About 1 year ago, give/take, a gentleman on the Lincoln forum posted about a dilemma he had while restoring his (I think) '61 Continental.

If I recall, he had a '61 body & chassis, but no engine. He then bought a 430, (I am assuming '58-'60 but don't remember), paid much money to have it rebuilt, and discovered that it would not bolt to his '61 bell. Also IIRC, he found that the bell that came with the engine would not bolt to the '61 trans case. Eventually, (again IIRC) he discovered that the '61 bell is unique...it matches the '62-'65 BLOCK PATTERN, but bolts to the '58-'60 trans case.

Other factors: He bought at least one bell, trying to solve & match...no dice. Might have bought two.

He tried to sell the engine...eventually traded it to Baker, or one of the vendors, for a rebuilt longblock of the correct year....not exactly the Gordian Knot approach, but close.

His name was Pete...but I don't think it was his forum name.

He posted pictures of all the different components, and various angles.


The memories I'm looking for: A) Any clue what I'm talking about? B) Remember his forum name? C) Better yet, the thread? Can't find it yet, but that doesn't mean much. D) Wouldn't happen to have saved the pictures by any chance?


Long story as to why I'm trying to dig for this, but suffice it to say that a friend wants to buy (long distance) a '61 trans for his '62 bell & I'm not certain it will work. I believe Hawkrod mentioned that the '61 trans has a vent of some type up front, but I also seem to recall that the '61 & older trans case looked physically much different & didn't appear to fit....I also remember that Pete said "no way, no how" about this matchup as well.

But, didn't the LX case change to the HX case for '61-up? I would have thought that the difference would have been between '60 & '61 in that event, not '61 & '62.

Any insight would be most welcome.

His monicher is Nogale at the LINCOLN FORUM. He bought and rebuilt a 61 engine I believe it was and discovered the 58/60 LX would not go against it due to the change in bell mounting pattern and case mounting pattern.

The 61 bell is unique in that the trans vents through it. The 62/ is normal.



His post(s) have been deleted as the board was updated a few times. You can E-Mail him directly for information.

http://www.thelincolnforum.net/phpbb3/index.php

I followed it well as I was in the same boat (still am, have a 67 motor for my 60). The 61 trans was a 1 year only odd ball. The 58-60 had one pattern on the back of the engine and the 61-68 had a different one (actually two but that is because the later engines have two patterns). The 61 engine and trans were redesigned and in 62 the trans was redesigned again. The 61 trans will not fit the 62 bell. The bolt pattern changed as well as the vent system. Hawkrod

Hawkrod

39 Ford Deluxe Coupe
59 Tbird 430
60 Lincoln Premier
(2)62 Tbirds
(3)68 Cougar XR7-G's
69 Cougar 428CJ 4 speed
77 1/2 Ford F250 4X4 w/460 swap
86 SVO mustang
76 F250 Crew Cab
1969 Mach I
look at my cars past and present at superford!

This was exactly what I needed to clarify. The friend's trans builder skedaddled, with his transmission's whereabouts unknown...he's not able to find a replacement at a justifiable price. I'm not certain, when it comes to MEL bells & transmissions, that there IS a reasonable price anymore. Thnaks again, & Happy Holidays to the both of you.