Ford O Matic Valve body change

Most automatic transmissions had a rear pump up to about 1964. The rear pump allowed you to push start the car and typically rear pump output supplied the governor.

 

I reading about all the mods required to make the early Ford-O-Matics into a start in first all the time transmission. The biggest modification is the addition of a sprag or one-way roller clutch and a valve body to allow 1st gear starts. It would be a lot easier to pickup an FMX or Cruise-O-Matic in my opinion. I've got one out of a 60 T-Bird that I've been going to put in my 57 T-Bird for the last 16 or 17 years. The problem is space; you either have to pull the engine or pull the trans apart in the car to do the swap. You know 2nd gear starts aren't all that bad and flooring it does get a first gear start; maybe some day.

 

It was a lot of work for a 56 car. If you have the complete trans with torque converter and flywheel it’s better. Mine is a combination of the watercooled transmission and air cooled converter. The speedometer drive can also cause problems as one feeds from the top and the other from the bottom. The vacuum modulator does make it good in my opinion as the controlling rod from the carb linkage only controls the down shift and not the holding it longer in gears under more throttle..

 

I owned a '52 Ford with a Fordomatic. The stock converter was air cooled and was finned. The bell housing had air ducts built in. The oil was checked via a plate in the floorboard drivers' side. It had a rear pump.

All three speeds were accessible. To get 1st from a stop, start in D full throttle and shift to Lo. 2nd can be held by flipping up to D and quickly pulling it back into Lo. 3rd is in D.

 

In reality as per the quote from eBay seller the extra sprag was to reduce or eliminate harmonics in 1rst. That other transmission tech mentioned to me not all of them had the extra sprag and in reality why would I swap a rebuilt low miler for newer when the case is the same, the valve swap solves the problem and if need be take a support and a planetary gearset with an extra sprag and put it in. I do not want a vacuum modulator as all it does is complicate matters AND it is obviously a newer transmission at a glance! For how few of these Marks were made and how few are left, I would rather just make minor mods not visible and easily reversible if desired. Most likely the updated gearset with sprag could be left in if the old style Fordo valve was put back in.
Most likely just putting in a newer Cruise O valve AND the detent cam as well but as it is my Bendix Treadlevac with that stupid cork gasket allowed brake fluid to leak out and down my firewall wrecking the paint! The body shop wants the engine out to properly paint it so this is a future project.

Yes mine is also a factory two tone, one of only 68 that left the factory and mine is one of 7 in that teo tone green. A number of the two tones were also wrecked or parted out as well.

 

jimmy six, am I to assume correctly that now your indicator with number six positions will put D1 on one side of the D and D2 on the other AND still give you L which is hill control instead of riding the brakes down a steep hill??

 

And here is another update from the same seller after I asked about the sprag and the necessity of it:

" The cast iron Fordomatic produced from 1950 to 1958 has 3 gears but is a 2 speed transmission since it will only automatically shift between 2nd and 3rd. Its also very different from the 1959 to 1963 2 speed aluminum Fordomatic, which was Ford's version of a powerglide.
1958 to 1967 Cruiseomatic has the same design as as its predecessor but is a true 3 speed.
The pressure regulator is largely unchanged in function through the years with differences depending on whether a transmission is air or water cooled and if the front servo has an accumulator or not.
You do not need the sprag for the transmission to function; however, the harmonics created in 1st gear will cause much more wear than if there is one installed. This would only take changing the gearset and center support.
You can change to any 3 speed valve body as long as doesn't have a vacuum modulator"

The comments of the 2 speed were brought on because he referred to the Ford O as a two speed like many others but in reality they are capable of a limited 3 speeds by flooring accelerator or manual shifting.
He wasn't sure about the detent situation because he doesn't rebuild them but typically there is a spring that pushes a ball against the detent cam that allows it to click through the positions. We have to pay attention to what we use because he mentioned the earlier ones are Borg and Ford retooled late 50's early 60's and were building their own after the retooling. It uses the same measurements etc. but this is all I know. Bottom line is I may as well get a good used transmission core from 58 or 59 and swap parts and of course because the large case only came out in 58 I have to use a medium case transmission.
I also do not know what the difference is in the small case but most likely it is the same principle and using parts from a newer small case to update an older would be in order EXCEPT let's say you have a high miler older and newer and then it would make sense to rebuild the newer IF your desire is a full time 3 speed.
Now if you desire originality like I do where the plate on the side of the transmission tells the tale then transfer parts from new to old and then use a seal kit and finish the job.
Generally I rebuild my own transmissions and even ventured into a Ford AOD which has a considerably more complicated valve body.
These old timers are extremely simple compared and with an advanced set of tools and using a shop manual they are fairly simple to rebuild.
Even though my car weighs 5400 pounds and extra weight is due to being equipped with factory AC and these transmissions were strong enough.
I'm not concerned about the strength of this transmission just converting into full time 3 speed. NOW if only there was a way to mod a control valve to be a full time 3 speed in D and still have the L function. Anybody that knows these and the Cruise O will know if you are going around 15 mph and place selector in L you will go into 1st. Speeds above this and shifted into L will place it in 2nd gear. This was required due to the D1 and D2 instead of the newer D21 which if you placed the selector in 2nd you stayed in 2nd and the same thing for 1.

 

hennman, yes instead of colored dots a small 1 and 2 would be fine on each side of the D. For all purposes that would be the best allowing the trans to be controlled in 2 for slowing or holding back the car in hills without worrying about it shifting into low. That’s a pretty hard hit at times.
My1” extension is slotted for some movement and uses the same stock grommet. It’s very close to the exhaust manifold but has not caused a concern for 4 years..

 

My 55 is going to get a Y block again so I picked up a couple 62 COMs that bolt to the 55 bellhousing so it could possibly bolt up to the earlier bellhousings,with a 62 trans the later FMX valve bodies should bolt in giving a normal D21 shift pattern with a original looking trans but a external cooler will be needed.

 

junkyardjeff I know one fellow who owns a 58 Skyliner and he said his his starts out in 1 and shifts 123. 2nd is 2nd as well. I told him obviously the Cruise O was swapped out with a late 60's or newer FMX! They look the same and have the cast iron housing in the middle except they are 123 and mine was on a 390 and his is on a 352. I don't know why somebody woukd swap one for a Cruiso because all you have to do is select the other range for a transmission that behaves the same. In my case I'm stuck with only one range starting out in stupid 2nd!!
The extra sprag and support makes good sense to me because without it as the seller mentioned you have harmonics and faster extra wear. Knowing how a sprag works this makes sense because if there is ANY SLIGHT DIFFERENCE in rpm of the gearset and other components you have the eauiv of a four wheel drive with slightly mismatched tires you have tire fight, power train vibration and extra wear. The sprag allows a variable speed if the component it is on is rotating a hair slower by freewheeling and then grabbing if rotating faster. I got one in my Borg 3speed with overdrive in my 50 Mercury sedan and it's purpose is for when the solenoid disengages and when I'm coasting to a stop click the relay shuts the solenoid off and the engine instantly slows to idle. If I accelerate the sprag grabs and I can pick up speed until the solenoid engages again