fork is actually bent. I knew it was a bad set-up, but thought it would last a bit longer. My fault. I had looked into hydraulic clutches, but didn't realize hydraulic throwout bearings even existed. After getting some advice from this forum and watching several Youtube videos I decided to go this route. bearing Howe Racing makes a GM T5 specific bearing. I ordered all the parts yesterday and should have it all tomorrow. Got it all apart yesterday afternoon, but not sure when I can get to putting it all back together. I also need to make up a bracket to hold the master cylinder. I'll keep ya'll posted. The clutch assembly and throwout bearing all looked good. (Obviously I won't be putting the bearing back in)

Can’t you find a decent fork? Well, since you’ve already ordered the parts I’ll just sit back and learn. I plan to install a hydraulic release bearing in my 1965 once I get some room in my shop to tear apart the truck. Keep at it.

The issue was more the linkage design than the fork. I had it set up more rigid than it was supposed to be and the rods came at a funky angle to the fork. The whole setup was a bit screwy. Before I found the fork issue I was actually hoping I could just adjust it to work for the summer. My idea was to do this hydraulic bearing conversion this fall. I thought about sending you an email to see if I could come down your way for a day and go thru the T5 when I pulled it out in the fall. I think I trashed the synchro doodads on my maiden voyage of this truck. It doesn't want to go into reverse when its running. Once the new bearing set-up is installed I should know more.

I'm also afraid you're gonna suggest I open it up and take a look since it's out of the truck . I REALLY don't want to. Primarily because I'm lazy, and don't know how to take it apart and rebuild it even if I do find a problem.

I was also thinking how much a lift like yours would be nice when I was laying on the ground tearing this thing apart. Almost pulled the trigger on one last fall but it didn't quite work out.

The price of a lift is more than double what I paid 3 years ago.

I got all the parts in from Speedway yesterday. Naturally things aren't as easy as I had hoped. There's supposed to be about a .125 inch gap between the fingers on the clutch assembly and the bearing. The "kit" includes shims to add behind the bearing to space it out if you need to move the bearing closer. Unfortunately in my case the measurements show the bearing will exactly touch the fingers. I looked at other bearings, but nothing else that will fit the bill perfectly. There are a couple options including spacing the transmission .125 away from the bellhousing. I didn't really like that idea so I decided to machine the piece of the transmission that the bearing sits on down .125. (not sure what that part is called.) It's the area with the XXs in the photo. Unfortunately I don't own a lathe and my buddy that does is in the Detroit area just over an hour from here. Can't do it today.

The second issue is that I need to make a bracket to hold the master cylinder. It'll sit next to the brake master and function pretty much the same. It's a bit tight in there but I'm planning on mounting the new bracket off the holes in the brake bracket. The photo shows the clutch cylinder sitting on the brake lines.

The brake master cyl is new a couple years ago and is already looking pretty crappy. Suppose I shoulda put some paint on it. Oh well.

Got the bracket and connecting rod done. Don't have time today to assemble it. Planning on turning down the collar thing that the bearing sits on tomorrow. My buddy John is hopefully coming over Sunday to help me put this all back together. It'll be a bit tricky to hold the bearing while the other person slides the transmission in place. I can't slide the transmission into the bellhousing with the bearing on it, and I can't fit the belhousing in place with the transmission on it.

Just Mark Done the V-8 in 67 using 3-speed overdrive, graduated to Muncie 4-speed, Good luck you'll easily get it done with your coaching staff !!LOL oh I'd stay with mechanical clutch linkage and stock padals,might shim steering box outboard to keep your engine centered.

Thanks Fixite7. The mechanical linkage is currently in the "recycle bin". I just couldn't get it to work properly over the long haul. I did move the steering box over a bit when I put the motor in. I had Nostalgia Sid set me up with one of his custom drag links with modern joints set-up for just this type of situation.

I got the collar thingie turned down yesterday and reassembled on the trans today. Got the bellhousing back in the truck and rechecked the numbers. Everything looks pretty good. The gap should be .140. Right about where it's supposed to be. I mounted the new clutch master cylinder bracket and mocked up the linkage with the master cyl in place. It's adjusted to where I want it. I pulled the master cyl out for now. I'll attach the hydraulic line before I put it back in. Looks like Sunday afternoon we'll put it all back together, bleed the system and see what happens. Wish me luck.

My buddy John came out yesterday and we got this thing back together. Seems to me the hydraulic throwout bearing is the magic bullet. Works amazing! I've still got a few things to do to button it all up but we drove it half a dozen miles or so and it's pretty slick.

That's a nice setup, I am going to fab up my mount in the next week or so I'll be looking close at what you have done.

Tuts 59, there's a couple nice YouTube videos that were helpful as well as the speedway link I posted earlier. The tech guy at speedway also was very knowledgeable and helpful.

I drove it about 60 miles today and feel like it's a dependable vehicle for the first time. I couldn't be happier.

So this thing was burning oil and spewing some raw oil last summer. I started thinking it might be the PCV valve sucking up oil. I started a thread and got some good feedback here . I put a PCV valve in a valve cover but for some reason wasn't smart enough to figure out I need a vent someplace for the suction to draw air from. Fortunately, I had another script valve cover in my collection of crapola. I sandblasted it and added a hole. Using an EDM machine to put a hole in it isn't the most common way to do things so I figured I'd document it in photos. Thought it might be of interest to some. It'll be another month or so before I swap out the covers on the passenger side. I'll let you know how that goes and if it resolves my issue.
Mark

So there is a balance to the universe! I just fixed the problem you created!

Back in the 1970's the high school where my father taught auto mechanics had an EDM. One of the projects the machine shop students did was cutting a 5-pointed star through a piece of 1/2" plate. Pretty impressive!
Jerry

Jerry, pretty cool.

Jay, I have a piece you coulda welded in. Lol. Looks like it came out great though!

Dang, can I be part of this club? I have a SBC valve cover that I cut holes in that allow me to adjust the rockers without a big mess.

Craig, you might want to put some duct tape over those holes when you're blasting down the dragstrip.

I just read through the entire thread, great work.

I am at the beginning stages of a similar project started with a 49 (maybe 50) 3600 and planning a SBC engine (383) with an NV3500 transmission. The NV3500 has a hydraulic slave but I have not decided on the master/pedal arrangement yet. It looks like you may have mounted your master under the floor near the brake master but any insight you could provide on that would be greatly appreciated.

Somewhere in your thread there was a comment about converting to power steering and then being able to use rams horn exhaust manifolds. I wish I could recall who made the comment but I would appreciate any additional information regarding that approach.

Thanks WICruiser! I'm really liking this truck. I installed an updated master cylinder for the brakes and it came with a new mounting bracket. When I was deciding how to mount the cylinder for the clutch I just held it up where it looked like it would work and started measuring from there. I made up a new bracket for the clutch and attached it to the brake bracket. I made up some cardboard templates to start with. It wasn't really very scientific but got the job done.

If I was to do the motor project over again I would probably take the advice of moving the motor an inch to the passenger's side. Make a little more room in the steering/exhaust area.

Just Mark, thanks for the additional details. How did you handle access for checking/filling fluid for both the updated brake master and clutch master? I watched one video that appeared to do the same approach but recommended the master cylinders be fitted with remote reservoirs in a more accessible location. I am considering using an S10 pedal setup with the brake and clutch master cylinders mounted on the firewall but your approach is certainly a good option.

Checking and filling both master cylinders is a real pain. I use a mirror for looking inside and I made up a bottle with some plastic tubing for filling.
The remote cylinder is a good idea.

One precaution to think about with firewall-mounted master cylinders is to reinforce the firewall sheet metal to prevent flexing during an "energetic" stop (None of us actually panic, do we?) Factory firewall mounts have a heavy brace under the dash to bolt the master cylinder onto.
Jerry