Hi guys. I wanted to share with you all what the learning curve was like for a guy like me to install a TKO-600. I'm sure I'm not alone here when it comes to my mechanical skill level, and I hope I can help others avoid some mistakes I made, which will save them time and money.

First, a little about myself: I'll be 49 next month, and I haven't owned a muscle car for nearly 20yrs. While I've never considered myself a "car guy", I'm a do-it-yourself-er from hell. I make fine furniture as a hobby, and could damn near completely build a house, but I've only replaced brakes, starters, Alt's and stuff like that (add upper & lower ball joints to my wife's SUV as of today!) for the past 2 decades.

I just bought a 69' Z28 (clone) 60 days ago. I've never replaced a clutch, transmission or drive shaft in my entire life, and I was apprehensive as hell about doing it myself since I just forked out 3 grand for the tranny. I had a friend who has many years of experience working on cars, help me. However, he's a "I don't really need instructions... I'm tellin' ya we can do this in half a day" kinda guy:). I'll warn you at this point that the "total" installation is not actually complete, but only mostly minor details are left (we've been rained out two times now). This is being done in a driveway with the car on jack stands, and good old Atlanta summer temps.

The beginning: I decided the 4 spd Saginaw and old clutch needed to be replaced, as there were issues with shifting and smooth shifting. After nearly buying a new M20, I changed my mind and went with the TKO-600 for various reasons. Mistake #1: I had already hastily purchased a new flywheel and Clutch from Ricks. I sent the clutch back and kept the flywheel, and ordered a LUK clutch kit from CC5spd. On Day #1 of getting started, I found out how easy it was to remove a drive shaft. The transmission was fairly easy as well, but the bell housing was a mother to reach a few bolts on. Jacking the engine up/down helps, but they're still pretty awkward to reach. Okay, the clutch came off easy enough, but the flywheel was a bit tricky. I called CC5spd (GM Jim), and he graciously helped me by explaining it was okay to use a screwdriver between the flywheel teeth and the bottom of the block, to keep the flywheel from spinning (you can't do this by having someone hold the crankshaft because it moves in the same direction and will come loose). The old screwdriver as a shim worked like a charm.

Time to put on new flywheel.....now realized Rick's had hooked me up with a 14" flywheel...and I had a 12 & 3/4" 153 tooth. I won't place blame anywhere here, as I didn't know what size I had/needed...but I did tell ricks the engine size etc... Oh well.... But to make things worse, lol, I had already ordered and received the new clutch which did match this over-sized flywheel so, I now had to send both back. Yes, I found out I could have made them work, but this would have meant repositioning the starter and buying a new bell housing (this will become a point of humor later in the story), and this was something that scared a novice away from that choice. At this point, Day #1 was over and I had to wait one week to get the correct parts. I should also mention that I ended up having my old flywheel resurfaced as a local shop and put it on Monday (cost- $35). The only reason I decided to go with a new one was so I wouldn't halt the progress of the project once I got started.At this point, 6hrs time was used, which included setting up tools and clean-up after.

Day #2: This was a very special day by itself:D. We had never removed the old pilot bushing/bearing so, I figured I'd do this during the week before my needed parts came in. I actually posted another thread here, devoted solely to the saga of removing this old bushing. Long story short...all the tricks known to those much wiser than me on this forum would not work, as the bushing was damn near welded to the block and had to be cold chiseled out. No bearing puller would work, and any hydraulic magic wasn't happening here. Anyway, I got the bushing out the next morning...not the same day I started...as I was mentally and physically spent. At this point, I had spent another 5hrs between the evening and next morning, all devoted solely to the bearing, which included a few trips to the parts store to rent pullers etc...

The parts come in on Friday as expected, and we get back to it Saturday morning about 9:30am. Day #3: I cleaned the flywheel surface and installed the new clutch kit using the included alignment tool. This seemed very easy to me. Next, we tried bolting on the new bell housing that I ended up deciding to go with to avoid using a dial indicator. This last minute desire ($235) cost me an extra $43 for UPS 3 Day Select to make sure I'd get it with my other parts before the weekend. No go. I had to remove my starter, as the large nose would not fit in the new bell housing. Okay, at this point I'm pretty frustrated. I just bought a new BH to save me a major headache, and now it's going to cost me a new starter. Oh well, suck it up and move on.... Now the starter is removed and the new BH is bolted on. After carefully sliding the TKO-600 under the car, we then raised it up/onto a fairly large 3 ton floor jack. We slide it toward the tunnel, adjusting the height, watching the angle etc., only to wrestle with it, curse it, wiggle and twist it...all to no avail. We must have spent well over an hour doing this, while catching our breath and regaining our composure and strength to run a string of futile attempts that seemed an eternity. (continued)

Part 2

We convinced ourselves that the new BH had to be "off". Therefore, desperation dictated our next move, which was to try the old BH! After only bolting one bolt on each side of the BH to set for a test run, we inserted the tran into the tunnel. After wrestling with this for a few mins., we got it in!!! Therefore, my old BH was better than the new BH I'd just forked out big bucks for! Wrong again. After we put in all the bolts in the old BH, we could not get the tran back in again! After reaching an even higher level of frustration, we decided to duplicate the "2 bolt" scenario that enabled us to first get the tran in. This worked, and we then inserted & tightened the other BH bolts. At this point, a severe T-Storm rolled in on us and we had to call it a day. While I was somewhat relieved we had finally got the tran in, I knew in the back of my mind that we hadn't done it the way it should be done. I had left messages with GM Jim, but he wasn't available to speak with on this day. At this point, we spent another 8, very frustrating hours working in this project.

Day #4 (today): My friend arrives just as I'm speaking with GM Jim on the phone. Jim tells me what I knew he would, but what I didn't want to hear; we had to remove the tran, as we had simple "forced" the BH to fit around the tran. He proceeds to explain a simple trick with the clutch that was mentioned in another thread posted last night in this forum. We install the new BH...again... and connect the clutch linkage and depress the pedal a couple of times. We then back the tran out approx 1/2" (with the main bolts just backed off a good bit) and slide it back in....perfect!!! It seems that the little plastic clutch alignment tool that comes with most clutches isn't quite perfect. The aforementioned procedure solves this problem, after the fact, and it works like a charm. So the tran is finally in and the new cross member & drive shaft are a snap to put in place. Another T-Storm rolls in on us and we have to shut down for the day. At this point, we've logged another 5+ hrs.

As I sit and type this, I only have the console to put back in place, a starter to buy, a test/break-in to do, and a trip to the muffler shop. You see, the new cross member interferes with the driver's side muffler. More money to spend!:( I have about 22 hrs into it as of now. I've been angry, frustrated, disappointed, exhausted etc., during this task, but as of today, it's all starting to seem very well worth it. As you can see, some of my mistakes were: careless calculations in buying the wrong materials before hand, and not understanding some of the car's specifications. My friend originally told me this project would be 1/2 a day, lol. Well, he learned some things, too!. GM Jim says it took him about 10hrs from start to finish. A couple of days ago I would have said "BS!!!". Looking back now on what I've learned this past 2wks, if I had to do it again, I honestly believe I could complete this task in close to the same 10hr period that Jim mentioned.

Let me say a word or two about CC5SPD: The instructions they supply are very thorough, but the "inserts" can become confusing simple because there are several and I'm not sure "where I recall reading this". I also had printed GM Jim's own write-up from the CC5spd site. Just another set of papers I had lying around. They mention an allen head bolt that they supply because of the difficult reach on the upper right side of the tran housing, but the upper left side was equally hard to reach with even a wrench. And then, there's the concern of being able to torque these bolts down because you can't access them with a torque wrench. Jim concedes that they should perhaps mention this more clearly, or even supply bolts with slightly smaller heads that will allow a socket better access.

Jim Goodlad (GM Jim) was/is a shining star in this whole adventure. He is a polished professional who not only possesses all the knowledge you'll ever b=need doing this, but he also possesses something that seems rare these days; the ability, patience, and genuine desire to see you succeed in completing the installation. I spoke with him a couple of times on the first Saturday (when everyone else is chillin'...and when guys like me have time to do something like this), and I spoke with him a few times today (Sunday). He is genuinely a likable person and a pleasure to deal with. If he'd been anything like what most of us encounter these days in most businesses, I'd have shipped the whole thing back after the second long and bad day. No joke here folks, this guy is tops with me.:thumbsup:

I'll probably come back here and add what it was like after the first test drive, but I wanted to get most of my thoughts typed out before I forgot, lol. Here I am....the average Joe....admitting stupid mistakes...no glossing over....no acting smooth... and sharing all the follies of my project. Again, I hope some of the guys out there can benefit from my ramblings, and pick up on a few things not to do, lol, and maybe a few that you should do.

Wow - it's nice to know someone else out there also had a hell of a time installing one of these. I just went through it as well with converting from an auto to a TKO600. (best mod I ever did) Fortunately, I did read the part about pushing the clutch pedal which saved me some hassle. However, with wrong parts being sent on various and other misc. issues I had my share of struggles along the way. Good thing you had a reliable friend show up every day. I hope you bought him plenty of pizza and beer. I live in a rural mountain area and have a tough time getting friends to drive up where I live to spend 8 hours upside down under a car. That type of friend is rare and a "special breed." Fortunatley, I could convince my amazing wife to help when it came time to have one person push or hold something while I did the rest. One thing I noticed during the process is that you bitch a lot more when there is someone around to hear you - if you are alone, complaining is worthless. Anyway - enjoy the 5spd. and good job. Goes to show that you can do and accomplish anything with perceverence and attitude (and some help from your friends). :thumbsup:

Glad you got 'er in there, and just wait til that first drive down the street and up the freeway, it will ALL be worth it then.

GMJim is fer sure #1. He helped me a lot too, and many many others. Tecnical phone support is a true art, and few are really good at it. Relying on someone else to be your eyes and ears if tough.

Thanks, Bill. You're right about cursing less (only a little less for me :D) when nobody is around, but I did a little cursing today. And yes, this friend is my best friend. And luckily, he's a car nut.

As I left off, I needed a new starter. I bought one last night with hesitation, and sure enough, it wouldn't work. I was then steered toward another and bought it.....and it wouldn't engage (made for wrong flywheel). I then dragged my butt back into Auto Zone and bought the third one......and it would not fit either. Determined to get this thing done, I drove to Summit (50min drive) and bought the one their rep insisted would work. Well, it did work (no nose on it & high priced at $220), but I'll have to take it out so I can pound down my new dust shield that came with the bell housing, and intall it later....because the starter that works seats against a raised portion of the cover. Geeez! I can't seem to win here. It's like a bad dream. They need to replace Murphy's Law with DBX's Law.

For those wondering about the several starters: There was miscommunication between me and CC5SPD about the flywheel at one point. But even after that was cleared up, the 3rd purchase led to CC5SPD realizing there are some specs they may have overlooked, and that my case, was the first such case. And of course, I just knew I'd have to pull the one that worked to shim it....but no!!! It actually worked as is, lol.

Now, you've got to realize that while my car has been on jack stands, I replaced a cracked carb float (750 Holley dbl pumper), and today was the first chance to even be able to start the car in over 2wks. I got it to start on 4 occasions, but they were relatively short lived (2mins being longest). It was nearly frightening trying to listen to the "sound" when the car was started, as it was always loud anyway, but now (if you'll recall) I have one exhaust pipe that can't connect now because of the new cross member. And as is to be expected these past many days....T-Storms rolled in and I decided to call it quits for today:).

It may interest some of you to know that I actually opted to leave the Tremec shifter as it came (I didn't turn it 180 deg.). This meant that I had to trim a little bit of the back tunnel, but it now sits in a more comfy position to my liking. I sit back when I drive, so I previously had to lean forward to to shift in 1st & 3rd. It is now positioned much better for my liking, and is not jamming me.

Now, I have to tune the carb when I get a chance, and reposition and put the console back together. It ain't over yet:).

Glad you got 'er in there, and just wait til that first drive down the street and up the freeway, it will ALL be worth it then.

GMJim is fer sure #1. He helped me a lot too, and many many others. Tecnical phone support is a true art, and few are really good at it. Relying on someone else to be your eyes and ears if tough.

I know you're right about it being worth it in the end, Jim. I just can't wait to get it running! It's my luck that the carb would be screwed up at a time like this, but that's the hand I've been dealt. I've learned a great deal during all of this. The way I look at it, is that it's good bonding time with my car:cool:.

Lol, I just hung up from talking with Jim again. I'm not sure what the other partners do, but Jim is the right tech-guy to have on board. That's for sure!

Kevin, glad to hear that you are almost done with the install. I put a tko600

in mine last year. It also came from cc5spd and Jim was a lot of help to me

also. You were lucky to have a friend helping. I did have to call Jim several

times myself, but all of the grunt work was done by me. It is unbeleivable

what a difference it will make in driving your car, not to mention the gas that

you will save. You are really going to enjoy driving your car with the new

tranny.:beers:

I was reading through your post and I didn't see anything about dialing in the bellhousing...did you do that?

DBX-
Thank you for the kind words about Jim - he is a great asset and he is the best tech guy I know. CC5S is fortunate to have him as a partner.
I trust that it will have been worthwhile in the end.
Thanks for sharing your experienbces - I am sure it will help others and it will help make us a better company.
Sincerely,
Jeff Mortenson

Thanks for the write up. This is making me feel better about possibly attacking this job myself as well. (I also have limited mechanical experience.)

Kevin, glad to hear that you are almost done with the install. I put a tko600

in mine last year. It also came from cc5spd and Jim was a lot of help to me

also. You were lucky to have a friend helping. I did have to call Jim several

times myself, but all of the grunt work was done by me. It is unbeleivable

what a difference it will make in driving your car, not to mention the gas that

you will save. You are really going to enjoy driving your car with the new

tranny.:beers:

It's kinda hard to explain, but my friend made me do almost everything myself, under the guise that he was "teaching" me how to do it, lol. He's generally a lazy SOB and the teacher role was convenient :D. But yeah, he was there when I needed him and of course, he helped me when I was stuck, frustrated, or when two people were needed to actually input the tran into the tunnel etc... We pride our friendship on knowing we'll be there for each other when anything that's important to us arises.

I was reading through your post and I didn't see anything about dialing in the bellhousing...did you do that?

Here's the deal: I did not use a dial indicator. For obvious liability reasons, no CC5spd can suggest that you don't use one, even if you use one of their bell houses. I will tell you that I have no concerns about the fit and leave it at that.

DBX-
Thank you for the kind words about Jim - he is a great asset and he is the best tech guy I know. CC5S is fortunate to have him as a partner.
I trust that it will have been worthwhile in the end.
Thanks for sharing your experienbces - I am sure it will help others and it will help make us a better company.
Sincerely,
Jeff Mortenson

You're most welcome, Jeff. Jim earned more than what I even mentioned. Let me also qualify my opinion of his value: For almost of my professional career I have been in the capacity of Customer Service Manager. Before starting my own business, I was most recently the C.S. Mgr/Inside Sales Manager for all of the Americas, for a German tooling company. We made the world's finest, custom diamond and carbide tooling. We had engineers who were often our direct "tech people" who interacted with our customers. Most engineers have zero personality. They know their stuff, but in general, they have extremely poor people skills. Jim may not be an engineer, but he possesses the knowledge that borders this proficiency, and he has people skills that far exceed that of most people in any profession where customer contact is critical. In other words, even though I was very frustrated and mentally & physically exhausted, Jim never so much as "sighed" (as in, "OK, what now!?" in his voice) when I had to repeatedly call him for advice and assurance. I am an expert in teaching these skills to others, and some people cannot be taught. Jim, inherently, has these skills, and showed sincere genuine concern and attention in each conversation. Rare, indeed.:thumbsup:

And btw, my friend will be purchasing a TKO-600 not too far down the road, to install in his Vette.

Thanks for the write up. This is making me feel better about possibly attacking this job myself as well. (I also have limited mechanical experience.)

You're welcome, Acidburn. Guys like you are the primary reason I wrote it. Keep in mind that I did these under less than ideal conditions, too; summer in Atlanta (90+ deg & humidity), in a driveway, car at a "safe" height on jack stands, but still somewhat tight underneath. I'd never even installed a clutch let alone, tran, in my life. I honestly feel that if I had to do this again, that I could easily cut the time in half. Some problems were unavoidable (like the frozen old bushing), but aside from that....you can do this.

Great story and glad to read its done and getting closer to the end.

The only problem is the snowball at the top of the hill.

It always seems you can never get a car up high enough on jack stands and the tool you need is still in the toolbox.

Good first hand experiance write up, Now you are just a little closer to age 50. The depressing of the clutch is an old trick to get input splines and disc to fully align. It usually is not necessary with the older trans and 10 splines but there seems to be less tolerance for misalignment on a 26 spline.
You are correct about cramped spaces with vehicle jacked up 2ft off ground and working on your back. You have also come to realization that you were only bench pressing a little under 100# as TKO weighs a little more .

Sounds like you learned plenty.

Kevin, JimM and others.

Thanks for the kind and flattering words. It's nice to know your efforts are appreciated but I don't deserve all the credit. Some of you admit you're not the greatest mechanics but you put your fear aside and dive in anyway! This takes some guts. You should all give your selves a pat on the back. For those of you on the fence about doing this conversion, dive in! There's a lot of experience on this site, and you could be the next guy to add your experience to help others.
Thanks again
Jim

Great story and glad to read its done and getting closer to the end.

The only problem is the snowball at the top of the hill.

It always seems you can never get a car up high enough on jack stands and the tool you need is still in the toolbox.

Good first hand experiance write up, Now you are just a little closer to age 50. The depressing of the clutch is an old trick to get input splines and disc to fully align. It usually is not necessary with the older trans and 10 splines but there seems to be less tolerance for misalignment on a 26 spline.
You are correct about cramped spaces with vehicle jacked up 2ft off ground and working on your back. You have also come to realization that you were only bench pressing a little under 100# as TKO weighs a little more .

Sounds like you learned plenty.

The car was (is) actually 17.5" from door bottom to ground. But hey, there were times that if it had been higher, it would've been harder! Bright side to everything. And for the record, my 1 rep max is 290# on bench:D. But due to recurring shoulder issues I may not see that magic 300# I was hoping for by years end. In fact, I think I may need surgery:(.

Kevin, JimM and others.

Thanks for the kind and flattering words. It's nice to know your efforts are appreciated but I don't deserve all the credit. Some of you admit you're not the greatest mechanics but you put your fear aside and dive in anyway! This takes some guts.
Thanks again
Jim

You do deserve a lot of credit from this guy, but okay......I'll give myself a little pat!:)

It was overcast all day here, so I worked on "fixing" up my tunnel, and put my console (with new pod & all new gauges) back together. I also changed the 4 spd plate to a 5 spd plate! I will work on the carb tomorrow, as I suspect I'll have to clean the plugs off, as well as set the float level right, and make other adjustments to get it running!

I must admit, although I have a 'velle, my trans install was as easy as any other manual install. Although, I did drop the motor/trans in as a unit (which helps).

But, I have to drop the trans this winter cause of a clutch slippage issue. This will be the true test for me.

I must admit, although I have a 'velle, my trans install was as easy as any other manual install. Although, I did drop the motor/trans in as a unit (which helps).

But, I have to drop the trans this winter cause of a clutch slippage issue. This will be the true test for me.

Man, remember that I've never done anything like this before. If you done even one before you have to do this, you won't have a hard time. Lol, with all the problems and switching of bell housings I had, I could re-bolt one in my sleep! Without any irregularities that may arise, the BH was probably the most difficult thing to tackle in terms of reachability (while under car), and location of one bolt (about 10:00 position) that I had to make painstaking 1/8" turns with a wrench, as a wobble or offset socket would not get in there. Even raising and lowering the engine a bit would only help so much with that one. And actually, 2 of the four main bolts for the tran (both on top) are a real pain to get to as well because of the shape/walls of the tran itself, once you start getting them seated.

No lift right? I feel for ya...

I had to index my Lakewood sheild, but the engine and trans was on the floor, which made it a snap. I do agree tackling this while under the car would be miserable at best.

The thought of me getting under there and dropping this heavy trans pains me, but looks like I have no choice.

No lift right? I feel for ya...

I had to index my Lakewood sheild, but the engine and trans was on the floor, which made it a snap. I do agree tackling this while under the car would be miserable at best.

The thought of me getting under there and dropping this heavy trans pains me, but looks like I have no choice.

Just use a small 2-3 ton floor jack and set it where you guestimate the center of the tran weight to be. Have the wheels of the jack facing the same direction of the car...jack it up until it just hits the bottom of the tran. When you unbolt the tran it won't move anyway, until you're ready and pull it out of the BH. Give the tran a pull and just be ready to "balance" the tran on the jack because the bottom of the tran is uneven. It's a little tricky, but it works. And yes, it would be a huge help to have someone helping you, if only just to take care of balancing it while you pull it out and can reposition yourself to take over and drop the jack.

Reading your story just reminds me of all the little things that cropped up during my install a month ago. :p

Amazing how it all seems to be so long ago now that the car is back together.

I too agree that Jim did help make my 5 speed project a lot easier. Right from the get go he was there to answer all my questions, & even questioned some of the things I was doing. :thumbsup:

DBX, now that you mention it, I too had all of the instructions & notes lying around in the garage & I could never remember where I read something.

I also made a suggestion to Jim about a couple of minor changes & rather than give me a cursory "uh-huh yup" as an answer he said that the suggestion is worth consideration. (I don't expect to see the changes, but I didn't feel as though I wasn't being ignored either).

The whole CC5S experience has been very good. Putting the 5 speed in the car is the best thing I have done to the car (so far) & I have already recommended the CC5S conversion to a couple of other guys looking to add overdrive to their cars, & I'll make plans on putting their product into my next project.

If anyone is in need of a tip or two or just my 2 cents worth on the whole experience, I'd be glad to help out.

Paul :beers:

Reading your story just reminds me of all the little things that cropped up during my install a month ago. :p

Amazing how it all seems to be so long ago now that the car is back together.

I too agree that Jim did help make my 5 speed project a lot easier. Right from the get go he was there to answer all my questions, & even questioned some of the things I was doing. :thumbsup:

DBX, now that you mention it, I too had all of the instructions & notes lying around in the garage & I could never remember where I read something.

I also made a suggestion to Jim about a couple of minor changes & rather than give me a cursory "uh-huh yup" as an answer he said that the suggestion is worth consideration. (I don't expect to see the changes, but I didn't feel as though I wasn't being ignored either).

The whole CC5S experience has been very good. Putting the 5 speed in the car is the best thing I have done to the car (so far) & I have already recommended the CC5S conversion to a couple of other guys looking to add overdrive to their cars, & I'll make plans on putting their product into my next project.

If anyone is in need of a tip or two or just my 2 cents worth on the whole experience, I'd be glad to help out.

Paul :beers:

Yes, it's amazing to me also that just one week ago I was ready to hang myself while doing the installation, but it already seems like a distant memory. And looking back it doesn't seem that bad at all. Of course, I had a big learning curve....but I learned a lot. And between a bunch of us that have installed these trans here, we might be able to save Jim from a few phone calls from those who have questions about doing it ;).

Believe me we listen to suggestions and we get a lot of them. Sometimes we implement them and sometimes not. It really depends on how many tech calls we get. We are always updating our instructions when needed but it takes time. Bell housing alignment is a biggie and we spend a lot of time on the phone with that one and we are refining it as we go. The guy who called and asked why we say buy 3 quarts of tranny fluid when the tranny only takes about 2.6? Well Homer, you can't buy just .6 of a Qt. Oh yes, he called! Just remember, there are no stupid questions and we welcome all of your suggestions!

The guy who called and asked why we say buy 3 quarts of tranny fluid when the tranny only takes about 2.6? Well Homer, you can't buy just .6 of a Qt. Oh yes, he called!

Jim, you have no idea how much better this ^ makes me feel :D. LOFL.

I am receiving my TKO next week. I will be installing it with the motor out. I will let members know how it goes. I have no knowledge about manual tranmission installations so it will be from a novices view.

If my motor was in the car I think I would spend a morning pullin the motor instead of lying on my back and cursing. (I have done that enough in this project)

I dont believe any of the other post were from anyone who did it with the motor already out of the car, or from anyone who pulled it for the project.

I would like to hear from someone who has done it with the motor out. Also depressing the clutch is recommended to get splines and disc to engage. How is this done when the motor is out?

How difficult is it to install the clutch/brake pedal assembly? Converting from an automatic.

Rick

dukemd66:

Since the original poster posted this thread last year, I assume he got lucky when he did not dial in his bell housing and apparently all is well with his car. I highly suggest you dial your's in no matter if it's new or not. There is no such thing as a pre-dialed in bell housing, unless the company making the bell housing has your motor and dowel pins with them when they cast/make the bell housing. The engine to bell mating surface as well as the dowel pins and the bell housing are the 3 contributing factors in determining the actual alignment/mis-alignment. Without having all 3 in hand, there is absolutely no way to say a bell will fit perfectly and be aligned with no need to do the dial indicator test. :thumbsup:

Your write up for installing a TKO with the engine out should be well received as most don't have their engine out for this install. As for mating the 2 together on the floor without being able to use the clutch linkage, instead, turn the flywheel/crank ever so slightly to get the splines to line up. Also, if possible, get yourself a real alignment tool and not the crappy plastic ones that come in clutch kits. They are notoriously out of spec when compare to an actual input shaft. ;)



Richard
Tehc Support

dukemd66:

Since the original poster posted this thread last year, I assume he got lucky when he did not dial in his bell housing and apparently all is well with his car. I highly suggest you dial your's in no matter if it's new or not. There is no such thing as a pre-dialed in bell housing, unless the company making the bell housing has your motor and dowel pins with them when they cast/make the bell housing. The engine to bell mating surface as well as the dowel pins and the bell housing are the 3 contributing factors in determining the actual alignment/mis-alignment. Without having all 3 in hand, there is absolutely no way to say a bell will fit perfectly and be aligned with no need to do the dial indicator test. :thumbsup:

Your write up for installing a TKO with the engine out should be well received as most don't have their engine out for this install. As for mating the 2 together on the floor without being able to use the clutch linkage, instead, turn the flywheel/crank ever so slightly to get the splines to line up. Also, if possible, get yourself a real alignment tool and not the crappy plastic ones that come in clutch kits. They are notoriously out of spec when compare to an actual input shaft. ;)



Richard
Tehc Support

I also installed mine without dialing it in. I know i took a risk but a qualified one. I installed mine out of the car, used a clutch alignment tool, and everything slid into place pretty easily. I needed a bellhousing and was told that the McLeod scattershield did not need to be dialed in since they were mfg'd to be within tolerance. So for a little extra i opted for the extra safety of the scattershield with the added bonus of less installation hassle. Sounded logical and further supported by the fact that I also had a 71 previously with a TKO600 and a normal bellhousing. I checked with the previous owner who installed it and again, no dial indicator was used. I never had a problem shifting this transmission or otherwise. So is this also just a case of "luck"? . With the McLeod scattershied, just how much risk do I have with this install? If it was out of spec that much, i would think I would have had more trouble getting it in than I did.