Whats the proper way to Align a tranny

I use extra long bolts on each side to 'draw' the two together.
Still have to wrestle and fight & almost kill myself. Some are easier than others.

Rob

 

C'mon Dan if Joe, Matt and I can do it on the hard ground at Tellico with nothing more than brute force you ought to be able to do it in a nice comfy garage with a chain hoist or come along!

 

Yes the t18 ain't no joke. I am not looking forward to doing this once my motor is back together and ready to go in, but it is easier I think with the tranny already in place and dropping a motor in. I also use the jack this jack that wiggle wiggle push method!

 

Really no method. Some just drop right in and others fight you. You did use a clutch alignment tool right? Also be carefull about using long bolts to suck the tranny up. If you have to use a lot of force on the bolts to get the tranny to suck up to the engine then you might be bending or breaking something. I've heard tales of import motors breaking the bolt ears off the block when it wasn't alingned quite right.

One thing I like to do is to make sure the trans is in gear. Preferably 4th. That way I can turn the output with my hand while I push the tranny in (we use a tranny jack at the shop). This allows the clutch splines and pilot bearing to line up better sometimes. I've had some that would fight me and then I turn the shaft and they just slip right in. Most people think trannies have to be in neutral when you pull them.

Kevo

 

i lay under the jeep, roll the trany onto my belly.. and then lift and push. now with a t-15 this was pretty easy, but when i tried it with the t-18 for the first time well lets just say i was unprepared for all the events that unfolded in rapid sucsesion. i wont go into great detail... but i will say that the catalysest was the creeper rolling back as i was trying to push the trany in.

i now do this procedure with out creeper.

 

Take the tranny floor cover off and use a hoist to pull the tranny up through the hole in the floor. Or in absence of a hoist, a fence puller hooked to the roll cage works too. Much easier to get it lined up when it is hanging.

 

I just went though the experience for the first time over the weekend while installing my 231. We kept wiggling the engine/tranny waiting for it to slip right in together. Never happened. We ended up getting the engine bolted in (motor mounts) and unbolting the tranny mount @ the cross member. Turned out that the tranny needed to move forward. The tranny never just slid into position. We got it close (1/4" -3/8") got bolts started and drew the tranny up to the engine by tightening the bolts. I was very concerned doing this because I was scared that I was going to break the Bellhousing but never did.

It did seem to be a matter of raising and lowering engine and tranny to get the right angles and lining them up. I think it will go much faster next time.

 

I never use any alignment bolts, just put the tranny in gear. Get under it and twist the tranny side to side till it slides in. also had a floor jack under the back of the oil pan to adjust the tilt of the motor


Of course since I've dumped the T18 in favor of a Th400 the process is even easier now. raise it up and bolt it on

 

The last time I did this I fought it for an hour (or two), and finally put the engine back on the floor.

So I took the clutch off and then determined that the clutch plate would not mesh with the transmission shaft !!!!

So, I removed the plate, filed it, and prodded, and finally got it to engage the transmission shaft -- but ONLY in one position. If I moved it one spline either way it would not engage.

I took a yellow paint marker pen and marked the spline on the transmission and the spline on the clutch plate (and the clutch itself) and removed the inspection plate from the bell housing.

You can spy in there and see how things are aligning.

Finally got it to engage (actually it was quite easy once I could see how things were aligning and which way I needed to jog the engine), but the next time I do this I'm going to START with the yellow paint trick and check the spline to clutch fit.

Unfortunately, it looks as if I will be doing this again in another jeep in the next month or so -- once I finish rebuilding an engine to replace the one that seized up yesterday.

The yellow marking paint trick is pretty neat - and in the abovementioned case, it may have been the only way to get it back together since the other 359 degrees wouldn't work.

good luck.

kamel

 

I always use Chuck P's method - the engine hoist inside the cab.

Do a few test lifts with the tranny on the floor, to see where the center-point is so you'll know where to hook your chain or strap. This way, when you get under the Jeep, you can easily tip the tranny front to back or side to side.

I used this method about a year ago on Harry's CJ7. T176 and Dana 300 *together*. It went right in. Just be carefull about smacking the dash pad with the boom on the hoist (sorry Harry! ).

 

Use an old transmission input shaft to center the clutch disc. If you don't have one available, I have had good success by having a friend push in on the clutch pedal after the input shaft is engaged in the clutch disc, and then wiggle the transmission around until it finds the flywheel pilot bearing.

 

Autozone had a clutch alignment tool for $1.99. It looks like the end of thetransmission shaft. Worked very well.