T 5 5 speed VS Mitchell Transmission with overdrive

[john in illinois]

I agree Al. Had one for 28,000 miles in my Tudor.
The all synchro is great for city trafiic,can downshift and get out of the way if needed. I use the overdrive mostly to cruise at 55 ,not go fast.

John

[Gene F]

Post #20 seems interesting. I have never heard of that modification quite like that. I might add, I'd be inclined to upgrade the front wishbone with any of these modern transmission swaps. I hate roadside surprises.

Lloyd Young once told me "Gene I'm saving babbit, not selling speed". I suppose you could not shift into overdrive, even though you have it, at 50MPH or so and up. But why work the engine that hard if you don't need to. If a rod snaps, that engine block is junk.

[Chris Haynes]

With the T5 you have to butcher your center cross member and convert the car to a open driveshaft. I opted for a 1939 V8 trans. A Mitchell Gear Splitter will go in when the budget allows. Cling's makes the kit to bolt it in.

[larrys40]

Originally Posted by Dave in MN

I have both. The standard Model A 3- speed and a 26% Mitchell in a '29 Phaeton that I have driven just short of 100,000 miles. I also have a T-5 in a '31 S/W Town Sedan that has been driven about 30,000 miles.

The T-5 is very easy to use and shift but getting the original brakes to work with it was difficult as the centerline of the driveshaft U- Joint and the brake cross shaft are no longer in the same location. I fought the issue for thousands of miles and while doing so had marginal brakes. I finally switched to hydraulic brakes to eliminate the problem.

I actually prefer the Mitchel overdrive. It has been trouble free for all the miles I have put on it. It is a good piece of machinery and less expensive overall than the T-5 due to when I installed it over 20 years ago. Just my opinion and preferences.
Good Day!

Dave,
That is a good testimony with great personal experience of the comparison.
I’m like you and favor the Mitchell. I have an older Ryan in my 30 tudor as well with many trouble free mikes. MItchells the same. I have seen several cars with open drive lines have radius rod issues, etc. In my opinion the spring shackles weren’t meant to take the beating that they do without the torque tube and movement that occurs without the torque tube.
Just my experience and opinion. Use the mit he’ll trans and overdrive as a combo If you want synchro and gear splitting options. Or just use the Mitchell and learn/know how to shift.
Happy A tourinc
Larry Shepard

[denis4x4]

Originally Posted by Chris Haynes

With the T5 you have to butcher your center cross member and convert the car to a open driveshaft. I opted for a 1939 V8 trans. A Mitchell Gear Splitter will go in when the budget allows. Cling's makes the kit to bolt it in.

Did you look at post #17?

[gary678*]

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To Denis4X4 in Post# 17. You didn't comment on whether you were happy with the T5 conversion. Are you? Gary D.

[denis4x4]

Originally Posted by gary678*

To Denis4X4 in Post# 17. You didn't comment on whether you were happy with the T5 conversion. Are you? Gary D.

Absolutely! Built in O’drive and very smooth shifting. There are several aftermarket products that reduce the throw, but I think that they are unnecessary. I also own an A powered roadster with a ‘39 Ford transmission and a Lincoln Zephyr gear set. No comparison!

[cmarion]

I have a Mitchell tranny & O/D in one car and a 1985 F100 Ford 4 speed in another. Both work very well I've found with M/M setup when i start out in 1st gear I shift to O/D then 2 & 3 with the new Burzt engine that works nice. The
F100 setup is smooth but the step between 2 &3 is a bit steep however I run a stoker Model A engine and that seems to handle it. With the F100 no frame modification was required. By the way I have a spare F100 if anybody needs it.

[AL in NY]

cmarion: what is the 2 letter code after the RTS XX on your spare transmission's metal tag.

[fried okra]

cmarion, do you run an A or AA clutch bell housing with your F150 transmission?

[gary678*]

To Denis4x4: Sorry to bother you again but I am curious about your "no comparison" comment...do you prefer the 39 Ford or T5 transmission? Thanks! Gary D.

[jeepguy1948]

There are some people out there doing the T5 swap using a 4X4 transmission which has a flange on the back where the transfer case normally bolts on. This flange can be used to attach the torque tub to so this swap takes relatively few modifications. I don't think however that anybody is making a kit to do this (if I'm wrong I would be thrilled to find one), rather it's guys far more gifted then me custom fabricating the adapters needed.

[bruceincam]

There are definitely T5 conversion kits out there. Here's a current contact in Bakersfield. You can expect the cost to be ~$3,000 plus whatever you pay for a T5. That assumes that you do the install. Eddie will do the install for you if you can get your car to Bakersfield and pay him another $2,000. Contact: [email protected]

web site: www.modela5conv.com

[jeepguy1948]

When I said I didn't know if there were kits to do the job I meant very specifically for the 4x4 transmission as I discuss in that post. It has been made clear by me and others farther back in this thread that there are indeed kits out there.

[denis4x4]

Originally Posted by gary678*

To Denis4x4: Sorry to bother you again but I am curious about your "no comparison" comment...do you prefer the 39 Ford or T5 transmission? Thanks! Gary D.

I prefer the T-5......the A powered hot rod has a custom frame and to switch to a T-5 is not in the cards.

[nomadpsd]

I'm using the T5 adapters from Dave at Vintage Metal Works using the S10 4x4 trans.
http://vintagemetalworks.blogspot.c....&by-date=false

[Chris Haynes]

Originally Posted by denis4x4

Did you look at post #17?

Yes I did. I see the cross member butchered and open driveshaft.

[Dick M]

The T-5 has two poses two serious problems. One is you have to cut the cross member to install. Henry put the crossmember for strength. Cut it and you lose some. Two is you lose the stability of the entire rear end unless you make a replacement for the A bars. I know of a Model Aer with the T-5 trans conversion who turned onto a street doing about 15 miles an hour in his A. The entire rear end shifted, locked up his mechanical brakes, destroyed an emergency brake carrier, and made the backing plate look like a pretzel. I say to each their own. However, I also ask why take such a chance with the T-5 open drive line when the Mitchell retains the stability with the A-Bar design.

[cmarion]

Originally Posted by AL in NY

cmarion: what is the 2 letter code after the RTS XX on your spare transmission's metal tag.

Al in Ny ill have to go by the storage unit was going to build a hill climber this has the adapter bellhousing and set up for open drive line

[cmarion]

Originally Posted by fried okra

cmarion, do you run an A or AA clutch bell housing with your F150 transmission?

it has the double A bell housing