Proper use of 5x2 transmission

[Jeff244]

I just purchased a 1993 Ford F700 Dump Truck with a 5x2 transmission. What is the proper way to use the 2 speed button? Do I have to use the clutch to shift between hi and low? Is it OK to Shift from 5th gear low to hi and back? I assume it is, but I don't want to do any damage by assuming.

Thanks,
Jeff

 

[RickB]

Straight from the horse's mouth. Happy Shifting:

http://www.roadranger.com/ecm/idcplg?IdcService=GET_FILE&dID=138196

 

[Builder]

I just purchased a 1993 Ford F700 Dump Truck with a 5x2 transmission. What is the proper way to use the 2 speed button? Do I have to use the clutch to shift between hi and low? Is it OK to Shift from 5th gear low to hi and back? I assume it is, but I don't want to do any damage by assuming.

Thanks,
Jeff

There's some tricks to using them, but once you get the hang of it, they're kind of fun. I had an F-700 with a 429 gasser & a 2 speed rear back in the late 80's, so it's been a few years for me.

If I need to go from hi to low, I used to simply pop the button in, then very quickly quickly goose the clutch pedal down & back up about 1/10th of the pedal travel. This takes the pressure off the driveline and allows it to "pop" the 2 speed into low.

Switching from low to high is much easier, just pull the button out and goose the pedal or just let off the gas or goose the gas pedal for a split second and it'll upshift the rear into high.

I got good enough at it that I rarely used the clutch. I could just let off the gas quickly and pop the button, then goose the gas pedal and she'll slip right in.

What you'll find in the beginning is that you'll try to shift sometimes and you'll hear the grinding in the rear, just push in the clutch. If that doesn't work, return the button back to where it was and try again.

You'll be a pro after no time. Just don't try too hard, you can wear them out or even break them if you "cowboy" them too much.

 

[Stimw]

I LOVE a 5 & 2!! I always found them fun to drive. You can shift the button as long as you have pressure on the driveline it won't shift. Up shifting is easier than down shifting, you wind it up in low range then shift the button. When you let up on the gas it will shift, you don't need the clutch. It will take some getting use to.
The shift pattern is tricky when you get to 4-5. It goes, 3 H to 4 lo then 5 lo then 4 H then 5 H.
I had a Boom Truck that had a 5sp Main and a 4sp Auxiliary. So I had 20 speeds forward and 4 reverse! That had a learning curve!

 

[Jeff244]

Thanks for the replies.

Seems a little more complicated than I thought, but I'm sure I will get the hand of it soon.

I think the first truck I ever drove had a similar transmission. It was an IH Loadstar 1600 with a 345 gas engine. I was 16 when I drove it and my dad showed me once how to use the 2 speed switch. I didn't understand it then and I knew better than to ask him to show me again so I just left the truck in whatever range it was each time I got in it.


Thanks again for the help,
Jeff

 

[Stimw]

A safety note- NEVER park it in gear without setting parking brake. I saw a semi tractor and flat bed trailer deep in the woods down in a holler. Kids were playing in it over the weekend my guess is they messed with the shift button and/or clutch.

 

[shvl73]

I always used the clutch on upshifts, just seemed smoother.

 

[QRTRHRS]

If you miss a shift, do not switch back to the previous range or you will blow the rear. If the gears don't catch, you may need to come to a stop until they do.

The electric shifters are one thing, ever drive one that used air to shift the rear axle? Touchy! Thank god for Road Ranger transmissions.

Re: Auxillary transmissions. You need to drive an old B model Mack with what we used to call the "stone crusher" 5x2 or 3. What a treat!

 

[Harold_J]

I wouldn't make yourself too crazy with this at first, or as others have said you can raise some damage with the rear end when down-shifting it.
You can just start out with the rear in low and leave it there, shifting thru the tranny gears; then when you are running in 5th on the highway upshift the rear end for an OD effect. This is what they refer to as Ratio Extender Use in the RoadRanger link provided above, and may be all you need depending on load and terrain.
The next thing to practice, if you want to, is downshifting the rear by itself for hill climbing, etc. After that you can may want to move onto split-shifting where you shift the tranny and the rear at the same time, as described in the link provided by RickB. First try it where you are down shifting the transmission and upshifting the rearend. Take it one step at a time, you may not even need all of this.

 

[rdbrumfield]

shifting of 2sp rearends should be a gentle shift. Preshifting the rear end before shifting the main is NOT a good idea. For instance, if you preshift to low before going to the next higher gear, when you go to shift the main, if the rearend shifts before you get out of the gear you are in, you have the chance of blowing your clutch dish apart, especially in the lower gears. What happens is that while you are in low in the main and high in the rear, then preshift to low in the rear, when you depress the clutch if the rear goes to low and you are still in low in the main, the input shaft to the main will spin the clutchplate way past it;s centrifugal design.

The shifter in the rearend has two springs on the shifter. The electric motor basically turns a screw that pushes on the spring that moves the shift fork.
When upshifting, on the rear, just pull the knob and back off the throttle a bit and throttle back up when engaged. When down shifting, push the knob, keep on the throttle lightly, declutch an instant and release, it should engage easily. If you hold down the throttle hard when doing this and it misses, the driveshaft will be going so fast that it cannot possibly engage.

When shifting the main and two sp together, go to the next higher gear in the main then shift the rear to the low side. I know folks will say it is ok to shift them both at the same time. Thing is, if you hit the electrics before you are totally out of gear in the main, it can do some serious harm.

When shifting down in the main, either go to high in the rear before shifting, or do the shift a full gear if you are in a hard pull by pulling the engine down a bit farther if you know you are going to wind up there anyway, or do the rear shift after the lower gear. The one thing to remember is to not overspeed the input shaft of the tranny.

Thing is while you are on the learning curve, keep the rpm moderate, especially in the lower gears. high torque loads are put on the drivetrain if you are not shifting smoothly.

Oh yes! the B mod Mack. 5x4aux. Quite a truck in it's day.