TH400 to SM 465

[tomford]

Hey guys

this winter ill have my truck off the road and im thinkin of putting in a 350/th350/np205. I was wondering what you all think about swaping it to a standard. My truck was once a standard the clutch bracket is still there and there is a patch in the floor for the shifter

Whats the pros and cons of a SM 465

the truck is my daily driver. It has D44 front and 14 bolt rear with warn hubs


thanks
tom ford

 

[Chaddy]

Hey guys

this winter ill have my truck off the road and im thinkin of putting in a 350/th350/np205. I was wondering what you all think about swaping it to a standard. My truck was once a standard the clutch bracket is still there and there is a patch in the floor for the shifter

Whats the pros and cons of a SM 465

the truck is my daily driver. It has D44 front and 14 bolt rear with warn hubs


thanks
tom ford

If you have a 400 like the title sais then I would go with that.

 

[MattK]

manual vs auto is mainly a preference thing. i just finished swapping to a 465 from a 350 not too long ago and i'm never looking back. i love the control, deep gearing, and direct drive of the manual. they're also known to be a considerably stronger than the automatics in stock form.

at the same time, they are more of a hassle to drive on the road(no talking on the phone, sipping gatorade at the same time anymore lol). the deep gears and direct drive can also be harder on the rest of the drivetrain. the other big disadvantage is in the mud. i know i sure cant shift as fast as an automatic.

 

[Russell]

Biggest problem with a standard in a DD is people who stop too close behind you at a red light on a hill. That and that its a bit tougher to keep from spinning the tires in icy conditions without slipping the clutch a ton.

Personally, all my trucks are standard, and I'll never go back to a slushbox again...

 

[jays68yak]

The wheeler just got its transplanted 465 in place of the th400.

The DD/tow rig is on its 3rd 4l60e. Im still up in the air what the next one will be.

 

[u2slow]

I DD with a 465. I much prefer it that way.

 

[diesel4me]

had both--both suck in ways..

I've had several GM 4x4's,some had TH350's,others had the SM465,now I own an 82 K20 with a 6.2/TH400,and I like the automatics better,especially when plowing or city driving..but I'm not 100% against a manual tranny--GM's automatics are not rugged enough in my opinion,only the TH400 seems to hold up very long under abuse..the 700R4 is the weakest by far...

I converted a 72 K5 I had from a TH350,to an SM465--I wasn't very impressed with it after--it had 3.08 gears,and it really needed lower gears with that tranny..I liked the low first gear,but hated the long throws and slow shifting,and second and third gear were too "far apart" ratio wise--truck laid an egg in third,after screaming in second..I don't think I'd swap a manual in place of an automatic again..it wasn't easy,took longer than I thought,and doing the pedals was worse than installing the tranny and T-case!..


The best 4x4 I drove was a 1972 K5 that a friend owned..it had a 454,and a custom MUNCIE M-22 4 speed from a '69 Camaro,that had an adapter from Advance Adapters to allow it to bolt up to the NP205!..it was like driving the Camaro,first gear was not a stump puller "granny low" like an SM465 has,but it still took off with lots of gusto--and the best part was you could SHIFT it faster than an eyeblink!..that truck really boogied,and you could USE first gear,it had SYNCHRO's,so you could downshift into first too!..I loved that truck,tried to buy it several times,but he wouldn't part with it..

 

[noahrob]

Here is my two cents. I had a TH400 and ditched it for the SM465, cheaper and easier than gettign a doubler and gets me some low gearing...also, it is fun to have a clutch, but the truth is that there have been a couple of times where I have been in a precarious situaiton (like hanging off the damn cliff) in which it took me some toe tapping on the pedals to get where I needed...MPFI woudl have helped too

 

[noahrob]

Oh yeah, I love it and will NEVER go back

 

[Russell]

.... 454,and a custom MUNCIE M-22 4 speed from a '69 Camaro,that had an adapter from Advance Adapters to allow it to bolt up to the NP205!..it was like driving the Camaro,first gear was not a stump puller "granny low" like an SM465 has,but it still took off with lots of gusto--and the best part was you could SHIFT it faster than an eyeblink!..that truck really boogied,and you could USE first gear,it had SYNCHRO's,so you could downshift into first too! .....

Sounds like the 95+ NV4500s -- Short shifter throw, fully syncronized, a useable first gear, and OD. Big time beefy too!

I'm personally going with a 93 NV4500, doesn't have a syncronized reverse gear, and the first gear is a stump puller like the SM465's gears. It too suffers from a gear ratio that is too wide between 3rd and 4th, but the engine I've got in there makes up for that problem

 

[Chevy305]

I am perplexed at the thought that someone would swap a stick out for an auto in your truck


I must say the single best mod you can make to your truck is an auto to SM465 swap.

A stick offers you so much more control and it can turn even my 305 from, well a 305, to people saying what ya got in that thing.

Granted the SM465 is a bit of a brute and comparable to driving a school bus, but I would never give up the selectability and power and duribility of the SM465.

If your truck already is set up for a clutch, then all need in the clutch, flywheel, tranny, and pedal assembly. Your truck is begging you for that 3rd pedal, so you should ask yourself why not swap one in?




BTW: You get used to the 3 foot dance pretty quick. And so what if you can't talk on your cell phone anymore, not like anyone could hear me over my truck anyway, and cell phones cause accidents anyway so you'd be doing yourself a favor.

 

[tomford]

Well we have an 87 K20 with the 4 speed and it looks like my truck was set up for a standard.

tom ford