Alright, I've got a 700r4 that I just burnt up for the second time (3-4 sprag was shattered in the case). I discovered the problem after rebuilding my custom ford 9" for the second time because I thought the problem was that... turns out I was wrong. I'm not going to rebuild it again, just don't seem to have the luck with a 700r4. I was thinking of putting in a th350 trans that I could build up from the salvage yard. What cars/trucks can I get one out of? What should I expect to pay for a used tranny from the salvage yard?

Thanks!
Mike

 

a friend of mine has a TH 350 from a 71 camaro w/ shift kit. only a 3 sp. i think he told me $150 bucks for sale. Also what are you going to do with the built 700r4? if your willing to pull it apart and it has a corvette or aftermaket servo ill buy the servo from you.

 

You'll have to move the torque arm off the transmission or get an adapter bracket to attach it to the transmission.

The easiest swap is with a kit. The transmission mount needs to be 2" ahead. You need to install a manifold vacuum line for the modulator, you need to use a different detent cable on the carb (not sure what to do with TPI).

Find a TH350 with a 9" tailshaft. That will allow you to use your 700R4 driveshaft. If you use a TH350 with a 6" tailshaft, you need a driveshaft from a 82-83 third gen that came with a 200c tranny. The 9" tailshaft is common in pickup trucks and vans.

Depending on the yard, a used tranny is usually $75-$150

 

I actually already have the transmission torn down in my garage. Sadly, its been sitting there for a couple of months now while I've been doing some house renovations. Transmission has a corvette servo and a different governor assembly. I would be more than willing to sell you that stuff. I still have all of the springs and weights that came with the governor assembly as well.

Which trucks in particular come with the 9" tailshaft (if you know)? I'd really like to reuse the driveshaft I have because I had to have it custom cut for the Ford 9". I'd really prefer to not spend the money on another driveshaft modification.

Thanks!

Mike

 

All GM trucks that came with a TH350 for all the years the TH350 was offered. Very few of them had a 6" tailshaft.

 

I looked briefly at these kits that are offered to ensure the Torque arm will continue to function. What does that bolt to? The crossmember or the tailshaft? If I could get the torque arm off of the tailshaft I'd feel a lot better. I'm not producing the amount of power where I should be damaging anything, but still....

 

The adapter kits have a bracket that bolts to the tailshaft for the torque arm.

The better solution is to buy an aftermarket torque arm with transmission crossmember designed for the transmission you intend to use. The torque arm will attach to the crossmember in all these setups and most now also include a driveshaft loop attached to the torque arm.

The stock torque arm is good for a stock powered vehicle. An aftermarket torque arm has many benefits over a stock one.

 

Well, I've found a TH350 long tail-shaft transmission here. Unfortunately, they don't seem to have a lot of these cores laying around anymore so I had to buy a rebuild street/strip version. I've heard good things about the guys work and I think the deal is pretty good ($550 including a 2200 stall converter). For now, I'll get that kit to attach the stock torque arm to the transmission until I get some more money. The stock driveshaft should slide into the TH350 and be the same spline count, correct? I shouldn't have any problems bolting up to the flywheel for the 700r4? And, just to confirm... I can or I can't reuse my old crossmember (just saw I'll need to move the transmission mount up 2", sorry)? I know I'll have to find a vacuum source for the transmission, would that be on the TBI unit or straight out of the manifold (oops, manifold... I should have read closer)?

Thanks again,

Mike