I' ve got a 1991 RS with a stock 350. I'm getting ready to install a ZZ4 cam that I just picked up. Will the stock stall converter be OK with this cam? If not, what should I be looking at?

 

Depending on what is done to the motor & what rear end gear ratio you have, I would go with the A.C.T. 9.5" lockup with about 2,400-2,600 rpm stall. This will give you the most in performance, while retaining good driveability. While you have the transmission out, I would add the Trans-Go Performance Shift kit (with accumulation) that I carry to give you the best shift results, both at part throttle & WOT. Let me know if I can be of help?

 

Dude, do you ever feel guilty for all the shameless plugging you do for your shop on this site, even though you never bought an ad. I mean, as a user we all appreciate expert help. But sometimes (like here) seems like you're just posting as an excuse to try to make a sale. The guy didn't ask what converter he should get. He asked if the stocker would be ok with that cam.

Like i said, we appreciate the help, but as a casual reader of this site for a while i've seen so much blatant advertising from you that it's nuts. I know that new ad from TDS came about basically the same way. That guy started small using thirdgen for contacts, and finally got big enough where he felt he could give something back. Cuz thats what it's all about.

 

i'm also going to put in a zz4 in my tpi bird along with having the afr's milled down to 64cc.then the 6psi boost hopefully will push me into the low 12's on street rubber. would the same converter work for me as this is my weekend cruser not just a racer.
right now my tranny is stock with 27k and no problems.
thanks
pete

 

BTW, i knew a guy who bought a pro built tranny. The ACT converter he got was some kind of modified stock converter from a FWD car with an adapter ring welded to it to make it a V8 bolt pattern. Not even in the same league as a vig, yank, or any of the nice race converters for other trannies. Modified stock doesn;'t have anything on a custom piece from the ground up. Is it worth risking $500 on an ACT when a vig which you know will perform is only $200 more.

BTW so you know i'm not making this up dana, the guy's name is jeff and he had to send the converter back to you when it completely internally failed shortly after putting it in, luckily the filter setup he had on his cooler saved the tranny. I was the lucky soul that got to help him R&R. I did ROFLMAO when i saw that thing though. Felt bad for him too.

 

To answer the question as asked, "Will the stock converter be OK?" Yes, it will work OK. Will it be optimal? No. The power band of the ZZ4 cam is slightly higher than a stock TPI, so a little more stall would work better. The 2400 would make a good choice for an everyday driver with few mods other than the cam.

 

I plan on putting another converter in sometime in the future. I'm trying to get by with the stock one for now, though.

 

Did A.C.T. fix/repair the torque converter for Jeff? Yes/No? You say it was a modified stock?, when did the factory offer a 9.5" TC for a 700R4/4L60E? As I did not see the TC myself, I cannot verify what you had seen. You say that I "shamelessly plug myself", possibly. When you answer as many questions as I do, (1249 posts on this site alone) and on as many sites that I go to, with only mentioning that I sell/carry transmissions/parts about 25-30% of the time, you tell me what is better "advertise, make big claims, don't answer questions, just make sales and have many dissatisfied customers like (Art Carr, B&M, etc.) and be like any other businessman!, I DON'T THINK SO! I am from the "old school" of thinking, answers & help first, let people know who you are, second. Building a good reputation takes years, and trying to give good customer service, is a lot harder than just paying for an ad, anybody can do that. Do I feel guilty? NO! As for jaminJimB4C's question, "Will the stock stall converter be OK with this cam?" No, the low end characteristics will be sluggish from what I have seen in the past, you won't like it. By the way I could promote myself in the signature, But I.......

 

I cut some of that out, but, has anyone else noticed this?

http://www.pro-built.net/index.cfm?f...n=testimonials

Some customer base, 3 people, all from this website. Yeah you're world renowned buddy.

I see your school. Some guys are great. Like spohn. Started a business literally in his dad's garage and is now the #1 sponsor of the site and is overwhelmed with business. When you're known as a guy that helps the site, people bend over backwards to recomend you. THAT goes further than 3 no-name schmucks that you COPIED REPLIES from here onto your website. And i'm not saying you have to buy servers or anything. Just saying an ad shows you care and are into the scene for the sake of it. Ever notice how many times you'll see peopel jump in a thread to tell people to go to thunder instead of summit. JUST because they care a little more. Or a guy like lon and TDS.

I see your school. Shame they don't teach you basic marketing there.

BTW about the converter. Yeah they replaced it. But it still was not a custom core like a vigilante. It was some kind of modified stock housing with an adapter ring bolted to the mounting studs. I really wish i took pictures because it truly was pathetic to think he paid 500 for it. I really felt guitly after i laughed. Almost.

 

I took marketing, what a joke. I had friends (associates would be a better word) that could sell snow to an eskimo, if that is what you call marketing, I want nothing to do with it. I can have as many a testimonials as needed concerning my transmissions, I stopped at three, as I did not think anymore would be necessary, it looks like I will have to reconsider. What Spohn's ambitions are, I do not know nor do I care to know. If he is where he wants to be, "great". I can see that to you "image" is everything. Just another of the great ideas you learn in marketing, the "sizzle" is more important than the "steak". Sorry, in my world advertising does not mean a thing. In almost all cases, the more spent on advertising, the less the buyer gets in quality, and the higher the price. I only recommend people who come recommended, and stand by their word, not how much they spend or how big or how "convincing" their ad is.

 

I have personally never used a Pro Built product. I have used spohn products and they are top notch.

Seems from what I am reading here, the converters suck pretty bad. I know I wouldnt want some cobbled together converter for $500.

Pay for your advertising like the rest of em.

 

Wow, I wonder how many things I am entitled to sell... and to think that half of my post count was hacked out when Dirk re-did this board!

 

Also, to say he isnt up to par with Yank is a joke in itself. That place has gone straight to hell. Notice they've lost ad space on a few of their big sites. My buddy went through three Yank transmissions and on the final one we decided we'd just take it apart since they refused to warranty it. Found it had the same amount of clutches as a stock tranny, just a little better quality. The transmission was quoted to handle 600 ft/lbs of torque and couldn't handle my friends 400 rwtq/~450fwtq.

Like I mentioned, they refused to warranty their product and have still not reimbursed him for the labor on the replacement of the firs ttwo trannies even though he went out of his way to have it taken to the dealership as they requested.

Can't say anything about Pro Built as I've never dealt with him but he does answer questions on here all the time and has been helpful in that manner. He recommended two parts, the ACT converter and Transgo shift kit. If you know much of anything you would konw you can purchase those somewhere else if you feel the need to not go through him.

 

Thats all great, and Dana May build a great product - I don't know.

The problem is this is a medium created by Dirk and Paid for By Dirk, and Dana is using it to make a substantial amount of money.

Dana should do his part, just like every other Major vendor on this board, and Pay for the advertising he is getting from this Medium.

If he doesnt belive in advertising like he claims, then He should stop Tooting his horn about the product's he carries in this medium.


Why don't you Copy and paste that Onto Your Testimonials, Ive got 2x your post count So I guess I must have some sorta Weight...

 

If i moderated this board, i would definitely have to edit and lock a lot of the stuff dana posts since it is obvious self promotion. The guy asked if he needed a converter to run that cam. If Dana wanted to say that a mild 2400 stall would probably be a lot more optimal that's one thing. But he recomended a specific converter that he sells, and then went on to plug a shift kit where he does specifically remind the guy that HE carries that stuff. Can someone explain how a shift kit is necessary with a cam swap to me please? Exactly, it was just an oppurtunity to add to the sale and make sure he said he had it. That is basically where he crossed the line in my mind.

As for being up to par with Yank, yes their customer service has gone out the window, and as a result are leaving a bad taste in everyone's mouth these days. But you can't argue with all of the smoking fast cars that were/are using yank converters. Among the LS1 crowd, yanks were more highly regarded than the vig due to better top end efficiency. Also the really hard hitting guys were making good use of all the torque multiplication options they provided. If this guy is selling a modifed stock type converter for barely less than a vig, yet billing it as being as good as a vig, don't you think he should at least be honest about how it compares. I.E. vig = custom race part, ACT = generic part made in some guys garage. Would people really still try to save $200 if they knew they were not buying a truly custom proven piece? I sure wouldn't.

And Dana, GB was right, nobody knows who those 3 guys are. I've been at this site since before it existed at thirdgen.org and i have never heard of those guys. So why would anyone else know who they are? Vig and yank became household names not through advertising, but word of mouth from fast cars. I don't see many fast cars running the ACT here. I even did a few searches one day and the best ET i found from someone who mentioned having his parts was in the 12s running ONLY a 1.9 60'. So much for being as good a s a vig, i did better 60's with my 14 second barge.

Dana, your advice is appreciated. It really is, so don't take this the wrong way. But this quote is just dead wrong.
.
Advertising DOES mean something. It actually means a lot to those of us into the scene. Maybe you don't browse the other boards much, but like GB said, i see random people jump in threads all the time to remind people to shop at thunderracing instead of summit. Same thing with suspension stuff. Spohn ended up back-ordered for months due to how much business he got and he still stayed ultra popular just because he is known as a guy that is truly into the scene. Instead of canceling orders, people simply waited just because they wanted to help someone who helps their scene.
I'm not an admin, so i don't know how much ads here even run, but i'm willing to bet they don't cost that much. Did you ever consider that for probably less than the profit margin from one tranny/converter you could probably have an ad. And i would put money on it that you are selling more than one extra tranny/converter a month de to the hawking you do on here. I'm sure rebuilding trannies and marking up converters is a little more profitable then say selling $20 parts CDs, but somehow that guy affords an ad.
Advertising here is not about sizzle. It's just about showing you care. Dirk and Brad run this site at a loss just because they care about these cars. They are paying money so you can advertise for free. Chipping in a little with some of what you make off that is just being a good sport. They're not trying to make money off of you. Just trying to keep the resources you use running.

 

I will take that into consideration.

 

Sorry, guys, I didn't know my question would cause so much commotion

 

Wasn't your fault. This really wasn't a topic for discussion out in the open like this anyway, but after GB emailed the moderators about this some of us came to see what was up. Also, most of us mods have another place we hang out too, so this isn't exactly coming from out of nowhere. Unfortunately GB set Dana up pretty hard there and it played right into the picture a lot of us had.

 

to answer the origional question
i have a 350 tpi with a zz4 cam and stock convertor
works ok however dont stop at traffic lights with ac running it REALLY doesnt like that at all LOL
had it in for over 12 months now just has a really nice "old school " lope at idle