Bellhousing dial-in procedure,

One of the most mystery-cloaked operations in all of Stude-dom is the bellhousing dial-in. Known to make grown men shiver and quake with just the thought of doing it, this must-do strikes fear into the heart of even the bravest.

Well, maybe it's not that bad. But it certainly is something no one looks forward to, no matter how steeped in Studebakers they may be. And it's something that's unique to Studebakers - you don't have to do this with an old Ford or Chevy, so if you're new to Studes it's essential that you know about this.

So what is a bellhousing dial-in, and why is it needed? Long and short of it is that Studebaker's bolt-on bellhousings need to be aligned to the crankshaft center-line so that the crank and transmission input shafts are on the same plane. This keeps the torque converter (or flex plate, or clutch) from self-destructing as it revolves. Instructions are given in the shop manual, but nobody seems to really understand 'em.

SDC member Allan Anderson recently photographed and described this procedure. Bob Johnstone has archived it on his website for all posterity (or at least until the Chinese take over the Internet and outlaw all things Studebaker). Check it out and make a bookmark - if you ever have to change out a bellhousing, this is an invaluable reference.