Does any know who carrys the adaptor for the early sbc with out the starter mounts, to later gm trans. that mounts the starter to the block.
Not sure what you mean. There were block mount starters, and bellhousing mount starters. In either case the T5 attaches to the bellhousing. If you use a GM T5, like from a Camaro/Firebird (before they went to the Ford pattern), it will bolt right on. If you have a block without the starter pad, you will need a bellhousing that accepts bellhousing mount starter. Like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1957-CHEVY-CHEVROLET-CAST-IRON-BELLHOUSING-3733365-/170592112733 The clutch setup you use will have to match the flywheel diameter you have, and the clutch disc will have to have the correct spline diameter and count. Both are easy enough to match.
Thanks for the info. I was checking for a friend of mine. I guess I didn't understand what I was asking about. He has a 55 sbc in his 36 ford and he wants to put a t5 behind it. I think he said that there is know starter pad on the engine. Probably with the bell housing that came with it and he heard there was an adapator to mount a starter. I will give him your reply. Thank again.
There may be an adapter, but I have not ever seen one. Finding a bellhousing might be easier and cheaper. If he already has a bell housing, like the one in the eBay ad I posted, he just needs a bellhousing mount starter. Those can still be had at a decent auto parts store. 1955-1962 Chevy car or truck will do the trick.
Ok, I went and talked to him today to figure this out for my sake. He has the type t5 that has the seperate bellhousing, but he also has the heavier duty type that comes out of the bigger trucks and thats the one he was wanting to use. that bellhousing uses the block mounted starter. hence the adaptor.
So he has the heavy truck bellhousing? There were car and truck bellhousings that took a bell mounted starter, both were iron. The hole that the input bearing collar fits through differs. The truck one is larger. If he has a truck one, he just needs a centering ring. It cannot be done without this. The input collar on the T5 is 4.6875" (4-11/16"). The hole in the heavy truck bell housing is 5.125" (5-1/8"). Measure and check. The ring fills the space between the two. Here is one ring: http://dennymac.com/mod.php?mod=userpage&menu=1103&page_id=54 A good machine shop can make one of these cheap. Just bring them them bearing collar and the bell housing, and they should be able to do the rest. Then it just bolts on.
If the trans he is trying to use has a separate bellhousing, and the bolt pattern on the trans is the same as the bellhousing that's in his car currently, then there would be no reason to need to change the bellhousing. If the bearing retainer on the trans is larger than the center hole of the current bellhousing, then having a machine shop enlarge the hole in the bell makes more sense than trying to replace everything since the engine doesn't have provision for a block mounted starter. As stated, the T5 was never used in the full size trucks. You guys need to figure out what it is you are trying to use before you do anything else...
Ok, he does have a t5 out of a s10 and an early bellhousing that will work, but he also has a 5sp out of a full size chevy pu that he wants to use because it's much stronger. And he says the bellhousing is part of the trans, but it does not have a place for the starter to mount. He's like the rest of us senior citizen, he thought he has seen that someone made an adaptor piece to mount the starter. Like in the case of 55, 56, 57 chevy pu with the stock engine. Does this help..
Ahh, I see. So he has an early SBC with no starter mount provision, and the full-size truck transmission has no place to mount a starter. I have never seen an adapter to put a bellhousing mount starter on a conventional bell. I think he might be out of luck on the full-size truck transmission. The S10 T5 is a different animal than the one from the Camaro/Firebird. They are not quite as strong. The shifter is in a different place (which might be a benefit), and the input shaft is about 1" longer than the conventional V8 input shaft. To run that transmission, he'd have to put a spacer between the transmission and the bellhousing, or have the input shaft shortened. I don't recommend either, given the weakness of the transmission. If he wants to put a T5 on the back of that 55 engine, I'd help him find a T5 from a pre-1993 Camaro/Firebird, and bellhousing from a 55-62 Chevy p***enger car. The flywheel, pressure plate and disc diameter need to match the 55 engine. The clutch disc spline diameter and count, and the throwout bearing need to match the T5.
The plates I'm aware of are for putting a V8 patterned trans behind the earlier sixes, which wouldn't work for what you are doing. I personnally don't know of a fix for your situation, but I would think you could sandwhich a plate between the trans and engine that has provision for using a bellhousing mounted type starter. I would think it would be alot easier to get the block drilled and tapped, even if it meant taking the engine, flywheel & starter into a machine shop...
For an auto but use your head. http://www.cl***icchevy.com/chevy-e...turbo-hydra-matic-transmisison-1955-1957.html
I think an automotive machine shop can drill and tap holes to mount later starters in early SBC blocks.
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