Fascinating technology. The team that designed this system, Thompson, Kelley and the rest, were brilliant guys. The whole package speaks to the manufacturing prowess that GM had in the 40's and 50's as well.
Ehete was that video 35 years ago? Lol. I remember my dad rebuilding a transmission on our kitchen table. It was in the middle of the winter and he kept it on the bathroom floor until he got the parts to rebuild it. It was for an Oldsmobile. I was very fascinated and my mom was very,very unhappy. There was tranny fluid everywhere. That being said,I never rebuilt one myself. I found it easier to pay someone more skilled at doing the job and having the proper tools. I have done engine rebuilds and more swaps than I care to admit but hey,I was young and thats what us guys did on the weekends.
Interesting. The oldest hydramatic I have driven was a 1961 dual coupling version my mother's old Cadillac. The 1-2 shift was super smooth as it was controlled by the filling of the second coupling, as was the 3/4 shift. You could feel the 2/3 shift a little because it was done with the clutches. We had the car for many years and over 100,000 miles. They transmission performed perfectly all this time with no repairs whatsoever. The 390 Cadillac engine also had no internal parts replaced and ran as smooth as new with no increase in oil consumption. Car had every option, a/c, 8 power windows, 6 way seat, power antenna, door locks, electric trunk release and power closer, power antenna, auto light dimmer, wonder bar radio, all in 1961. That big Fleetwood could lay some rubber too, with that 4 spud. trans.
very nice job as always. i'm a professional technician with over 20 years on the job, and i usually end up picking up more then a thing or two on every one of your videos. please keep them coming!
Just think kids: This was designed and built, in huge numbers, with no automation, not even a calculator to do a square root, all drafting done by hand on paper, all machining set up by hand. Take a metal working class, no CNC, no, CAD, no CAM to machine it at 0.001" accuracy, with almost no fitting! The human mind, and the human hand!
It's amazing how long the original design has been around and evolved into what they were before electronic transmissions. Bet your glad you kept that fixture around b/c that's a heavy transmission to be wrestling around. Great video and I enjoy the knowledge & enthusiasm you bring about automotive history.
Yes, that fixture was wonderful to have. Thank you for your kind words! I think it is fun to explore both old and new automotive technologies! Have a good day!
Enjoyed your presentation so much sir. I would enjoy being a student using that facility and listening to instructors like you. Takes me back sixty six years to my dad's 47 Oldsmobile torpedo body sedan with that transmission. My friends picked there dates up in nice new vehicles, and Hosteen here picked his date up in that tank of a vehicle with a flat head six engine. The thing had to weigh more than two tons. There weren't many second dates for sure. The transmission was almost as big as the engine. Had to pull the passenger side floor mat back and remove a cover to access the dipstick and you could always smell hot oil vapor coming through the vent. I have always had it in my head that when you started forward, instead of the rear squatting, the thing actually tried to rise up on the suspspension like a bullfrog before it moved off. On a Saturday in 1952, I cajoled my dad into installing new brake bands with turned drums because the original friction material was long gone. My first date. Picked her up and headed down US-66 toward town. The Olds began to slow down and smoke was rolling out of all four wheel wells. Brakes adjusted too tight. Had to call dad who caught a city bus and came down and backed the shoes off. Took dad home and took date home. That was that. That freshman girl had told all her friends about what happened and Monday morning I was the laughing stock of the high school.Doesn't seem like much now, but when I was sixteen it seemed like the seven vials of the apocalypse had been spilled. Like your in depth presentations.Regards to you sir.
Amazing! In my country nowaday we use manual gear box mostly. Of course, in Spain in the 40's the people thought this kind of gear box probably comes from out space.
Amazing engineering. Thinking about a 41 Cadillac with one. I can certainly understand your passion on this interesting subject. Thank you for all this research!
Might already have been linked elsewhere, but here's the 1943 US War Department Technical Manual for the Hydra-Matic as it was used in the M-5 light tank: archive.org/details/TM9-1727C-nsia
Thank you. I have that manual, but forgot to mention it in this series. I see on eBay you can still purchase brand new old stock 1943 Hydra-Matic for the M5 tanks. www.ebay.com/itm/Tank-M5-M5A1-Stuart-M8-HMC-Transmission-Hydromatic-General-Motors-NOS-G103-G127-/182357560886?hash=item2a755b8e36:g:eQQAAOSwcLxYLiQx&vxp=mtr
This whole series is fascinating. How exactly does the variable displacement vane pump "decide" how much eccentricity the housings should have relative to the vane rotor shaft? Does it have a spring/diaphragm regulator that regulates based on line pressure?
Alot of things have been around ALOT longer than most ppl think! We haven't came as far as we like to think. We just use old tec in new ways. It's like carrying cinderblocks all day, you may start carrying 4 per trip.at the end of the day you are slowly carrying 1 per trip! That's how we use tech, smaller bits of new, piled on with alot of old!
Good day, I am enjoying this video series as I have a 1954 GMC truck with the Hydra-Matic transmission. I live in Sandy, Ut. I was wondering if by chance as a project, your students might want to rebuild my Transmission as I am going through a complete restoration project of my truck and I want to keep it as original as possible. If this is something that would be of interest, please let me know. I would be happy to buy all parts necessary as well.
Hello Jeff, Thank you for the offer, that would be an amazing project. Personally, I am fascinated by these older transmissions and their technology. Unfortunately we do not have the time for it with our current transmission curriculum. Obviously we need to concentrate on modern technology. Best wishes!
im afraid all this stuff will become paper weights, because no one can get seals and gasket sets, unless some rich guy fronts the money to have em repoped.
@@WeberAuto aware of them, lots of times the civi is just far enough from the military version that it doesn't work. the water pump on the cadi is a prime example.
Could you do a series on the 1950s military automatic trans missions in the m135 and m211 deuce and a half trucks? I think many people would find it very interesting, they used the hydra matic 301mg and 303m. these transmissions had a high and low range.
You are welcome! It sounds like a cool truck! Some of the later models only had one band to adjust or no band adjustments (they automatically adjusted). Best wishes!
Yes, Professor one of the great features on the hydramatic automatic transmission in case of emergency you could have another vehicle push start the vehicle that's why I like the transmission that particular feature and the fact no electronics all was so basic
Awesome watching how the transmission evolved front that to what it is today. I have a special interest in watching this because my car has the transmission that came after this, it actually has Park., but I think the rest is pretty much the same as this transmission. I actually have a transmission manual that you could borrow if you ever wanted to see a detailed break down of this Transmission. The car that this belongs to is a 1956 Pontiac Star chief.
I do have a couple of questions for you. 1 The Original Transmission fluid is almost impossible to find, a local Transmission shop close to me told me that the Classic Dexron Mercon III is an O.K. alternative to the original Transmission Fluid. Do you agree with that or is there a better option you might recommend?
Question number (2 ). Where did you find the rebuild kit, and special tools for that Transmission? I have looked for an original transmission pan gasket and wound up making my own. The transmission pan gasket normally only comes as part of a complete kit.
This question is a little off topic, but do you know if there was ever any type of Aftermarket Overdrive units offered on this type of transmission? I never thought it would work until I discovered ( through your video's) that the 4rth drive was actually a direct drive, I now think it may handle it, but am not sure if it is worth so much effort. I may actually take a closer look at my manual and make sure the number 4 gear is the same as this transmission. Learning a lot and enjoying the History Lesson.
Thank you for your feedback. I may take you up on your offer in the future. According to what I have read, the next transmission after the original Hydra-Matic was the Controlled Coupling transmission (Oldsmobile named it the "Jetaway") I actually have one of the Jetaway transmissions on the way to our shop along with a few other historically important transmissions. I intend to explore them the same way I did this Hydra-Matic. I'll have a Buick Dynaflow, Chevrolet Powerglide, Oldsmobile Jetaway, and an Oldsmobile Roto Hydramatic to keep me busy for a while. I will post videos on each of them over the next year.
According to the GM and SAE literature I have, any Dexron fluid, including Dexron VI that is used in today's transmissions, is backwards compatible with all GM transmissions back to 1937. in 1968, Dexron fluid replaced the previous Type A fluid your transmission originally used.
I have always considered Armetta transmissions before Black Magic just put in oil and they work the complexities of different clutches and steals an internal construction is much beyond my understanding level but I can only watch it for a while too much troops orb too fast
Hi, There is a shuttle valve in the valve body that prevents the front pump fluid from exhausting through the rear pump in reverse. I assume this means the rear pump pressure in reverse is very low or zero. What makes you think it works in reverse? Thanks for your feedback!
No, I'm now aware of how it works, just that somehow it has to accommodate the scenario of reversing. Perhaps that shuttle opens the output side of the rear pump when the front pressure is higher and so just pulls air through in reverse. I was thinking the pump might even be insensitive to direction of rotation.
I am pretty sure the front pump supplies all the fluid pressure needed for reverse. The only purpose of the rear pump is to supplement the front pump at times and allow for push starting the vehicle. Thanks again for your feedback!
I love these detailed explanations and demonstrations.
Thank you!
Fascinating technology. The team that designed this system, Thompson, Kelley and the rest, were brilliant guys. The whole package speaks to the manufacturing prowess that GM had in the 40's and 50's as well.
yeah its mind-boggling to try to think of designing that, i guess they took it one step at a time.
this video series is a gold mine. Thank you so much!
Still want you guys to do the same for a Model T trans. Possibly one of the most misunderstood transmissions of all time. And quite fun to work on.
That is a great idea! Thanks for the feedback
The model t transmission has a lot of internal parts that don’t look much different than some on this hydramatic.drums and bands and clutch pack.
Ehete was that video 35 years ago? Lol. I remember my dad rebuilding a transmission on our kitchen table. It was in the middle of the winter and he kept it on the bathroom floor until he got the parts to rebuild it. It was for an Oldsmobile. I was very fascinated and my mom was very,very unhappy. There was tranny fluid everywhere. That being said,I never rebuilt one myself. I found it easier to pay someone more skilled at doing the job and having the proper tools. I have done engine rebuilds and more swaps than I care to admit but hey,I was young and thats what us guys did on the weekends.
Im a freshman mechanical engineering student and I have learned more in this series than the entire year of schooling thus far. Thank you so much!
Thank you, I am glad it has been helpful for you!
WeberAuto that's cuz nowadays everything is turned to s*** including education son
Like old Graflex cameras ; mechanical marvels.
.
Good stuff
It's great to watch you, someone who has passion. Can't wait to see more.
Thank you!
Interesting. The oldest hydramatic I have driven was a 1961 dual coupling version my mother's old Cadillac. The 1-2 shift was super smooth as it was controlled by the filling of the second coupling, as was the 3/4 shift. You could feel the 2/3 shift a little because it was done with the clutches. We had the car for many years and over 100,000 miles. They transmission performed perfectly all this time with no repairs whatsoever. The 390 Cadillac engine also had no internal parts replaced and ran as smooth as new with no increase in oil consumption. Car had every option, a/c, 8 power windows, 6 way seat, power antenna, door locks, electric trunk release and power closer, power antenna, auto light dimmer, wonder bar radio, all in 1961. That big Fleetwood could lay some rubber too, with that 4 spud. trans.
Very cool story! Thank you for sharing. I hope to get a dual coupling transmission soon and explore it as well. Have a good day.
very nice job as always. i'm a professional technician with over 20 years on the job, and i usually end up picking up more then a thing or two on every one of your videos. please keep them coming!
Thank you very much!
I agree very good work!!!
WOW! This REALLY was a mechanical analog computer.
Cool stuff! Thanks for watching
I didn't know there was people who found automatic transmission fascinating
Just think kids: This was designed and built, in huge numbers, with no automation, not even a calculator to do a square root, all drafting done by hand on paper, all machining set up by hand.
Take a metal working class, no CNC, no, CAD, no CAM to machine it at 0.001" accuracy, with almost no fitting!
The human mind, and the human hand!
Amazing technology!
It's amazing how long the original design has been around and evolved into what they were before electronic transmissions. Bet your glad you kept that fixture around b/c that's a heavy transmission to be wrestling around. Great video and I enjoy the knowledge & enthusiasm you bring about automotive history.
Yes, that fixture was wonderful to have. Thank you for your kind words! I think it is fun to explore both old and new automotive technologies! Have a good day!
Transmissions are alien technology, that's why they're shaped like pyramids when they're standing up on end....
LOL!
Enjoyed your presentation so much sir. I would enjoy being a student using that facility and listening to instructors like you. Takes me back sixty six years to my dad's 47 Oldsmobile torpedo body sedan with that transmission. My friends picked there dates up in nice new vehicles, and Hosteen here picked his date up in that tank of a vehicle with a flat head six engine. The thing had to weigh more than two tons. There weren't many second dates for sure. The transmission was almost as big as the engine. Had to pull the passenger side floor mat back and remove a cover to access the dipstick and you could always smell hot oil vapor coming through the vent. I have always had it in my head that when you started forward, instead of the rear squatting, the thing actually tried to rise up on the suspspension like a bullfrog before it moved off. On a Saturday in 1952, I cajoled my dad into installing new brake bands with turned drums because the original friction material was long gone. My first date. Picked her up and headed down US-66 toward town. The Olds began to slow down and smoke was rolling out of all four wheel wells. Brakes adjusted too tight. Had to call dad who caught a city bus and came down and backed the shoes off. Took dad home and took date home. That was that. That freshman girl had told all her friends about what happened and Monday morning I was the laughing stock of the high school.Doesn't seem like much now, but when I was sixteen it seemed like the seven vials of the apocalypse had been spilled. Like your in depth presentations.Regards to you sir.
What you see there is a man who likes what he is doing. That was how I felt in my years of power generation maintenance.
Awesome story! Thank you for sharing
Thank you
Best Sar
Thank you!
Best Sar
Amazing! In my country nowaday we use manual gear box mostly. Of course, in Spain in the 40's the people thought this kind of gear box probably comes from out space.
Thanks for your feedback!
My dad had a Pontiac dealership years ago and we had some of these tools and I didn’t know what they were for!
Awesome! I was very pleased to find them
Amazing engineering. Thinking about a 41 Cadillac with one. I can certainly understand your passion on this interesting subject. Thank you for all this research!
Thank you very much
Might already have been linked elsewhere, but here's the 1943 US War Department Technical Manual for the Hydra-Matic as it was used in the M-5 light tank: archive.org/details/TM9-1727C-nsia
Thank you. I have that manual, but forgot to mention it in this series. I see on eBay you can still purchase brand new old stock 1943 Hydra-Matic for the M5 tanks. www.ebay.com/itm/Tank-M5-M5A1-Stuart-M8-HMC-Transmission-Hydromatic-General-Motors-NOS-G103-G127-/182357560886?hash=item2a755b8e36:g:eQQAAOSwcLxYLiQx&vxp=mtr
This whole series is fascinating. How exactly does the variable displacement vane pump "decide" how much eccentricity the housings should have relative to the vane rotor shaft? Does it have a spring/diaphragm regulator that regulates based on line pressure?
Back when Cadillac live up to the World Standard motto. Sad what GM made it into.
True! Thanks for your feedback
Maybe someday people will know what we lost.
Oddly enough, olds got the first hydro! Then buick did the dyna flow. Caddy just picked the best one!
Nice job, missed the weight of the hydra-matic?
Thank you! Good question. I do not know. I will see if I can weigh it.
Very heavy .
Is that a Toyota 1MZ-FE V6 back of you on an engine stand?
Yes, and a 1MZ-FXE
Is the governor valve similar to an hydraulic shuttle valve?
No, it has a valve(s) that changes position relative to centripetal force. The changing position changes the fluid pressure verses vehicle speed.
Alot of things have been around ALOT longer than most ppl think! We haven't came as far as we like to think. We just use old tec in new ways. It's like carrying cinderblocks all day, you may start carrying 4 per trip.at the end of the day you are slowly carrying 1 per trip! That's how we use tech, smaller bits of new, piled on with alot of old!
Very True, thanks for your feedback
Good day, I am enjoying this video series as I have a 1954 GMC truck with the Hydra-Matic transmission. I live in Sandy, Ut. I was wondering if by chance as a project, your students might want to rebuild my Transmission as I am going through a complete restoration project of my truck and I want to keep it as original as possible. If this is something that would be of interest, please let me know. I would be happy to buy all parts necessary as well.
Hello Jeff, Thank you for the offer, that would be an amazing project. Personally, I am fascinated by these older transmissions and their technology. Unfortunately we do not have the time for it with our current transmission curriculum. Obviously we need to concentrate on modern technology. Best wishes!
@@WeberAuto Rats! Now who is going to do my '54 Pontiac's hydra?
@@dalegribble60 East LA, 4th st and the 10 fwy is a transmission shop right on the corner....
im afraid all this stuff will become paper weights, because no one can get seals and gasket sets, unless some rich guy fronts the money to have em repoped.
Caddydaddy website sells them. Thanks for watching
@@WeberAuto aware of them, lots of times the civi is just far enough from the military version that it doesn't work. the water pump on the cadi is a prime example.
@@brianbranson2306 I understand. That is a problem
Happy New year 2021 - incredible technology for 1940.
No problem, I will tackle it myself and use yours as well as a couple others on RUclips as references. Thanks
I am happy to offer technical advice as needed. My contact information is in the video description under "biography".
i am 73 and been working on trans for 55 yrs and never seen one apart, they were well engenered and well made.
Could you do a series on the 1950s military automatic trans missions in the m135 and m211 deuce and a half trucks?
I think many people would find it very interesting, they used the hydra matic 301mg and 303m. these transmissions had a high and low range.
Why the choice of aluminum for the clutch parts? I’m asking halfway through so sorry if it’s covered later.
Good question, I suspect it is for weight savings, but I really do not know.
thank you very good job saludos of Medellín Colombia 🔧🔧🔧
Thank you!
thankyou for all the info,I just put one in my 56 chevy truck that came out of a 55 cameo,now I can adjust my bands yaaaah,
You are welcome! It sounds like a cool truck! Some of the later models only had one band to adjust or no band adjustments (they automatically adjusted). Best wishes!
if you have a email I will send you a photo,,thankyou
Yes, Professor one of the great features on the hydramatic automatic transmission in case of emergency you could have another vehicle push start the vehicle that's why I like the transmission that particular feature and the fact no electronics all was so basic
Thank you very much for the great work you do.
The best video ever. Thank you Sir.
Thank you!
Awesome watching how the transmission evolved front that to what it is today. I have a special interest in watching this because my car has the transmission that came after this, it actually has Park., but I think the rest is pretty much the same as this transmission. I actually have a transmission manual that you could borrow if you ever wanted to see a detailed break down of this Transmission. The car that this belongs to is a 1956 Pontiac Star chief.
I do have a couple of questions for you. 1 The Original Transmission fluid is almost impossible to find, a local Transmission shop close to me told me that the Classic Dexron Mercon III is an O.K. alternative to the original Transmission Fluid. Do you agree with that or is there a better option you might recommend?
Question number (2 ). Where did you find the rebuild kit, and special tools for that Transmission? I have looked for an original transmission pan gasket and wound up making my own. The transmission pan gasket normally only comes as part of a complete kit.
This question is a little off topic, but do you know if there was ever any type of Aftermarket Overdrive units offered on this type of transmission? I never thought it would work until I discovered ( through your video's) that the 4rth drive was actually a direct drive, I now think it may handle it, but am not sure if it is worth so much effort. I may actually take a closer look at my manual and make sure the number 4 gear is the same as this transmission. Learning a lot and enjoying the History Lesson.
Thank you for your feedback. I may take you up on your offer in the future. According to what I have read, the next transmission after the original Hydra-Matic was the Controlled Coupling transmission (Oldsmobile named it the "Jetaway") I actually have one of the Jetaway transmissions on the way to our shop along with a few other historically important transmissions. I intend to explore them the same way I did this Hydra-Matic. I'll have a Buick Dynaflow, Chevrolet Powerglide, Oldsmobile Jetaway, and an Oldsmobile Roto Hydramatic to keep me busy for a while. I will post videos on each of them over the next year.
According to the GM and SAE literature I have, any Dexron fluid, including Dexron VI that is used in today's transmissions, is backwards compatible with all GM transmissions back to 1937. in 1968, Dexron fluid replaced the previous Type A fluid your transmission originally used.
I have always considered Armetta transmissions before Black Magic just put in oil and they work the complexities of different clutches and steals an internal construction is much beyond my understanding level but I can only watch it for a while too much troops orb too fast
weber as in weber state college in Utah?
Yes! Weber State university for the last 25 years
I thought it might be good to explain why the rear pump works when in reverse.
Hi, There is a shuttle valve in the valve body that prevents the front pump fluid from exhausting through the rear pump in reverse. I assume this means the rear pump pressure in reverse is very low or zero. What makes you think it works in reverse? Thanks for your feedback!
No, I'm now aware of how it works, just that somehow it has to accommodate the scenario of reversing. Perhaps that shuttle opens the output side of the rear pump when the front pressure is higher and so just pulls air through in reverse. I was thinking the pump might even be insensitive to direction of rotation.
I am pretty sure the front pump supplies all the fluid pressure needed for reverse. The only purpose of the rear pump is to supplement the front pump at times and allow for push starting the vehicle. Thanks again for your feedback!
OK, thanks again for the videos ...
always interesting, thank you ...
Thank you!
Well done, thanks.
many thanks.
Thank you!
GOOD JOB BUDDY
Thank you!
very good job
Thank you!
I'm new in box gear, I'm Brazilian.
Wonderful lesson.
Thank you for passing your knowledge for free on youtube.
Nice !
Thank you!
Best Sar
Thank you!