keeping my hopes up for the od

[peanutman]

Ok here goes. I need a t85,t87 or t89 side loader od 3 speed tranny that will bolt up to a 302. I am toying with my options,I want to stay 3 on the tree. I could go with a ford 3 speed.
This is where i need alls help. I know ford put a 3 speed od in a lot of vehicles from the late 50's on up to the 70's. Maybe im looking at the wrong donors. Thats where i need help. Could i use a od tranny from a car. Are they the same. Are most the electric od like my tranny or was there more than one type.
Asking around iv'e been looking for a tranny out of a truck, was the cars the same and are they more plentiful.
My dad is in his 70's and says he owned several ford cars with the same od, is he correct.
If so what applications will bolt up to my 302 bell housing with minor drive line changes.
I have to give credit to spartman he mentioned the fairlane w/ the od tranny. What are my options.
Or am i dreaming and should just go with a reg ford 3 speed and maybe one of these days i will run up on the parts i need and can go back with my od tranny. Sorry for the long thread but i want to keep my truck as orig as possible and this tranny problem has stopped my project cold in its tracks.

[TheEskimo]

I don't know about the other questions, but here is a t-85 for $750 on my local C/L:
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/pts/762914871.html

[peanutman]

Thanks for the link Eskimo. I called and talked w/ the guy and he does not know if it is in working order, also does not think it will bolt uo to my 302. He said that i needed the wider bolt pattern tranny. My tranny has double bolt holes on each ear.

[willowbilly3]

$750 is way too much for a T85, I sold my last one for $200, and it was from a 68 pickup. The T-85N is probably your best bet. It has the R11 overdrive unit which is the strongest one BW made. An R-10 is ok, I just sold the whole shebang (T87) and paid shipping on one of those with a rough 1st gear, $300.
There really isn't that big of demand for these, most folks want 5 speeds nowdays. Also remember the 3 speed overdrives have no compression braking in overdrive, nor can you use the gears for park in the normal fashion as it free wheels.

Look for one from a FE engine so it will have the correct input. The earlier T85s from the Y blocks may have a different input (longer if I remember right) The T87 I just sold was from a 63 Fairlane and it had the wide bolt pattern, actually dual pattern. You need to make sure of that because some of them have only the narrow pattern, which you probably don't want. Also the fairlane one had a fine splined input so you would have to deal with finding a proper disc.

[peanutman]

Thanks for the input WillowBilly3, Yes i agree $750 was way to much for a t-85 and it was from a 57 Y block. Spartman is looking at two fairlanes for me one has a 6 cylinder and one has a 230 something v8. my tranny has the r-11 od unit on it. And yes my tranny has the two bolt holes in each ear.
so what your'e saying i could possilbly go with a od tranny from a fairlane providing its got the right bolt pattern but i may have to use a clutch disk for a fairlane due to spline size and may get a r-10 od unit. Could i switch those od units out. Tell me if im thinking right.