Possible Transmission rebuild~

[dodgeling]

Hey guys, before I spill the beans, I wanna say that the help I got a few years ago from the members of this site has helped me so much, whether is was instructional or encouragement.

http://seattle.craigslist.org/skc/cto/2513560589.html

Now the beans; I was cruising along on craigslist when I stumbled upon a beauty. I found a '71 D-200 for $1000 with pretty much nothing wrong with it. I called the guy and he had nothing but praise for this truck, except he was telling me he had a load of firewood in the back and was trying to reverse up a bite-your-lip-incline when the truck stopped going backwards. The 'pretty much' is this, reverse doesn't work. The forward gears all preform normally, shifting automatically and such.

>It has a strong 383 automatic and a 327 transmission

So, before I make a commitment, I got two questions,
1) Is there such a thing as a "327" transmission, or is that a typo and the author meant "727"
He told me thought it was a linkage. I don't know anything about transmissions except it very well could be a variety of one, or several things... Which brings me to my second question,
2) Possibly, speaking from any experience that this site's userbase possesses, is it simply one thing wrong preventing this beauty from reversing down the driveway on it's own and into my warm embrace, and that one thing is relatively easy to fix?

Either way, I am staring at the already written check and am getting the truck in 2 days.

Too long; didn't read: reverse doesn't work, should I move to a house on a hill and use gravity to get my butt down the hill?

[Hobcobble]

The tranny should be a 727 LoadFlite.
If it were me, I'd drop it out from the
truck and give it a rebuild. Parts shouldn't
be much more than $150.
John

[dodgeling]

Well, that is what I was planning eventually, but is it an easy feat?

[Hobcobble]

Well, that is what I was planning eventually, but is it an easy feat?

Well....
This depends on one's own skill level and overall
familiarity with the tranny. As far as removing
the tranny from the truck, it is not very difficult
at all. As far as dropping out the valve body and
extracting all the "guts" from the housing..... it
might be a little overwhelming if you haven't done
it before. In removing and re-installing your
tranny yourself, you'll save a good deal of money as opposed
to letting your local [& hopefully friendly] garage do
it for you.
John

[dodgeling]

Ok, well how do I remove the transmission?

I mean obviously with tools, short of having an object of unknown weight drop on my chest while I am all alone, under a truck, I am simply stumped.

[rogerr]

Jack the vehicle up, and get a transmission jack underneath of it as per the manual.

A lift is great, or a grease pit, but it can be done with jackstands if you are careful.

DON"T work alone. Do get experienced help. That's what car clubs are for.

[Dood]

I can second a trans jack: don't try to do it with a normal hydraulic jack, spare tire scissor jack, concrete block etc. Get a true tranny jack with a web belt and rollers. I've done a manual without help (different animal to be sure), but not without the right tools and someone who can dial 911 in ear shot. An automatic is bulkier and meaner to let down, in my experience, than a manual, so get a buddy.