Mark: You show me yours and I'll show you mine :laugh: I built mine over 20 years ago, too. I am always interested in new ways to do things. I have seen lever compressors, but, I built a screw compressor. I may be able to take a picture tonight and post it tomorrow. Jim
My tool is buried in my shed now and kinda snowed in, so I can't get a pic right now. Here is what I did. Got 4 pieces either 1x4 or 1/6 (can't recall) and made a box big enough so that the forward drum/shaft would not touch the bottom. Then cut a hole a bit larger than the shaft in the top board of the box. Now the forward drum can sit flat on the top of the box. Then took a piece of 1x3 and bolted the bracket end of a muffler clamp (2 or 2 1/4") to it. The bracket needs to be the right size so that if rests on the clutch spring retainer without interfering with the snap ring. Then I got 2 long 3/8-16 rods with nuts and washers. Drilled holes through the box and 1x3 so that I could use the rods to pull the 1x3 and bracket down to compress the retainer to remove the snap ring.This also works on the direct drum as will with no problems. What can I say, didn't have a welder at the time and this mickey mouse compressor has worked for over 20 years. o No: So what if it looks cheesy, it works. :TU: Mark
Now for my next trick. :laugh: Ok what I am recommending here is only if you have a BROKEN trans case as I would hate to see anyone ruin a good TH400 case. Lining up the two halves of the front pump is a chore. However they line up very nicely in a trans case. However you can't get to the bolts to tighten the halves together. I had a broken case and simply used a hack saw (sawzall would be easier) and cut the last 2/3 or so of the case off. Now you can get at the bolts easily. Just put the pump together with the bolts loose. Line it up in the case and install 3 front bolts in a triangle to secure the pump. Then flip the whole thing over so that you can get at the back bolts and tighten. The pump is now lined up and will fit properly to install in the good trans. Another dumb looking thing that makes things easier. :grin: Mark
Well........I took photo's of the clutches. here's the first one, according to my book this is the forward clutch........it's the only one of the 3 that doesn't looked burned to me:
Here's the one that goes into the case.......I believe it's the intermediate clutch......it's burned a little also:
So far I need 2 new clutches and a lo band........should I take the good ones from my parts tranny or are the new replacements just as good? Also, my first question at the top of this thread was about the valve body seperator plate.......should I use the B&M or modify the original one?
Mark...another question.....you said something about making sure there is a spring behind the 1-2 accumulator valve on my '73 valve body........can I use any old spring or is there specific size or color? o No: (I have a jar full of extra tranny springs from shift kits I have installed over the years)
Joe, I just use the original plate and drill holes larger. Leave out the 1-2 check ball and all should be fine. See if you can identify what plate you have. Some plates have a "V" notch others a "U" notch and some just a cutout. Am going to try and attach a pic of a plate and the holes to be drilled. As to the clutch plates, there are many types available. In your case I would recommend Raybestos metallic waffle plates. Should work out real nice on a street/mild strip trans. You will need 10 (5 forward, 5 direct) and 3 of the larger ones for intermediate. Get an assortment of the flat steel .0775 (4 forward) and some extra for the direct along with some .0915 for the direct. You want to use 1 wave plate in forward and none in direct. You will need to mix up the sizes in direct (maybe forward too) to get the clearance correct. Another good choice of clutches is a company called Alto. They make what is referred to as red racing clutch plates. Sometimes they have groove, sometimes just flat. Either type is excellent. You need an intermediate band. A heavy duty Kevlar one was available and still may be, but I don't have a supplier anymore. A company in NYC called Metran used to supply me, but I haven't purchased in years. A trans shop like Aamco or Lee Myles may be able to get you some good parts. Insist on metal sealing rings and quality gaskets. How many miles were on that trans? I am a bit concerned in seeing all the clutches worn out. Am wondering if there was a pressure problem in the trans or if the pump is worn excessively. You won't know that until you get it apart. Aside from getting parts, you need to now clean and examine everything to make sure nothing is worn out and bad. Below is the pic of the plate and what the holes should look like. Make sure the whole outlined in blue is there and large enough. As to the spring, you can use whatever you have that fits and is faily strong. The 1-2 accumulator valve directs pressure firm up the 1-2 shift. The stronger the spring, the firmer the shift. It acts along with the blue spring you see under the servo. Since the blue spring is the weakest, you want more pressure from the valve. I just checked on GMpartsdirect and they list the yellow spring I mentioned earlier for about 5-6 bucks. Might not be a bad idea to uses that.
Mark, Do you have a favorite shift kit? I've used the cheap Gil Younger kit, and the expensive Trans-Go on with the replacement accumulator spring and triple-layer spacer plate. Also, any favorite clutches? Raybestos Blue, Alto red?
Here's a tip if you don't have a tool to work the piston seals back into the drums. Get some clear plastic sheets like you would use with an overhead projector. You can cut the sheets into smaller pieces. Wrap the sheets around the seals. You can keep them stuck to the seals with your assembly lube. Work the pistons back into the drums, keeping the plastic in place until the piston seats. Then just pull the plastic out. Seals remain in postion without cutting one.
Adam, I have just drilled out holes, left springs out and plugged passages for the last 20 years and not used any brand kits in the units I have done for others. Oddly enough 4 of my own cars have kits. B&M plates and a Trans-Go triple plate. Frankly I am not impressed with any of them. Have the TG one in my 68 wagon now and the shifts under normal driving are not as crisp as I like. Flat out is good, chirps 2nd in a heavy wagon. What I do during a rebuild is to remove the center lip seal in the direct clutch to use the full piston. Plug the hole in either the case or plate to prevent any leakage and then use the red spring under the VB aluminum piston to cushion 3rd a bit. Without some cushion, I have had the input shaft in the forward clutch shear off the splines in the drum. Usually only happens when using a 6 clutch direct drum, but I don't want to take a chance. As to plate, I like the Alto red ones as an economical alternative to the Raybestos blue. The Raybestos is a superb plate, just a bit on the pricey side for a street/strip unit. Mainly worth it for race only. Just my opinion on this. Have also been happy with the Raybestos metallic waffle plates I recommended to Joe. Good all around plate. Personally any plates mentioned are far superior to the stock GM pieces. GM intermediate plates are waved and cushion the shift. There are also smaller diameter intermediate steel plates. Want to say they are .0715" and are used to set the clearance on the clutch pack. Since replacement plates are flat, you will wind up with too much clearance. I use 4 (not 3) steel plates of varying sizes to get around .050-.070 clutch clearance. I prefer tighter clearances to avoid having to use excessive pressure in the trans to get firm shifts. Again, just my opinion. It has worked well for me. Mark PS, have done the foil projector trick too. :TU:
Oh.....and what size should I drill the colored holes you illustrated? Keep in mind, I don't want to chirp my tires, I just want firm shifts. :bglasses:
Joe, That is not a stock plate, looks to be some kind of a shift kit that was put in years ago. My guess is it is an early Trans-Go kit. I would go 1/8" on the 1-2 feed (green on pic) and leave the check ball out. Then .140 to .156 on the 2-3 feed (yellow on pic) with no spring under the aluminum VB accumulator piston. If you use the plate in your pic, you need to drill the hole outlined in blue to the size of the hole in the gasket (think it is 7/32, but check). Hard to say you won't get a chirp out of 2nd. Keep in mind, you don't want to burn out the clutches after you rebuild it. Will be on again tomorrow night. Good Luck, Mark
Look at the chassis manual and see if you can check the clearance on the pump. Supposed to use a straight edge and feeler gauge. I have managed to use a dial indicator as well. Are the threads ok in the pump? Hard to tell by the pic. Make sure they are ok. If the pump checks out, the trans may have just plain wore out and a rebuild will make thing ok again. You need to also get the pressure regulator apart and examine it. There should be a light blue spring and an aluminum sleeve with a valve inside. On the large valve there should be a retainer with at least 1 "horseshoe" space. Sometime there are 2, but most have one. I like to use 2 to boost the pressure a bit. Also, some models have an orange spring instead of light blue. The orange one is stronger and you can use 1 spacer with that as you prefer a milder shift. If you don't have 2 washers, just get plain washers that fit over the large valve (think that 3/8" ones from a hardware store work). Measure the thickness of the original one and try to match it. Other than that, just clean things up and lube with trans oil, petroleum jelly (do NOT use chassi lube or white grease) or a mixture of both together. A product called "trans lube" is just trans oil a P jelly mixed. Don't forget a new front seal. Mark
