How hard is it to put in a shift kit? - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

Hooter · 07-01-2002, 01:03 AM

I want to put a shift kit in the old 69. My 74 chevy( for sale) has a shift kit in it and i like the crisp shifts. Then i drive the 69 and its the old slushomatic syndrome. How hard is it to put in a shift kit in a th 400?

RipMeyer · 07-01-2002, 01:18 AM

I did it in my 69. Its not hard at all. But keeping those check balls in place is kinda tricky. If you do any work on your truck at all you can handle it.

I used the B&M from summit.

BTW. I only notice a difference at high RPM`s, A VERY positive shift. It will bark the tires from 1st to 2nd and I have a tired old engine. But at normal driving speeds you cant even tell its in there.

CE20934 · 07-01-2002, 02:15 PM

Be wary of B&Ms. They are notorious for locking up the trans during shifting (hence the nice tire bark). Occasionally they can exacerbate a trans design flaw, causing failure. But that's relatively rare.

TransGo is a much higher quality kit. Lot more involved installing it as well, but it also fixes some of the design flaws in a trans.

**COBALT** · 07-01-2002, 03:41 PM

I've heard you need to rebuild your transmission to include new friction plates for the clutches before putting in a shift kit. Putting one in without rebuilding it will just waste the clutches even more than they already are. They're supposed to help preserve the friction surfaces, not improve condition of old ones.

CE20934 · 07-01-2002, 06:40 PM

You're right. Putting in a shift kit w/o rebuilding the trans will trash the frictions--possibly the steels as well if it's a P.O.S. kit.

07-01-2002, 01:03 AM	#1
Hooter My other Love Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Castlegar B.C. Canada Posts: 4,085	How hard is it to put in a shift kit? I want to put a shift kit in the old 69. My 74 chevy( for sale) has a shift kit in it and i like the crisp shifts. Then i drive the 69 and its the old slushomatic syndrome. How hard is it to put in a shift kit in a th 400? __________________ Castlegar B.C.The great white North (Canada Eh!) Hooter_5@hotmail.com First generation Monte Carlo club pictures of my life

07-01-2002, 01:18 AM	#2
RipMeyer Registered User Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Southern New Mexico Posts: 649	I did it in my 69. Its not hard at all. But keeping those check balls in place is kinda tricky. If you do any work on your truck at all you can handle it. I used the B&M from summit. BTW. I only notice a difference at high RPM`s, A VERY positive shift. It will bark the tires from 1st to 2nd and I have a tired old engine. But at normal driving speeds you cant even tell its in there. Last edited by RipMeyer; 07-01-2002 at 01:21 AM.

07-01-2002, 02:15 PM	#3
CE20934 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Help! I'm in an office park with its own network of freeways! Posts: 470	Be wary of B&Ms. They are notorious for locking up the trans during shifting (hence the nice tire bark). Occasionally they can exacerbate a trans design flaw, causing failure. But that's relatively rare. TransGo is a much higher quality kit. Lot more involved installing it as well, but it also fixes some of the design flaws in a trans. __________________ '67 C20--427 tall deck/SM420, 4.10 HO52 (Michigan has not been kind to the Old Man) '95 Caprice--355 LT1/T56/3.42 8.5" 10-bolt (daily driver, almost 300k on the chassis) '07 Outback--wife's car. 125k & counting. No head gasket or transmission issues yet. fingers crossed

07-01-2002, 03:41 PM	#4
COBALT Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Seattle, WA, USA Posts: 5,817	I've heard you need to rebuild your transmission to include new friction plates for the clutches before putting in a shift kit. Putting one in without rebuilding it will just waste the clutches even more than they already are. They're supposed to help preserve the friction surfaces, not improve condition of old ones. __________________ '69 3/4 ton C20 2wd-350ci/TH400 '69 3/4 ton Custom 20 2wd-350ci/4sp Manual '99 2wd 5.7 Chevy Tahoe Seattle, WA.

07-01-2002, 06:40 PM	#5
CE20934 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Help! I'm in an office park with its own network of freeways! Posts: 470	You're right. Putting in a shift kit w/o rebuilding the trans will trash the frictions--possibly the steels as well if it's a P.O.S. kit. __________________ '67 C20--427 tall deck/SM420, 4.10 HO52 (Michigan has not been kind to the Old Man) '95 Caprice--355 LT1/T56/3.42 8.5" 10-bolt (daily driver, almost 300k on the chassis) '07 Outback--wife's car. 125k & counting. No head gasket or transmission issues yet. fingers crossed

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