the right stall for the street

i going to swap my th350 tranny this weekend for th700r4 and i 'm having trouble picking the right stall for the torque converter. it's a street driven daily driver with some upgrades i don't know how much current HP/TRQ the current combo is producing, the current specs are a 4000lb 1978 pontiac trans am with an oldsmbile 403 it's been rebuilt with a .30 over bore. up top i have an edelbrock performer intake with an edelbrock performer 795cfm 4bbl carb, an msd 6A box, a new sumitt billet distributor with a 50,000 volt coil, msd cap and rotor, msd 8mm wires, autolite platinum spark pugs, mild melling cam, 3:73 richmond gears, limited slip diff, dual flowmaster 40 series mufflers. the engine probably only has around an 8:01 compression ratio right now. with in the next year i'm going to do a head swap for 330 heads wich will bring my compression ratio up to like 9.5:1 or 10:1 and i'll also add some headers, and upgrade my cam with a comp cam kit like a 218/224dur and a 475/480 lift. but for now i'd like a good luanch without sacrificing  hi rpm driving. any suggestions?  

I would recomend using a b&m holeshot 2400 stall converter also you are going to need a adapter to us the 700r4 trans on a oldsmobile engine.  
Professional hi-performance engine builder

Horsepower sells Engines and torque wins races.

Are you sure the 700R4 will be the way to go? They aren't very robust. If you start putting a lot of torque to it it may become a problem. The TH200-4R used in Turbo buicks would be a better transmission choice if you need overdrive. I know a lot of guys racing these transmissions and they hold up great. They do have heavy duty drum assemblies etc. for the 700R4 now but they're pricy and i don't know how much better they make this trans. Just food for thought.  

I beg to differ. The later model 700R4s are plenty strong. You're probably thinking of the earlier 700R4s that had some issues. But any 700R4 can be built like a bomb shelter today.

With that hevay a car, I'd say go with a 2600-2800 stall converter for extra torque to get it moving.  

78bandit:
i going to swap my th350 tranny this weekend for th700r4 and i 'm having trouble picking the right stall for the torque converter. it's a street driven daily driver with some upgrades i don't know how much current HP/TRQ the current combo is producing, the current specs are a 4000lb 1978 pontiac trans am with an oldsmbile 403 it's been rebuilt with a .30 over bore. up top i have an edelbrock performer intake with an edelbrock performer 795cfm 4bbl carb, an msd 6A box, a new sumitt billet distributor with a 50,000 volt coil, msd cap and rotor, msd 8mm wires, autolite platinum spark pugs, mild melling cam, 3:73 richmond gears, limited slip diff, dual flowmaster 40 series mufflers. the engine probably only has around an 8:01 compression ratio right now. with in the next year i'm going to do a head swap for 330 heads wich will bring my compression ratio up to like 9.5:1 or 10:1 and i'll also add some headers, and upgrade my cam with a comp cam kit like a 218/224dur and a 475/480 lift. but for now i'd like a good luanch without sacrificing  hi rpm driving. any suggestions?

I'm currently using a TCI Breakaway torque convertor ina 3700 lb Camaro and a cam similar to yours (Old Comp 268H). It's available with the lock up option. I get between 2500 to 3000 stall at the track. (1.89 60' time on drag radials/ 3.73 gear)
Knowing what I know now though, I'd opt for the TCI Street Fighter which still provides the lock up option and it gives another 500 or so rpm stall. We run that in a late model Monte Carlo and it performs beautifully.
If you're going to upgrade in the future, you might as well go for the good stuff now.  

I think you might be better off with a 200-4r. You won't need to get an adapter to fit the olds  Bow-Tie Overdrive make a Great stage 2 200-4R. It shifts nice and firm but not so hard you are going to blow thru u-joints. The first gear is low in the 700-4r making a big jump to 2nd. and the OD is better in the 200-4R. I use a similar setup as you, just with probably a little less power but same weight and 3.42's in the rear.  I have a 2200 stall (you might want more stall than that) with a lock up converter. When you shift into 4th the converter automatically locks up, so i drive around town in 3rd. but i have a switch to manually lock it up in 2nd and 3rd.
I have put that tranny thru hell and back and it works just as well as the day i put it in.  
`

It may not be the fastest or prettiest, but i can pretend

When it comes to stuff like torque conveters, I talked to a lot of people and the best folks I found were the guys at ATI Performance Products. They have a spec sheet you can put all your car's info in right down to the cam specs ... and the TC is built just to fit your car. And when you do your upgrades, you can send it in to be modified for the new setup if necessary.

Here's a link to the form in case you want it.

link to form.  
"I hope that's what you wanted, now don't hurt yourself." - Jason, FBC Performance Center after initial tuning session.

I agree with Pathogen,when it is time to talk torque converters it is best to talk to the manufacturer of your choice and let them help you with the decision,I also talked to many different companies and chose to use TCI but there are several companies with with good products....but for my money it is the tech support that makes the sale and I have found TCI very good to deal with,a true example,when discussing my combination with them they told me my input shaft would not live through my current combination without spray and when we tore the trans apart to upgrade for nitrous the input shaft I was using was twisted....that to me is good product knowledge!
A torque converter is to important in my opinion to be recommended by any other than its manufacturer  

7000r4...it a great choice for the application..mind you will need the correct bracket for the TV cable..try TCI for the parts..it has a deep 3.06 first gear..vs 2.52 for th350(you wont need as more stall)..are you planning on running a lock up converter?you should; that way you will be able to run more stall if needed ( not more than 2800 is needed..more like 2400rpm)DON'T FORGET...when you throw it in OD...the revs are gonna drop big time (30%),and you will be right IN the converter..get a tranny cooler..

i prefer the gear spread on the 200 myself...

good luck with your choice...keep us posted!  

I have a 1979 Trans Am with a Chevy 350 (300hp street build) and I recently swapped out the th350 for a th700r4.  I am running a 2200 stall lockup torque converter and 3.42 rear gears.  I highly suggest you get a lockup converter no matter the stall you choose as it will be great on gas on the highway, but locking up doesn't create as much heat as slipping which is a big deal if you plan on crusing the highway at all.

B&M makes a quicksilver ratchet shifter which fits right in the console of these 2nd gen F-bodys and you'll need a new shifter if you want to control all four gears (you can also get a kit to convert your stocker if you are a purist).  I couldn't be happier with the 700r4, the steep first gear is great, it's durable, and the highway cruising is night and day compared to before.