Adapting odd ST-10 to G-body

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Bonnewagon

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I have had a swap meet '82 "F" body Super T-10 in my TA forever. Why I grabbed it was the 3:42 first gear. It worked well but the '82 uses a torque arm bolted to where the shifter usually goes. The shifter mounts to the passenger side and reaches over the trans to hold the shifter- sloppily. I had gotten the miserable stock ITM shifter and goofy mount with it so I made a brace for it and it worked somewhat better. Now that I scrapped the TA I have a Pontiac 400 and this ST-10 with nothing to do so I may put them in my Bonnewagon. The problem is I can't stand the sloppy stock shifter but no one makes anything else that fits. Then I remembered what I had planned to do when I bought this thing. I figured that a Hurst universal mount would go right on. I scrounged around my transmission junk and found one. It bolted right on no problem. I mounted a Hurst shifter and it looked good. I needed ST-10 shifter rods and I scored a set on Epay. Mounted those- but- problems. The universal mount located the shifter a wee bit too low. See pics. OK, why not use a stock mount- oh right- no bolt holes. So why not bolt the stock mount to the universal mount? Could that work? I used the one bolt hole that matched up and secured the stock mount to the universal mount with a grade 8 bolt. Then I attached the shifter and rods to see if they fit. YES! But I had to cut off a bit of the stock mount to clear the "C" clamp at the tail. That fit better. I outlined the stock mount plate with a marker and took both mounts down to the basement work table. I figured out where I could safely drill for an additional mounting bolt and I tapped that hole on the universal mount for a 3/8-16 grade 8 bolt. With both bolts tightened and locking nuts behind them, the mounts felt like they were one. That's better than welding them- just in case this fizzles out. So now the '77 TA Hurst shifter is mounted on the '82 ST-10 as it would normally be on a '77. It clears the speedometer cable and the back-up light switch. It shifts nicely. Now that I know I can use it, I ordered a set of synchronizers and a gasket/seal kit for a quicky overhaul and cleanup. Pics show both shifters and how similar yet different they are. Goofy stock- awesome Hurst. Then the mounts, and how I adapted them to work together. Finally, the complete working set-up. NOW it is worth putting in my Bonnewagon. Stay tuned.
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Bonnewagon

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So I was looking around for a regular late '70's tail housing. I had also figured that if I had one I could swap it in place of the torque arm tail housing when I opened it up for the synchronizers repair. Wow, not only are they few and far between, they are priced like gold. What I am finding is plenty of '50's-'60's T-10 parts, mostly '61- '63. Then I found a complete '82 ST-10 like mine but without even the awful shifter. That is going for $600! Since I only paid around $250 for my trans w/shifter, I guess my fix will have to do.
 
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Longroof79

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Lookin' good, Mark.
I'm glad to see that you were able to make the necessary modifications to make the better shifter work with the ST-10.
What is the engine and trans sitting on currently? In other words, what is that frame from?
Prices for those trans parts are a real eye opener.
 

Bonnewagon

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Thanks Jack. That is the sub frame from my '77 Trans Am. Rust worms killed the body so I took it all apart. It has all new suspension and steering parts so I want to save it. I am thinking of putting the 400 and ST-10 in my wagon. The 400 has a Crane low end grunt cam and the trans has a 3:42 first gear- perfect for towing and stuff. I'll probably need the TA's front coil springs. Yeah, manual trans parts prices are going threw the roof. Not long ago you were tripping over 4 speeds at the swap meets. Now you can't even find any. It's almost more cost affective to just buy a new one from Richmond gear.
 

Longroof79

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Thanks Jack. That is the sub frame from my '77 Trans Am. Rust worms killed the body so I took it all apart. It has all new suspension and steering parts so I want to save it. I am thinking of putting the 400 and ST-10 in my wagon. The 400 has a Crane low end grunt cam and the trans has a 3:42 first gear- perfect for towing and stuff. I'll probably need the TA's front coil springs. Yeah, manual trans parts prices are going threw the roof. Not long ago you were tripping over 4 speeds at the swap meets. Now you can't even find any. It's almost more cost affective to just buy a new one from Richmond gear.
Mark,
I should have realized it was the subframe from your old Firebird. The 400 backed by the 4-spd would be a nice combination. It would certainly pull your boat with no trouble...and then some. Didn't you have that engine in the old Malibu wagon...or am I mistaken?

Yeah, I guess old muscle car parts are commanding stupid money these days.
 

ssn696

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It's a little late now, but my friend has a wide-ratio Muncie from a 70 RS Camaro. He's not giving it away, and I don't know what first gear ratio is in it.
 

Bonnewagon

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My buddy used to twist Muncie mainshafts ( and driveshafts) like pretzels. He had a '68 Firebird with a 400 motor using the 9779068 "S" cam. What did the damage was we rigged the 1967 factory twin traction bars to a 1979 Trans Am disc brake rear w/3:42 gears to fit the '68. The rear wheels just planted like rocks and the front end lifted off the ground. His hobby was peeling out around town until the cops chased him- then he lost them every time. The weak link was the driveshaft and the Muncie. No Jack, I had a 1970 GTO 400 in the Malibu wagon. I ran a Crane 278 cam and I needed a vacuum can so the power brakes would work. My Saginaw 4 speed took all that I could dish out and survived 10 years of abuse. I still have it and it runs great. Maybe I'm getting old but I like a smooth idle and stump pulling low end now.
 
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