It took some time for the mechanic to determine what was going on with my motor and then I made the decision to sell it as is and I bought a 327 with a performer intake and camel hump heads balanced and rebuilt with 350 hp so its a completely different animal. What I was wondering was do you think my 2 speed power glide is fine for this application as I have seen others comment on a 700r 4 which I know nothing about. Also if I stick with the power glide would you recommend a stall converter and if so what size? Is there a way to tell what gears that car would have had in the rear end without opening it up>
Don't buy a stall for the PG get a 350 with lock up
What Gear Ratio is My Rearend?
You can find your gear ratio easily with this method. All you need is a jack, some jackstands, and knowing how to count helps too.
You're going to have to put the car in nuetral or out of gear, so safety first! Do this on level ground, and be sure and chock the front wheels so the car can't move. It helps to have someone there in the car just in case...
First, do you have a posi or limited slip rear? If you're not sure, just jack up the rear so both tires are off the ground and put your jackstands under the axle. Now turn one of the tires. If the other tire turns the same way or doesn't turn at all, you should have a posi or limited slip. If the tire turns opposite of the way the first tire spins, then it's probably an open rear end.
If you have a car with a posi or limited slip rear, jack up the car and get both rear tires off the ground. Now put your jackstands under the axle. Make a line on the pinion yoke and onto the rear end with chalk or a grease pencil. Do the same to the tire on the car, so you can see when the tire has rotated exactly one turn.
Now count the number of turns of the driveshaft that it takes (use your chalk marks) to make the rear tire turn one complete rotation. (Transmission needs to be in nuetral or out of gear.)
If your car has an open rear, jack up only one rear tire and leave the other on the ground. Now put a jackstand under the lifted side. Turn the tire and again count the number of turns of the driveshaft, but this time you must turn the tire two full rotations.
So:
Posi: Jack both wheels off the ground. Turn one wheel 1 complete turn.
- Count the turns on the drive shaft.
Non-posi: Jack one wheel off the ground. Turn the wheel 2 complete turns.
- Count the turns on the drive shaft.
If it takes about 2 and three-quarters turns, it's around a 2.73 gear ratio. If it's a little more than 3, you have 3.08s. If it takes about 3 and a quarter turns of the driveshaft, you have 3.23 or 3.25 gears. Very close to 3 and three-quarter turns, 3.70 or 3.73 gears. This method won't work very well on a posi that's worn-out and won't spin both tires equally.
This method is very handy when looking through junkyards or swap meets. It's good to be able to figure what gear ratio you have without tearing anything apart.
I don't even jack the car up as long as it's high enough to see the driveshaft.
I make a mark on the driveshaft, taking note of where the mark is indexed.
I make a mark on the tire right at the bottom and put a mark on the cement that lines up with the tire mark. I roll the car 1 full revolution of the tire, noting how many revolutions the driveshaft has turned. Of course this requires being able to see the mark on the shaft when it stops after one tire revolution, which might be a challenge if it's not easily visible.
Anyway, the number of shaft turns (let's just say it's just over 3 1/4) on a GM would be a 3.31 or 3.36 ratio, depending on whether it's a 10 bolt or 12 bolt.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
power glides are pretty much indestructible, but if you want something that gets out of the hole quick , with a 2 speed you do need a stall converter say 3500 rmp and gears. tire size comes into play as well.
What I am wondering i have a 67 283 with powerglide and a 63 327 with powerglide the 283 glide I know works and will use it on 327 are the stalls the same on both or should I put the 327 power glides stall in the 283 trany I want to use ?/..Thanks guys
I suspect they will be the same or so similar you won't know the difference. I can try to check the parts book later but GM is famous for two different part numbers for parts that are virtually identical.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
