1939 Transmission Side-To-Side Shift Lever Play

[Cheshire Cat]

There is about 2-1/2” of side-to-side free play at the end of the shift lever of my new-to-me 1939 Ford transmission. Is this normal or is it indicative of a loose or worn part? Can it be eliminated or substantially reduced?

The transmission supposedly has ~1,600 miles since being rebuilt and seems to be in good working order otherwise.

[51woodie]

Car or truck? on the "tree" or on the floor?
If it is column shift, there are several areas that can case free play. Starting from the top where the shift lever goes into the column, at the bottom of the column and at the transmission, there brass lined rubber bushings where the shift rods connect to the shift arms. Also, the pins locking the shift arms to the transmission shafts an be worn.
The shift linkage bushing kits are available from Denis Carpenter and other suppliers.

[Ggmac]

39 should be floor shift . When in gear you’re saying it has 2.5” of play ?

[Cheshire Cat]

Originally Posted by Ggmac

39 should be floor shift . When in gear you’re saying it has 2.5” of play ?

Yes, it’s a floor shift and the lever moves ~2-1/2” side-to-side in every gear. To be clear, that’s 2-1/2” in total and not 2-1/2” in each direction.

It feels sloppy to me, but I’m a first time owner of a car of this vintage and wondering if it’s normal and if something can be done about it.

Thanks!

[Seth Swoboda]

There is a trick where you weld up the slot on the shift lever where the pin sits in the shift tower. You weld it up then machine/file it down so that the pin fits in the slot tight.

[Terry,OH]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

There is a pin between the casting of the top of the transmission and the shift lever. Many times the pin wears and the shifter moves excessively. If you unscrew the cap holding the shift lever to the trans top moving the shift lever slightly will expose the pin that is located in the male cap threads, coming in from the right side. The pin can be pulled out and replaced. Do not remove the shift lever because the pin can then fall into the transmission. Mac VanPelt sales has the pin they are soft steel.

[Cheshire Cat]

Thank you Terry,OH and Seth Swoboda. I'll check the pin and the slot for wear and go from there.

[Seth Swoboda]

Originally Posted by Terry,OH

There is a pin between the casting of the top of the transmission and the shift lever. Many times the pin wears and the shifter moves excessively. If you unscrew the cap holding the shift lever to the trans top moving the shift lever slightly will expose the pin that is located in the male cap threads, coming in from the right side. The pin can be pulled out and replaced. Do not remove the shift lever because the pin can then fall into the transmission. Mac VanPelt sales has the pin they are soft steel.

That is what I was referring to. Terry described it better. I built that slot up with some weld and then filed it to fit a new pin. I want to give Michael Driskell at 3rd Gen credit for giving me that tip years ago.