Is it possible? I know it has a very specific style of torque converter, not available aftermarket. Can it be tweaked? I'm running a healthy cam and a bit more stall would do wonders for my idle RPM...
It would also do wonders to ditch that cast-iron heavy-weight for something a bit lighter. Lugged one of those to 3 or 4 swap meets before some resto guy paid me good money for it....
what year? Seems to me that the late 50s-early 60s ones can use a welded converter from a later PG, but you'd want to check it out first to make sure. Or just take it apart and experiment. They're fun to play with.
Easiest method would be find a shop that can service a welded converter reliably and have them take a 1/4" lathe cut off the 'fat' side of the aluminum stater, clean it up and re***emble.
years back i ended up with a cast pg somebody had modified the tc by brazing up the fins at different angle. now weather it it worked or not.....
A later style, aluminum Glide, welded converter can be used. Just use a 168 tooth flexplate (modified stock one or later style), be sure the front pump engages, the correct "spacers" are used between the converter and flexplate, and the alignment/centering bung centers in the crank. But, the cast iron Glides are nowhere as tough as the aluminum Glides. Back in the days of Junior Stock, they modified them for full manual shift, and throttle pressure delete; where you'd get that information today is anyones guess. Personally, I would swap to an aluminum glide rather than keep the cast iron unit, but then again, before I'd do that, I'd go with a TH350. IF you still have the 265, you'll need a starter motor adapter ring available through any of the Tri-Five vendors to swap to any later model automatic, including the aluminum glide. Butch/56sedandelivery.
Thats what I was thinking. I seem to recall working on one from a 61 or 62 that had a welded converter in it.
Dacco rebuilt > P-2 , 53 to 62 cars. It's welded converter that can be modified for higher stall.. I can't tell what the factory stall rating , but I could probably get 6-800 more, without making too much of a "heater" out of it.
I'll see about getting my hands on a newer 'glide converter. Thanks for the help guys. I'll post results asap.
Just so everyone knows, although I have a collection of worthy TH-350 and TH-400 ******s, I'm keeping the cast iron glide in my '55 for quite a few reasons... the biggest reason is that, aside from a few period correct bolt-ons for looks and sounds, this is an original car and I'm not willing to make a major change such as a new ******. That would involve drilling new holes, a**** other things, and I'm simply not willing to do it. I dont run the car hard at all so ****** strength isn't important. I appreciate the suggestions for a ****** swap, I just wanted you guys to know why I'm staying with the original iron. Anyway...... I learned something new today. In my search for a used aluminum glide stall I was told that almost everybody slips a turbo-style (TH-350 etc) input shaft into their aluminum glides so they can run a more common turbo-style converter. Is the shaft in an iron glide easily removed like the aluminum versions? Supposedly it pulls right out of the aluminum glides. If thats the case, I can pick up one of these shafts CHEAP and I have a stall in my shop that will work! Has anyone here actually installed a newer stall in an iron glide? 56sedandelivery, any specific way to tell how thick of a spacer (washer?) that I will need to use? My best guess is that once the ****** is in place, slide the converter into the ****** as far as it will go ensuring its engaged the pump and use as thick of a spacer as necessary to fill the gap (less .020-.030" for heat expansion, flex, etc.) Right?
The converter should have to move forward a bit to seat against the crank hub and flexplate, generally less than about 3/16" is acceptable. I'd be surprised if you can use the input shaft for an aluminum powerglide in the iron glide...the parts book shows different part numbers for 55-57, 58-61 and 62-up, as well as for six/283 and 327/409 .
Not to be overly critical here, but when you say "stall", we have to ***ume you mean a "high stall" converter? All converters have a stall speed rating, whether it might be 1500 or 5000. When someone says " Amona git me a 5000 stall converter" , you can omit the word stall from the phrase and retain the meaning, but not the number 5000. At that point it no longer makes sense, because all converters have "stall". Whew, I feel better now...Sorry folks, but that one makes me cringe...
Putting a stall converter in a car is like putting a cam in a car. It's understood that you don't mean "stock".
I don't think so, Jim LOL One would have to say "putting a converter" in your car , in that case Per your example, one would have to say "putting a lift cam" in your car, or "putting a lift" in your engine...I never heard that said...You?
In order to use a TurboHydramatic converter in an ALUMINUM glide, it requires a "special" input shaft AND machining the front pump stator for a bushing to support the new shaft (or a special converter with the support built into it). So it's not just a simple swap. The input shafts on the CI Glide and aluminum glide are similar, but I don't think they are interchangable. For one thing, aluminum Glides have 2 different low gear ratios, and the input shafts are different lengths depending on the ratio trans used (4 and 6 cylinder, and 2 barrel 283 used a 1.82 ratio, larger engines a 1.76 ratio). There are a some "universal" length aftermarket aluminum Glide input shafts, but they're costly. If you're looking to plug-and-play, it won't happen; it's gonna take money and work. Remember, increasing stall increases trans temps, so you're probably going to also need an add-on cooler to back up the radiator cooler. You could get a rebuilt Chevy Vega converter for about $100.00 that will stall 1800-2200 behind a stock 265. You might have to remove the cooling "vane" from that converter, or leave it if there's adequate room. You might get 2000 stall from a 6 cylinder converter. Probably no, or little change, with a stock, larger V-8 converter from an aluminum Glide. I think the gap issue with the flexplate-converter has been answered. Butch/56sedandelivery.
40 years ago I had a cast-iron glide and hot 283 in my '34. The Texaco I worked for had a transmission guy that was known to be very good. He said bring me the converter and I'll make it stall at a higher rpm. It was a bolt together converter, with the bolts right out at the edge by the ring gear. So I took it out gave it to him and watched. He unbolted it, took the back half and bent the "fins" with a pair of vise grips so they were as even as he could get them, just bent more, so there was more slippage until lockup. I put it back in and lo and behold, it had more stall!
I suppose that's another possibility..Retro-fitting a bolt together early converter..I don't know that it will interchange, but if it does, I'll walk you (Mr ****) through a stall speed change if you want.
There's an article in January 1969 Hot Rod on modifications that Marv Ripes did on Powerglides both cast iron and aluminum. Here's a picture showing a later model convertor in the cast iron trans. Did'nt say anything about needing spacers between convertor and flywheel. If you decide you want to try modifiying a stock one I have one you can have. I'll be Little River in a couple of weeks for the drags there and I can bring it with me. Tim
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