I am thinking about putting either a 55 Cadillac 331 or a 61 Buick Nailhead into my 49 Ford. Preferably the Cad motor. I have been toying with other possibilities but these are what I have a line on at the moment. I am sure I can get them with the automatic transmissions but I really want to keep the stick. I cannot for the life of me find an adaptor kit for anything to a 49-64 transmission except a small block Chevy. I don't really want a SBC in there. I know these adaptor kits exist but I sure can't find one. I saw a car in Texas at the Day of the Drags with a Rocket motor in it and was hooked. That looked and sounded so cool. I like the more obscure period correct engines in there. I can find what I need for a 32-48 Ford transmission no problem. I like the 3 on the tree but have no problem going to a toploader if needed. Will the 32-48 tranny bolt in or will I have to bother with tranny mounts and driveshaft modifications? Will either of these engines I listed even fit in a shoebox without modifiying the steering linkage/crossmember? I have seen them in there but the details are shady at best. Anyone with any Shoebox swap experience other than the SBC? I was reading that a Y-block would go in there and bolt up to the transmission I have but it is not as good an engine as the others and I do not have one readily available. I guess it and a FE are options though. Any help or input would be gratly appreciated.
You can put a manual trans behind either the Cad or the Buick. I'll thumb through my catalogs, but for the time being, all I can think of is Bendtsen's.
I got mine for Rocco and Cheaters "PINSTRIPER" on the hamb... adapts a cad to a shoebox trans. they show up on ebay alot... you have to be patient... this is a crager adapter and a sheifer aluminum flywheel... Tuck
No you don't. And no it doesn't. Have you checked to see what you have there or are you still jerking it over your bike?
Damn, that is what I need. I have been following eBay for a little while but have found nothing. Can I ask what I should expect to pay for one of these should I find one. What pressure plate and starter will you be using? Does it have the pilot bearing? Nevermind, I see the pilot bearing.
I'm running an early, narrow-bolt-pattern 4 speed toploader behind my Nailhead. It has the same bolt pattern as your three speed. I've had the Offy adaptor for awhile, but I gave 'em a call just to see if they had any info on bolting it all together. They did, and not only that, they had another one of these adaptors still sitting on the shelf brand new. It may still be there. Offy's number is 323-225-1307. The P/N# is 0310.
Great, good info keep it coming. I would rather have too much than not enough. I will have to get ahold of Offy. So how do these engines fit in the engine bay? Will they clear the crossmember and steering? How about the exhaust manifolds to steering linkage clearence? Anybody swap one of these into a shoebox that has anything to add?
PM Brock49Ford, he's got one with a Cad under the hood and has been through all this stuff. And if you get hung up on the tranny, don't be afraid to try the early Hydro. Big and heavy, but a damn good transmission.
I want a stick plus I heard the 55 up hydro is shit. I was kinda hoping to save on time consuming fabrication of tranny mounts, floorboards and drive shaft stuff. Plus I am REALLY broke. If I was going to go to all that trouble I guess I could get a early Chevy 4 speed. I can find adapters for those. But no mulah for the transmission. I will still check eBay regularly for an adapter that will work. Or maybe I should look into the FE thing. I still cannot get a confirmation that any of these engines will fit without reworking the front ccrossmember or steering.
yorg- the ink stamped on the adapter says 55 cad to 49-55 ford stick/54-55 merc. stick. right on it- same with the flywheel, its for the 55-62 cad v-8 the flywheel uses a 11" long style pressure plate with a ford truck 11" clutch disk that'll match the splines on the shoebox trans. I'm adapting the '59 390 to my shoebox trans...I'm pretty sure its the same style setup brock49ford has in his shoe- Tuck
the 1955 ONLY Cadillac Hydra-matic is the same internally as the '49-54,it's a really good trans.Jive-Bomber has one in his model A.
That is good to know. Maybe I can sell it. I still want a stick. But that sure is tempting. It would make things so much easier. So, assuming I can find an adapter and talk the guy into selling me the Cad engine how do these suckers fit in the engine bay? I was just reading that I may have fenderwell clearance issues? How about steering and crossmember? Same questions go for the nailhead and the FE. These are my next two choices. Unless a Rocket comes into play somehow. And yeah CRAP and I saw that green shoebox and was blown away. It hauled ass. I remember sitting in front of the Continental Club and watching him get on it and light the tires up. Ever since then the flathead didn't look the same. The car had Loco Greengo painted on the firewall.
I have been there, and have a fair amount of info on the shoebox swap. I have a late (55-62) Cadillac, Cragar bellhousing, Schiefer 176 tooth Alum flywheel, Ford toploader, blah blah blah, in my 1949 Ford. Don't have any pictures here at work, do a search on you may find some. Biggest thing is flywheel and adapter, just ask Tuck. His is the only other Schiefer 176 tooth Alum for a late Cad that I have seen. You can make the early 145 tooth or the Olds flywheels work too. Adapters for 49-54 motors are much more plentiful, 55-62 stuff is harder to find. Demand probably started slowing with the arrival of the SBC and its immediate impact. Big thing in the Shoebox is the steering, drag link is in the way. I can answer specific questions anybody has them, I feel like I am rambling.
No you are definately not rambling. This is the best info I have found even though it doesn't sound like good news. So the chances of finding the flywheel is pretty slim huh? What does it take to get the 145 tooth or Olds to work? And I thought the adaptor was hard enough. I assume you are using a toploader from a truck? 4-speed? I have seen pics of your engine bay but at the angle they were taken not much can be seen. Did it clear the fenderwells? I am assuming it cleared the crossmember fine but what did you do about the steering? Did you use a 6 cylinder radiator or block the extra outlets in the 8?
I'll see if I have any better pictures. I actually have started driving the car here again, forgot how much fun it was. I was having brake issues due to a bad rear wheel cylinder. Got that fixed over the weekend.
Good stuff! The hunt is on to gather as much info as I can and make an offer to the guy with the Caddy motor. I hope I can find the adapter and flywheel I need. I don't think he will go for a trade with my (poorly) running flattie but it is worth a shot. Any shots of the swap would be great to see. Any burnout shots would be better.
has anyone used a bendtsen transmission adapter? I saw them up at back to the 50's and would like to know if they are any good. This is there website www.transmissionadapters.com he makes them in his shop in Ham Lake MN. I need an adapter for a nailhead to 700r-4.
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