67LSX454

The question was FTI's "hard hit" SRLS converter vs the more conventional offering. Also how it stacks up against Yank's SS3600.
I think the answer is here.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic...lock-up-2.html
But if there's additional dialogue, I'm all ears.

91 Z28

iTrader: (3)

Call one of those companies and give them your setup details and have them recommend one for you so you get something built for your setup

67LSX454

I've done exactly that.
Spoke with Andre at Edge and Grant from FTI. A little with Dave from Yank although that was a while back.
It's looks to be that component wise and a spec'd stall are all about equal. It may be a matter of price point that'll swing my deciusion one way or the orther.

low2001gmc

iTrader: (148)

I've had a 4l80 FTI Street Racer 3800 and it drove like stock til I got on it.

I then had a 4l80 FTI Hard Hit 4000 and definitely more racy but still bearable on street. LOVE IT.

My tuner buddy said he liked the FTI Hard Hit 4000 over Tank SS 4000 he had.

67LSX454

FTI expressed the same with respect to "street manners" with the 3800. They didn't quite say the same for the higher stall/hard hit version. That said, that sort of thing is somewhat subjective. What is considered OK for one person might not be for another.
My closest experience is the Yank SS 3600 but I didn't have a lot of seat time with it. Very drivable and excellent shift recovery when compared to the several TCI off the shelf units I've raced. Drivability with the TCI wasn't an issue but the shift RPMs were miserable.
The hard hit certainly has it's appeal. I'm saying my focus is more on track performance this go around although that remains to be seen. That said, between Edge and FTI, they're both promising the same thing more or less.

Naturally, a lot of it has to do with how much torque you're feeding any converter. I'll say modestly that 450 lb-ft is about what I'm realizing at the crank. That takes some of the edge off of any converter.

vorteciroc

Low Engine Speed Torque production will be a far more significant factor in Torque Converter behavior than Peak HP production.

67LSX454

Yes sir. That part is understood. Further to that when in discussions with Dave Meyers from Yank he stated:

"The best converter for your setup would be my ss4000 converter. This converter will only flash to around 3600 behind your horsepower all of our converters are rated at 450 will horsepower which is 550 crank. This is a single disc lockup nine and a half inch converter it comes with a 3-year warranty and one free restall in the first year. I have pasted a link to it below for you on my website where you can order the converter if you would like to. The clutch option will already be defaulted to single clutch that is what you want you just need to select the transmission type and stall speed.
Thanks Dave"

I specified 450/450 HP/TQ. Essentially flat torque from 3800-4500 and peak HP RPM from 6000--6500 (give or take).
Interestingly, seeing as that reply was several months old, I contacted him again and got:

"The converter I would recommend for your setup would be my SS 3600 model. It is a single disc lockup converter which is what I would recommend you do not need a triple disc.
Thanks Dave"

When I queried him on the difference, he explained:

"The reason I suggested the 3600 is it has a little bit better street manners plus also you want to have your converter come in just before torque so 36 to 3800 would be ideal if your peak torque is at 4000.
Dave Myers"

Things that make you go hmmm.
Trying to get the street aspect out of these conversations can be difficult.
I gave two scenarios to FTI and quite reasonably got two different specs. I'm rolling with that at the moment.

FTICONVERTERS

iTrader: (3)

Looks like you guys have some what covered the hard hit converters but I wanted to add to what's already been converted.

In short. the "hard hit" converters are generally for N/A applications that are not concerned with "drive-ability" or "street manners" think max effort race car that's still a street car. These converters drive very loosely under light pedal compared too our other options in the series but they allow the engine to flash faster and higher under WOT, striking the tire harder and ultimately yielding lower ETs.

As always if anyone has any questions or wants to dive into further converter discussion. feel free to reach out anytime.

-Dalton

67LSX454

Hey Dalton @FTICONVERTERS I suppose there's that subjectivity component I referred to above. One person's loose is another's acceptable (if that makes sense).
Now, from an objective side, can it be said what the RPM differences might be when going to get groceries? That is, if the conventional converter starts to hook up at x RPM, what would be the increase in that RPM for the hard hit version? Can we say it's a 1000-1500 revs increase for a modest lb-ft input (as in 450 give or take). I'd certainly give that up for two tenths in the 60'!
I can kind of guess that would be difficult to say, but I'm asking as I'm at this part of the decision tree right now. That and how dedicated a track car am I building this time around?
Thanks in advance.

FTICONVERTERS

iTrader: (3)

Yes of course the loose vs. tight description is always subject to the users perception. You are on the right track as far as understanding the difference. The only thing I would add it is a common misconception that converters behave like a clutch; absolutely nothing there until you let the clutch in and then once you do, it grabs. Converters don't exactly work that way. They are a fluid coupling that will apply rotational force to the input gradually over time as RPMs increase. The relationship between throttle input and vehicle acceleration will always be logarithmic however with a tighter converter. It will appear to be linear at first where a looser converter like the hard hit hit series will have a parabolic trend much sooner in the graph. If it helps, based on what you mentioned I would recommend going with the hard hit option. I'll add that we do offer a 1 year 1 free restall for conundrums just like this one. Basically the way it works if it you are not happy with the stall config on your new converter. the first "restall" is on us, just cover freight. So you can have peace of mind knowing we can go with the tighter options if you determine the 4000 hard hit is too much.

67LSX454

At this point, I've of the mind to go with the "Goldilocks" option. The 3800 hard hit sounds just about right!
Thanks for input Dalton. It's much appreciated.