Went to a guy who owns a transmission shop and also races to talk about a shift kit and get advice on what to do with my transmission to increase the durability with the extra hp and torque from a cam and other mods. Also talked about a torque converter which I have in hand. It is a Yank 3000 tt. Gave him the specs on my cam and he thought it was too much cam. Here are the specs:

Duration at .500"
219/222
Intake lift 564
Exhaust lift 551
Lobe separation 112
Centerline 108 degrees
advance the cam 4 degrees.
rmp range 1800 - 6200

The cam is a custom grind cam from Cam Motion. I talked to a rep at Cam Motion and told him my objectives. I wanted to move some torque in the lower rpm bands. The guy at the transmission shop said one of his concerns is the intake lift and exhaust lift being too high which raised his concern about the valve to piston clearance (he has nothing to gain from me getting another cam or going with this one). With out knowing that Cam Motion said the cam should be advanced 4 degrees, the the tranny guy said with those specs I should advance the cam 4-6 degrees.

He said a problem with alot of guys is they end of putting too much of something and end up not getting the most performance from your vehicle. Right now I have basic bolt ons (shorty headers, volant intake, corsa cat back) with a custom tune 60% tm removed. Will be installing 4.10 gears very soon.

He advised not going with a shift kit. Basically a shift kit only makes your transmission shift harder. He said since I have the 4L60E transmission, it would be better to take out the tranny and swap out some parts to make it more durable (now, he does have something to gain there). He did not think a stall converter would be a good idea since I am wanting more low end torque. He said that if I had a cam with the rpm range from 2500-6500 then a stall would be a good idea but the the rpm range beginning at 1800, he thought a 3000 stall would be too high. I think he is being honest as he could install the torque converter and charge me more $$$$. He thinks it is not needed for my set up. Anyway, alot of guys in here say a stall converter is a great mod.

So, anyone with some "extensive" knowledge on cams, trasmissions and stalls would like to reply to add to the.

 

Well, I have a 3500 stall in mine... My cam specs are .525/.525 lift, 217/228 degrees duration at .050, 112 degree lobe separation, 109 degree intake centerline. As far as the more bottom end torque thing, when I installed my cam, it took away a considerable amount of bottom end, but when I installed the 4.11 gears and the 3500 stall, the off-the-line power was significantly increased. However, I didnt advance my cam any, and that should give you back a little bottom end rather than just installing it with no advance. You will get worse mileage tho, around town anyway, from that stall converter letting the engine rev up more than the stock converter would before it moves you. On the highway, if you get a lockup converter, which I assume you will, your mileage should stay relatively the same, maybe a little less because of those 4.11s.

 

I run the TT3000 and a 224/114 .578 cam. I have little low end below 3500rpm (will be advancing cam a few deg monday) but great pull above 4500 all the way to 6400rpm.
If your cam makes power below 3000rpm it will be lost to the converter.

Swaping out tranny parts is a great but expensive idea, no harm there.

 

From the sounds of it, this dude is old school. Your lift isnt even that high for an LS1 so you should have ZERO P to V clearance issues. The old stock smallblocks rarely ever got the amount of lift that the LSX motors get. As for the verter...Without it you are dead in the water IMO. You need that verter with that camshaft, no questions asked. In my mind the shift kit will help with durability of the tranny as well as a good servo. I wouldnt touch TM just because of all of the problems that i have seen my buddy go through with the 5 trannies he has put in. In essence your cam may be a bit big but not WAAAAYYYY TOO BIG! IMO you are good to go, and he is oldschool and hasnt the foggiest clue of what he is talking about.

 

Go somewhere else. Beau is right, the old school 350's cant run nearly as much lift as teh new LSx engines. I think you can get about .600 before you have to start worrying about p/v clearance. Also, advancing the cam will give you a little more low end, but with the stall you whould be where you want anyway.
Ive also noticed with these engines vs old school the LSx's really like to rev, You will not be happy with a 1800 converter. Hell the stocker stalls to about 16, 1700. You wouldnt be getting any more.
As far as the shift kit, he is partially correct. It will make your tranny shift FIRMER, but thats what you want, when you get a soft shift, its because the clutches are slipping to gently engage the next gear, that tends to burn the clutches with any considerable amount of power. Also if you are taking any Torque management out with a tune, you will fry the clutches sooner, cause you will have more power slipping them.
Also as far as teh RPM range of the cam, I would put money that it doesnt really start to make power till around 25-2700 rpm. It will make power under that, but thats when it will really start to climb.
If you want to wait a week or so, next time youre in BR, Ill let you take mine for a spin, I have a cam motion 223/226 and am going with a 3200 STALL (sorry Flyer had to ) I talked to both cam motion, and fuddle, and they were aware that I want something I can play with on the street, take to the track occasionally, and I use my 4wd a good bit off road during hunting season. As of now, I dont think I could be any happier. BTW as far as the tranny goes, most of the parts I keep tearing up (yes I have another down ) is the 3-4 clutches. id advise getting the Transgo HD-2 shift kit, and doing the vette servo, and Id try the OD servos also, but even I havent broken too many internal hard parts.

 

tell him to build your transmission and to not wory about the motor work...the guy that speced out your cam took into consideration the stall converter. im sure he knows his ****. you go to a cam guy to spec out a cam, and a transmission guy to play with the transmission. dont let one give you opinions about a subject they dont specialize in or youll be running around in circles IMO

 

**** them fellas that know everything about what they dont specialize in.

 

IMHO, the best thing you can do for your trans is the HD-2 kit and servo's. There are two ways to increase shift firmness. One way is to increase line pressure in the calibration. The problem with that, is your transmission will shift harder, but it will it does nothing for the durability of the trans, so in that aspect, your mechanic is partially right. Like previously stated, the HD-2 kit and servo's will give you larger pressure surfaces and minimize the time between your clutches engaging, which is the fastest way to smoke it. In my big *** SUV (as BlownChevy eloquently put it) the HD-2 kit made a world of difference and my trans feels stronger than it did before. All of my line pressures are set to stock for maximum safety.

 

Definatlykeep your line pressures stock with the shift kit

 

question, what exactly do all these special servos do i read about people having the vette servo and shify kits but where do you get them , what do they do and stuff like that