Here is my summary of the trans removal and stall swap.

A lot of people say the bolts at 12 and 11 o'clock are hard to get to...but dang, they were simple! The hardest one was the bolt at about 10 o'clock, my 1/2" swivel/extension was hitting the trans tunnel...so I just got a flex head ratchet wrench on there, done! Actually, I used the flex head ratchet wrench on all the bolts except the top 2.

The transmission jack from harbor freight is a great too and the price is right at $62!

Honestly, dropping the transmission was not as hard as removing the stock exhaust manifolds..ha

I don't have the new converter in yet... but I'm sure it won't be bad at all considering how quick we got the old stuff out...

 

Nice cat was he supervising ?

 

Haha, yes!

 

Is that one of those free flow cats?

 

So you say the flex head ratchet and the tranny jack are the way to go?

 

Definitely! Unless you have a garage with a nice lift..

On the top 2 bolts we did use about 4ft of extensions and a swivel..but everything else was easy.

 

I'd say the hardest part so far was getting the car up on jackstands

 

so droppin the tranny was so easy that the cat could have done it by himself? haha. was doin my headers harder?

 

Ok guys,

My converter is all the way back in the trans and the measurement is 1 1/8" from the bellhousing to the stall.

I used a drill bit to measure the distance from the flexplate and converter mounting pad. It was an "M" drill bit, which I found equals to 0.295. So, it seems I'd need a 0.125 shim to get it within spec and it would be at 0.170.....So...where do I get a 0.125 shim?

Also..the Yank converter bolts seem really short, and if I put a washer/shim that thick on it..will it have enough thread to hold on??

 

My trans is being a total PITA to get out. guess ill be going tomorrow and buying more tool lol

maybe your info will help about the tools!

 

if you shim your converter i would definately get longer converter bolts. those ones from yank are small. i believe they are 12mm. i will be shimming my converter too and i am going to get a 16 or 20mm bolt. unfortunately i don't know where to get shims either. the bolts are 10 (diameter) if i remember correctly.

 

Well, my transmission is back in..the only thing left is to bolt the converter to the flexplate...but I need shims.

This swap was relatively easy.. a few minor snags in it...but it was a learning process..the first time I ever dropped a transmission.

The only hard part was actually getting the dipstick tube back into the transmission..wow that was a pain in the ***! I tried everything and it wouldn't go...so I just dropped the transmission again..haha lowered it a couple inches and it was in. So...major tip...start the dipstick tube in before you bolt the transmission to the motor.

After looking around, Jegs actually sells converter-to-flexplate shims, but I don't want to wait a week to get them..ha

 

Ok, updates!

The car moves under it's own power again.

I got some washers and shimmed the converter...at first I thought it was going to be impossible...I couldn't get the washer in and the bolt in..dang what do I do?

Well, I used some grease to stick it to the mounting tab long enough for my friend to spin the motor over so I could put the bolt through...worked perfect!

Also..The Yank SS3600...it really doesn't feel that much different than stock...obviously when it shifts and the RPMs drop only 100 rpms I notice it...but the rest of the time it feels stock..maybe I should have gotten a 4400..haha

 

Good to see your back together and running, but i'll answer this question for what I did.

I too had to get some 0.125" washers (I had to search to find 3 very close - finally settled with 0.122", 0.123", 0.123"; close enough...).

I didn't feel safe using the short bolts Yank supplied with my SS3600, and didn't want to wait to order ARP TC bolts; so I just too the factory TC bolts (which are too long to go into the Blind Holes on the Yank TC) and put them on a grinder until I had I think right around 0.590 length (ironically the same length as the ARP TC bolts).

Cleaned them up with a 8x1.25mm tap and all was well with the world.