Flathead Trans??

I just picked up a Merc Flathead and the trans seems to be stuck in the clutch or pilot shaft. I have it unbolted and I can get a gap 1/4 to 1/2 inch between it and the bellhousing or the bellhousing and the block. What is the easiest way to get them apart??

 

What year block amd bell housing are you talking about? On the pre 49 motors I've seen guys miss a bolt and get some gap then pry and brake things. The early trans has 8 bolts same as 49-51 Merc. count your bolts.
The Wizzard

 

Its a 1951 mercury engine

 

Use the clutch to apply force--first shim the gap you have with a couple of strips of metal so trans is held straight relative to engine. Have another couple shims handy. Find a way to apply big lever to release clutch (there were two different setups of clutch stuff on '51's), have a friend release clutch, stick shims into new gap,, release clutch so pressure plate pulls disk back. Repeat until all the way off or exhausted...

 

Bruce knows the trick.
Sometimes the clutch disk gets "frozen" on the splines of the input shaft of the transmission.

 

This might be a silly thing to mention but if you are taking the bellhousing with the trans did you un-bolt the inspection plate from the bottom half of the bellhousing?

 

Thanks guys Bruce i will try it your way and see what happens.