[Geargrinder65]

I'm new to 2wd trannys, if U need a gear box for your rock crawler I'm your man! But now I have a 2wd '71 Chevy truck with the stock 3spd, converted to a floor shift. I need a 4 or 5spd tranny for it, but I want to use as much 'yard parts for the swap as poss. What can I put in it without to much $$ or a 2 week ordeal to put it in? It's got the 305 V8, it's a 1/2T, I'm not sure what the rear gears are but I think it's around 3.73 just from the feel of it. This thing will NEVER see any more the 300HP, so I don't need bomb proof, just eazy to get and put in.

[Jmark]

How about a 4 speed with granny first?
This guy has one from the board here.

[Geargrinder65]

That tranny it DA ****!! for an off road truck, but it's big and stiff for a hot rod. And the gears are a WIDE 2. I'm looking for more of a car type tranny. But thanks for the heads up on that ;-)

[jimfulco]

Saginaw 4-speed comes to mind. It's available with 4 different gear-sets, with low gears of 3.50, 3.11, 2.84, and 2.54:1. They're found in GM cars from '66 up, usually behind a small-block or a 6, but some Vega-based cars with 4-cylinders had them. Length is the same as the Saginaw 3-speed that you probably have.

Saginaw can be ID'd by an iron case with a side cover that has all 3 shifter shafts in it. Gear ratio can be determined by the number of annular rings around the splined area of the input shaft. They're not the strongest transmissions around, but I've been beating on one (3.11 version) with a mild 350 for a long time with no problems. Stock 10.4" clutch & street tires, though.

Here's a site with parts & ID info: http://www.dandltransmission.com/saginaw.html

If you can't find a suitable 4-speed shifter, you can use your 3-speed shifter for the forward gears, and rig up a separate lever for reverse.

[bigtim]

iv e got a getrag 5 speed but would probably be more trouble than what its worth and i have two 57 chevy 3 speed and a granny 4