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possible bad converter?

Dave6T4 said:
For street use, I have never ground that valve down. I set the the clearance between K.D. cam and end of valve with .125" drill bit.
Click to expand...
that's what i did also... hmm... well.... will check springs and stuff and adjust the band.. my 1-2 is pretty weak which bugs me... so just need to make sure all is fine
 
Do you have the spring removed or blocked on Reverse/First servo? This changes the 1-2 timing somewhat. If you have done the other shift kit stuff, but not this, you need to take this cushion effect out. Early TF, you take the spring out; later ones, block the spring with a spacer. Also, it is really hard to set the K.D. band adjustment without the spring disabled. 2 turns out from bottomed with 6 ft. lbs. You should be able to slide the K.D. band back and forth on the drum about 3/16" .
 
Last edited:
Dave6T4 said:
Do you have the spring removed or blocked on Reverse/First servo? This changes the 1-2 timing somewhat. If you have done the other shift kit stuff, but not this, you need to take this cushion effect out. Early TF, you take the spring out; later ones, block the spring with a spacer.
Click to expand...
I actually replaced the piston with a A&A billet one that has that made solid already. And a aluminum spring retainer... one of my old trans had that stamped steel one bend and pop out... never again.
 
Dave6T4 said:
Do you have the spring removed or blocked on Reverse/First servo? This changes the 1-2 timing somewhat. If you have done the other shift kit stuff, but not this, you need to take this cushion effect out. Early TF, you take the spring out; later ones, block the spring with a spacer. Also, it is really hard to set the K.D. band adjustment without the spring disabled. 2 turns out from bottomed with 6 ft. lbs. You should be able to slide the K.D. band back and forth on the drum about 3/16" .
Click to expand...

Dave, i alwasy ran type F fluid til this trans and never had an issue and had great shifts.. you have any problem with that? I see guys screaming that you will smoke the trans.. mine ran 8 years without an issue on type f though
 
BTW... i usually do a very thin layer of black rtv on my cork trans gasket (stamp steel pan) i see guys that use wheel bearing grease instead.. ever tried that? I never have leaks but having a gasket come off easier is welcome :)
 
Type F fluid will make the shift harsher, because it does not contain the "slip" agent that Chrysler fluid does. Ford cushions their shifts with their clutch composition; Chrysler does it with the fluid. For a real sloppy shift, try using Chrysler fluid in a Ford transmission! Those high performance aftermarket fluids are pretty much the same as Type F.
 
Dave6T4 said:
Type F fluid will make the shift harsher, because it does not contain the "slip" agent that Chrysler fluid does. Ford cushions their shifts with their clutch composition; Chrysler does it with the fluid. For a real sloppy shift, try using Chrysler fluid in a Ford transmission! Those high performance aftermarket fluids are pretty much the same as Type F.
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Yeah, it's pretty much 10 or 20 weight hydraulic fluid according to who makes it and ATI carries some with their name on it with 20, 30, 40 and up to 50 weight for extreme duty. Some use straight hydraulic 30 weight or Hy-Trans fluids, but I personally like thike this stuff really well.
Semi-Synthetic Automatic Transmission Fluid – Lucas Oil Products, Inc. – Keep That Engine Alive!
 
Also need to figure what pressure gauge to get... if i'm gonna play with this stuff i should have tools to diagnose issues.
 
Backrd.Junkyard said:
What carburetor do you have? Do you have the Mopar linkage adapter bracket for it?
Click to expand...
Street demon and it doesn't need and adapter, i use a lokar type cable that just goes right into the carb itself.. i will do some research at work tomorrow, i can't be the only one :)

Really mad at myself for not checking that a long time ago.. if anyone else had a issue i would have told them to check it, but on my own stuff i go blind and stupid :)
 
Soo.. trans is ready to drop... pretty much just have to do the bellhousing bolts, but i want to do the valve body stuff first so i don't need to flip the trans around on a bench and make a mess.. pulled the pan and i have a bit of glitter and black slime which has no abrasiveness and i assume is clutch material? more glitter than i would like.. but not sure at what point to worry... I talked to Cope last year and he told me to expect some glitter in a fresh build no matter what...

P.S. i would like to personally thank the mopar engineer that thought.. hmmmm if we put a trans bolt behind the oil filter... perfect!

This is after about 70 miles.. and a questionable converter.. but a lot of my glitter looks like brass so i don't think it's converter bits.. at least the fluid was nice and pink and no chunks in the pan.




2025-05-09 18.56.10.jpg
 
You sure your expectations aren't too high for this thing? How heavy are you going down the road? A little 318 can only pull so hard even with lots of gear and high performance parts. If your converter is too tight the big cam will kill it massively as well. If you can, make an 1/8 mile pass and see what your ET is, and how much it varies. From personal experience, a big cam 9.5:1 340 4-speed with headers and a holley in a 3500 pound Dart with 4.10 gears should run 9.00s, after many hours of tuning. Your vehicle should put up similar numbers, probably a few tenths less since it's probably heavier with an automatic and a converter of unknown quality
 
PlymouthMakesIt said:
You sure your expectations aren't too high for this thing? How heavy are you going down the road? A little 318 can only pull so hard even with lots of gear and high performance parts. If your converter is too tight the big cam will kill it massively as well. If you can, make an 1/8 mile pass and see what your ET is, and how much it varies. From personal experience, a big cam 9.5:1 340 4-speed with headers and a holley in a 3500 pound Dart with 4.10 gears should run 9.00s, after many hours of tuning. Your vehicle should put up similar numbers, probably a few tenths less since it's probably heavier with an automatic and a converter of unknown quality
Click to expand...

the converter was brand new.. just 99% sure it's bad.. trans will be out today and back in tonight or tomorrow then i will see if i'm wrong, but since it brake stalls at like 800.. i'm pretty sure that might be it :)
 
Ok Transmission tech here.
Havent read to the end 5 pages .
So test the vehicle for its stall speed .
Put on park brake put foot on brake firmly and floor throttle for about 3 to 5 seconds and note your maximum rpm achieved.
That will be your stall speed.
Post results .
From video seems pretty low stall .
Cant put a lockup convertor in a non lockup trans btw different spline count .
 
Mbrew said:
Ok Transmission tech here.
Havent read to the end 5 pages .
So test the vehicle for its stall speed .
Put on park brake put foot on brake firmly and floor throttle for about 3 to 5 seconds and note your maximum rpm achieved.
That will be your stall speed.
Post results .
From video seems pretty low stall .
Cant put a lockup convertor in a non lockup trans btw different spline count .
Click to expand...

Stall was bout 800-900.. it has pretty much no slip at all. I have the new converter and the trans is ready to drop as soon as i finish some changes inside i wanna do while it's in the car.. should have it out and maybe back in tonight depending how lazy i get.. no rush
 
icetech said:
Soo.. trans is ready to drop... pretty much just have to do the bellhousing bolts, but i want to do the valve body stuff first so i don't need to flip the trans around on a bench and make a mess.. pulled the pan and i have a bit of glitter and black slime which has no abrasiveness and i assume is clutch material? more glitter than i would like.. but not sure at what point to worry... I talked to Cope last year and he told me to expect some glitter in a fresh build no matter what...

P.S. i would like to personally thank the mopar engineer that thought.. hmmmm if we put a trans bolt behind the oil filter... perfect!

This is after about 70 miles.. and a questionable converter.. but a lot of my glitter looks like brass so i don't think it's converter bits.. at least the fluid was nice and pink and no chunks in the pan.




View attachment 1849706
Click to expand...
Brass could be from the converter as the fins are furnace brazed.
 
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