Un-splitting a TO-35

Inno

Well-known Member
Rainy day today.....great time to work on my clutch project which started, oh about last November or so if I recall correctly.
Got a new bearing for the transmission PTO shaft this morning locally, cheaper than online.....I was shocked, along with a few snap rings and proceeded to put it all back together. It was a bit of a challenge but I can confirm that you can replace the transmission input seals etc. without taking the top off the tranny. I think taking the top off would probably have taken longer than the way I did it. Had to make a couple special pullers for the operation, one to remove the lower shaft bearing and another to re-install it. I can post pics of those if anyone wants to see.
Figured I should put up a few pics as I had none of the rebuilt clutch and she's a purdy little thing. Also figured that if I have done something wrong maybe someone might catch it before I slam it back together. Which brings me to my current situation.

I think I have the clutch plates aligned properly and it looks like both halves are lined up but no matter what I do I can't get it to slide together. I've tried rotating both the PTO and main drive shafts, the engine etc. I might need another person to push while I manipulate gears or maybe I need to make really good and sure the plates are lined up. Maybe I'll go out first thing in the morning with a cup of coffee and try again. I usually think better in the morning.

Anyway, without further ado, the pictures.

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Once you get the two halves close together ...use two bolts
pinched from the hydraulic top cover as guides..Chose two from
beside the cross-shaft as they are the longest. put these into the
gear box housing, through the engine backplate at roughly
quarter past nine position. They should screw in easily or else
something is not lining up. Remember to put the gearbox and
pto in gear as you spoke the flywheel, to help align the splines.
Never force the two halves together by using bolts to pull the
clutch together, but sometimes you need to use other bolts out
of the top cover to hold a bit of pressure on the shafts as they
are turned, but use very moderate pressure on the wrenches. In
fact only tighten the bolts enough to retain any distance you
have gained as you wriggle and shake the whole thing together!
I take it you have the plates lined up with a proper aligning
tool?
Sam
 
I don't have the exact correct alignment tool......I ordered one from this site and the main shaft splines are correct but the pto shaft spline count is different. I think it's aligned close enough, it looks pretty much centered.
I will try with the bolts from the lift cover as you suggest. I knew I didn't want to force it together but never thought of using the bolts just to keep a little pressure on as I try to make the shafts align with the plates.
More than likely I'll go out in the morning and it will just about fall together.........I hope. :lol:
 
Don't listen to a bloody word Sam says! Apparently there are no hardware stores in County Calarami, so he can't buy long bolts for a loonie a pound... or 20 nnalert @ kilo or whatever...
Tell ya what! It is so f@#$%^&* hot here right now, I will drive to your place with MY really long 9/16" bolts, customized '68 GMC pickup pilot spline tool, and apparently... I'll bring MY ATV jack... I thought you bought one lately? Are you related to Sam by any chance? Are the both of you saving your money to buy me beer? Well in that case...
 
Auto zone? Canajen tire? a $3 plastic one for Chevy/GMC pickup clutches, but I resorted to my duct taped harbor freight one- I dug up a few foot long bolts from the stash of junk, AND rolling jacks for and aft, if needed ... and put the starter back on... that's a last resort, but it'll do in a pinch, and right now you're pinchin'...
hey Inno, call me or email me your #....
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I got all excited when I read customized 1968 GMC.......'till I realized you were talking about the tool and not the truck.
Yes, I did just get a ATV jack, got it for my birthday in fact a couple weeks ago......just hadn't started using it yet, see updated picture.
I could have sworn it was at least 90°F out there today but it's not the heat it's the gosh darned humidity.
I should have known it was going to be an epic battle......the first pictures of the two halves......north vs. south as it were.....and that's how it's aligned in the garage. And now the two sides have come closer and the battle is underway.

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My case has the same type clutch. I eyeballed the disc to line it up. I think I spent more time getting the engine jacked up to where I wanted it. Tractor pushed together w/o a struggle.
 
I dogged Tony out for his home made tool and then pinched it from him,I used threaded rod to align. If I were you I'd hold off on the marriage and tilt the back half downward and see if the third world seals are not going to leak from the front pto.
 
That was something I had thought of but anything has got to be better than what came out of there, the PTO seal was completely rotten, it fell apart on disassembly.
I know it would be a real pain if I had to do this all over again.........would it leak just sitting there and not in operation? I haven't even filled the back half with oil yet because I still have to replace the hyd. pump and rear pto seals etc.
 
To say like Sam, your temp is 10 after 3, which is a nice 72. 90 F would be 5 after 4... oh maaaaan... I've been stuck at 5 o'clock... a humid 97 is getting old hat around here... that's why I offered to drive up and help you!!!
You don't need help, you are already there except for a burr or slight alignment of pilot bearing hole or something that.... cranking over, either by crank or starter motor will finish off quickly and painlessly. But don't force it, jiggle both jack up and down half a millimeters as you crank too.
2 has a good point, you don't want to do this twice, make sure that seal seals before you call the job done... Murphy's Law... never forget to think about Murphy's Law...
 
I did the last Ford 8N on top of a sheet of plywood resting on top of gravel.
Front 1/2 was held up with a bottle jack and wedges shoved in at the front axle to keep the machine from tipping.
The back 1/2 was held up with a floor jack and the handle came out the rear of the tractor. Not the side such as you have. Long bolts with the heads cut off for alignment pins and with the trans in 4th gear and the PTO engaged, slid into position. Grab the PTO and turn with a large pair of pliers and it went in fairly smoothly.
 
I'm not sure how I would test the seals before re-assembly for a couple of reasons. One, because the seals in question are at the top of the transmission so I'd have to massively over fill it to get oil to come out (even if I did tilt it downward) and two because I theorize (perhaps incorrectly) that the leak wouldn't really come on until those shafts start turning and it's all put under load. I may be foolish but I think I'm just going to take my chances.......at least now I will be aware of it and I can remove the inspection plate to check for leaks........and the drain hole is open now and cotter pin cleaned out so the oil can actually get out if there is a leak. I mean, from that design you'd almost think that it's supposed to leak a bit wouldn't ya? If it didn't leak a little bit there would be no need of a drain hole right?
 
Now if your '35 has a pump inside it that need s to be turned to pressurize it, try hooking up a large drill motor to turn the input shaft.
How'zat?
 
Yeah, that might have worked..........if I hadn't gone ahead and put it back together this morning.
I'm gonna hope for the best because this tractor has spent way too much time inside in pieces.......that may not work out well for me but it's what's happening. Like I said before, the old seal had pretty much rotted away so I'm sure this will be a big improvement.
A couple of long bolts to align things made it much easier to put things together and gauge whether or not I had made any progress. Probably too all of about 20 minutes with a clear head.
A stupid Spice Girls song kept running through my head as the two halves came together..........When two become one.......Sam, that's one export you guys could have kept over there! :)
 
(quoted from post at 22:53:00 07/07/13) Yeah, that might have worked..........if I hadn't gone ahead and put it back together this morning.
I'm gonna hope for the best because this tractor has spent way too much time inside in pieces.......that may not work out well for me but it's what's happening. Like I said before, the old seal had pretty much rotted away so I'm sure this will be a big improvement.
A couple of long bolts to align things made it much easier to put things together and gauge whether or not I had made any progress. Probably too all of about 20 minutes with a clear head.
A stupid Spice Girls song kept running through my head as the two halves came together..........When two become one.......Sam, that's one export you guys could have kept over there! :)
It is already done?!?!?! Any cranking or starter spinning involved? Kinda..'falls' together when all is just right eh?
So? Together at last! Hey wasn't that a spice girls song too?
 
Just put two bolts in finger tight, wiggled, turned engine with socket on front pulley, wiggled some more, tightened bolts when there was slack enough to do so and repeated until it was about 1/4" away (maybe less) at which point I gave the bolts a little bit of socket and sucked it in the rest of the way. It seemingly went pretty easy. The clutch seems to be engaging and releasing properly.......the real test will be starting it up and actually trying it. I'm still a while away from that........I had hoped to work on it some more today but I'll have to settle for " no longer in two pieces".
 
No other progress made today, had a mini tiller with a carb that needed rebuilding.......it just never ends.
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