Ford gear sets and their interchangeability ?

[steve hackel]

After reading through Van pelts web site and looking at early books, I need an answer to this question. I currently have a great 39 trans case and a double detent shifter tower from an earlier acquisition (thought it would work for part of my A project) and came across a 52/3 ford flathead side shift transmission that looks absolutely NEW inside. Is the full gearset and all its internal parts able to fit into the 39 box? Yes, No, suggestions - help would
all be appreciated. Thanks in advance, Steve

[Mac VP]

Depends on what you mean by the 52/53 gearset……car or truck? The guts from the 1951-52 Ford pickup truck transmission will definitely fit in your 39 case. Having the late style synchro, your 39 shifter housing must have the 91A-7230 shifter fork. The pickup truck transmission is open driveshaft type so you’d be using the open drive rear support (and obviously an open driveshaft & rear end).

The 1953 pickup truck 3 speed light duty transmission is almost totally different from the 1951-52 version and nothing really is useful for your 39 type gearbox.

If the 1952-53 transmission you mentioned came from a Ford or Mercury passenger car, you’d be in the same boat. Not much of that will work to build a 39 style transmission.

[steve hackel]

Thanks so much for the information. I will get some numbers from the trans an d anything else I can find and post it here. Regards, Steve

[steve hackel]

Hi Mac, the truck was a1953 f-100 and the trans is a side shift. The owner is getting me some numbers off it and pictutes too.

[Kurt in NJ]

Back in the 70s ther was no Internet to tell me it wouldn't work, I had been looking for a cluster gear for my 46 that had all it's teeth, took several apart at a junkyard that were in cars and all were worse that what I already had, I found a later transmission laying on the ground partially apart, I now know it had been a overdrive transmission, much later, no bellhousing, got it out of the case and it was perfect except the teeth on the front gear were one less and different shape--- more pointed, and the gear had loose needles for bearings, the rest of the gear tooth count was the same --- the local auto store had a broken package of needles and let me use a magnet to get the few more under the shelf---- it was quiet and survived much abuse,

[Leyland]

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I’m in the same process as you, trying to piece together a 39 transmission with 78-7006 case. Seems most of this boils down to the main shafts and gear combinations once determined closed driveline vs open truck driveline. Challenge will be finding the current closed shaft with proper gearing and syncros. Is there a gearing combination that’s more desired?

[rotorwrench]

Mac's early Ford transmission booklet has listings in it of what gears work with other gears and so on. It doesn't get into the later narrow 4-bolt pattern Borg Warner transmissions or the overdrive units of the 1950s except for the parts that do cross over to the early units. The 1949 thru early 1951 Mercury cars had a hybrid transmission that used a lot of the same gears that the early transmissions could use but many were overdrive units and the overdrive section parts don't interchange nor the output shaft section in non-ovedrive 3-speeds due to the open drive nature.

Good units to look for are the side shift 3-speeds from Ford & Mercury cars of 1940 thru 1948 while they still had torque tube drive. A lot of these were replaced with later units back in the 50s & 60s when the hot rodders were wanting later drive train for there old fat fender cars. Street rodders also chuck them in favor of later model drive train so they still show up for sale now and then.