How the F do you get to the bell housing bolts?!

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Thanks all for the advice. I’m going to remove the distributor, pop the exhaust off, loosen engine mounts, drop the rear of the trans and hopefully that works. On a side note. Where can I get a 69 factory service manual?

If you want a printed manual, check out Faxon Literature. I have several of theirs, they are nice.
 
the post about extensions is correct i worked in a trans shop you drop teh tailshaft down and use a long extension setup its rediculous like 3 feet plus long etc. :)

but at home seems to me you could use a box wrench and get tthe ones at the top behind the distributor just an idea...
 
Back in the old days…. Lowered the trans a bit and used the long extension swivel socket method.

2nd gen mod was holesaw access holes in the floor.

3rd gen mod with when the CSR 727 shield came into play. Cut a section of floor out and now have a 2 piece aluminum floor Dzus’ed into place (disregard junk shifter….it’s GONE!) :)

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I go to a lot more trouble to get at the upper bolts. I remove distributer cap and the upper radiator hose. I take bolts out of exhaust collectors too. Then with the center section/trans tail support removed the LA will lean waaaay down. Since all this was found necessary on a 87 Gran Fury, I've since made it common practice on all of them. the only resistance remaining is/was motor supports. The later fail-safe spool type motor supports have more give to them but one might tear the earlier type biscuit type motor supports.
 
and speaking of bell housing bolts this is what I do so I don’t have to remove the oil filter to get to that one bolt :)

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How is it that people don't know this? It is basic mechanic problem solving.
Like I told a shop mechanic at an ag place I worked at one day. He liked to run some young guys down sometimes. I told him NOT everyone is born with mechanical abilities like him and not one is born with book and common sense both and some are born with neither, but IF someone wants to learn and work....then they deserve all the help and instrution you can gibve them and they deserve no ridicule.

Then I asked him IF he remembered that day he tried to run me down. He said yea "you knocked me on my ***.... and then you asked IF I needed more."
 
Like I told a shop mechanic at an ag place I worked at one day. He liked to run some young guys down sometimes. I told him NOT everyone is born with mechanical abilities like him and not one is born with book and common sense both and some are born with neither, but IF someone wants to learn and work....then they deserve all the help and instrution you can gibve them and they deserve no ridicule.

Then I asked him IF he remembered that day he tried to run me down. He said yea "you knocked me on my ***.... and then you asked IF I needed more."
That's very true! We all had to start somewhere. It's not like we popped outta mama's hooah with a wrench in our hand.
 
That's very true! We all had to start somewhere. It's not like we popped outta mama's hooah with a wrench in our hand.
It is a fact I know guys that seemed lke they were born understanding how a carb work and could take it apart in their sleep. Me, never was that. I was born with a feel and timing to start and train a horse. Comes natural. Too old now to hardly climb on one.

I had an Uncle with two boys back in my native S W Ga. county. He farmed alot of ground. The youngest kid he could take apart a tractor and put it back together at age 12. His older brother could not hook up a disc. After thier dad passed, they farmed together. Nothing never changed. The yougest barely passed high school, the older one gota college degree/ One had common sense the other book sense. I guess it all worked out.
 
Having long arms as I do, I am able to reach almost all of the bell housing bolts from the top. (manual brakes helps) They are a test of patience though, with some turning only an eighth of a rotation at a time, it's a good bit faster to use the 3 ft extension from underneath, along with a flex or swivel socket.
 
Nah just like my neighbor cut a hole in the floor wahla accessible then he made a plug for the hole and put the rug back down all done
 
you get to them with lots of cussing, screaming, head banging, and being pissed off…

Also by what previous posters said.
And new cusswords goddammitfuckingbullshitfarghassholefuckingengineersassholes!

then you realize that a hole saw on the firewall would have worked just dandy!
 
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Like I told a shop mechanic at an ag place I worked at one day. He liked to run some young guys down sometimes. I told him NOT everyone is born with mechanical abilities like him and not one is born with book and common sense both and some are born with neither, but IF someone wants to learn and work....
In all my years in construction, I've known many newbies that had no natural balance. They never developed any in the time that I knew them either.
Creative thinking was my point. Some have it, others do not. You'll have a slower and less competent employee if you hire someone that needs their hand held on every UNfamiliar job.
Those people may be great at data entry, washing dishes, mowing lawns, delivering packages but in situations that require critical problem solving skills, they will struggle.
When I do something new, I start with a general idea of what to do and almost always deviate from that plan as I encounter obstacles or find a simpler way to get around something.
I often look at YouTube for alternate ideas to repairs. Many times, they are better methods than what I have used. Sometimes they are ways that didn't work well for me.
Maybe I expect too much from others. It might explain why I get disappointed with others so often. My standard thoughts are that everyone can rise to meet the challenge if they try hard enough. The social unrest of the past few years have REALLY tarnished my faith in humanity and their level of intelligence.
My brother in law was not born with a wrench in his hand but he has a good analytical mind. I watched him work on cars with me and he did quite well. He was never trained, he just used his mind to develop workarounds for problems.
 
^^^ People that want to do, will learn to do and will do..... the rest will sit on their *** and draw welcare and food stamps.

Yes Kern Dog with UTube the world is an open book for those that want to learn.
 
It takes me a little longer than that, and I only use hand tools as well. But… I usually start cussing and getting pissed off because some of the top bolts are a pain in the *** to get to.

But… I’m younger and just a pretty face :rofl:
Us old farts earned our grey hairs by starting out being fiesty piss ants and fighting with things until we learned. The proper wrenches help immensely. A 9/16" universal socket in 3/8" drive with a 36" extension does wonders. Guys complain about the cost of Snap-On or Mac tools but they generally have a narrower wall thickness allowing access others can not make.
 
Lol some of y’all really are just some grumpy old geezers! Shame on me for not knowing exactly how to pull a transmission on my first go round. Oh well, thanks everyone else for the help. Almost got it, 2 bolts to go.
 
If you want a printed manual, check out Faxon Literature. I have several of theirs, they are nice
Get the pdf much easier to use and it does not have "FAXON" printed all over each page obliterating the words and images.

When you want to work on something park t out the relevant pages that way when you get grease on them no worries
 
Get the pdf much easier to use and it does not have "FAXON" printed all over each page obliterating the words and images.

When you want to work on something park t out the relevant pages that way when you get grease on them no worries

Yeah I made that mistake once, bought a Faxon manual for something that didn't have a PDF version. Dumb. The watermark is so dark it makes the manuals very difficult to read, and it's literally on EVERY page, right over the top of the illustrations.

For all the muscle car Mopar era stuff you can just download the PDF from mymopar
 
Switch to b bodies and 1st gen Dakotas
Lots more room back there to access Bell housing bolts
 
After working on early A body bellhousing bolts, nothing is hard after that! If you want a bolt that is REALLY hard to get to, take the top right bolt out that holds an 833 four speed to the bellhousing in an early A body! :BangHead:

To answer the OP's question, I always break the upper bellhousing bolts loose with a box end wrench, then use a 9/16 wobble socket on as many extensions as I can pop together. An air ratchet makes that even easier if you have one. When you're going back in, put the bolt head in the wobble socket with some chewing gum or a wad of tape to keep the bolt head in the socket while you guide it up into place and get it started straight. Then zing it with the ratchet and go back up top and tighten it good with the aforementioned box end 9/16. Good luck, and have some rubbing alcohol and band aids ready!
 
Lol some of y’all really are just some grumpy old geezers! Shame on me for not knowing exactly how to pull a transmission on my first go round. Oh well, thanks everyone else for the help. Almost got it, 2 bolts to go.

Lol I’m not old but I’m glad you are getting it. The top bolts are best done with a wrench and a little itty bitty turn at a time.
 
Trying to pull the TCI 727 off my 360 LA in a 69 Dart. Cannot get the top 4 bell housing bolts. About $75 in long wrenches and still won’t go. One of the bolts will not take a 9/16” either a 14mm fits better, weird. Any tips or tricks? I have no clue how I’m going to get these back in IF I ever get them out.
 
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