[ctrcreek]

rebuilt turbo 400 and replaced converter a few years ago and i am just not happy with the converter ..supposed to be a 2500 stall but dont know the brand ,got it from local transmission shop.just feels sluggish when you drive away.What would you guys recommend ? here is what i have..

69 Firebird 400 (have had for 36 years)
original 62 heads
crower 60916 cam with matching springs
carb rebuilt by cliff
distributor rebuilt by sun tuned
turbo 400
3.36 posi rear
headers and full exhaust
rebuilt motor years ago and it runs great, converter just seems like its slipping or something. give me your opinions.

[Richie Hoffman]

PTC 12 inch high stall used in a lot of street cars since Continental closed

[TCSGTO]

For something off the shelf it’s hard to beat the Jegs line of converters. They’re made by Transmission Specialties. For your car maybe something like this
https://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS/555/60401/10002/-1
The XHD line has balloon plates and is beefier.

[77 TRASHCAN]

Continental went out of business, But Cliff now handles a line of converters that meet his approval...that's all I need to know...

[grivera]

A Hughes GM25 would work nicely in that car: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/HUP-GM25-BPO/ar.

[goatless]

Originally Posted by grivera

A Hughes GM25 would work nicely in that car: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/HUP-GM25-BPO/ar.

I'd recommend Hughes as well. Ran the GM25 for several years when my LeMans was a little slower. It behaved like a stocker in normal driving, while flashing higher on hard launches.
I'm running the GM30 now. 4000 lb car, stock appearing, runs mid 12s. Still drives close to stock in normal driving.

[Steve C.]

And what is that line of converters Cliff handles ?

When Kris at Continental announced he was going out of business at that time Cliff's new company he was working with was unable to provide a converter that was as tight as a Continental but he felt it was promising.
So now all is hunky dory ?

I've mentioned this before, Lenny at UCC used to work with Kris at Continental years ago. Not long ago my non lock up Continental torque converter in my 2004R transmission developed a cracked hub where it is welded into the body. We sent it to Lenny for repairs.

http://www.ultimateconverter.com/



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[77 TRASHCAN]

Steve, I am not sure, it may even be Lenny....

[pastry_chef]

Originally Posted by 77 TRASHCAN

Steve, I am not sure, it may even be Lenny....

Not Lenny, trishieldperformance.com

[pastry_chef]

Originally Posted by Richie Hoffman

PTC 12 inch high stall used in a lot of street cars since Continental closed

X2

Unless you never run at the track I'd run a tight 10 inch.

ptcrace.com

Their team have a ton of experience and great prices.

Trusted by many of the big boys.
Langer, Kinsler, Marcella, Mike Davis.

[Steve C.]

Found it. From Cliff in Feb..............

"As for "shelf" units, the Hugh's BOP's OK. Going from memory they make a GM20 and GM25 in the BOP variety, and I've tested both of them because we've replaced them with our custom built units right on our lift in the shop. I found the Hugh's to a nice upgrade over a stock converter, relatively well coupled above the stall speed with about 400-600 (depending on which one we were testing) additional "flash" over stock and the extra torque multiplication that comes with it. They are still not on par with the Continental or TSP units we are selling now, but they are less expensive and to date I've never heard of anyone having any issues with them as far as durability is concerned........Cliff"

.

[goatless]

Yes, Cliff and I have talked about my choice of converters a few times... and I may be one off the guys he refers to the he mentions Hughes converters.

FWIW, I had been slowly upgrading things in my Lemans- whittling times down- from 13.5s to 13.0s. Then I swapped the Hughes GM25 (2500 stall) for a Hughes GM30 (3000 stall). Went from 13.0 to 12.77 first pass off the trailer- same track one week later, no other changes. Still drives damn near stock in regular driving.

I have driven a lot of other cars with aftermarket converters and most are infuriating loose in regular driving situations.

[RocktimusPryme]

Originally Posted by 77 TRASHCAN

Continental went out of business, But Cliff now handles a line of converters that meet his approval...that's all I need to know...

I bought one through Cliff. I have a few miles on it now. Highly recommended. Tri Shield Performance I believe is the brand off the top of my head.

[Cliff R]

We have sold quite a few of the new 9.5" units for Pontiac applications and getting excellent feedback. We also did one for a 496 Chevy application and low and behold he told some folks how well it worked and we've done half a dozen more for the Chevy Big Block crowd.

Here is a note from a customer we did one for with a Pontiac set-up:

"cliff i have been meaning to get back with you on the results of the 9.5 inch converter i bought from you this converter works great picked up .2 and 2mph in 1/8 mile .3 and 4mph in1/4 mile

goes thru top end of 1/4 about 200 rpms less than old converter it flashes at about 3400rpm works way better driving around on the street with 3.73 gear 55mph at about 2800 rpm with old converter it was about 3000 a lot of people dont understand how important a converter is to the performance of their vehicle you can have all the power in the world but if you cant harrness it you dont have jack chit thanks again for all your help"

I also tested the TSP converters here in a couple of applications with excellent results. The first one we purchased was for a 1970 Buick GS Stage 1 that underwent a complete and expensive restoration. The car ended up here after I sent my trailer for it because they were having troubles getting it to run and of course the carb we restored for them was getting ALL the blame. After two trips back and forth with the carb and considerable "hacking" to it on the other end I just sent the trailer for it. (That's the short version of the long story but it is a "must read" at some point)

We got the car here, fixed the issues with the engine, and called the customer. I told him that the car ran fine but the larger T/A cam they used during the engine overhaul was killing vehicle performance and it really needed a converter upgrade. Got hooked up with Jim at Trishield and he sent us a converter custom built for it. I opened the box and immediately called him. He picked up the phone and before I could say anything he said that you have the right converter. It was no bigger than the soup bowl I had lunch in the previous day! I couldn't believe a converter than small was going to work in this daily driven fully restored GS with nothing more than a small cam upgrade to the engine.

We quickly installed the converter and ran it thru all the testing. I thru everything at it, brake stalled it, flash stalled it, unhooked the TH400 kick-down and loaded it heavily in high gear at low vehicle speeds. A couple dozen full throttle runs from dead stopped and rolled out some. It was absolutely FLAWLESS!

Compared to a Continental 10" unit it's just a fuzz looser right off idle and provides EXCELLENT torque multiplication without a bunch of excessive slip (common with most smaller converters folks build for this purpose). Unless you were into the throttle heavy you'd barely know it didn't have a stock converter in it. Above the stall speed very well coupled with maybe 200rpm's slippage in high gear. A similar Continental will be just a tad tighter there if you bought the "Jim Hand" or tighter versions of it. I was so impressed with that converter that we bought another one in a looser version for a street/strip application and it was also a home-run everyplace.

After those purchases we started selling them and have probably sold around 100 to date. I've had two complaints, and just like the 10" Continental units we had troubles with the owners just don't have a good engine combo going on. They are running HUGE cams and "lowered the compression for pump gas".

Folks need to realize that there isn't a proverbial "brick wall" for pump gas at 9.5 to 1, and trying to use a huge cam with low compression seldom works well. I'd also add here that a converter responds to engine power (torque), and the more power you throw at a good converter the better it works. Folks also need to know that a converter is NOT a "crutch" or magic bullet for a piss-poor engine combo and these cheap converters for the most part aren't worth two squirts of duck poop behind a powerful Pontiac engine. Throwing a ton of power at a generic or "shelf" converter.....well......that's the reason we sell custom built units as getting good results there is like picking up a winning lottery ticket!........Cliff

[redhawk44]

Taking notes

[slowbird]

Originally Posted by pastry_chef

X2

Unless you never run at the track I'd run a tight 10 inch.

ptcrace.com

Their team have a ton of experience and great prices.

Trusted by many of the big boys.
Langer, Kinsler, Marcella, Mike Davis.

Some have moved on from PTC

[RocktimusPryme]

Of note, if you buy a Tri Shield, they will reconfigure different stall speeds for you at a significant discount if your tastes or engine combo change. I cant recall the exact price off the top of my head but I think it was like $150.

I dont know if other converter manufacturers offer something at a similar price point. I thought it was a nice touch though. If you change your combo later on, that $700 you spent on a converter isnt a sunk cost.

[PAUL K]

If you're serious about performance, you are better off working with the same converter company and chances are you'll get where you want to be on the first or worse case scenario, second adjustment. There are plenty of good companies out there. Seldom have I had luck nailing the converter the first time...regardless of who builds it. If you're looking for good performance there are several companies out there that sell good off the shelf converters and you can save some money and effort. The worse choice would probably be your first, a converter from a trans rebuilding shop. Unless they deal with a specific company, that specializes in converters, they will order a generic "stall" converter from the company that supplies their remanufactured converters.... Generally they suck! Kinda like ordering a performance engine from Jasper.
On another note, I'm curious if Tri-sheild has as great of a product now as when Continental was in business. Or did they get better once Continental went out of business... Things that make you go hmmm.

[pastry_chef]

Originally Posted by slowbird

Some have moved on from PTC

Who .. Langer?

http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...86&postcount=2

[andy kelleman]

hey cliff iam the guy that sent you that message about the 9.5 tsp converter i bought thru you that thing worked great ! i have been drag racing pontiac off and on for about 15 years i have tried several different brands and for the money
tsp converter worked as good as a custom tci 8" converter i use in a 1973 ventura with a 501 pontiac / powerglide 12 bolt 3.73 on methonal bracket car. if i remember it was only a couple hundered more than a off the shelf tci bop convereter and about 300 less than the 8 " tci built for our bracket car any off the shelf converter will work but will it work right . if you can afford it have a converter built for your application most builders will work with you on a restall