I am changing from a Saginaw 4 speed to a turbo 350. I get a lot of opinions about the 1800 stall speed on the converter that comes with it. 29 A roadster with 56 265 sbc double hump heads comp 280 cam 3 holley 94s on offy manifold stock ram horns 355:1 57 chevy rear end. Some say I won't like the 1800 stall speed others say its OK because of the cam. I'm not going to race been there done that. What do ya'll think.
That's a lot of cam in such a small engine. Then again, the car is quite light weight. I think the 1800 would be fine. If you had the same combo in a heavier car, I'd suggest a 2200 converter.
Since you're not going to race, etc., the 1800 would work fine. Good street converter with your comb. I agree with Pir8Darryl.
I,ve been curious about this, My hemi has a TH350 with a stock convertor. The cam gives very rough idle, and I almost have to put it in neutral at a stoplight. I assume a higher stall speed would help this?
I had a comp cam 274 in a '32 3 window hiboy. The stock converter didn't like it with the cam. Wish I had gone with a 2200 converter.
I would slide a 2200 in there too. 280 in a 350cid is not that radical, drop the motor down to a 265 and it will probably idle like a prostocker.
In your particular setup where does it start to climb up on the cam. What I ise for my general rule of thumb is that stall should come close to where my power band starts. With the torque on hand from a 265 and a light vehicle it will probably start hooking up at a lower stall speed than the rating anyway.
yeppers, lower torque and light weight will throw the convertor off its advertised stall speed. going with a 2200 will probably get you a workable solution.
I can assure you with the info you provided and the light weight of the car, the 1800 wont be enough. Allowing a small displacement engine to rev higher into the torque band will also increase the performance substantially. You will be amased at the performance increase when the converter is matched accordingly. You will be somewhat fighting the brakes at every stop light with the 1800, and you wont be happy. The above posters who have stated that are very correct in thier opinions. Dont forget a trans cooler even if you have one in the radiator. The increase in stall speed will increase the trans fluid operating temps. Consider it good insurance.
That's very true, but it also depends on what issues are most important to him. A stock converter would cause the car to die at every stop light. A 2200+ would give more performance, and would probably work quite well in such a light car. An 1800 would cure the stop-light-stall problem, but may very well walk up on the brakes a little. Like I said, the 1800 would most likely work just fine for him, but it depends on what he expects out of the car.
most likely isnt much comfort when you gotta pull it all back apart if it dont work though. a 2200 will work, and if its a little loose it still wont be loose enough to slip at highway speeds or develop a lot of extra heat.
Here is a lot of good information that may help in your depression Selecting The Right Torque Converter By Phil Parsons The torque converter (TC) is probably one the most misunderstood pieces of equipment in all of automotive. Hot rodders (even experienced ones) often brag about having a "3500 stall speed converter", without even knowing what that implies (as you will find out soon, a 3500 stall speed converter would generally be useless on any street car short of the most radical of Pro Streeters). Some even boast of having just a "stall speed converter", which displays a stunning ignorance, because ALL automatic transmission equipped vehicles have a "stall speed converter" - it's the number that makes the difference. The whole idea behind different stall speeds is to allow the car to launch at or just below the point where the engine makes the most torque. That way, the engine doesn't have to build up to the peak RPM point - all of the power is right there, on tap. If you've ever been to the drag strip, you have probably noticed that the cars rev way up before the light turns green - this is because most racing engines don't make substantial power until they are spinning over 3000 RPM. If these cars were using the stock stall speed, the tires would break loose long before the engine reached it's optimum RPM. A higher stall speed converter allows the engine to rev up to this optimum point without breaking the tires loose. So what is stall speed? This is another widely misunderstood term. In the simplest of definitions, stall speed is the engine RPM level at which the torque converter "locks" and overcomes whatever resistance is present to turn the wheels. This resistance is the weight of the vehicle, combined with any other factors (i.e. if you have the brakes on). The old definition of stall speed used to be the engine RPM at which the brakes can no longer hold the wheels still at full throttle. This is not exactly accurate, due to the variations in brake holding power from vehicle to vehicle. In other words, in two cars that are exactly the same weight, horsepower, etc., the one with weaker brakes will display a lower stall speed, even if it really isn't, because the brakes will lose their grip at a lower RPM. The most accurate method for determining actual stall speed on your vehicle is to launch the vehicle at full throttle, and note the rpm at which the car actually takes off (this generally requires a partner watching the tach). This will be quite low on stock vehicles - around 1500-1800 RPM, slightly higher if the engine has been modified. The next question probably goes something like, "If I already know the stall speed (i.e. what was printed on the box), why would that number change in my car?" The answer is that even though all converters have a rated stall speed (based on a fixed set of torque and weight figures), there are variables that affect this figure, mainly vehicle weight and engine torque. If you are really sharp, you may have already figured out why these two variables affect the stall speed. Weight affects the stall speed because it changes the amount of resistance that the converter has to overcome. A lighter car produces a lower stall speed because the amount of resistance (weight) has been decreased. By the same token, a more powerful engine also lowers stall speed because in the simplest terms, increasing engine power has essentially the same effect as decreasing vehicle weight. Obviously it is extremely important to know what your vehicle's weight and peak torque is before ordering a torque converter. One of the worst mistakes in all of hot rodding is to buy a converter with a stall speed that is too high. This usually results in a car that is not only slower than it used to be, but also gets horrendous fuel economy and eats transmissions. This is because the converter is slipping all of the time, absorbing power and passing it along as heat to the rest of the transmission. If Joe X. tells you that his TPI equipped 305 Camaro has a 3500 stall speed converter, and you're reasonably sure that he's telling the truth, challenge him to a race and bet large amounts of money on it. Why? At 3500 RPM, TPI in stock trim is pretty much at the end of it's torque curve, meaning that most of the engine's usable torque is absorbed by the converter and passed along as heat. The same exact car with a stock converter would destroy Joe's car off the line, because the stock converter is designed to take advantage of the TPI's excellent low end torque output by using a stall speed of under 2000 RPM, right under the peak torque. Probably the most important factor to consider when selecting a torque converter is the camshaft. The connection may not seem obvious, but the fact of the matter is that the camshaft basically dictates the RPM level at which the engine will produce it's peak torque, which will in turn dictate the optimum stall speed. If your camshaft has a duration of 220-230 degrees (@ 0.050" lift) or more, you definitely want to think about a higher stall speed converter, probably about 1000 RPM over stock, because the engine will probably make peak torque at well over 2000 RPM. A general rule of thumb is that most stock small blocks (especially TPI equipped) are designed to make most of their torque at low RPM, while small blocks with high horsepower generally lack low RPM torque. Does this mean that you shouldn't bother with an aftermarket converter if you don't have a radical cam? No. Performance converters are usually designed to accelerate more aggressively than stock, so an aftermarket converter with the same stall speed rating as stock will often be more responsive than the stock unit. You just want to be very careful about the stall speed that you select. Here are some general guidelines for selecting a converter: * According to B&M, the stall speed should be rated at about 500-750 RPM under your engine's peak torque RPM. If you don't know this figure, be conservative in your estimate. You don't want to end up with a converter that has too high of a stall speed. Don't be too conservative, though - it is possible to get a converter with too low of a stall speed, which will have roughly the same effect as too high of a stall speed. * Know your camshaft specifications. If your cam has less than 220 degrees duration (@ 0.050" lift), which most street machines do, you make most of your torque down low in the RPM range, and you probably won't need more than a 2500 RPM stall speed, if even that much. * Have a good idea of your vehicle's weight. Remember, lighter vehicles will lower the rated stall speed; heavier vehicles will have the opposite effect. * High stall converters generate a lot of extra heat. The installation of an external transmission cooler is mandatory with a higher than stock stall speed converter. Actually, you should have one in there anyway. Heat is the number one killer of transmissions - 85% of all trannies die because of inadequate cooling. The best advice I can give anyone buying a converter is to talk to the manufacturer. They know torque converters better than anybody, and can help you to select exactly the right converter for your combination. This article was designed to give you some insight into what is needed to determine the right converter, and to make you familiar with the terms and what you need to know to speak intelligently with the experts.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showpost.php?p=6161021&postcount=13 he old and his leg isnt working the way it used to. its his car, he can do whatever he likes, and you shouldnt pass any judgement over it. hmmm, 4 speed car that sits in the corner neglected and ignored because medical issues make it no fun to drive, or automatic car that goes everywhere because it doesnt cause you pain to drive.
I spoke with you at the Decatur Swap Meet about this situation. If the engine will idle happily at 800 rpm, you don't need anything other than a stock converter. If it won't idle under 1200, you might need more stall...but only enough to allow the engine to idle freely while stopped in "Drive". If it were my car, I'd swap the cam for a milder one just to get the idle down to a reasonable level instead of putting in a loose converter to deal with a stoplight creep problem. I'm past the age where I need a rumpety-rump idle to impress the locals...but that's just me. All this happy horseshit about performance means nothing if all you're going to do is putt around town most of the time. It's not about heat or gas mileage either, it's about the car being very unpleasant to drive at moderate speeds. Below the effective lock-up rpm the car will be very unresponsive to throttle input. From recent first-hand experience, as I explained at the swap meet, you are not going to like a hot rod with a spongy, slow-to-respond throttle. Although our cars are not at all alike - mine is heavier with a milder cam and lower numerical final drive - I couldn't wait to get the 1800 stall converter out of my car and put a stock one back in. The difference in low speed throttle response is like night and day. Put a loosy-goosy converter in your car if you want, but I'm pretty sure you'll live to regret it. My $.02
I HAVE RUN 1800 CONVERTERS AND LIKE OTHERS HAVE SAID , With that much cam and those gears it will be fine, a stock 350 converter has a stall speed of about 1400 so you are not night and day off of a stocker. Most after market converters stall speed are based on a 3000 lb vehicle, example i had a 1600 lb car i replaced the converter twice to get it right ended up with a 3000 stall because of the light car. Talk to one of the converter companies give then your info and i bet they recommend a 1800 -2100 stall speed
Yes, one that's rated 2200 or so in light car , small cubes and a bigger cam. I don't think 1800 is near enough to make driving that combo enjoyable.
the 1800 will work fine, doubt if the litle motor will make enough low end to ge it stall that low anyway......the 2200 will work too, but may have to rev it up to much to take off making an equally unjoyable experience........have used that much cam in similar motors with stock converter and had no problems......and would rather have good brakes than a nice rev just to ge er movin......
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