[72LuxuryLeMansLa.]

Continental doesn't have pricing on their site, I guess because they are all custom units. How much did your continental cost you. For comparison I am guessing I will need maybe the 13" size with no more than 2500rpm stall so just tell us which one you have and what the cost was.

Thanks for the help in advance.....

[ponjohn]

PM Cliff...he can get you a price.

[David Brown]

I paid $280 plus $33 to ship...but that was 2003.

[my72lemans]

got a quote in june 2013 525.00, the same size u r looking for direct from continental.

[PunchT37]

Think I paid $600 for mine. That`s for the 10 inch. Not cheap, but they`re better and more efficient than the ones you can buy out of the catalogs. Mostly tuned for chevys anyway.

[pggto]

I bought mine about 2 yrs ago from Cliff, I believe I paid 450-500 for it.

[Overkillphil]

Whats the dirt on the 10" vs. the 13" "Jim Hand" convertors if the stall is the same?

[Blued and Painted]

13" pontiac special. $500

[1969GTO]

10"......$600.00

[carcrazy]

I paid $600 for my 10" Jim Hand special.

[mchell]

hmmmm......looks like you're looking for a little more stall over a stock converter ?? ....not sure why you would spend 500-600 or more on a custom built unit......and I have a continental

you may want to look at other brands unless you are wanting a specific stall for performance reasons.....and spend the extra dough on something else

[indymanjoe]

I was considering the HUGHs 2500...from summit 250.00? pn was for a BOP.cant find my notes..

[ta man]

The problem with the cheaper convertors is...even with a stockish Pontiac engine...they make so much torque.... the off the shelf units slip too much....
You pay for what you get...I've had mine for 10 years.....about 60 bucks a year......pretty cheap in my books.

[1969GTO]

I tried DACCO brand convertor before my Jim Hand 10".
A world of difference.
The Dacco unit [my 69 GTO-462,street-strip] would rev or wind up a little [noticable] when just pulling away from a stop light.
My Continental,your grandma could drive my car now, no convertor slip when taking off from a light.
But if you nail the gas peddle,the convertor will Flash and all hell [tires] break loose ;o).
Also at the end of a 1/4 run at the strip,there is a very low slip%

[68 Firebird]

Got the 13" Pontiac special in my 68 Bird and could not be happier.
What 1969 GTO said is the truth that is drives like s normal when you want and
flashes great when you need it too.

I had one other converter in this car and it was no where near as good as this unit.

And it's cheaper to buy the best part the first time around!!!

Gerry

[indymanjoe]

Not to hi-jack,may help OP as well.What is the pros,cons of a 13inch vs 10inch? rotating mass?

[MCronkGTO]

I live near one of the best transmission/convertor companies around. Spoke personally to the owner who used to race Pontiacs back in the day. He recommended a street convertor for my Pontiac that has worked very well. I also ran his race convertors in my race car and had him service the trans/convertor.

I think the Jim Hand works so well because he did the homework to figure out what kind of modifications need to be done for a Pontiac street motor. Once you get into true race cars it is a different "game".

Any reputable convertor company can build a convertor to your needs. You just need to know what do ask for. Knew several folks who used to run the old switch pitch Buick convertors in street cars that worked well. Lots of torque multiplication in lo and once it "locked" it was like a stock convertor.

Mark C

[72LuxuryLeMansLa.]

Originally Posted by mchell

hmmmm......looks like you're looking for a little more stall over a stock converter ?? ....not sure why you would spend 500-600 or more on a custom built unit......and I have a continental

you may want to look at other brands unless you are wanting a specific stall for performance reasons.....and spend the extra dough on something else

I just threw out a W.A.G. on that number. I'm not looking to race first of all so I don't want excessive slippage. The engine I'm building will be a 433ci, 4" stroke, ported heads, Stump Puller(286/289adv. 230/236@.050") probably between 485&500lb.ft. of torque. I plan on running the highest gear possible because it is a daily driver. The gearing will be 2.78:1 if I can get a posi unit for the gears, if not 3.08:1 at the lowest.
After doing some reading like this article http://www.pontiacstreetperformance..../Twisting.html I thought 2500rpm would be a good starting point. Of course when it comes time to order I will talk to the guys at Continental about what to get. I just wanted some ballpark figures for planning purposes.

[Cliff R]

Just to clear things up some. The 13" is not a "custom" unit, they are only available in one configuration.

We typically use and recommend the 13" units for axle ratios at 3.08 and lower, really heavy cars used mostly for street driving, and some big CID/high HP applications (they are very strong units and come with anti-ballooning plates).

The 10" "base" unit is often referred to as the "Jim Hand" converter. This converter will typically stall around 3200-3300rpm's behind a stout 455 engine. This can vary about 200 either direction depending on vehicle weight, actual engine power (torque), and where the power is made at, how hard the engine "hits" the converter, traction available, etc.

For example, my 10" converter flashes right at 3500rpm at the track with good traction. It is locked nearly solid above the stall speed for the rest of the run. Doing the math on the run, it shows less than 150rpm slippage in the lights in high gear at full load (5200rpm's). The formula used is MPH x GEAR RATIO X 336 divided by TIRE DIAMETER. For example, 120mph x 3.42 x 336 divided by 27" equals 5107rpm's. I go thru right at 5200rpms at 119-120mph.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zVdoLR-VzM

The 10" unit is also very "tight" and efficient for "normal" driving. On the brakes applying the throttle the tires will not hold past apprx 1900rpm's. Climbing a steep grade at lower vehicle speeds in high gear with moderate throttle it goes to about 2200-2400rpm's, or not much "looser" than a "stock" converter.

The 10" is available tightened up slightly for about 200-400rpm's less flash stall, and in looser versions clear up to 4200rpm's. Amazingly, even the 4200rpm's version is pretty "tight" for street driving, and works fine with gear ratios as low as 3.23, with a few customers using them in lighter cars clear down to 3.08 ratios.

The 10" unit in the "Jim Hand" configuration will stall right at 2800-3000rpm's behind most 400's and 428's.

The 13" unit is pretty much going to act like a "stock" converter for all "normal" driving. It is super tight everyplace. When first installed and you back out of the driveway or off the lift, you may feel like you just tossed away $500. That all changes when you do your first full throttle hit with good traction. It flashes nearly as high as the Jim Hand 10" unit, and like the 10" unit is locked nearly solid above the flash stall. We' nicknamed the 13" unit the "sleeping giant", it doesn't really do anything till you go to full throttle and wake it up! Expect about 2400-3200 stall speed, once again this varies due to CID, engine power, weight and gearing used.

At the track my car only saw about .015" difference between the 13" and 10" converter when I tested them. I've tested every offering of the 10" unit, but they do not show total improvement in ET or MPH since I'm using 3.42 gears. The "looser" units improve 60' times slightly, then give up just enough on the runs that ET and MPH are no better, if as good as the Jim Hand unit.

A few years ago over a few week period, we tested 3 different converters at our local 1/8th mile track, and ran them on the street. Even the loosest 4200rpm version drove fine back and forth to the track, and picked up some in 60', but ran about the same ET and MPH.

I've also had the opportunity to test the Hugh's 2500 BOP offering. It's a decent converter for the money, flashes to about 2400rpm's behind a stout 400 engine, but not as tight anyplace as either of the Continental offerings.

Hugh's makes a nice 10" unit that some folks have had very good success with behind pretty stout 455's. We tested one here many years ago. Their first unit was a total POS, so loose that any heavy/full throttle shot it past 4500rpm's with any kind of traction. They were able to tighten it up and get the stall down to 3400rpm's. It worked pretty good at that point, but not locked up as solid as the Continental 10" converter in any configuration. We saw right at 500-600rpm's slippage in high gear at the track. It was also nearly the cost as the 10" Continental in a "custom" unit, so it's a no-brainer there which one to go with.

We also tried a Coan custom 10" unit, and after 3 attempts to get it right, gave up on that deal. It flashed to nearly 4000rpms and slipped at least 800rpm's on top end, not matter what they did with it.

I haven't tested any PTC units, but have seen good reports from some users. Same deal with the TCI 10" unit.

We've been recommending and selling Continental units since 2001. Very, very few issues anyplace, and plenty of excellent reports as to how well they work and how well we've spec'd them out for the application.

They are not cheap/low end converters, but very, very good at managing Pontiac engine power, which focuses on mid-range, combined with conservative gearing in most cases. IMHO, it is one of, if not the best place to spend funds in attempts for improved vehicle performance. Hope this helps some.......Cliff

[72LuxuryLeMansLa.]

Originally Posted by Cliff R

Just to clear things up some. The 13" is not a "custom" unit, they are only available in one configuration.

We typically use and recommend the 13" units for axle ratios at 3.08 and lower, really heavy cars used mostly for street driving, and some big CID/high HP applications (they are very strong units and come with anti-ballooning plates).



The 10" unit in the "Jim Hand" configuration will stall right at 2800-3000rpm's behind most 400's and 428's.

The 13" unit is pretty much going to act like a "stock" converter for all "normal" driving. It is super tight everyplace. When first installed and you back out of the driveway or off the lift, you may feel like you just tossed away $500. That all changes when you do your first full throttle hit with good traction. It flashes nearly as high as the Jim Hand 10" unit, and like the 10" unit is locked nearly solid above the flash stall. We' nicknamed the 13" unit the "sleeping giant", it doesn't really do anything till you go to full throttle and wake it up! Expect about 2400-3200 stall speed, once again this varies due to CID, engine power, weight and gearing used.

At the track my car only saw about .015" difference between the 13" and 10" converter when I tested them. I've tested every offering of the 10" unit, but they do not show total improvement in ET or MPH since I'm using 3.42 gears. The "looser" units improve 60' times slightly, then give up just enough on the runs that ET and MPH are no better, if as good as the Jim Hand unit........Cliff

Sounds like the 13" convertor will probably be what I need.

Thanks