I’m having a hard time finding a closed driveshaft main trans shaft with the 40-48 helical gears( either pin or non pin version) . I have however found the 36 to 39 shaft and by the online photos , they look almost identical except for the “ unusual cuts “ on leading edge of helical teeth. With that said can I use this shaft on 49-48 gear set ups which I currently have on my open drive set up? Any spacers or extra thrust washers needed? Any help is much appreciated! Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
The unusual cuts on the 36-39 main shaft are part of the arrangement that locks the intermediate gear to the shaft. The 36-39 gear runs on a bushing that has a splined ID that slides on the shaft and locks into position. The intermediate gear for 1939-50 runs directly on the shaft and has a pressed-in bushing and uses different style thrust washers and a snap ring to retain the gear on the shaft. The 39-50 intermediate gear and synchro hub will not fit the 36-39 main shaft. Van Pelt Sales should be able to provide the correct shaft that you need to be compatible with your later gears and synchros. If you visit their website they list all of their transmission parts and prices in catalog form. They have excellent pictures of both main shafts that clearly show the differences
Thank you for the response. I downloaded their catalog but didn’t see any pics of either shafts. Only bare shaft photos I could find where the later 40-50 shafts ( with pin and without) . If I looked on other sites the 36-39 shaft looked identical other than the cuts. I appreciate the info and I’ll call van pelt again and see what their later shaft availability is. This is my first ford 3 speed trans build so it’s been a learning curb. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
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