Joe in Canada Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 Has anyone heard of a fellow named Ed Linn in Troy Michigan owner of ORF Manufacturing???? He had a vending spot at Hershey specialising in high speed crown and pinion rear axle gears. I pulled my gears out of my car and gave them to him back in January saying he had to have the original gears from my car to make the new ones in 8 to 10 weeks. He answered his phone last 13 weeks ago and he hung up on me. He will not answer his phone now and will not return calls. This is June 11 and my restored car is up on blocks and I am trying to get back on the road. The car is a 1930 Cadillac 353 V8 and I have found a good set of gears 4.75 ratio from a 1928 or 29 Cadillac does anyone know if they will fit. This set is the same ratio that came out of my car. Any information is greatly appreciated Thanks Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVSmi Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 I don't know Ed Linn, but Phil Bray was an owner of ORF Corp, and he recently passed away. Hopefully the situation will resolve itself with a bit more time.Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe in Canada Posted June 12, 2014 Author Share Posted June 12, 2014 Phil Bray sold ORF Corp. to Ed Linn as I had talked to Phil before his untimely passing. Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan Saxton Posted June 15, 2014 Share Posted June 15, 2014 You can answer most questions you may have quite inexpensively, Joe. I just looked up one of the aggregative internet book sites for you, and you can buy a good copy of Maurice Hendry's book "Cadillac: Standard of the world" from $6. He was always very thorough and accurate with his research. The 314 of 1926-27 was the last open tail-shaft drive before they changed to the torque-tube type. I understand that one of the manufacturing economies was that they were able to use effectively the same chassis, transmission, and axles for the 8, 12, and 16 cylinder models. You will find which ratios were used in which, in the Specifications section. As you will know, people then expected to use only top gear, so many of us would prefer gear ratios that demand lower revs per minute on our roads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV Puleo Posted June 15, 2014 Share Posted June 15, 2014 As Ivan has said, you should get the Maurice Hendry book... he was one of the most erudite motoring writers I've ever read. I did look through the specifications appendix and it would lead me to believe those parts are interchangeable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe in Canada Posted June 15, 2014 Author Share Posted June 15, 2014 Thanks for the info and I will order a copy as you never have enough information. I have a master parts manual from Justin Hartley and it showed only one part number 82861 for 4.75 to 1 gears that fit 341 - 353 - 355A - 70A - 452A. Then when I talked with a fellow from the Cadillac LaSalle museum his reference tells my they do not interchange. I know that the 1930 axle is a full floating and is a 8 spline axle shaft where as the 28 -29 is a 6 spline so at least the carrier is different and that maybe causing the confusion. For 1930 and 31 the 8, 12 and 16 do use all the same axles front and back plus many components. I greatly appreciate your time and input. Thanks Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan Saxton Posted June 15, 2014 Share Posted June 15, 2014 Three of the listings for book are Amazon Marketplace, Alibris, and Abebooks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe in Canada Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 Must thank you guys for the information as you were right the gears do fit and sound great. Back on the road again as it has been a struggle to find a replacement set of gears. Have phoned Ed Linn many times leaving messages to no avail he will not return my calls. If anybody hears anything of him please let me know. I would like to get my parts back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
37_Roadmaster_C Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 (edited) Joe,I tend to be a little critical of people that treat others the way you have been treated. After the hangup and refusal to respond, if I were you, I would call the police department in Troy and file a theft report against Mr. Linn. You may need to go through your local police but I don't know. Start with a call to the Troy police department and then go from there. I had a simular situation many years ago where I sold and shipped some equipment to a guy 2000+ miles away and the check he sent me bounced. After several calls and broken promices I called the police in his home town and told them what was going on... Long story short, the fellow called me about 2 hours later and advised me that a certified check would be arriving the next day and he would really appreciate it if I would call the police chief as soon as I got the check to keep him from being charged with theft the following afternoon. Next morning UPS delivered the bank check and I called the police chief and thanked him for his departments help. I also sent a check for $100.00 to the departments volunteer fund .Anyway, just my thoughts.Robin Edited July 12, 2014 by 37_Roadmaster_C add info (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe in Canada Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 The problem is he is across the border for me and the police are not much help if I go that way as he has not broken any law yet but being very slow. Thanks Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe in Canada Posted August 19, 2014 Author Share Posted August 19, 2014 Well it finally happened after being told 8 to 10 weeks then finally getting my gears after nearly 7 months I am pleased that Ed came through. He seems to be a nice fellow but he should communicate better with his customer's. After months with unanswered phone calls I was thinking the worst. He says from now on he is saying there will be a 6 month waiting period. I must apologize Ed for thinking the worst. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mellor NJ Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Happy endings are so nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrpushbutton Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 I know Ed, we take cars to him for restoration work, and he is a hard working guy, and as honest as the day is long. Perhaps communication isn't his strongest suit, but he runs a pretty lean operation, no secretary/receptionist, it's just him and a few other guys who mainly work on cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe in Canada Posted September 28, 2014 Author Share Posted September 28, 2014 Thanks for the reply John and sorry I did not realise your response. I do agree with you but if you are a first time customer and left in the dark for months on end with no response you do not what to expect. He does do fine work as I seen in his shop, very knowledgeable and well spoken. Now thanks to Ed Linn's work I am able to cruse at highway speeds with my engine not sounding like a Singer sewing machine. Thank you Ed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West Peterson Posted September 29, 2014 Share Posted September 29, 2014 I cannot seem to find contact information for ORF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe in Canada Posted September 29, 2014 Author Share Posted September 29, 2014 ORF Manufacturing Troy Mich. 248-797-4173 Eds cell phone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
37_Roadmaster_C Posted September 30, 2014 Share Posted September 30, 2014 Joe,I just got back to this thread and I am very glad to hear that you got the situation resolved. I hope that Ed continues to do good work as quality craftsmen are rare. Hopefully, this will encourage Ed to improve his communications skills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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