...but I'm sort of on the fence about something. I went to the dyno to dial in a new carburetor not too long ago and the dyno guy, Tim and I both felt like something was dragging in the transmission, or by the way the power came in more specifically the torque converter. They have a fully race prepped unit there that was on his nitroused big block 8 second car for a season and they swapped it out to go with more stall. When they removed it, they sent it back to the manufacturer to be rebuilt. This converter would retail for around a grand. These guys know me a bit by now, and have always been pretty good to me. They want $500.00 for the converter He called the manufacturer and they thought I should see between 3400 and 3600 stall from this thing and it should be a much more efficient unit than the worn out GER I have in there now (3200stall supposedly, I'm lucky to see 2800 on a good day) Five bones is a lot of dough, but I could swing it. Worth it? Input from guys running high end parts appreciated. I know I can buy converters cheaper from Summit and such, but this is a different caliber part from the ol' Saturday night special.
Don`t know about the unit he has for sale with out a name. I do know we used a couple GER `S AND they weren`t so good.
I run a 3500 from PTC because they're local and I don't have to ship if I want it rebuilt. It has given good service so far. I plan on using it again next year as is. I didn't pay as much as you're saying, but I know some of the guys that work there and have talked to the owner several times.
i believe i paid almost that for my 4500 hughes convertor new. what brand is it? i guess i would get more out of it, but i strictly footbrake, and only get about 2300. a lot of what you get is dependent on the way your car is set up. some day i might put a trannybrake in and see what that does. not sure you need to spend that much, but i do know there some high dollar convertors out there. just hate to see you spend the money and be disappointed, but there's only one way to find out. and you can't play unless you play. good luck.
I still love my $370 ebay special, but $500 also seems like a great deal for a reputable converter custom built for your setup. I've heard that the converter is one of the most critical components and can make a huge difference if set up right (or wrong). Also, a rebuilt converter should be just like a brand new one. I suggest doing it.
GER=not so good. A custom made torque converter for $500.00 isn't bad at all. I paid 500.00 from Coan for my "custom" converter. My younger brothers was $800.00 since he was running NOS. Glad to hear you are still tinkering with that badass maverick.
remember .. you do get what you pay for... buy a 200 convertor.. get a 200 dollar convertor.. i have a 2500 hughes.. not sure how well it works, since i cant launch with any kind of power braking.. i will spin all day in staging if i hot footed it.. thats why i need tires so bad
8" converter that is 3200 stall? Wow, I don't believe I've ever seen an 8" quite that tight. Normally a 3200 will be a 9" or 10" converter. Without knowing the specs on the converter (actual stall speed vs.torque input, stator design, etc), its a crapshoot. An 8 sec nitrous car will put down a LOT of torque and the converters are specifically built for the nitrous setup. I'd sure hate to plop down $500 on something that isn't built exactly for YOUR combo. I just went through this a few weeks ago. The decision was made to fix my old converter rather than buy a new custom one for $800. The old converter works good the way the car is set up right now; probably a hair tight, but it repeats timeslips and wins rounds...which is what it needs to do. I didn't want to take a chance on buying new and having something that wasn't quite as good. Now if the converter you're looking at was rebuilt to the exact same specs as before; and your car/engine/trans is exactly the same as that 8 sec nitrous car, it may be pretty close. Just keep in mind that there is a LOT more to converters than just stall speed! Stall speed is determined by fin angle, housing diameter, torque input, stator design, car weight, etc. IMO, the most important part inside of a converter is the stator. The ones generally used for nitrous cars will usually give a "soft" hit at the line. The power that the nitrous engine makes will hit the trans & driveline hard in itself, so they put a soft-hit stator in to keep from smoking the tires when it hits. Use that converter in a non-nitrous combo with about the same HP (on motor), you will find that the converter will generally be a dog off the line.
what size, design, make? if set up for a bb w/nitrous do you have the hp to lock it up at the fast end? keep in mind that if you buy it & you end up needing to cut & reconfigure it, you will have spent about what an 8" built to your needs would cost. jmho
Ray if your getting what you would get if you were to have one made for your setup I don't see how you can go wrong...the small local shops (IMO) that custom build converters pay more attention to detail and quality. I'd call a couple of these shops and let them tell you what you need and how much it would cost to build it.
I'm not sure how the idea of this being an 8" unit got introduced. I believe this one is a 9" I don't know about rebuilding the GER unit. Probably not worth it. I also will do something different when the GER transmission blows up.I think they went out of business anyway. I may go with nitrous (again) on this car, and next time I tear the engine down it will go back together much grumpier. I didn't ask who the builder was, but the guys at this shop are fairly serious drag racers, much more serious than me. I trust that it is a quality unit. I've pretty much talked myself into getting this thing. Hoping for someone with before and after impressions between a cheap converter and a nice one with no other changes.
9"? makes sense for a large bb on nitrous. probaly with the heavy steel stator & heavy duty sprag, and maybe northstar internals. does your setup have the oomph to make this piece work? you should know, or find out. before & after impressions? when i got the right converter in my old car, people were asking what i did to the motor over the winter, because it was a totally different car. went .4 quicker and the car became an animal off the line. if you've already decided to get it, go for it. no problem.
I'm pretty sure I'm making enough power to use this one. I'm certain that I will next rebuild or if I decide to go ahead and spray it. If I decide on Nitrous, it won't be any 100 shot and if I tear it down the heads will get ported, the compression wil go up and the camshaft will get downright scary. At least for a fairly streetable car anyway.
Toss the ger! Never heard anyone say any good on them. I would want to talk mfg'r. Give them your spec's and time slips and the #'s of the buddies converter. See what they recommend for you! If your buddies converter is not real close, it's not a deal! Been real nice if you had a hold of this before it was rebuilt. If this is not real close, the $$ spent on rebuild (which they want to recover) is lost. More than likely if this is not excact converter for you, you'll probably run it for the year, always thinking how better you would do if this a perfect match, and then send it in for "your spec. rebuild" Takes lots of smarts to get the right converter, I dont have them! I have a guy in MD who has my trust and I stick with him. I always tell him what The car is doing and time slips and he goes from there. Adjustments do get made, I tell him what I need from the car and I trust his "smarts" $500 may or may not be a fair deal for the 9 in, I would talk to builder and see what a new one will cost. Remember with a new one, most builders will adjust one time for "free"! $200-300 fee for a used one if I remember right. What will be your total cost? Not sure on your ger tranny, if it toastes, you will want your converter freshened! Bearings will get junked and fins may bend. Figure on "quailty" tranny freshen and new torgue at the same time to avoid double spending. Been there done that! 30 runs on freshen converter, tranny starts slipping, felt it and time slips started showing it, Shut car down right away! Talked to convt'r guy, he said better have it looked at. Bearings had junk imbedded and the rest needed a good flushing! Good luck! Just my two cents worth with another 4 cents change!
