NEED HELP DECODING SAGINAW CASTING NUMBERS
- Thread starter LIVE4RDO
- Start date
Most likely came behind a 4 cyl originally. The 3 rings in the input shaft indicate it's got the lowest first gear (3.5) of all saginaw 4 speeds. Unless a car was special ordered with a close ratio transmission you can kind of guess the engine it was coupled to, with larger engines getting higher first gear ratios.
My $.02, it's a Saginaw and if you beat on it much you'll likely break it :lol: Imo there isn't much to be gained (other than personal knowledge) from the casting numbers. The main case is probably the same as any other 4-speed Saginaw, I think the only difference came in the tailshaft. Mine has lived so far for the most part (same gear set), but I don't shift it hard or shock it much at all. Somehow a couple of the reverse teeth on the countergear chipped off, and it's not like I race it in reverse or anything. It's definitely no rock crusher.
The lower first gear ratio trannys are also the weaker versions due to the size of the gearset. Higher ratios have more metal.
Word... just like a taller gearset having less teeth, allowing for thicker teeth.
To be honest I did have a day I beat on it a bit during a cruise in Troy, MI, everybody was doing burnouts alongside the curbs when cops weren't around :lol: It seemed to hold up ok, but they were just 1st gear and I didn't have to shock it too hard to break the tires loose. On another note it was over an hour drive each way. I took it down & back, never got the least bit warm, even though at least half of the cruise was stop & go style.
To be honest I did have a day I beat on it a bit during a cruise in Troy, MI, everybody was doing burnouts alongside the curbs when cops weren't around :lol: It seemed to hold up ok, but they were just 1st gear and I didn't have to shock it too hard to break the tires loose. On another note it was over an hour drive each way. I took it down & back, never got the least bit warm, even though at least half of the cruise was stop & go style.
If you find the right buyer, and if it's in perfect internal shape then it's probably good for $200-$300 tops. I bought mine with the internals in near perfect shape (outside wasn't the prettiest, but overall in real good shape) for something like $125-$150 if I remember right.
Doober said:
LOL
I've had a nice looking 3 groove saginaw with indy shifter in my swap meet booth for the last 3 years tagged at 150 and get ten offers per meet of $50, nobody's willing to pay more. If you can get 300 drop me a PM about selling mine on commission
I know I didn't pay over $150 for mine. I made the mistake of buying my first 4-speed without looking at the gears first.
