i have a new 3500 stall w/ lockup and a godfather 700r4 from mad dag trans. ive been in cars that have shift kits in them but no stall and the shifts are pretty hard. in my car, the 1-2 shift isnt hard but isnt soft. 2-3 is very hard and so is 3-4. i have a manual lock up switch for the converter, and unlocked or locked it performs the same for the 1-2 shift. i also have a gauge hooked up to the diagnostic port and it reads good pressure. i also am manually shifting so the tv cable isnt the issue. any thoughts or will a 3500 stall soak up a bit of the shift? i guess i was looking for a bit more of a tire spinning bang shift, but i would be ok with my car not getting beat up every time it shifted

thanks

 

I would be wary of the transmission itself. Lots of ppl on here have had nothing but trouble with mad dog trannys. Do a search on here and prepare for the worst. Hope u got a good 1, best of luck to ya.

 

The cheaper converters usually soak much of the shift up. - Yes, "bang shifts" are very hard on the trans life, and why would you want it to break traction during shifts?

Unless you have a VERY good converter (better than $1k) with a multi disc lock up clutch, don't lock it up under power unless you want to trash it. Also, the TV has to be set proper, manual shifting or not. The TV doesn't directly control shifts. It controls the transmission line pressure, thus changing the pressure behind the governor (amongst other things), which in turn varies the shift points.

I hope you have better luck than most seem to with that mad dog trans.

 

wow i read some decent reviews about mad dog trans, i thought it was on this board. but other than the shifts being on the softer side of "harsh" the trans is great. thanks for the info

oh and i thought that the TV doesnt regulate pressure when in "1" or "2". with the gauge on the trans i always read 200+ pressure when in 1 or 2 no matter how much the tv moves. am i wrong on this?

 

all converters are stall converters, the amount of stall might change from one to another butthey all have it.

 

The higher the stall, the shift feel will appear to be softer. This is normal, and this is good for the drivetrain, less stress. The transmission is actually shifting quicker with a small diameter torque converter, (less weight on the back of the crank). A higher stall TC will appear to have softened the shifts too. Hard part throttle shifts are not needed or desired for durability. A quick shift that is smooth is all you need at part throttle.

 

thanks for responding pro built the first shift kit i had ever felt was really harsh but it was with a stock converter. in this car i had changed to many variables to say it would be one specific thing. the car in no way shifts bad, i was just expecting something more harsh ( not saying thats what i wanted just figured if i wanted a shift kit be prepared to deal with the after effects of one)

any suggestions on what type of trans fluid to use when using a stall? or just got with regular non synthetic?

thanks again