Trans Fluid Question

[BillCNC]

Hey All,

Is the 600w oil in the trans supposed to foam up and leak out of the vent hole? I keep it filled to about 3/8" below the fill hole.

Regards
Bill

[Richard in Anaheim CA]

You have it filled just about right. Maybe clean out the vent hole so it vents well.
Richard
Anaheim CA

[BillCNC]

Hi Richard,

After getting everything off the trans, I see it's coming from the top of the shit tower. The vent is clear. Oil is getting on the throw-out inspection cover, shift lever plate, edge of the carpet around the hole, and the underside of the floor boards.

Regards
Bill

[Y-Blockhead]

Bill, I had the same issue a while back. I have change the oil a few times since but still get some foaming but not like it was. I am using Lucas 85W-140 gear Oil now.

Here is the thread. I don't know what happened to the pictures??
https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showt...ht=foam&page=2

[BillCNC]

Now I'm stumped. No sound.

At 7:00 am this morning, I went for a 6 mile drive to meet someone, temp was 34°F outside with a 5 minute warm up. From the moment I left the driveway, the Noise was there to the minute I got home. I almost turned around but decided to pull over and pulled the fill plug to make sure I had oil. I did, and it was foamy. Oil is about 5 months old with 2,000 miles on it.

Now I just went out to warm it up and go for a short drive without the front floor boards being in the way. This way, I could more precisely diagnose the sound while warming the fluid to drain it.

Now, ... No Noise, WTH,???

The foam issue, Hmmm, I wonder if the vendors have contaminated oil?

Regards
Bill

[burner31]

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Are the floor boards secured tightly to the floor and is there any welting along the edges of the boards?
As for the foaming, there will always be some but it should not be excessive, could be there was water or some other contaminate in there that has not fully been removed yet.
Back in the day people would use any number of things to flush the tranny...gas, kerosene, diesel, alcohol or Grandpa's coffee among some.
Could always flush it out real good and start from scratch...I would advise against using Grampa's coffee as it tends to eat the gears.

[BillCNC]

Originally Posted by burner31

Are the floor boards secured tightly to the floor and is there any welting along the edges of the boards?
As for the foaming, there will always be some but it should not be excessive, could be there was water or some other contaminate in there that has not fully been removed yet.
Back in the day people would use any number of things to flush the tranny...gas, kerosene, diesel, alcohol or Grandpa's coffee among some.
Could always flush it out real good and start from scratch...I would advise against using Grampa's coffee as it tends to eat the gears.

I completely rebuilt the trans myself with the help of my then 6-year old grandson in 2018 and I'm the only person who services the car.

Regards
Bill

[rotorwrench]

A lot of the lube marketed as 600W or equivalent is a mix of different products. Modern lubricants have anti foaming agents to minimize foaming. The mystery 600W may or may not. 600W is not an SAE rating since it predates SAE grades by many years. The stuff is referred to as steam cylinder oil that likely dates to back in the mid 19th century. Ford changed over to SAE grades after the model A era. A good SAE 140 would be close in viscosity. Ford changed to SAE 90 for a summer grade lube in the model B time frame due to the semi synchronized transmissions.

[Pete W.]

Give Model A Medic a call in Kansas. He took time explained to me that all of the vendors have their own version of the original 600 wt. I my case the lube I bought was to thin and not sticky, couldn't shift without grinding in all gears. I used his brand and all is ok. No foaming either. Nice guy too.

[BillCNC]

Originally Posted by Pete W.

Give Model A Medic a call in Kansas. He took time explained to me that all of the vendors have their own version of the original 600 wt. I my case the lube I bought was to thin and not sticky, couldn't shift without grinding in all gears. I used his brand and all is ok. No foaming either. Nice guy too.

Hi Peter,

Yes, I have dealt with Eric a few times, carb, head and a few other orders. The 600 I had was thick and sticky, just foamy. The Lucas 85-140 seems to be working. I've already put on 25 miles, so I'll run it for 100 miles then change it again.

Regards
Bill

[aermotor]

I use 50% Lucas 80w-90 & 50% Lucas oil stabilizer. Any comments good or bad - seems to do the job.

[Bob Bidonde]

Foaming is bad characteristic of a lubricant, and not long ago I had a foaming experience with the so called "600W" stuff currently on market. Fortunately, it was not in my cars. I exclusively use 85W140 Super Tech GL5 Gear Lube in the transmissions and rear axles of my Model A's. The bottom line is, if does not have an SAE rating as a gear lube, I will not use it.

[Sunny the Model A]

According to the Model A Ford restoration and service manual by Paul Moller, the oil used in the transmission is sae 250 gear oil. I use smith and jones 600w, based on previous experience with the stuff it feels like sae 250 in thickness. My 31 truck is daily driven, no issues with foaming to report. seems to be good stuff

[eagle]

When I got my A some years ago it had a thick goey stinky black lube in trans and dif. It shifted well and was pretty quiet, but I changed it out for 600W from Mac's or Sneider's, can't remember which. Right away I noticed the difference. Tranny howled and harsh difficult shifting, and yes foaming. I then drained it well and put in Lucas Oil Stabilizer. What a difference! Silky smooth shifting and silent. It's still in there years later, still smooth and quiet.

[ndnchf]

Originally Posted by eagle

...I then drained it well and put in Lucas Oil Stabilizer. What a difference! Silky smooth shifting and silent. It's still in there years later, still smooth and quiet.

Just the Lucas oil stabilizer - nothing else?

[Bob Bidonde]

In 1932, Ford for the first time issued a specification for lubricants using SAE viscosities. Note the gear oil lubricants. Nowhere is 600W mentioned for gear lubrication. I think 600W that was added to the transmission and rear axle by dishonest car dealers to quiet noisy gears.

[Y-Blockhead]

Thanks for sharing Bob. I enlarged it so I could see it better... Hopefully others with eyes as bad as mine can see it.

[BillCNC]

Originally Posted by Bob Bidonde

In 1932, Ford for the first time issued a specification for lubricants using SAE viscosities. Note the gear oil lubricants. Nowhere is 600W mentioned for gear lubrication. I think 600W that was added to the transmission and rear axle by dishonest car dealers to quiet noisy gears.

I used to know of a few wholesaler's that used newspaper or sawdust.

Regards
Bill

[ursus]

It has been pointed out many times that the 600W designation had nothing to do with viscosity index or "weight". It was an older term for steam cylinder oil commonly used during the age of steam power. Ford apparently used the term
600W as a part number and later recognized it as SAE 250 in the 1932 bulletin.

There were already millions of Model A Fords on the road when the SAE viscosity index was introduced in 1929. It used Pennsylvania crude as the benchmark for comparison with other base oils such as West Texas crude, with tests performed at 40 degrees Centigrade.

[ursus]

Originally Posted by ursus

It has been pointed out many times that the 600W designation had nothing to do with viscosity index or "weight". It was an older term for steam cylinder oil commonly used during the age of steam power. Ford apparently used the term
600W as a part number and later recognized it as SAE 250 in the 1932 bulletin.

There were already millions of Model A Fords on the road when the SAE viscosity index was introduced in 1929. It used Pennsylvania crude as the benchmark for comparison with other base oils such as West Texas crude, with tests performed at 40 degrees Centigrade.

Well, something about my quoted 1929 date for the SAE viscosity index introduction seemed off a bit so I checked the Service Bulletins and found an October 1928 bulletin referencing SAE #20 and #40 oils for winter and summer use, respectively. I had found the 1929 date in a reference to SAE standards where it named the engineers that introduced it. It seems that the SAE viscosity index was in industry use before it was formally "introduced".