And...was that fellows name dmsfrr??? Haha. I took a sharp flat chisel and knocked the heads off the rivets that held the oval shaped tag with red letters before taking mine to the trans rebuilder. Then I drilled the rivets out and tapped them for small machine screw. Didn't install the tag until I got the trans back from the rebuilder.
During several internet searches I haven't come across another Fordomatic transmission image that matches the passenger side of the main case this one has.
That passenger side is identical to both my '55 Ford-O-Matics and is the same for every small case cast iron Ford-O-Matic from at least '55 thru '59. The earlier ones had a filler cap where that rounded portion is near the rear and the transmission pan did not have a dipstick/filler tube. That's really the only big difference between all the small case Ford-O's from '51 thru '59 as far as the trans case goes.
They started using the oil cooled transmissions early in 1956 for the T-birds. T-bird transmissions had an extra plate in the clutch pack but otherwise were nearly identical to the other Ford units of each year model. I wonder how many 55 birds were changed over to the later 56/57 oil cooled transmission? If I was going to that trouble, an AOD would end up in there. I'm not a big fan of those air cooled units. I do understand originality though if a person goes that route. The air cooled jobs can work well but it's not easy to get them there. A person really has to play with them a while to be good at rebuilding them correctly. NOS hard parts are getting scarce and no one reproduces them. Soft parts & clutches are available but they don't stack up like the OEM stuff. This really complicates the set up assembly during overhaul. What I'm inferring to it that they are easy to get wrong if you don't know them well enough.
Are you talking about the oval ID plate riveted to the drivers side of the transmission?
Image 1 and 2 below.
The transmission ID letters/numbers on that ID plate and the surrounding background are printed / painted in red onto the plate. Confirmed on the transmission in question by a somewhat blurry zoomed in 'before' photo 3 of it coming out of the car.
All that remains on the ID plate after a trip thru the transmission shop parts washer are the stamped numbers on the right side. photos 4 & 5
Results of a short test drive thru my neighborhood, with a (mostly observed) 15mph speed limit.
Starting up from a stop no longer has the occasional shaking and squealing.
Placing the shifter in low and applying some extra pressure to the Go pedal provides a new found rate of acceleration.
Still not sure if I can feel 2 gear changes but it's much better than it was.
Looking forward to a 30+ mile round trip across town this coming Sunday for a Ford dealership anniversary car show that our club was invited to. .
