The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Stuck in Gear

Having a problem with my 51 1/2 ton. Today I was trying to work the gearshift from third to first but it stays in high gear. Took the middle floor cover off to see what was happening and the first and reverse was not being activated, regardless of how much I worked the gearshift. Took the cover off the housing mounted off the unit that is mounted on the steering column and apparently the mechanism isn't going up into the upper gate to operate the lower gears. Is there a way to take the unit off and repair. Hard to see because of the black grease inside it.

Any help is appreciated.

The shifting box on the steering column is the problem, they wear and things don't work right. I have rebuilt several of them by taking them apart and welding onto the forks to narrow the clearance between them to about 1/16". Shift carefully and you shouldn't have problems. If it gets stuck in gear, get out, raise hood and jiggle the shifting arms to get them aligned and then close hood, get back in and shift carefully.

Will adjusting the rods affect the operation of the shift box, or is that just to align the gearshift lever in the right position to the steering wheel ?

Ok, the little "forks" in the box have to be aligned. If you can get your truck out of third(is it in third??? If it is I have had to go through that before and can tell you what someone here told me to do if it is) then you need to take the lid off of the shift box and clean out enough grease to see. Line the grooves of the forks up and it should be aligned after you tighten the bolts on the rod clamps back down.(right beside the shift box on the rods) If it is stuck in third gear and no amount of pulling on the shift rod to get it up helps, jack up the rear end, put some jack stands(not concrete, it could crack and let the truck fall) under the axle and turn the engine over by hand or use the starter. This was the only way to get my transmission unstuck. Hope it helps. You might even be able to relieve pressure on the transmission by moving the wheels a bit. After I got mine out of gear I have had no problem with the three speed/column deal and have started to really like it.

Thanks, I will give it a try !

As a teen with a 1951 210 and a 1951 1500, I spent a lot of time shaking those shift arms. It wasn't a problem unless I was on a date. I tried to teach my dates to do the shake (the shift arms) but for some reason they refused.

You might try rocking it back and forth while someone trys to move the shift lever. used to work for me long time ago.

So did you get it out of gear???

Yes. I did jack up the rear end and that took the pressure off to where I got in neutral. Haven't had a chance to look back at the shift box. I think I will try moving the box around on the column and put in a position where it will be able to go through all gears with no problems.

Jordan:
Do you have a Factory Assembly Manual?
That an a Shop Manual would help you a bunch. Moving the "box" around probably wont' help unless it has moved from original position. Also it should be tight to the column in order to function correctly.
mho

And if anyone is going thru this trouble they ought to replace the shifting forks bushings throughout.

Jordan,

One time I tried to remove the shifter cover and when I put it back , I couldnot get neutral and reverse to work. Then I figured the shifter yoks underneath the cover has to align properly so they lock the right gears. I checked from the shop manual and aligned to neutral and then it worked great.

My 2 Cents

Ganesh

Jordan you're going to be a great engineer. Think about Oklahoma State or A&M.

Don't have a factory assembly manual. Is it on that website for free manuals ?

I don't know about that. I bought mine about 3 years ago and don't remember where it came from. I see it at many sites I go to.

Uh, I'm confused. Is JB's 51's name Jordan too or is this a case of mistaken identity. I don't know who you guys are talking to!!!

Also, if you can't get an assembly manual, I think that the shop manuals also have the procedure for doing these kinds of things. They can be bought from any of the vendors and it may or may not be on the website for free online manuals.

Sorry 'bout that. I'm John. I just chimed in because I was interested to see about if the information was online or not. Thanks for all the info so far on this subject. Had this truck for a month and trying to cure what few problems I got to get it roadworthy.