I am swapping a '99 LS1 T56 into my '82 which is a factory ST10 car.I am using the McCleod #8-207 adapter plate and the throwout bearing retainer it is supplied with along with a Lakewood steel #15015 scattershield.My first dilemna is If I try to wiggle the input shaft of the trans on the floor (with no bell or adapter plate) there is some play there back and forth.Seems to be usual from my experiences with trannys over the years.The problem is when I bolt the McCleod adapter and throwout bearing retainer on the tranny and try to wiggle the input shaft back and forth while rotating it,the input shaft rubs the inside of the throwout bearing retainer.If I don't forcibly move it,it doesn't rub.It is not enough to prevent it from rotating,but it does rub.I plan to pull the bellhousing off the car and torque it all (adapter to bell and trans to adapter) together on the floor and see if the interference still exists.My main question is if it does,do I grind the input shaft splines OR hone out the supplied bearing retainer????The only area the rubs is the splines,the rest of the input shaft necks down to a smaller diameter and leaves ample clearance.I plan to measure the input shaft movement without adapter with a dial indicator and then with the whole assembly (adapter to bell and trans to adapter) torqued together to give me an actual number I have to clearance for.So what I need to know is,what is the correct way to clearance these parts?

DON'T GRIND OR HONE ANYTHING!!!!!

As long as the trans is sitting on the floor, it will be able to do that. When you put the transmission in the car, the tip of the clutch gear will be firmly held in place by the pilot bearing, and the runout will no longer be possible.

So, don't bother with any of that measuring and clearancing. Whatever play you're seeing, totally eliminates itself when installed. All you'll be doing is wasting a bunch of time measuring something useless, and wasting a bunch of expensive parts by grinding on them.

Make sure you put a new pilot bearing, not a bushing, in it.

I thought about that,but wasn't sure.Wanted to be positive before I bolt it all together and problems arise when some miles are put on it.Car already has a roller pilot bearing with around 7k miles on it.Thanks!

When the trans is out of the car, there's only one bearing actually holding the clutch gear; the big one inthe front of the case, that the clutch gear bearing retainer retains. (Imagine that....) The mainshaft likewise only has one bearing; the one at the rear of the case, where the extension housing bolts to it. There's a set of bearings between the shafts, but of course those are out floating around in space, going wherever the shafts go. The whole thing is therefore unstable without the rest of the car holding it in place.

The drive shaft yoke holds the back end of the mainshaft in place, which is in turn located by the extension housing bushing; and the pilot bearing holds the front end of the clutch gear in place. Without those other parts being there, the transmission is free to wobble around inside quite a bit. You can force practically ANY transmission's clutch gear, even a brand new one, to rub on the inside of the clutch gear bearing retainer, by warping it to the side. The trans isn't designed to keep that from happening.

I think it'll be fine once it's all assembled. It always is. I have never, ever, seen a clutch gear touch the inside of its clutch gear bearing retainer in actual operation, as long as the pilot was good.

That certainly makes sense.I have never been inside a tranny so that is foreign land to me.Your explanation helps clarify it for me.Many Thanks!Now to make the crossmember!!

Just in case anyone ever finds this in a search..

Talked to McLeod tech today and he says that if you are using the #8-207 plate and swapping an 98-02 LS1 T56 to an older block,you NEED the extended pilot bushing #8617.

This is due to the fact that the plate is really made to adapt the aftermarket T56 to older bells.The difference is in the total input shaft length,trans would have to be pulled apart to measure this.The aftermarket trans input shaft is 11.125" long and the factory T56 length is 10.625".This bushing gives you roughly .400" more input shaft support than a standard pilot bearing/bushing.He said .500" would be ideal but give or take 1/8" will not hurt it.

Just an FYI.

dont worry about a if its a bushing or a bearing... both work the same, for the same life, giving the the same results.
only diff is, the bushing is easier to install... lol.