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Port side here. | First, the TCM brackets get bolted in place. Starboard side here. | Ready to 'clamp-in-place' on the coach then tack-weld them exactly where they will live forevermore. | If there's a will there's a way. These blades went through that 5/16" plate like nothin'. Flat bastard did the rest. |
This proved the answer. | Had to figure a way to turn these holes into slots without bending-over for a machine shop. | The center line is the 28-3/4" mark for the center of the 1" slot. IIRC, the lines above & below are just over 1/4" (+ 1/16")off the centerline. There I punched the four countersinks for the drill. My old drillpress ain't so hot so I started with a 1/4" hole then finished with the 7/16". | Before I cut the two ends off the trans cross member (tcm) I marked R & L on them so they could be repositioned as templates to mark the original bolt-hole centers on the new angle pcs. BTW: I also measured the center to center/end to end @ 28 3/4" before I cut anything. As well, I measured the hole to hole centers across the flange from the front of coach leading edge towards the rear. |
Make 2 new end brackets from chunks of 3 1/2 x 5" x 5/16" angle iron I had on hand. This is a little heavier than what I cut off but it has more work to do so all good. The distance from center to center of the mount holes (7/16") for the 3/8" gr. 8 cap screws is 28 3/4". To provide some horizontal movement for alignment purposes, I chose to make the 7/16" holes into 1" elongated slots with a 28-3/4" end to end center. BTW: vertical adjustability (if needed) will be done by adding washers as shims between the two rubber shock washers and the trans tail-housing. Note: with vertical adjustment in mind, it is imperative not to suspend/mount the trans too high from the outset, otherwise you'd have to put a shim between the chassis mount brackets and the new trans ears you just welded on. Does this make any sense? | It's worth pointing out here that because the FMC engine/trans was installed roughly 5-deg out of level to the coach (the engine/trans rises upwards moving away from the diff) and the trans mount crossmember is also tilted (up to the rear) about 5-deg so it mates better with the bottom of the trans. Because the Cummins will sit closer to 'level', I've reduced the 5-deg angle to closer to 2 to 3-deg. Again, this is why the ends of the trans cross-member need to be extended vertically so it can sit/hang lower than before. | With both ends cut off just below the radius of the bend, it leaves a good flat surface to weld the angle iron extension to. | (1 Comments) Trans cross-member next. As the 12-valve & 47RH will be sitting substantially lower than the old 440'/727 did, the trans x-member needs to be suspended 1" or more lower below the chassis. I'm doing this by cutting off the OEM horizontal 'wings' on each end and replacing them with longer pcs of angle iron, bored & machined for the mount bolts. |
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