halibrand center, stock axle

B

barron

Member
I'm curious, i know of where there is a halibrand QC for a Model A rear, would this be an easy solution for a driver? stock engine, stock everything, 1931 year
 
no, just to keep the revs down, be able to tool down the highway at better than 50.... I do have a Volvo torque tube overdrive but have never used it.... just looking for a tiny bit speed
 
barron said:
no, just to keep the revs down, be able to tool down the highway at better than 50.... I do have a Volvo torque tube overdrive but have never used it.... just looking for a tiny bit speed
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I have one on a car that I do change ratio's for different events. I have another on a car that doesn't require any changes. I'm going to swap that one out as it just gets dirty and is not needed as that car has an overdrive trans. I don't believe they are practical for a driver cost wise. If set up properly they are OK mechanically. Good for competition or possibly for a show car or hot rod. Look out of place on a stocker. IMO
 
Re quickchange rear. The wine like crazy statment above is incorrect, True for old Halibrand units where clearances did not matter , but our units if you run Winters gear sets are almost totally silent due to how they are machined. Yes we run them in road vehicles with no problems & in our country are cheaper than an overdrive , All that said an overdrive is a better mod for most folk & in Barrons case more suitable, Each has a place depending on ones needs, With over 350 units sold ,To date no one has ever complained they are noisy,
 
quickchange said:
Re quickchange rear. The wine like crazy statment above is incorrect, True for old Halibrand units where clearances did not matter , but our units if you run Winters gear sets are almost totally silent due to how they are machined. Yes we run them in road vehicles with no problems & in our country are cheaper than an overdrive , All that said an overdrive is a better mod for most folk & in Barrons case more suitable, Each has a place depending on ones needs, With over 350 units sold ,To date no one has ever complained they are noisy,
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i agree with you, but he asked about a halibrand
and everyone i know of running an old one says they want to pull their hair out after a long trip
but if i had some more $$$ i would like to own one of your set ups
tk
 
I still have your card from when you came thru Carnation Washington years ago, nice unit. The only draw back I see from running an overdrive is the whole reverse deal and all the other monkey motion required to drive these things (blowing gears) I've always been pretty lazy about A motors, so quick tune ups and halfass maintenance is my speed for a stocker, I do have other cars that go faster, but those are traditional hotrods.... just something special about a rickety old jalopy holding back impatient drivers
 
Use your Volvo OD, it will give you the best overall ratios for driving, a low gear for getting away from the stop sign and around town and a tall gear for highway use. I have a speedster with a QC, and in town it needs some clutch-slipping to get started, with an OD you don't need that. My early Halibrand is pretty quiet with Winters gears.
 
Halibrand made 2 different QC's for the A, one was called the midget rear end, for midget class race cars, it used 1" wide change gears. The other was just the Model A QC, and uses 1 3/8" wide gears. Both are still available.
 
On quick changes...especially on Model A's, which have lots of clearance abaft the change box: Why has no one modern developed a shift box for that QC?
In the 1960's, Halibrand built a champion size QC for Indy cars that carried two sets of change gears and a primitive shifter, replacing the function of the Offy 2 speed trans for getting the cars out of the pits. I think this was a response to the new rear engined Indy cars with IRS based on Halibrand center and no space for a trans between engine and final drive.
In the early 1950's, one of the QC suppliers, cannot remember name, built a similar 2 speed box for a V8 style quick change...
This sort of setup would turn the QC into a very practical solution for 3-speed Fords needing more gears...you could have your choice of 4.11's for town and 3.30's for road trips.
On the Model A QC, the lower quill shaft and the stub carrying the pinion gear are special parts that could be made longer and adapted to some sort of two-gearset setup...
The A would seem the easiest to adapt thus, as V8 QC's use a pinion with integral shaft that would require heavy re-engineering.
 
kelley's restoration said:
also the problem with the model a quickie is that it doesnt have a pinion suppost like the v8s. so it is weaker...but it is only 40 hp
tk
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Don't really want to hi jack this thread but the Art Christman car still has the original "A" Halibrand in it. I have an "A" Halibrand in my Lakes Modified and I have installed a "snubber" and we start in 2nd gear at hillclimbs and been doing so for a few years.
 
Many fuel dragsters ran Model A Halibrands. They certainly made it past the 140 MPH "barrier" (Chrisman), but they were used into the '60's and certainly ran way beyond the former barrier...
 
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