Recent content by rustystud

I thought I would share this little "tid bit" of information for those who are trying to justify using an old HydraMatic in their truck. This was not only the "first" automatic transmission, but it was also the first to have total lock-up in fourth gear. You ask how could that be with a "fluid...

It was the 265 cid . Used from 1955 to 1956 . So this bell housing is pretty rare since 1956 was the last year of the "original" HydraMatic transmission in a Chevy truck. After that they went to the stupid "RotoHydro" or "Slim Jim" transmission. I have heard though; certain later models of...

I cleaned up the Chevy bellhousing that will go on this rebuild. Isn't she beautiful ! Now I just need to buy an early 350 cid crate engine and put them into my other M35 Deuce. Of course, an original M135 would be the best platform to use but I don't see those much out here.

I do know what you mean ! Keep that oil clean than and check your bands adjustments.

Just a quick side note on the "fluid coupling" . This transmission does not have a "torque convertor" but a fluid coupling since it does not have a "stator" . That being said, there are several different styles or flavors of fluid couplings for the HydraMatic. This one came off a V-8 engine...

As far as rebuilding anyone else's transmission. I cannot do that. The lifting of these parts alone causes me pain. Back when I was rebuilding these units, I could tear down a transmission in under 4 hours. Now it takes me 2 days. Rebuilding one took 2-3 days. I know people say you should be...

A properly built HydraMatic will last 80,00 to 100,000 miles easily. In my personal truck I rebuilt back in 1979, that transmission lasted over 40,000 miles and was going strong before I broke the engine. (The engine used a fiber cam gear and it shattered causing the valves to hit every piston...

By the lack of response to my last post about beefing up the transmission, I guess no one wants to know about this stuff so I'll stick to just a stock rebuild. I will show everyone this one secret though. The front pump has always been the weak point in the HydraMatic. Pontiac did something...

I wrote back to you about the specs needed for this gasket. It is made of paper and some kind of fiber. It can handle temps above 300 degrees Fahrenheit and is resistant to oils and fuels.

Those bolts are a "special" size. I cannot remember off the top of my head what they, just that I had to order them from "White Owl" parts. You cannot use standard bolts as the bolts shank is extra long to locate the two flanges. If you use regular bolts the flanges will "shift" and then loosen...

Now is as good a time as any to share a little secret to help beef-up this transmission. The two main drums, the front clutch drum and rear clutch drum are not as strong as they could be. In later HydraMatics they fixed this issue. So what am I talking about. Here's a picture of the standard...

On a different note, don't lose these small parts that mount on the outside shift lever . They create a water proof seal for the shift and throttle levers. The HydraMatic is an extremely waterproof transmission with the exception of the shift and throttle levers. These little buggers solve...

Plowboy mentioned the valve body having issues. The reason for that is the Military decided to change the shift lever detent system. Why ? I can only guess they didn't want any possibility of it jumping out of gear in rough terrain. It is more positive this way as you can see, but terribly...

You can ? That would be fantastic ! I don't have any original gaskets as they all got destroyed upon disassembly, but I have the housings. I have to figure out how much it is going to cost to ship that 50Ibs bearing retainer to Mansfield PA from Seattle WA. How far are you from "plowboy" ? He...

OK, tonight I finish tearing down the reduction unit. There's not a lot of things to remove on this, but you do need to check them. First off the rear seal must be removed to access the snap-rings. There are two. One holds in the output shaft and the larger one holds in the rear bearing. Remove...