So in a dilemma on what to do about the muncie I purchased to convert my car to a 4 speed, I shopped around the idea of having it rebuilt (as I didnt know the history) and then thought about saying screw it, and buying a new one complete. There lies the problem(s). 1) I couldnt find anyone local to do the rebuild that I felt comfortable with, would get on it soon, or wouldnt charge what I thought was way too much, and 2) with my timeline and budget, buying a new one (specifically an autogear super mucie) would be a bit of a setback and I already had this one on hand. SOOOO... I did a fair amount of reading, and decided that Im not exactly a dummy when it comes to most things mechanical so what the heck, it looks interesting to rebuild one yourself. Admittedly, I had tinkered with auto's before and was pretty intimidated due to my ignorance of the internals of transmissions in general. After I cracked open the muncie to take a look, it was far simpler than I had expected. Since the gear sets looked great and I saw none of the red flags I had read were bad news, I decided it was a go. I ordered the "Muncie Basics Vol1" video that I had heard repeatedly recommended as well as the "building High Performance Transmissions" book along with a complete rebuild kit from a reputable trans shop, a few upgraded items (sliders, mid plate, etc), and it was a go. I called up Taulb (as we have a tradition of ganging up on our projects and work really well together) and we planned to dig in this past weekend. Long story short, the video was a fantastic guide. I set my laptop on the bench and played it following along step by step. Another absolutely valuable item was a chassis manual, which had brilliant views showing order/orientation of internal parts.The trans book I ordered was about useless, nowhere near as helpful as the video and I dont recommend purchasing the book. Just about the only specialized tools were a good shop press (if you call that specialized) and the muncie nut wrench which was a whopping $16. An extra set of hands was also invaluable, so call up a buddy if you're going to do one. We took our time, laid everything out in order as removed, and from tear down to button up was about 5 hours (which I thought was pretty good for a couple rookies considering there were multiple have a beer/play with the dog breaks). My point in writing this little shpeal is ANYONE WHO IS CONSIDERING REBUILDING YOUR OWN MUNCIE, GO FOR IT!! I had agonized over this entirely too long, bit the bullet and am ecstatic that I did. If you are decently mechanically inclined, take your time, and get the few good references I mentioned, you will get it and most likely have fun doing it! Its far more simple than I suspected. I'll post up a few pictures later tonight.
I did not think the two of you were calibrated to work in that measurement standard Since I have re-adjusted my web-brouser to cross-convert for your posts ... please convert to "Beer Time" and repost
Sorry Alan, I had to do a conversion to put it into terms that our fellow members who don't know us as well as you would understand. I believe the final tally was 20 frosty cold straight out of the perfectly calibrated barn fridge beverages, although the camera man that took the pictures did partake as well so I can't get you an accurate breakdown further than that. Average it out to 6.67 each and I believe that would suffice for all intents and purposes...
we weren't and still aren't! #1 lesson learned from building a Muncie.. quality snap ring pliers!!!!! #2 lesson, better snap ring pliers. Ill try my best to up my daily rate for the next project. It sure did feel good to get it together, lets see how it holds up :beer
Thanks Alan, we try to keep garage time to where we have some fun but accomplish our tasks (all while enjoying various libations of course). Celebratory completion beverages however don't count! Good call taulb, that's one thing I forgot to mention. GOOD (I.e. large opening) snap ring pliers are a biggie. Mine wouldn't open the rings far enough, and that was the most time consuming single item! And yeah, so long as it stays in one piece we'll call it a win. Its not built for 5k clutch dumps on a sticky track with slicks, but it should hold up just fine for street use and a few passes in Columbus with a little self control on the launch. If it grenades, off the shelf autogear here I come... But I guess we shall see (hopefully right about early august.... )
Uhhhh - yeah.... I've had shops "rebuild the T-10." A decade later and just about 10,000 miles it fails. Send it out to a different shop and they tell me the last guys didn't exactly use all the new pieces in a typical rebuild kit. So there is a great deal to be said for DIY.
Just curious as to the estimate of the cost of the rebuild kit was?? I have enough parts M21's to make 1 or 2 and thought one day,I could build one..
Pat..Cant comment on the parts cost but it will cost your laborers at least a half day and some brain cells :beer
Yeah Brad, thats kind of where I was. At least this way I did it as best I could and if it grenades its on me. Pat, I was very fortunate in that all the typical checks concerning the gear set/case/etc came back good, so I just replaced bearings/seals/synchros/idler shaft/typical wear items and upgraded a few things like the mid plate and sliders, also bought the specialty front bearing wrench. In the rebuild kit (I got froma place called "The Gear Box" which came recommended on some other forums) and upgrades and the handy DVD Im in the rebuild for a little under $325 including shipping (Not counting the labor rate of my helpers in frosty beverages). Well worth it in my opinion, but we'll see the real worth with I finally get to smash the loud pedal! Pics of the carnage as it happened
Hope you two guys are doing good - sounds like you had fun doing this. Great work, Now let us see that video Rowling gears :3gears:
Hey Jan! Yeah, things are moving along decently. It'll be a while before that video, the body hasn't even found its way onto the frame yet. Hoping it'll be together and ready for BPG this year. Are you going to make it over?
