OK Learned the solenoid has a fair amount of power and that it pushes inward.
Looking for how to read that force so I can order a similar powered spring to push all the time on the paw for engagement of the overdrive.
From what I have read pushing in the overdrive cable does two things, moves the gears so to lock up the shaft and lifts the paw out of engagement so that it is now out of overdrive, pulling it back out will both unlock the gears and allow the paw to be ready to catch the overdrive when you let up on the gas. Normally this would be the solenoid pushing in but a spring can do it just as well.
The solenoid was/is just to allow the semi-automatic functions to work, to be ready to drop into overdrive when you cut power, to allow a kick down switch to cut out the solenoid out to cause a down shift and for the governor to cut out the overdrive below 28MPH to allow free wheeling to allow down shifting into a nonsynco first gear as if it was a synchronized gear.
None of these features will be needed as I am running a very fine automatic and will only use overdrive as a 6th gear.
Thus I believe I can safely convert and operate a overdrive as a manual transmission. Either by cable, lever or even electrically.
Rich
