hey all... been peckin away at the nearly 50 years of grease and crus off of my dynaflow for the last couple evenings ou: ... first off HOLY CRAP thats a heavy transmission!!!!!!:shock: on with the questions.... The car has 54K on it. everything seems to run and work fine with the trans. however i havent taken it for any length of drive.. only moving around the yard or up the hill in the driveway to turn it around to pull motor and trans... I wanted to just replace the seals on the trans b4 i put it back in. i was looking at the external seal kit thru CARS.. it is 97.50 +shipping.. i found the trans kit thru AZ however they do not actually sell that perticular kit they just carry other kits by Dacco:ball: this kit is roughly 50bucks thru Dacco but i cannot find a retailer for their kits?? anyone have a lead on this or another place to get the seal up kit thru? yes i have thought about rebuilding it ... the kit is like 195.00 thu cars but i am not sure if i can follow the book and do this or not... so im leaning twords just a seal up.. do these dynaflows have more life in them at 54K or am i "due" for a rebuild?? also... is there a trick to removing the torque converter?? i have wiggled the nose of it while spinning it around and only get it to come out about an inch or two... i havent tore into the chasis manual for pulling the converter just yet was thinking of geting input from everyone here and get a better direction on the path to take from prior experiences.. thanks everyone:TU: bill
Converter should just pull out. Use a pry bar on the sides or the ring gear if you have to, just be gentle. My original went 115k before I blew the front seal in it. Still worked fine, just lost a few quarts of trans fluid per week :eek2: . If your easy on it, it should last. The second I started to beat mine is when it blew up. I don't know if I've mentioned swapping a ST400 in to you before. Since you already have everything out it's something to think about.
What year did they quit bolting the torque convertor to the input shaft on Dynaflows? My apologies to the OP, just trying to learn here.
yes u are correct. I went step by step along with m chasis manual and you have to pull the converter apart in pieces to disassemble. i found some gold looking flecks or dust in there i am assuming is the material the bands are made of??? i was wondering if i should bu the master rebuild kit thru CARS for the 195.00 and go ahead and replace the guts while i have it this far?? i dont know how much longer the 54k has in it really? it have already been slipping i dont know?? i wasnt familiar with the "slip" feeling u get before the dynaflow "kicks in" to go in the first place if that makes sense?? anyhow i seen some ware on one of the shims in the converter disassembly and didnt know if this was normal for the milage or another sign it is time to rebuild the trans fully since it is down this far and on the bench??:ball: here are some pictures for you al to checkout as well. the number ont he housing is D029 not sure what that means but there it is lol thanks again for the advi8se and help everyone:TU:
I have looked at all the pics and dont see any indication of major component damage,,, just a little band material in the pan area there... what you dont want to see is a cup full of metal chips in the pan when you take it off... the oil is brown but that may be from age... does it smell burned..???? I would put a complete kit in it... you are gonna have a time finding a transmission man that knows how to rebuild one of those,,, but any good transmission man with the factory manual, which you say you have, should be able to do it, without any problem.... I say put a kit in it and you will be surprised at how good it performs... you may need to send the converter off to a converter rebuilder to make sure it is right up to snuff..... In good shape those are tuff as a boot....
The fluid smells maybe a little bit burnt i noticed a funny smell when i first started taking apart the torque converter and thought to myself it smells burnt or something but not really bad like other slipping trannys i have deal with in the past.. yes i do have the factory body and chasis manuals for the car. Ive learned alot sitting around reading that thing even if its notw hat i am currently working on.. I will go ahead and get the master kit to rebuild trans with. I was thinking of doing it myself but not sure if i would have all the tools needed to remove the components properly .. ive rebuilt engines etc before but this is like a whole different animal it seems like but i can read step by step just like a trans guy so idk..uzzled: Ill have to hunt and see if the transmission guys around here have anyone that can work on the converter to make sure the bearings etc are all copastetic. ray: the first picture has the shim? with the wear on it... does that come with the master rebuild kit do you know doc? or is that part of a converter rebuild kit? do they have those? i havent seen anything on CARS for a converter rebuild kit so was curious. thanks again doc for your expert tootalidge :bglasses:
The most important thing on a DynaFlow is the TORQUE CONVERTER!!!!! It is MANDATORY that EVERYTHING is up to snuff. Using the book check ALL the clearances & end-play & keep it within specs. If anything a "little" on the tighter side. No, the shims/spacers are NOT in a rebuild kit. Some will have to be special ordered. Some will have to be modified other makes. And yet, some others will need to be made. Worth your time to do it right!!!! If you can rebuild an engine you can rebuild a DynaFlow. I did my 1st. one at 16. I payed attention to the details. On an added note put a higher tension spring on the high accumulator it makes it feel more direct without as much "slippage".
You might be able to learn some more on the Buick Club of America site. Here's 2 places that you might research for parts..... Charlie Tranny. Looks like he's in MI. Fatsco in NJ.
waiting for a reply from charlie and fatsco. i guess charlie dosent run his ebay store anymore so hopefully i can find a kit for the converter. anyone have other places to check please let me know. thanks again bill
just got an email from charlie... he has never rebuilt the converter before and is checking with his supplier to see if they can do it.. will be a cpl days wait to find otu whats going on that route. i would like to ask everyone here if anyone used charlie for trans work?? i mean no offense to anyone but i really dont want to mail my converter to someone i have never dealt/talked with.... i doubt i can replace this if it "disappears" ya know?? just being careful i guess... bill
The black stuff is band material. The copper colored stuff is thrust washer/s wear. If you do measurements that 1st. thrust washer you pictured could probably be replaced with a "Torrington" needle bearing along with some others. Get one of their catalogs. While you are in there & learning you "may as well" upgrade as nec. The trans. is really very simple in comparison to others. It was originally put into production in 1948. Again, the "book" is your best friend at this point.
well... step by step went thru the disassembly of the transmission. save for one washer (thrust looking i guess) that appeared on the workbench ou: which i am hoping someone knows what and where it goes....ray: here are pictures of the disassembly in case anyone sees anything really out of wack or smething? still waiting to hear back from a couple places on the converter kit or parts to rebuild it with. also.. i have left the main parts together when i disassembled the trans until im ready to get the assemblies washed up n cleaned before i take them totally apart to rebuild. but am fairly confident thus far... nothing seemed to surprise me (except for the magical washer that appeared that is) seems fairly simple compared to the new age auto trannys... anyhow rebuild kit shoudl be here in a few days so ill be getting into that.. i figure i can rebuild the tranny and have that ready... then ocus on the converter rebuild since i can rebuild the tranny first and the converter second. least i feel like im making progress.. enjoy the pics.. feedback is always welcome :TU: :laugh: bill
When you go back together with that puppy, you need to have it on some clean butcher paper or cardboard.... or a clean steel top work bench..... if you dont it will be a nightmare of epic perportions.....
Yes i am going to clean the workbench off and cover it with cardboard or paper so it is squeaky clean:TU: my plan is to take everything apart to clean off with mineral spirits.. bow dry clean etc install any gaskets or seals then take to the bench and install. every piece so everything is totally clean and there are no chances of dirt or contaminants:laugh:
