1983 EA81 4wd AT to 5sp Manual

[icanbarelydrive55]

So my reverse has basically pooped out on my 83 wagon. It has the 3sp automatic, and its 4wd (Which also pooped out when the solenoid in the side of the tranny went bad). After finally getting some time on my hands, I've decided I want to  attempt the 5 speed conversion from an ea82. I have read numerous threads on the topic, and I believe I have a general idea of the know how in what parts to use from each, but just to beat a dead horse, I want to finalize my findings with you all and make sure I am not missing anything huge. With that said, here it goes:

I need an 85-89 5 speed manual transmission with the dual range 4wd

ea82 crossmember custom fabricated to fit into ea81 ( Contact Jerry?)

ea82 pilot bearing

ea82 flywheel

ea82 clutch/pressure plate

ea81 original tranny mounts installed onto ea82 tranny

ea82 drive shaft (For some reason I was getting mixed signals on whether or not the driveshaft needs to be customized in some way)

ea81 MANUAL pedal box assembly with with cables (an ea82 manual pedal box will not work from what I've read??)

ea82 Speedo cables?

ea82 rear diff?? the ea81 diff is 3.7, I don't know if the ea82 is the same or a 3.9

Am I missing anything with all of that? I know there's the whole flywheel holes being to big, but that didn't seem like a big deal. Also, does it matter if the tranny is from a turbo ea82? 

 I am located in Louisville, KY, and access to most of these parts for me is going to be just hoping that there is some stuff on ebay, so if anyone has some things they're willing to get rid of that would be rad. Thanks so much for all you guys who are posting this stuff. I don't  contribute my fair share when it comes to this stuff, but hopefully with this I'll be able to!

Edited July 19, 2019 by icanbarelydrive55

[carfreak85]

Sounds like you've done some research, but have some of the facts mixed up.  I did my MT conversion back in 2004, so things are a bit hazy, but I'll try to help.

I need an 85-89 5 speed manual transmission with the dual range 4wd - Yes
ea82 crossmember custom fabricated to fit into ea81 ( Contact Jerry?) -  EA81 MT crossmember modified, yes Jerry, if he's still doing them
ea82 pilot bearing - Pilot to match your flywheel
ea82 flywheel - I needed bushings for the bolts on my EA82 flywheel, others haven't.  YMMV
ea82 clutch/pressure plate - Yes
ea81 original tranny mounts installed onto ea82 tranny - Depends.  I think Jerry uses EA81 mounts, but they're a bad design.  EA82 is better, but requires more modification
ea82 drive shaft (For some reason I was getting mixed signals on whether or not the driveshaft needs to be customized in some way) - I had my EA81 shaft modified, didn't want to mess with a center bearing mount
ea81 MANUAL pedal box assembly with with cables (an ea82 manual pedal box will not work from what I've read??) - I prefer the EA81 MT box, others may have forced the EA82 box to work, but it's not a great fit
ea82 Speedo cables? - EA81 MT cable, I think.  Do more reading
ea82 rear diff?? the ea81 diff is 3.7, I don't know if the ea82 is the same or a 3.9 - Doesn't matter what gen, just get one that matches your front diff gear ratio
there's the whole flywheel holes being to big, but that didn't seem like a big deal - per above, I needed bushings, others haven't
Also, does it matter if the tranny is from a turbo ea82? - Turbo has different number of splines on the front stub shafts than your front axles will have, but the diff gear ratio would match your EA81 AT 3.7 rear diff.