Stock torque converter?

[wage92]

Okay so heres my situation, im building my 406 sbc and have a th400 already. Right now i only have a stock converter. All along ive figured i mine as well replace it, but now that i think about it, do i really need to?

Heres where im coming from before everyone insists that i do, when i got the truck, it had 6" of lift and 36" tires. It also had stock 12 bolt rear axle with 3.08s....i have since put a 14 bolt under it with 4.56s. So my thinking is that it drove fine when i bought it so now the lift is about the same, it will have a stout'er engine and way lower rear end ratio, i feel like it should be fine, but what is everyones opinion?

 

[big reaper]

Depends on the cam you are running in the 406. If its a stock type cam or close to you might be fine as long as the tc is in good shape. If you are going with a radical cam you would probably be better off changing to a higher stall tc.

 

[shady]

your 406 should have the power to make the stock TC stall at a higher speed anyway. myself id put a new one at something low like 1500 anyway. 1-2 steps above stock. that way you know itll be ok and due to old abuse, itd suck to put it all together and your new motor burn up the old TC. talk to deuling... he has a 406 with an auto behind it. I think he changed his and is happy.

curious, Why DONT you wanna change it? money?

 

[wage92]

cam is: http://www.compcams.com/Company/CC/cam-specs/Details.aspx?csid=79&sb=2


and as to the reason i dont want to get a new one, well theres two, im thinking if i keep the stock, i may not need a external trans cooler (i will use the one built into my radiator), and second is cost. its not a huge deal, i can afford one, but if i can get by without it thats a hundred bucks or more that i can put towards other parts.

If i recall the stock converter is rated at 1800ish?


Well anyway, if i were to get a new one, ive heard jegs brand converters are just rebadged B&M, and they have a 2000-2300 for $105, you think that would be good, or would i need to step up to a mid 2k?

 

[shady]

i was thinkin stock was 1300 ish. b&m says 1500-1800 though. a 2000 wouldnt cause any extra issues by what i read. most you can do is try a stock one and see if it doesnt seem right you can always change it later i guess. their freakin expensive now

 

[big reaper]

I would contact comp cams and see what they recommend as far as stall speed.

 

[myk5rox]

I would contact comp cams and see what they recommend as far as stall speed.

This is correct, them comp cams guys know their ish!! They'll ask what can, what gears, what tires, what your intended purpose for the truck will be and they can go off all that info to match cam to TC to final drive and such, makes a difference.

You're right in thinkin' stock is bout 1800ish, I always thought I'd go with a 2k stall, when I get my trans rebuilt, till then, ill wait n see

 

[big reaper]

They might also need the weight of truck.
I know my 355 needed a higher stall converter due to the cam I decided to run. It ran OK with the stock converter but once I changed it out to a 2800 stall converter it was like a whole new truck.

 

[myk5rox]

They might also need the weight of truck.
I know my 355 needed a higher stall converter due to the cam I decided to run. It ran OK with the stock converter but once I changed it out to a 2800 stall converter it was like a whole new truck.

Good point. Weight is important factor too.

Side question how'd the truck crawl with that high of a stall?

 

[big reaper]

Actually crawls pretty good. I put it in low and first and it will go up most anything I've tried in idle.
But I have been thinking about changing to a milder cam so I can go back to the stock converter and possibly get a little better fuel mileage.

 

[wage92]

okay looks like i should contact comp to see what they think. Maybe ill just get like a 2200-2500 because im sure it would make it more fun to drive. thanks for all the help

 

[ChrisPerry]

I'm running a 2200-2500 stall in my th350 behind a 400 with a Voodoo 103 (268/274) split duration. I'm glad I did the higher stall. True stall on mine works out to about 2300 in high range and 1900-2000 in low range. This is the RPM at which it starts to pull thru the brakes. If not on the brakes hard it starts moving off idle.

 

[wage92]

I'm running a 2200-2500 stall in my th350 behind a 400 with a Voodoo 103 (268/274) split duration. I'm glad I did the higher stall. True stall on mine works out to about 2300 in high range and 1900-2000 in low range. This is the RPM at which it starts to pull thru the brakes. If not on the brakes hard it starts moving off idle.

yea im thinking i will end up getting one around 2500. Think i will be happier in the end.