ring gear replacement

[davec]

Has anyone replaced/repaired one? I understand they can be "built up" and ground down if all else fails. They seem to be hard to find here in Canada. Mine is chewed up pretty good in several spots.

[Barry Wolk]

What's the condition of the rest of the rear end? If there's enough metal missing where the gears need to be built up there's probably a lot of metal in suspension that has cause wear everywhere else.

I believe the rear end is out of the Lincoln parts bin, widening your search parameters.

[nico]

I'm presuming you're talking about the starter ring gear? In that case you'll find that it is only worn in certain areas because the engine will only come to a rest in the same spots. If you remove the ring gear you can usually re-install in a different spot on the crank so the starter won't engage in the worn spots. Make sure you file the worn area to take the burrs off the teeth. Also this is usually caused by a starter problem unless you habitually double start the car.

[Barry Wolk]

Hmmmmm. I assumed he meant the ring gear in the differential. :confused:

[davec]

Sorry I didn't clarify that it is the starter ring gear I'm refering to. It's rough enough that turning it would be the last option. It jammed on me last summer(2nd time in as many years) I took off the starter, replaced it, and filed the teeth on the ring gear as best as I could. No more troubles. However since I have the engine out for transmission rebuild, I hate to put that gear back in. Finding one is proving to be a challenge, so I'm asking the Forums opinion. Thanks, Dave

[Shawn Newcomb]

Barry, I was with you on the ring gear. I have usually heard 'flywheel' used to describe what he was asking about. Perhaps that search could yield better results.

[Barry Wolk]

Well, on a car with a stick you have a flywheel. I think his terminology for what's used with an automatic might be correct.

[Chuck Lutz]

FWIW, I had a discussion with Jack Rosen about this very Ring gear / flywheel when asking about a starter issue. The gist of it was not good news. It's a major repair if you can find a suitable replacement. He did mention that there are a handful of machine shops that will do the tedious welding of each tooth and then re-grind the gear. On these aging cars, even one harvested from a donor car can be worn. I doubt seriously if there's a LM cross referenced part in exchange. I'm curious if a custom made Bendix gear (larger) on the starter would help this as a fix. Seem a lot easier than tearing down an engine.

[davec]

I think I may have found one. The fellow has 3 Premiers which supposedly have the same 368 in them. He has an extra ring gear with all the teeth and not burred up. Its about 2 hrs away here in Canada. He says the Ford & Merc 368's are about 1/2" too small, but this one is from a Lincoln. Its worth the trip to check it out.

[nico]

An automatic transmission car would use a flexplate (torque converter acts as the flywheel) with the ring gear permanently attached (as a rule). Manual cars use a flywheel with the ring gear shrunk to it, you can usually heat up the ring gear and replace with new. And I don't think a larger bendix would work, you would have to cut every tooth valley deeper.

[Chuck Lutz]

Premier? I don't think so. As far as I know the "Turnpike Crusier" was the only other home for the 368.

[Barry Wolk]

Doesn't have to be a 368. Other variants used the same Y-block in different displacements.

[Mark_II_Mark]

Davec, if you aren't successful with your Canadian search, contact me, as I have one that's in very nice shape...

[Nick DeSpirito]

Premier? I don't think so. As far as I know the "Turnpike Crusier" was the only other home for the 368.

Chuck,

The 368 was used across the board by Lincoln in the Capri and Premiere for '56 and '57.

[Chuck Lutz]

I didn't know that. I've looked for the 368 in other application and don't remember ever seeing one in those cars. Thanks, Nick. I stand corrected.

[Barry Wolk]

The entire drive line is right out of the Lincoln parts bins. I believe the only difference is the driveshaft.

[Chuck Lutz]

Ok, but they were the wrong color.. LOL

[Nick DeSpirito]

Ya, wrong valve covers too.

Barry, was the same tranny as in the Mark II used in the Lincolns also?

[Barry Wolk]

Yes, aluminum housing and torque converter for '56 and iron trans and steel torque converter for '57. I believe.

Any of you experience a horrible clunk that shakes the whole car on acceleration?

[Nick DeSpirito]

I haven't, do you think it's your drive shaft bearing and/or insulator or maybe a u-joint?

[Barry Wolk]

I know what the problem is. None of those. Mine's been fixed. Just wondering if anyone experienced the same thing.

[Nick DeSpirito]

What was it?

[Barry Wolk]

Pressure regulator. $1,800 to pull the engine and trans and reinstall after an $800 rebuild. Still did the same thing. Found out the engine didn't have to come out as the pressure regulator is serviced through the pan. :mad: I was so pissed that they misdiagnosed it.

[Shawn Newcomb]

As mentioned previously the 368 was used across the '56 and '57 Lincoln line and in '57 it was shared with Mercury. Standard in the Turnpike Cruiser, optional in the other Mercury models. As a matter of fact a dual-quad 368 was offered with 335 hp in the base Mercury with an eye toward jalopy racing. If you think Mark II parts are rare or expensive those dual-quad manifolds are holy grail type items that might as well be made of unobtainium!

[depmike38]

Is there any advantage to the change in torque convertors in 57 and are they interchangeable?

[Barry Wolk]

I believe they are interchangeable and I believe the steel unit is stronger, but performs the same.

[Mark_II_Mark]

The racing Merc 335 setup consisted of Holley 4000 Teapot dual quads w/special ribbed air cleaner & aluminum valve covers marked "M335". Last genuine setup to sell on Ebay went for around $5K, which was a pretty fair price for the setup. Same dual quad setup for the Baby Birds, which are more available, go for around $3K & the Paxton supercharged setup $10K+ if you can find one

[Roger Zimmermann]

I believe they are interchangeable and I believe the steel unit is stronger, but performs the same.

The steel torque converter was probably cheaper to manufacture.

[Barry Wolk]

Could be. I wonder if Lincoln changed over in '57, too.

I wondered about leaks as aluminum changes dimensionally with temperature fluctuations.