79 Dodge 1st & Reverse Only

[wsmm]

Have a 79 Dodge Ramcharger with a 727 automatic. When my brother in law was driving it back over to my place after we had worked on it at his place he said he only had 1st and reverse. He stated the transmission would not shift out of 1st. He said he had checked the transmission fluid and it was full. He though it might have sometinhg ot do with the linkage as the body is extemely rusty and barely holding together. Anyone have any ideas as to what might be causing this or where ot start looking?

Thanks you in advance
Bill

[DODGEBOYS]

your first and reverse band broke / it stops that part of the tranny / that sounds like first and reverse should not work but the band controls the other gears / if that makes since

Well...I guess what I'd like to know is what your brother was working on? You might be on the right track about the linkage. If the throttle linkage to the transmission is not hooked up or maladjusted, it can cause the trans to do some funny things. I've known at least two folks that "could not get it out of first" that just had linkage issues. Take a good look and make sure things are adjusted right before condemning the transmission for a rebuild.