I'm about ready to pull the motor out of the car for huge HP/torque upgrade..... I'm thinking I might as well get it over with and upgrade the transmission... it seemed to run smooth the few times I drove it last year but.. its basically the only thing left that isn't new on the whole car.. id like to do a 4 speed swap but I will probably just do a TH350... I'm looking at the TCI street fighter... thoughts?

NO--DON"T BUY a TCI !!!

I and many others have had problems with their products.

"I'm about ready to pull the motor out of the car for huge HP/torque upgrade..."

How huge ???

A TH350 needs some major upgrades in order to hold up behind big torque. There are several builders that offer these super TH350's. Some say theirs is good to 800hp or more.

http://www.atiracing.com/products/trans/350/

http://www.coanracing.com/Catalog.asp?ProductDetail=2028

http://www.jakesperformance.com/TH350.html

http://awesomeengines.biz/th350-transmission/

http://www.protrans.com.au/gm_turbo_350.htm

I never broke one

'"I never broke one "

I had a mild bracket 455. Bought a TH350 out of an 11sec sbc Nova. It broke the sprag outer race first time out.

So, I bought a TCI hardened race. It also broke 1st time out. So, I had a stock race put back in it and sold it to another sbc guy.

But, nowadays they have the 36 element sprag/drum/race units that will stand up to lots of torque, without braking.

But I've known some guys that seem to lead a charmed life. They can run weak parts, high rpm, high compression on pump gas, and all sorts of stuff that normal guys can't get by with.

I say huge but I'm looking to replace the Pontiac 350 with a 455.. I know new stuff can break and old stuff last forever. but it looks like trans is only gonna be 1200 or so...I don't know anything about it and I know the car sat forever... I usually don't fall victim of the hype on upgrades in most cases.. but the rear end is new, motor gonna be atleast twice the HP..and I want to drive the car a lot this year.. I have plenty of time to work on it now and NO time to work on it in the summer..

talking transmissions is always a tough one, especially when you start making power.

Most conversation are about overdrive option. Doesn't seem to matter if it manual or auto you can expect to be 3 to 5 times more in price then a th350 or th400.

IMO put in exactly what you want now instead of throwing a bunch of money at a temporary solution.

does the 27 spline shaft hold up with all the torque? I'm really wanting to stay with the th350 at this point. Seems like moving up to the 400 would create a bunch more issues.

The 27 spline shaft will hold up just fine--especially if you only use hard street tires. The weakest link seems to be the outer sprag race. It sometimes brakes on a harsh 1-2 shift. A hardened race is a fix for some power levels. But, while spending $$ on it, I'd have the sprag/drum/race swapped out for either a 36 element sprag/drum/race assembly, or the spragless assembly.

Most of the HD trannys you see advertised, use the 36 element srag set-up. So, I have to assume these are considered by most, the best way to go.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ati-355682

http://www.coanracing.com/Catalog.asp?ProductDetail=763

There is no shortage of beef-up parts for the TH350.

http://www.ckperformance.com/List/GM-Transmissions/TH350

Many sprag and race failures are said to be caused by valve body shift kits which cause harsh 1-2 shifts. Many say the Trans-Go shift kits are the best.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/trg-35...wc20aAk-98P8HAQ

http://www.transgo.com/products.php?category_id=93&parent_id=31&product_id=156

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/trg-350-3/overview/

I spoke with coanracing today,,, I think that's the way I'm gonna go.. I really have never heard of them before...

whats everyone running for stall speed converters??

I had a 9.5" Jim Hand Special built by Continental for my '68 convertible. 406(400+0.30), ported #16 heads(240 CFM), 1.65 ratio rockers, 068 cam, rebuilt Quadrajet from quadrajetpower.com, D-port Long Branch manifolds, 3.36 rear end with 235x60x15s in the back. I don't recall the exhaust after the long branch mainfolds but purchased from RARE.

depends on your diff gears and cam specs

any way to tell what the stall speed is by looking at the convertor? or what the average stall speed was on a stock th350 in the early 70's??

NO. But, if it's a factory 12 or 13 incher, it probably has well under 2000 stall. VERY few had more. The Vega converters were very popular, back in the old days. Lots of low buck bracket racers used 'em. They were 10", if I remember correctly.

Converters can be modified to stall a little more or less. But, usually, to get much more than about 2200 or so, you need to go to a 10". Most of the makers of cheap converters, seem to overrate the stall speed of their converters. I have to wonder about the 12" converters which are advertised to stall above 2500.

I bought a B & M Holeshot. As far as I could tell, it didn't stall a bit higher than the stock TH350 converter--a total waste of $$. My last bracket car had a 10" when I bought it. I could power brake it & launch at 2000rpm, or leave from an idle and it would flash somewhere in the mid 2000's.

So, if I wanted a cheap converter, that would stall 2500-2800, I'd go with a tight 10". OR, if your budget is unlimited, go with a Continental brand. They ain't cheap, but are said to be about the best street or street/strip converter there is.

I was told to stay with something 1800-2200.. I'm guessing just stick with the stock one...

My understanding is that the stock converter is 1300 -1600.

I am upgrading to a 700R4 shortly from my TH400 in which I have a 12" Continental. Stall is 1800-2200. I'll be offering it for sale.

Things to look at when getting a torque converter will be the cam and rear gear your running.

I think the hype about the Continental converters is well earned. I spent $700 last year on a "10 Continental converter and couldn't be more happy with it. It feel almost stock putzing around town until you punch it and ti shoots right to 3 grand.

I ran the "13 Continental before that and it didn't have a high enough stall speed for my liking.

Continental is a very efficient converter.

However the cores are drying up or have dried up. Not sure you can get either of them now.

I'm just getting ready to pull the trans... the directions from coan say do not install the trans with the convertor bolted to the motor.. am I missing something? wouldn't you normally both the trans to the engine and install together???

Put the converter in the trans, all the way. Then bolt the trans to the engine. Don't see how you could do it any other way. You have to rotate the converter, and sometimes rock and "wiggle" it a little, to get it all the way in. So, it would be very difficult to get the converter all the way in, if it was already bolted to the flexplate. IMO