I was thinking about investing in one from hawks but it seems like its kind of a rip since i would have to buy a new clutch anyway.

 

are you looking for a complete swap setup or just the tranny? i have been buying parts on this board for the best deals the only problem with buying all the supporting parts first is that most people would like to sell there setup as a kit (pedals, flywheel, etc) and wont sell just the tranny itself. just keep looking through these boards or other forums for the best deals though there aren't that many deals in the tri-state area. hopefully i'll be getting my tranny this weekend! good luck

 

check craigslist in your area too. There are deals to be had. Just beware of used transmissions. You never know what kind of life they lived and you can only tell so much without opening them up and looking inside or installing them and finding out the hard way. Ask me how i kno.

 

I have a cross member that ill give another CT guy a good price on its the spohn one from hawks

 

I am not going to say that it can not be found cheaper but many people have reported having more that 2200 into there swap and some even 2600+.

 

I am going to have around 2k in my swap not including all the misc bolts I am prob going to need to replace. I just bought a t56 setup...

Here is my cost breakdown so far for you.

T56, flywheel, Master/Slave cylinder, pedals, bellhousing and everything. -$1400 shipped (ls1tech.com)
Competition Clutch Stage 3 ($300 shipped)
Pro 5.0 Shifter + **** ($220.00 shipped)

When I do the swap, I am going to need fluids, get the flywheel resurfaced, and will prob be missing a few bolts and such.

 

I have not heard of anyone getting into a GOOD working setup ready to bolt into a third gen for under 2k. I tried and failed miserably with my tko. Others have tried with the t56 but everything nickel and dimes ya. You can pick up just the trans for 1000 all day long on craigslist but its everything else added onto that that will push it to 2k or more. Then there is the gamble of if that 1000 dollar trans is worth 1000 or more as scrap metal. I lost that gamble and ended up replacing 1st, 2nd,3rd gear along with blocker rings and a shift fork on my tko to the point i might as well have just bought a new one.

 

It can add up quickly and to top it off alot of the clutch kits do not include the throw out or release bearing. I just priced one at Auttozone for $180.00.
As Bullydawg stated look at Ls1tech.com. I found mine (hopefully if the seller doesn't back out of the deal) 180 miles away missing a few parts(pedals and hydraulics) for less than 1000 but those few parts can add up quick. In my case I do not mind having to piece it together some because I still need to get an engine together.

 

I've bought two used T56's, one for my old SBC setup and one with my LS1. My LS1 T56 is badly in need of a rebuild, so as a "cheap" stopgap measure I bought a new input shaft and mid plate to convert my LT1 to LS1. The LS1 T56 whines, gets stuck in 4th, shifts like crap, and it will be sent to either Tick, RPM, or D&D to get a full performance rebuild. Can't wait for that...not gonna be cheap but is going to totally be worth it.

Buying a used trans is a gamble, especially given the T56 originally came in performance cars and most have been abused as such. I'm 50/50...so FWIW buyer beware.

 

Do you have a part number on that clutch? I am tryingg to decide on a clutch kit now. Trying to reuse flywheel.
I have 1200 into my used t56, bell housing, pedals, flywheel, misc other stuff. I have hydrolics butt they are not useable. Found mine on craigs list. Looked for a long time. Over one year.

 

I have a ram performance clutch kit and love it. Just throwing that out there. It has a pretty firm pedal and grips like a ****.

 

I bought a locked up T56 for $600 as gamble. It ended up needing a new 1st gear, main shaft, and 1st gear syncro assembly. I got somewhat lucky that the rest of the trans was mint. It had been "rebuilt" but the idiot forgot the snap ring that holds the 1st gear slider on the shaft. I put about $400 into it in parts so I got a fresh T56 for around $1000. It took some time to disassemble and reassemble but it was worth it I think. I see most trannys go for no less than $1000 but they are original untouched and who knows what shape. If you can find one that has a problem maybe you can get it cheap and all it needs is something simple. That is of course if you are confident you can rebuild it yourself.

 

They come from WRECKED CARS.

It's not like there's somebody out there manufacturing WRECKED CARS just so that people like you can get "a good deal" on the T-56s out of em.

Watch your local junkyards, insurance co lots, police impound lots, CL, etc. IOW, learn to become a bottom-feeder. (hey, I resemble that remark...)

 

Also watch for wrecked or parts cars for sale. You may not want the whole car but might be a cheaper alternative to piecing parts together.
I searched Craigs list in every area within 250 - 300 miles and finally found one 200 miles from me. I got a good deal I believe because the guy was planning on reusing it then changed his mind. I am supposed to pick it up this weekend.

 

Not only did I get a good working t56 setup ready to bolt (spohn crossmember, torque arm, 4th gen hydraulics and pedals, everything) into a third gen (actually it was already bolted onto a 3rd gen) for less than 2k, I got the entire car (84 camaro), including the LT1 motor that was swapped in as well, for a grand total of 1600 dollars. Transmission was in great condition (and still has not shown any signs of problems), the motor on the other hand was not so great. It runs good and strong, but overheats (probably due to being stopped up or something, I haven't had time to mess with it any yet). And the wiring job wasn't done so great, but it's still a great deal.

Good deals can be found, even if they are rare. I however would never pay hawks 2200 price for a used setup. As others have stated, even if they spend 2200 or 2600 on their setup, thats including new clutches and such most of the time, so still a much better deal than hawks offers. If hawks was offering new hydraulics and a new clutch with their 2200 dollar price tag, then I might would've considered them.

 

Good deals are out there. I picked up the T56 I found on craigs list and it had a nearly brand new clutch with it. (As well as bell housing, flywheel, driveshaft, and bolts. The funny thing is that for that same area someone else was advertising on CL for what I found and bought. Apparently he expected everyone to notify him. Mine was listed for 1000 and I offered 850 (he accepted) due to the long drive and also because repairs to my truck had taken the rest I saved. Found pedals for $40 but they got sold out from under me then found some locally for $40. Just needing inspection/dust cover for clutch and torque arm mount (I might have a line on them too) and then buy new hydraulics.
Deals can be found but do not assume somebody else is going to necessarily do the searching for you. I found another in Louisiana for 600 with a 10000 mile clutch also but not worth it to me to drive an extra 5+ hours to get it and then still drive home.