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stall converter recommendations

6

68COUPE

New Member
please recommend a stall converter for my set up.

289, stock heads, 4v holley 1850 600cfm, f4b intake, mild cam (unknown), C4 (may get shift kit), long tube headers, 3.25 t-loc

not a drag car, just looking for some good clean fun on the street. nicer launches and a little more 'bark' at shifts.

do the shift kit and stall converter go hand in hand? or will using one or the other accomplish my goal?

i'll add a trans cooler if needed.

thanks.
 
I would go with a stock converter and a good shift kit. I have a 3000 stall converter and it is not the best on the street. Unless you are racing hard, go stock converter.
 
My daughter's coupe is running a B&M 2200? 2400? Don't remember the exact number. The car is NOT a launcher, especially with 3.0 gears in back, but does get great mileage, especially with a AOD.
 
"68COUPE" said:
please recommend a stall converter for my set up.

289, stock heads, 4v holley 1850 600cfm, f4b intake, mild cam (unknown), C4 (may get shift kit), long tube headers, 3.25 t-loc

not a drag car, just looking for some good clean fun on the street. nicer launches and a little more 'bark' at shifts.

do the shift kit and stall converter go hand in hand? or will using one or the other accomplish my goal?

i'll add a trans cooler if needed.

thanks.
Click to expand...

IIRC, the stock stall speed is 1600 on a C4 (1800 on an AOD). Your build is barely over stock. Going with a higher stall speed will probably hurt you more than help you. Higher stall speeds are to allow your engine to get into the power band quicker for cams with the power band further up in the RPM range.

Go with the TransGo shift kit. It's a little more expensive, but a much better kit. I have the B&M Transpack in the AOD in my '66 and have never been very impressed with it.
 
thanks everyone. john, your explaination makes totally sense to me, and thanks for the recommendation on the kit.
 
I agree with the other comments, higher stall speed is a little like revving the engine and dumping the clutch. If your engine is "mild" it probably has peak torque at lower rpm's. "Big" cam engines raise the peak torque and benefit from a higher stall speed. The biggest problem with a high stall converter on the street is that (depending on rear gear) the converter is slipping at speed, making heat. Heat destroys auto transmissions! Also bad for gas mileage. In fact most overdrive transmissions now use a "lock-up" converter that won't slip when in overdrive because the rpm's are lower than stall speed. I didn't see what your rear gear ratio is but biggest bang for the buck is a lower gear (higher number). 3.55:1 is a good street gear that will "feel" good and not hurt mpg too much. That's my opinion anyway.
 
rear is 3.25 traction loc. power comes on at 3000+ rpms an dies at 5000.

i really think i need some heads that will take the rpms a bit higher...don't know if my thinking is correct and thats money i dont have for this at the moment.

thanks
 
3.25 is good ratio, sorry I missed that in your post. The 289 HiPo would turn 7,000 rpms with stock casting heads. The cam and springs are the key. I am not saying good heads are not worth the money but you can make power with stock heads. When you say "dies at 5,000" do you mean floats the valves or just doesn't make any more power? It's been my experience that most engines don't have enough valve spring to close the valves quickly at higher rpm's. They start to miss or run funny above 5K because the valves don't close fast enough and they don't have time to make the compression they need. If that is the case, valve springs aren't really expensive and can be changed without removing the heads. If it's just not making power, it could be the timing. The timing needs to be advanced about 34 degrees total by about 3K which often means it has to be set around 14 to 16 degrees initial. That makes them hard to start when hot unless you have a MSD or some other controller that retards the timing when cranking but timing is important. You may even have to re-curve the distributor by putting in lighter springs to get it to advance quicker.
Another cheap trick is to advance the cam timing about 4 degrees for more low end grunt. This requires a timing set with an indexable crank gear but is also relatively cheap. You can also get higher ratio rocker arms which will increase the valve lift of the current cam. Of course the later two suggestions mean you should be sure the valves don't hit the pistons or bind the springs. Ideally a cam swap like the Comp Cams 268H is a great street cam for a mild 289. My dad runs this cam in his and it feels real strong with no porting. He also has an F4B and a 600 cfm VS Holley, a Mallory dual point distributor, Hooker headers a C4 with B&M shift kit and a stock converter, 3.55:1 rear gears. His is a 289 block with a 302 crank but very close to your setup. It will smoke 'em and chirp when it shifts. Hope these things help.
 
Thank you tarafied1, that was good stuff.

i have considered swapping to that cam in the past. i would like to try your idea of swapping the springs first. to answer your question as to what happens above 5000...i believe i would call it 'float'. the power abruptly dies and the engine seems to 'flutter' for lack of a better description. i'm guessing that is what floating is.

thanks for your input
 
I went with an 1800-2200 stall speed on my '65 (5.0 EFI - all stock except E303 cam, C4) and have been completely pleased with it. It drives around town like it doesnt have a converter in it - only know it when I power brake.

You can get away with a stock converter, but if you ever go for more cam, you'll be spliting the engine/trans to put more converter in it. Put the 1800-2200 in it now, you'll like it.

Just my .02
 
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