The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 3 on the tree

On very cold frosty mornings our 65 292 3 tree is very stiff shifting till the truck drives a few miles, everything is greased etc. Is this normal for an old truck or is this a warning of things to come?
Any one else experience this?

Tedy

I think it's just the oil in the tranny warming up. My 49 pontiac is noticeably stiff first thing in the morning as well, same as my truck. If you've changed your tranny and diff oil recently, and no gears fell out, I wouldn't worry about it.

Thanx Christopher, good to know. Your location is Brentwood, I work in the Keating Cross Road erea.

Tedy

Yup Tedy,
Old Iron an this NICE COLD we been recievin is onna them thar thingies..heck my Dodge GROANS in the mornin to start let alone move ...it is COLD out.
i think ya just dealin with Old Man Winter..youll be good come the spring thaw!
Tim

Tedy, I'd try cleaning out and replacing the shifter gear box grease, if you haven't already. I've had no problem with it this winter since I replaced it before it got cold, but Yelostn78 (I think) took his truck with the three speed out on the road for a little while and couldn't get it to shift at all, and come to find out, the grease in the box was so old that it had froze solid.

On my old Minneapolis Moline tractor that I plow snow with, I could barely pull it into gear with both hands on these cold days! By the time I get it limbered up, I'm done plowing snow!

Thanx for the info guys, the only other 3 tree I've owned was 20+ years ago. Did'nt have that problem, then again Old Man Winter left us alone for the most part back then.

Ted

Hey, Keating Cross. I don't get over there much now that the Home Hardware is closed. I'm a West Saanich road sort of guy. Does that mean you live around these parts? I saw in another post you were looking for a block heater for your truck. Me too, I've just been to lazy to do anything about it, such as drain the coolant and put one in. I dug out my old skidoo heater, the magnetic kind, and stuck it on the oil pan to warm up the oil. My truck starts fine in weather like this, but the oil is too thick to do much and I have to listen to the valves squawk away. With the oil warm it's happy and so am I, except for the carb icing up. Your truck looks allot lower than mine.

Chistofer, I hear you about being lazy when it comes to installing the block heater. I'm having fun driving around hunting for tuck stuff especially with weather like yesterday and today! I live in Langford.

Do you know this guy? I've seen the truck from time to time but never up close. I email chated with him asking about dog dishes.
http://www.usedvictoria.com/classified-ad/7997983

Nope, I don't know that I've seen the truck around. Though I spend much of my free time lying under my own. By dog dishes do you mean hub caps?

Did these gearboxes have grease in them, or 80w90 gear oil?

90 w gear oil

Yes I did mean the hub caps, just used to calling the small ones dog dishes. Nice truck you have Christofer! My wife just told me we may get snow again this weekend. I guess I'll have to put some payver stones in tommorow just to be safe.

Thank you every one about the 3 on the tree info:)

Yes check this first, I bet the grease is old or overfilled, I would coat everything in the stearing gearbox with your finger, dabbing on the grease, and then check it from time to time, it is only four screws, and Since servicing mine it shifts like a dream in all temperatures.

I forgot, I used wheel bearing grease- some modern shell stuff that seems to work great in all my trucks