The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop bellhousing and tranny question

I am trying to run a standard trans with a 400 ci small block froma 72 caprice. I have the "ballance kit" for a 350 fly wheel. what I need to know is what type of hydraulic clutch accembly will work? What type of bell housing will work with a hydraulic clutch? Is there a 5 speed overdrive that will work?

Len,
Has a lot to do with what you are putting it in.
I don't remember the setup on pre 60 right off, but 60 thru 63 has a bell housing for a v8 that the slave cylinder works off the pass. side of the housing and needs a cross member that mounts at the rear of the engine. Later models didn't have a hydraulic clutch so you would have to use the early bell housing and add a dual hydraulic cylinder. Starting around 67, the tranny has to be supported by a cross member under the cab. There is so many variations, you have to wing it to get what you want.

Truck Tinker from Talking Rock

the application is a 38 1/2 ton. I don't even have pedals yet. I do have the counter ballance kit for the fly wheel. At the moment I have a saganah (not too sure of the spelling) 4 speed.

one other thing, the bell housing I have is from a 69 1/2 ton, I think. I have not checked the casting #s yet. I believe it is a mechanical type clutch with the fork sticking out of the left side.

Truck Tinker back at you, Ok-let me think where to start-- Assuming that your bell housing can take a hydraulic slave cylinder, it would have to bolt to the housing and I don't think you will have mounting holes. You may have to go with mechanical linkage, which means you will have to use a torque arm between the frame and the engine. The left side of the engine below the head toward the back will need a threaded hole to accomodate the ball that goes into the torsion arm and another ball will have to go on the frame. Then, the transmission type that you have will need a place to mount to a crossmember that will go somewhere between the frame sides under the cab. If the tranny is free standing and needs the engine supported front/side and rear, you will need a bell housing that will have the mounts on the rear and there will have to be a crossmember to bolt the housing to. The early '60s (60-63) v8 bell housing as I stated before has the right mounting holes for the hydrolic slave cylinder which will be easier in my estimation to engineer. You won't need a torsion arm hook-up and your pedals can push a straight rod through the firewall to a dual master cylinder. Either way you go, you will have to do some improvising, but that is what makes these old bolts so much fun. Maybe someone else may have some better ideas. Keep looking and good luck.

Truck Tinker from Talking Rock

Len - I have a bellhousing from a camaro Z28 and T5 overdrive tranny that will bolt up to the back of a small block and has a hydraulic clutch. I have the master cylinder and hose and everything. I was planning on using it behind a 292 inline in a '51 suburban, but the 292 flywheel was too big (11" clutch) so I bought an older mechanical bellhousing that would fit over the large flywheel. In my quest for a bellhousing that would work, I found that they come up all the time on ebay. Keep your eye open and you should find exactly what you are looking for.

Mr. Truck Tinker, I have looked at the block and there is a hole near the back above the oil filter, I think it is a 7/16 course thread. The block casting # is 3951511 date code is K 9 71 . I thnk this means it is a 71 400cc engine but it came out of a 72 Caprice. My question is did the 400's ever come out with a standard tranny? I have been told they did not, which leads me to wonder why did they have the casting for the clutch? Do you make sense of my questions? Can you recomend a suitable bell houding and clutch set up? I would prefer to use a hydrolic clutch because of the space I have to work with in the 38.