So I ordered my rebuilt kit from dana and I am contemplating building it myself. From those who have done it, what am I getting myself into by doing it? I'm fairly mechanically inclined but I always get nervous when I get into stuff like this.

 

Are you talking about a rear end? If you are then read this. https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/tran...axle-gear.html

The Dana rear end is a little different. The pinion shims in the Dana rear end will probably be behind the inner bearing race instead of behind the bearing. It will also have a solid pinion bearing spacer instead of the crush spacer. The differential shims will be behind the bearings instead of between the race and the housing. Setting the pinion depth and backlash will be similar to the 10 bolt. I thing the Dana rear ends are harder to set up because of the way that they are shimmed. You need a good bearing puller to get the bearings off for shim changes. You will be pulling the bearings off many times for this.

 

No, sorry for not making it clear. Dana is the owner of Pro-built transmissions. I bought a Street-strip rebuild kit from him for my transmission.

 

OK, I see that you changed the title and added transmission to it.

 

If you're going to DIY, order one of these books from Pro-Built as well:

https://www.700r4l60e.com/store/prod...&cat=56&page=1

https://www.700r4l60e.com/store/prod...&cat=56&page=1

 

Which stage did you order from Probuilt? I am about to offer me a Christmas gift and order the stage 3 from them?

 

I got the road race kit from him. I can't wait to try it out. Hey Oz, I have a rebuild DVD that I got from eBay that is VERY informative. I could let you copy it if you need it.

 

I have been through my 700R4 a couple of times now. In 99 I had the trans built professionally after I tried to do a Transgo shift kit and got more than I bargained for at the time. Since then, I've played with transmissions a little here and there, though I can't say I'm any more than a raw beginner. Last winter I built the trans myself after my 3-4 clutches went on me the summer before. I was surprised by how smooth the job went. I had trouble with the inferior 3-4 clutch material that I had used(should have listened to Dana in the first place), and I had to go back through the unit just a few weeks ago.

The key items that I had a hard time with are installing lip seals and compressing clutch springs. I've seen guys make up their own tools for the springs but I just bought a KD Tools #2398 Automatic Transmission Clutch Spring Compressor for $98 on Amazon and it does every clutch spring in the unit just great. Even the extra stiff high rev Transgo springs.

As far as the lip seals go, Pro Built sells the wire loop lip seal installer. I had a hard time finding this tool anywhere so Dana may be the best guy to get one from. My Trans Tech rebuild kit came with this funky seal buddy thing that is just a round piece of semi hard plastic. This funky tool actually worked pretty well with practice. The key is lots of assembly lube and patience. I found, when I went back into the unit, that I had actually rolled one of the lip seals and never knew it. This time, I installed and removed each one a few times to be sure they were going in right. Don't skip the wet air test of the clutches after the input housing is all put together. This will save you tearing the trans back down. The piston seals in the input housing are the hardest part, the rest of the trans is much easier.

The key to success is take your time and be organized. The work space needs to be super clean and you want to lay out all of the parts as they come apart and as you prepare to assemble them. This way, you can avoid missing anything. Remember, if you have to put it together and take it apart 20 times on the bench to be comfortable that everything is right, it's better than having to pull it back out of the car and do the whole thing again because you got something wrong. I found that I got tired just from having to focus so hard. The solution is to take breaks and be sure you stop to drink water and eat.

I'm very comfortable with the unit now. I still don't look forward to ever having to pull it back out of the car someday, but I know that I can do it with no problem and that anything that goes wrong with the unit, I can easily fix. In fact right now I'm actually having some fun playing with line pressure and shift timing. The more I play with this transmission, the more I understand it. Quite a change from 15 years ago when I was scared to even pull the valvebody. Remember too, Dana is your guy. Call him with any questions and he will have good answers for you.

 

I got the Late 87-93 pro-street kit for $730.

 

That's very tempting.

I've got the transmission sitting on the Garage floor right now, tempting me but my fear of failure and screwing it up is getting the best of me.

Once it's done, when I pull mine out of the car, I will need to swap the tail housings and the speedo unit since mine is a manual speedo gear and the one in the transmission is electronic. Other than that it "seems" strait forward. I may be asking if any of you guys nearby wants to lend a hand with the install/removal.

 

Well I told you if you needed any help I'd help you man lol.

 

Right on. Do you have a trans jack? You'll just have to let me know what your...beverage of choice is! haha Couple of pizza's, some cold refreshing...beverages. Yeah, would make a Saturday out of it! haha

 

Hell yeah, it would be fun.