fluid coupling swap out

[swiftrev]

Hi to all.

I was just wondering- while I have the fluid drive off my engine If I can replace the fluid drive coupling with a regular 8 bolt flywheel like they sell at vintagepowerwagons.com.

   With doing it this way I would be able to use the same Gyromatic bellhousing with just a dry clutch?

 

1952 Dodge Coronet Gyromatic

with Chrysler 8.25 Jeep rear

[dpollo]

 You can do this without a major tear-up if you are lucky enough to locate the necessary parts

which include, as you mentioned, a flywheel  but also an extra long input shaft, throw-out bearing collar and sleeve ( the part which holds the bearing itself)

 These parts will allow your clutch controls and bell housing to remain as is. 

 

I suspect these were available as an obscure "delete fluid drive " option  but I also discovered them in a red ram powered 54 Dodge

which used what appears to be a fluid drive bell housing to get floor clearance in a car originally designed for a six.

[swiftrev]

yeah thanks I thought about it after I posted about the spline location for the clutch disc. So the real problem would seem to be the input shaft.

because I have already have a custom driveshaft after switching rears I just didnt want to do again.

[dpollo]

  I actually have these parts but I did not remove them from the original car (s) so there would have to be a lot more

investigation... like jigging everything up on the bench...... possible but time consuming and Vancouver Island is about as far from NJ

as you can get  both in terms of shipping costs and the opportunity to use the input shaft as a weapon of destruction if things do not work out.  For my own curiosity I think I will do a tooth count on other input shafts to see if they are the same on 3 speed standard,

three spd. with fluid drive and the long shaft input which I spoke of earlier.. This shaft puts the disc spline in the right place to do what you want it to do.  I cannot see any part numbers or casting numbers at first glance.  I am the tech advisor for the Plymouth  Club so my contact info is in the Plymouth Bulletin under 1950.   Thanks for giving me something to think about on a rainy wet west coast day.   BTW I have some Irish ancestors who claimed to have worked on fortifications at Sandy Hook back in the 1860s.  Probably on a chain gang.

If your car is truly a Gyromatic, none of the above will work.   It will have the M-6 transmission with 2 speeds in each of 2 ranges and this unit needs the fluid coupling. You would be well advised to enjoy it as-is.   Performance can  only be described as Majestic but it is better than a Rolls Royce of the same vintage.