That's what I'm about to do. We can't seem to get the proper balance between the front and the rear of the transmission. It also seems to want to rotate clockwise and we can't get it to stop, even when propping it up with wood on the transmission. Also, the top shifter holes keep wanting to bind on the body.

The input shaft is definitely starting to make it's way into the clutch spines, but because we can't get the rotation right it won't be aligned properly to go in.

I wanted to go to ace hardware and get some long bolts (maybe 7 inches) to bolt the engine to the transmission to act as a guide and keep it from rotating. Would that work or would the bolts be at risk of snapping off and breaking?

 

hey dave.. do you got a jack under the engine to keep it from jumping around..

a bottle jack and a 2x4 will do the trick..

 

Nope. No jacks under the engine. I did have one to help tilt it, but that didn't do much.

I ended up pulling the engine off of the engine mounts, removing the exhaust manifold and the radiator/shroud. I put the cross member back and now the transmission and transfer case are installed. Now we just need to get the engine on the splines. This is the part I should be good at, seeing as how I did this 3 times in one week on the subaru. I'm taking a break now before I kill myself from exhaustion.

 

Gotta stop for today. Too many scratched and cuts to continue. I need to also let this thumbs heal before I can be any more useful on this.

I'm considering getting one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Waterproof-Plu...1311183&sr=8-1 so I can stick the camera in the bell housing and see how close we are to getting it together and see how to move the engine. Would be a very nice tool to have.

 

ya, i hear ya.. have you been riding your huffy-davidson to work every sense this issue.

 

I don't have a motorcycle,(thought about getting one) and this week I'm out of work. Tomorrow I actually start a new job, so as I left my last job I intentionally left this week open so I can work on the truck. Tomorrow I'll just be carpooling in the subaru. Carpooling won't be too bad because for the first 3 weeks of training at the new job my schedule will match that of the wife's.

In the meantime, I'm going to go to the hardware store and get a few long bolts to act as a guide. I was reading some "engine/tranny mating" threads and I've found a few references where this technique helped greatly.

 

Most hardware stores unfortunately will not have what you need. They should be 12mm x 1.25 and the length is up to you.

It really sucks that you couldn't get it to mate up, I hate having bad days when working on stuff.

 

I could always go for a smaller sized bolt with two nuts, one for each side of the transmission to keep it in place. It's just a guide to keep it pretty straight.

I'd prefer getting the right sized though, so where would I find those?

 

Ace Hardware will have those bolts. Not cheap though, about $5 a piece if I remember correctly.

I just had to go buy some so I could mount the block up on a stand.

Good luck, let us know how it goes!

 

Ouch. Well, I guess it will be worth it to have my truck back together. Seem like the price of everything is going up these days.

 

Yup you are right, went to ACE, $5 a pop for fine thread metric bolts needed to throw it on the stand

 

wow!
sorry to hear the frustration. I share your frustration. I am on day 3 of a front end rebuild on my 82. I tore the axle apart then went to unbolt the leafs. well, they would not budge. I did everything from heat to beat and nothing. My hands are so beat up I had to soak them in hot water. I finally cut all four bolts and in the morning I am going to put new bolts in.
This front end should have taken a day it's now going on day 3
SOOO.. I feel your pain. Hang in there, you'll get it.

 

Oh I understand, I thought you wanted to put them thru the trans and then thread them into the motor. Just like the actual bolts that hold them together but just longer to help line things up.

I also needed custom bolts for my engine stand and am lucky that there is a commercial hardware distributor that has EVERYTHING in stock, I got 4-6" 12x1.25 for $12.00

One thing to constantly look at is to make sure the trans and motor are square to each other both left to right and top to bottom. I know it is hard especially on a jack but the input shaft will not go into the pilot bearing unless they are perfect.

When I just dropped my motor in last week I remember I had to draw them together with the mounting bolts, it would only get to within about a 1/2" of each other but I could not force it anymore and used the bolts to finish the mating.

Never give up, just get angry!

 

ah. i HATE suspension work on cars. Anything that needs done for my truck will probably be done through a shop. I had a horrible experience with stuck bolts on the subaru.

 

you, know dave... i was mentioning about your bicylce ... lol

but for your sake.. your head bolts are 12mm x1.25 so just throughing it out there.. most people dont know..

 

Ah. I actually did bike to work (only 2 miles away) at my last job. This new place is about 20 miles away, though, and I could never ride that.

 

The lower bolts on the transmission are larger than the top two bolts. Does anyone know the size of bolts I'll need for the top and bottom? I left the bolts at my parent's (where I'm doing the repairs) and I'd hate to go all the way there just to pick up the bolts.

Eh, I might just pick them up on my way home, even though it's in the opposite direction. But just for the sake of backups, which sized am I looking for other than 12x1.25?

 

If you get 4 12mm x 1.25 you should be ok. There are some smaller sized bolts but the 12mm are placed at approximately 45, 135, 225 and 315 degrees and form a square almost.

 

Okay, those should be good. I was looking for some for the top and bottom to form a square. I'll check out Ace or Home Depot tonight. Thsnk!

 

Today I got the engine back in and the transmission/engine bolted together. Now I'm just wrapping things up and putting all the bolts back where they should go.

I have a problem. I pulled my front propeller shaft out (the one going from the transfer case to the front wheel drive system) and I forgot which way it came out. There's a fat end and a shorter skinner end. Which end goes towards the front? I checked my chilton's manual and couldn't find any diagrams or pictures.

-edit-

I think this helps: http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/d...mber_large.jpg

But just to confirm, the skinny end points towards the front?