Hey there. I'm fitting my 1939 Ford top loader case with some NOS 26 tooth gears. The gears just say "Made in USA" on them so I'm thinking that they may be the newly made ones. (I bought 'em at a swap meet) I've built up the entire main shaft which went together fine. Counted all the teeth to make sure they were the correct ones to go together. I installed the main shaft in the case like VanPelt's book says to do, leaving the cluster gear loose in the bottom. Now, when I align the cluster gear, I can get the shaft that holds it all the way through the cluster gear, but when the shaft reaches the hole on the front, it's off by like .03" Just a finger nail off, but will not go through the front hole. Also, turning the gears, it's really stiff like the teeth are really pressed together. So, anything come to mind as to why this cluster gear is not just going in easily?
Do you have the Lincoln type input gear with cutaways to allow full assembly of cluster first?? Lincoln assembly manual for '42 and later stuff calls for full assembly of cluster, put in input gear last using th cutaways. Don't have any repro gears and don't know if they are made original style. I think you actually need to get the gears fully in so you can determine if overall dimensions are compatible or if something is made wrong. If no notches, you can still put in input last by assembling the bearing and associated parts to it after shoving it in...then you can see if the thing is locked up or good.
Yeah, the synchro teeth on the input gear have the cutaways or flat spots on either side. All these gears came with a side loader case that was being rebuilt, but I'm putting it into a 39 style case (had 1938 gears and shifter top, but I'm making it all 1939, forks... blah blah) Yeah. When I popped the input gear and bearing out of the front of the transmission, the cluster gear goes in fine. but now the front bearing is off by a fingernails width and I can't pop the front input in. The flat spots of the synchro teeth are lined up flat with the cluster gear, but the bearing wont go in. I was just looking at an article saying that a 40 style mainshaft is needed when putting lincoln gears in a 39 case. I believe I'm using the 40 style shaft. Infact, it's the shaft that came with this side loader lincoln case. I'm pretty sure that the input shaft/gear/flatspot teeth is not meshing with the cluster. Cluster is 26 tooth, input shaft is 19 tooth. Both appear to be NOS.
Ok..... Just got off phone with Mac VanPelt. Looks like I need an EIGHTEEN tooth input gear with a 26 tooth cluster! DOH! I guess the parts I picked up at this swap meet were miss matched. Awe crud! The one I have is for a 25 tooth cluster. I'll have to figure out what to do now and start looking for the correct 18 tooth input gear.
Remember your 8th grade math!! In early Ford transmissions, teeth on input plus teeth on cluster equal 44!! Note that this allows you to figgerout cluster count in an assembled toploader by counting the teeth you can easily see. I should have spotted the bad math!
you've got the same set as i do, the faster set of the two. I think I know where you can get a NOS input gear. I had to get one for mine(#wt191 16m I believe). more info Zephyr gears here - http://www.btc-bci.com/~billben/lincoln.htm
Thanks Zgears! Let me know the info you have about that NOS 18 tooth input gear. I really appreciate it!
If I remember right the 25 tooth is 1946 only. Im kinda rusty on all this info and part numbers, so double check yourself. Also fyi those cases are sometimes crack prone, may want to get it shot peened and magnafluxed. for the gear try these guys they should have a couple more on the shelf. http://www.txchange.com/
(You also do not have to worry about "notches" or "cutaways" with the Zephyr gears. The Main Drive Gear, input, will slip in easily with the cluster in the bottom of the case.)
OEM Lincoln inputs had cutaways after about the first year of production to make the different assembly order (different from Ford 28-29 teeth) easy with bearing and stuff already assembled on the gear and cluster fully assembled to case rather than lying on the bottom of the case. Assembling trans the Lincoln way can be done with Ford gears in the very early cases without much room below cluster the same way, but usually requires assembling the front bearing and associated hardware onto input after sliding in the gear. And remember the rule of 44 when you are decoding a transmission at a swap meet...
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