Newer trans in stock chassis /K member

[Bored&Stroked]

Originally Posted by Chris Haynes

The '39 Tranny will work fine with the Ardun. I guarantee the Columbia will fail if hot rodded.

The 39 box will work fine - the question is for how long! LOL.

It all depends on the application, how sticky the tires are, if he drives it hard from a dead stop, etc.. As Charlie mentioned, if you pay particular attention to clearances, bearing fitment, 2nd gear bushing fitment, find new cluster shafts, etc - then these boxes can take some level of abuse. Now 350 HP and a heavy foot . . . will be fun for awhile (ask me how I know these things!).

I totally agree on the Columbia . . . unless you spend at least a couple thousand on special parts - and know all the weak points.

[Ol' Ron]

I don't like to run the original drive train in the early Fords. Not because they won't take the power , I run Mild Flatheads. But because of reliability and cost of replacement parts. I like the T170 style trans and Spicer rear axles. These give excellent results ant a reasonable cost. Convert the front breaks to disk with 5 on 4 1/2 bolt pattern. ow you have a driver you can take anywhere.

[Krylon32]

Ron: Your gonna cause some of these purists to have a stroke!

[Ol' Ron]

I have a great deal of respect for the guys that want to keep them stock. In today's market that getting more difficult and expensive. But for the daily driver the reliability factor alone is worth it. I was at the tire store checking on tires for the roadster. For 14 & 15" wheels the selection is poor and expensive. 16 will still be around for a while, but 5 on 51'2 bolt pattern is a thing of the past. Ford and Chrysler still use the 5 on 4 1/2 and the junk yards are full of rims. I got 2 for the front of the roadster for 15 bucks apiece. I operate on a limited budget, like many others and the cost of operation these cars is getting higher.

[Andy]

I have run a 60 Chevy 3spd in my 32 for 30 years. No K member mods at all. The engine is a warm 241 hemi. They actually put them in 409 cars as the base trans. I never had any problems.

[Flathead Fever]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Originally Posted by Krylon32

Check with Gene Sanders at Model Engineering. In his catalog he describes some kind of 3+1 Ford trans that requires no cutting of the k member.His stuff will supposedly allow you to do the job without frame modification?

I've seen that trans mount your talking about in the M.E.C. catalog. Gene makes all kinds parts for 1932 Ford frames that bolt to original holes so you do not need to damage your original frame. He's a really nice guy. He doesn't advertise, so nobody hardly knows he exists.

The problem with installing any other trans other than an early Ford is you will loose your torque-tube rearend which is such an iconic part of a flathead powered hot rod when viewed from the rear. You can go to an open driveshaft Early Ford pickup rearend but its just not the same.

I stop and take time to look at early hot rods that are faithful reproductions of 1940s and early 1950s cars. The flatheads cars that are updated with modern parts don't interest me at all. You will find a lot of guys that think like I do and you will find a lot of guys like you that want a better driving and more dependable fathead. The heart wants what the heart wants. Nobody is right or wrong.

A nice original 1932 frame is just about impossible to find anymore. They can sell for up to $7000.00. I had a hard time finding a nice '32 frame 30-year's ago. I looked for two-year's here in SoCal to find a decent frame and it wasn't prefect without some work. I don't think I have ever seen a perfect rust-pit free frame with its original front cross-member that has not been replaced or repaired for sale. There is always something in-need of repair on them. You would need to buy a complete car to find a perfect frame these days. But you didn't say you wanted to cut up your frame, just if there was a way to install a modern trans without damaging it. So it sounds like you 'get it". You know how sacred these old parts are.

I love original cars. Its about preserving history but I also like hot rods that are done traditionally. I have since I was a little kid being dragged to swap meets and car shows with my dad who was both a Model A restorer and a lover of flathead hot rods. I grew-up in a rumbleseat. I understand the passion for original cars and for hot rods. Nice original cars should be kept that way because they getting so rare. There are plenty of other non-original cars to turn into hot rods. Years ago I bought a chopped '32 3-window project, because for me nothing looks cooler than a severely chopped '32 coupe. But there is noway in hell I would cut up a nice stock 3-window body. I just think that would be insane, yet people do it.

I try to keep the parts I use to ones that were made before 1953 so I'm still at least using parts from the flathead era. Its a cross between doing a restoration and building a hot rod. I have one foot in each world. The Ford barn is one world and the H.A.M.B. is the other. I seem to relate more to the people on the Ford Barn even though its a site for restored cars.

Its your car so you can do what ever you want to with it. Try not to do anything that cannot be undone and save everything you do remove so it always stays with the car in-case somebody wants to restore it. That includes all the original bolts and screws that are unique to Early Fords. If you stick too many modern parts on your car people are going to assume you have a reproduction frame and body. Your goal is to have somebody spot you car among among a sea of mail order hot rods and single your car out to investigate because it has the look of a survivor.

[40 Deluxe]

What about the Cad/LaSalle trans swap that was common back in the day. Wasn't it a torque tube setup?

[Flathead Fever]

I looked for that M.E.C. catalog with the trans mount for stock K-Members and so far I have not found it? Its definitely here. It should have been in the flathead modern catalogs box? I have an entire room of Ford literature and the stuff is overflowing into the rest of the house.