First off, let me say a big thanks to Mr. Mack for making the online Chevy manuals possible. I'm sure many of us have found tips for maintaining our Chevys that would have otherwise been a mystery! So it was with the removal of my 3-spd from my 54 210 four door.
The instructions from the 49-53 manual were good, but I really wondered what GM was thinking in the placement of the left upper capscrew (9/16" hex, NF) - one of four securing the transmission to the engine, The lower, longer capscrews remove easily, as does the right upper bolt. The upper left is next to impossible to access - I tried deep sockets, extensions, u-joint extensions, etc. No go.
The problem is that GM cast a recess into the trans case so only the shortest of sockets will sit square on the head of the screw, but the angle of approach is so tight from below, that the small turns available to the ratchet aren't enough to turn the bolt. While the 52 and prior had a floorplate access hatch, the 53 and up did not. Nuts.
I measured from underneath to where the capscrew's head was positioned relative to the trans hump in the floor and I cut myself a 2" round access hole. It worked perfectly. Any NAPA or Chrysler rubber body plug works to fill it in, and this is later covered by carpet anyways.
Now the trans is out and ready for rebuild (thanks to another VCCA chat member for providing the NOS 1st/rev gears, etc.) Happy thanksgiving!
Don't thank me, all I did was post the URL of Keith Hardy's site. We all owe Mr Keith Hardy a big THANK YOU! Also He can use any monetary help you can afford to keep the site up and running. He is just a regular working guy like many of us!