i have the next best thing to a brownie. It's called a "Mitchell Overdrive" got all the toughness of a brownie box, but with an aluminum case so it's half the weight of a brownie.
New member w/ ford rollback car carrier
- Thread starter NO_SPRK
- Start date
NO_SPRK
User & Abuser
Woudl love to hear more details on that...do you remember the website by chance? Do they sell brake kits for other transfer cases (I have a BW 13-45)? How much weight can they reliably hold?
I don't think you can feasibly put a GV unit on, but if you found a Doug Nash/U.S. Gear unit meant for a 4x4, you should be able to put it between the tranny and the E-brake assembly on the SD (since the SD tranny's identical to a 4x4 pickup tranny from a mounting standpoint; I have a tranny out of an F-Superduty on my 4x4 F-250)...although a Brownie box would certainly be more stout
honestly im not sure they have one for your t-case but if theres a chance im sure they will know.
http://highangledriveline.com/e_brake.html
yes i do know the SD trans is a 4wd unit. problem is the US gear is no longer in production and i think they dont work as well with manual trans compared to autos
NO_SPRK
User & Abuser
you sun of a @#$%&!!! ive been looking for one of those forever. the last time i saw one was on craigslist but it was gone by the time i got a return call. ive heard they have some small issues.
i have a 82 chevy 4door dually 2wd camper special. it has a 6.2L diesel with a banks kit and a SM465. with 4.10s i hate to drive 55 in it. you can say ive been searching for overdrives for almost everything i own
goober
Registered User
u guys may think im nuts but i have put a loaded gmc yukon on the bed and another yukon and a mustang on a trailor and went over 700 miles like that running 65-75 mph ... with my idi it was a tough engine !
NO_SPRK
User & Abuser
you were pulling a 30 or so foot ball mount trailer (im assuming for 2 cars) with that yukon on your deck? the highway hog must have been asleep for that one. thats alot of weight
Thanks for the link! I'll go see if I can dig up some more info...
GearVendors units can be had new, but they're EXPENSIVE...if you go with either of those, I would suggest finding a good used one over buying new. Just my $.02
Also, I've heard the exact opposite...I've heard that Doug Nash/U.S. Gear units are better for trucks with manual transmissions. The impression I've always had is that, if you have a manual, you want a U.S. Gear; if you have an automatic, you want a GV. I have yet to ride in a truck with a GV unit, but I got a ride in a C6 truck with a U.S. Gear unit a few years back, and the unit shifted very firmly compared to the transmission shifting...I have yet to see how it'll shift with my ZF, but I'm very curious...and, for that matter, I'm curious about what fuel mileage gains I'll get with double-OD and 4.10's
I'm not surprised that the engine pulled it, but please tell me you were doing that with an F-450...I don't know what the GCWR of an F-450 is, but that almost has to be way above an F-350's GCWR...
You're certainly right about the U.S. Gear not being in production anymore...for that matter, the company that bought U.S. Gear doesn't offer ANY product support for them anymore, as I was rudely informed in an E-mail about a year ago. With that said, you can find good used ones...they pop up on Craigslist from time to time, for example. I paid $650 for a Doug Nash unit and paid another $100 for a second DN unit (the second one's an under-drive and I wanted it just for parts)...I'm just waiting until my truck's out of service before I install it
GearVendors units can be had new, but they're EXPENSIVE...if you go with either of those, I would suggest finding a good used one over buying new. Just my $.02
Also, I've heard the exact opposite...I've heard that Doug Nash/U.S. Gear units are better for trucks with manual transmissions. The impression I've always had is that, if you have a manual, you want a U.S. Gear; if you have an automatic, you want a GV. I have yet to ride in a truck with a GV unit, but I got a ride in a C6 truck with a U.S. Gear unit a few years back, and the unit shifted very firmly compared to the transmission shifting...I have yet to see how it'll shift with my ZF, but I'm very curious...and, for that matter, I'm curious about what fuel mileage gains I'll get with double-OD and 4.10's
I'm not surprised that the engine pulled it, but please tell me you were doing that with an F-450...I don't know what the GCWR of an F-450 is, but that almost has to be way above an F-350's GCWR...
here's a pic of a USG for the ZF 4wd unit.....
Attachments
goober
Registered User
Thanks for the link! I'll go see if I can dig up some more info...
You're certainly right about the U.S. Gear not being in production anymore...for that matter, the company that bought U.S. Gear doesn't offer ANY product support for them anymore, as I was rudely informed in an E-mail about a year ago. With that said, you can find good used ones...they pop up on Craigslist from time to time, for example. I paid $650 for a Doug Nash unit and paid another $100 for a second DN unit (the second one's an under-drive and I wanted it just for parts)...I'm just waiting until my truck's out of service before I install it
GearVendors units can be had new, but they're EXPENSIVE...if you go with either of those, I would suggest finding a good used one over buying new. Just my $.02
Also, I've heard the exact opposite...I've heard that Doug Nash/U.S. Gear units are better for trucks with manual transmissions. The impression I've always had is that, if you have a manual, you want a U.S. Gear; if you have an automatic, you want a GV. I have yet to ride in a truck with a GV unit, but I got a ride in a C6 truck with a U.S. Gear unit a few years back, and the unit shifted very firmly compared to the transmission shifting...I have yet to see how it'll shift with my ZF, but I'm very curious...and, for that matter, I'm curious about what fuel mileage gains I'll get with double-OD and 4.10's
yea its a f450 or f59 chassis .... the weight rating on it is 14,800 lbs witch i was well over with the yukon on the bed then added a trailor ... it did relly well and drove like a dream u know thoses things drive better loaded .... i plan on gettin it going agian soon so i can drive the crap outa it agian
NO_SPRK
User & Abuser
well i guess ill be looking for a US gear or mitchell. my big issue here is im broke because i blew all the money to get the truck.
IF i can somehow fix the motor (blown gasket hopefully) and leave the t19 in and add a overdrive. with all the DMF/SMF debates and upfront costs i think my best option is to keep it simple and cheap. i just hate the idea of having another transmission to shift. not that i cant drive twin stick trucks..
i found a overdrive mitchell unit new in box for $1000.. i have a question on it. the splined shaft for the driveline input.. is that a universal shaft slip that any driveline shop could modify my driveline for? i see the yoke on the output end.
im really liking that zf5 US gear.. whatcha want for it?
IF i can somehow fix the motor (blown gasket hopefully) and leave the t19 in and add a overdrive. with all the DMF/SMF debates and upfront costs i think my best option is to keep it simple and cheap. i just hate the idea of having another transmission to shift. not that i cant drive twin stick trucks..
i found a overdrive mitchell unit new in box for $1000.. i have a question on it. the splined shaft for the driveline input.. is that a universal shaft slip that any driveline shop could modify my driveline for? i see the yoke on the output end.
im really liking that zf5 US gear.. whatcha want for it?
Last edited:
unfortunately the USG in the pics belongs to "the warden" and I don't think he wants to sell.
the mitchell I have looks like it has standard driveshaft splines. I didn't get any crazy looks by my driveshaft builder when I showed it to him.
I wouldn't be scared on the ZF5. I've had them in my F450 for 890k logbook miles and have yet to have a DMF failure. it is often misdiagnosed a bad DMF when the true issue is a bad injection pump or bad injectors. all the DMF is trying to do is adsorb the uneven firing pulses. I've given up on telling people that and letting them find out the hard way. stick around and make your choice.
Agreed completely! I know that some people swear by the T-19 (or the NP435) and think the ZF if a piece of junk, and I never really understood why...for hard-core off-road use, the T-19 may be more stout, but for a vehicle that's going to spend most of its time on paved roads (and ESPECIALLY at freeway speeds), I don't think there's anything at all wrong with the ZF. I've certainly been VERY happy with my ZF conversion...it shifts more civilized and it's already paid for itself in fuel savings
BTW I installed a LuK SMF when I did my ZF conversion and have been happy as a clam with it...no rollover noise unless I'm lugging the engine, and no known issues in nearly 50K miles. I would recommend it to anyone.
NO_SPRK
User & Abuser
Agreed completely! I know that some people swear by the T-19 (or the NP435) and think the ZF if a piece of junk, and I never really understood why...for hard-core off-road use, the T-19 may be more stout, but for a vehicle that's going to spend most of its time on paved roads (and ESPECIALLY at freeway speeds), I don't think there's anything at all wrong with the ZF. I've certainly been VERY happy with my ZF conversion...it shifts more civilized and it's already paid for itself in fuel savings
BTW I installed a LuK SMF when I did my ZF conversion and have been happy as a clam with it...no rollover noise unless I'm lugging the engine, and no known issues in nearly 50K miles. I would recommend it to anyone.
oh im not saying anything BAD about the ZF5. In my situation i need to find a complete 5 speed truck or spend $$$ to get that trans into my truck. IE: find a trans, find a dual mass or do a SMF conversion... i think there is a 87 6.9L zf5 clutch setup that can work on my t19 SMF, but its 11".
also not looking for roll over noise as this truck would sit idling alot while loading and unloading cars. i dont want my nice truck to sound like crap with the "SMF roll over noise" that i hear alot about
ive also heard the zf5 swap is fairly straight forward. trucks with a carrier bearing can move it back a little and the zf5 will slip in without driveline mods? reuse the slave cylinder?
Forgive me; didn't mean to imply that I thought you were saying anything negative about the ZF...I was just commenting on the fact that others have.
As to the rollover noise...I've never noticed it at idle with the tranny in neutral. The only time I've ever noticed it was with the transmission in gear and the engine at low RPM's under load...which is a place you generally should try to avoid anyways, since that goes into the realm of lugging the engine. However, that's with a ZF that was rebuilt right before I installed it...I understand that others have had different experiences, but I can't comment either way on that.
I'm not sure how many changes need to be made on a 4x2 application, but on my 4x4, I didn't have to do any driveshaft modifications. In fact, the only parts I had to replace were the tranny itself, the clutch assembly, the tranny crossover, and the floor pan insert over the tranny tunnel for clearance purposes. The 4x4 ZF is the exact same length as the 4x4 T-19
and I've heard that others have done the swap with reusing the T-19 crossmember...
NO_SPRK
User & Abuser
Forgive me; didn't mean to imply that I thought you were saying anything negative about the ZF...I was just commenting on the fact that others have.
As to the rollover noise...I've never noticed it at idle with the tranny in neutral. The only time I've ever noticed it was with the transmission in gear and the engine at low RPM's under load...which is a place you generally should try to avoid anyways, since that goes into the realm of lugging the engine. However, that's with a ZF that was rebuilt right before I installed it...I understand that others have had different experiences, but I can't comment either way on that.
I'm not sure how many changes need to be made on a 4x2 application, but on my 4x4, I didn't have to do any driveshaft modifications. In fact, the only parts I had to replace were the tranny itself, the clutch assembly, the tranny crossover, and the floor pan insert over the tranny tunnel for clearance purposes. The 4x4 ZF is the exact same length as the 4x4 T-19
im excited! ive been looking into the swap since i first saw the truck online. im trying to hold out for the SD close ratio with the e-brake. i think that will help alot in my truck and i love the idea of the close ratio trans (think NA 6.2L diesel with a sm465... talk about hitting the gov, shifting, bogggg out lol)
i think the close ratio with the 4.10s will make this a great street and highway friendly rig. no granny first but i doubt ill need it. as of now the t-19 and close ratio zf5 have somewhat similar numbers. the zf5 having a lower first but 2-4 are closer to the t19 ratios. best of all... OVERDRIVE. add my cruise control, dual tanks and AC im looking at a long haul truck.
oh this is where i do all my gear calculating for tire sizes and freeway RPMs.. blah!
http://www.grimmjeeper.com/gears.html
Diesel_brad
Dunce
So the F-superduty ZF-5s have the gasser gears in them? AKA 5.72 1st gear and 5.24 reverse?
