how can i find out what gears i have. and also what stall is commonly used.. i was thinking about a 2500 to 3000 stall..what brand is also commonly used...thanks for the help....

 

What gear ratio: Pull the cover, look at the gears. The numbers are usually stamped on the end of the pinion gear. Divide the larger by the smaller, rounded to 2 decimal places is your ratio.

Stall: Where does your engine really start to pull? Get a stall right at or just above that.

Brand? How deep are your pockets? You pretty much get what you pay for.

 

well as for price i was reall not wanting to spend more than 150 maybe 200 for the converter.. and as for the gears is there not a wat to tell with out removing the diferential cover. maybe through the vin or something.....

 

the only way to tell what gears you have is to get under the car and look. there are a few ways to tell what the car left the assembly line with but that's pretty useless after 20 years.

 

You are going to have to spend more than $200 to get a good lock-up converter.

I stumbled upon a restalled rebuilt converter for only $125 when I was doing my mods (from a wholesale outfit). But, it's still 12" (better to have a smaller diameter, for a few different reasons), and it still isn't quite enough stall.

The '57, on the other hand, just flat out hauls for a $220 Super Chevy Show converter.

 

There is a calculator on this site that can tell you what gears you have. Just have to know what trans you have, and what rpm at what speed.

(ie. T5 trans, XXXX rpm @ 60mph = gear)