Rebuild/ Replace/ or Convert

[ProTour69Bird]

So i have a difficult situation and i need some advice. I live in Maui and my firebird is in Washington. About a year ago i started working on my car, i swapped my stock 350 for a 400ci. i did a top end rebuild and some all around cool mods. anywho, i was originally going to use the th-400 from the 400ci. until the bellhousing mount cracked off. so i'm using a th-350, i have a B&M shift kit and a summit torque converter. I had to take my tranny to a shop to have the shift kit put in right, well it wasnt done right. My transmission was in good condition when i took it into the shop. I had the work done probably 2 weeks before starting it. but when i first tried to drive it, i realized it wouldn't shift into reverse. i checked all my shift linkage, it was all good, now i know this is my fault. at this point i found other things i could work on and fix or replace, so i wasnt thinking of my transmission. i never took it back into the shop that put it in, idiot.

So i moved to maui with my car in running and driving with no reverse. Now my dad has been getting some work done. He took my car to a close tranny shop, they pulled the pan and inspected and figured that the reverse gear is burned from the few times its been drivin. The shop told my dad it could be rebuilt for about a grand. Im not up for that, i would rather rebuild it myself, and if im putting up to a grand for my tranny, i would rather convert to manual. so these are my options. rebuild it myself, would save me the most money. but i'd like to know if its a difficult ordeal or is it pretty straight forward and can been done pretty quick. i think this would be my fastest and cheapest option. i dont really want to replace an automatic, i'd much rather put money towards a manual.

Now about conversions, i would love to do this, but now it would probably be a stock four speed conversion, for the lower cost and ease of install, but in the future a TKO is my dream conversion. i would need to find a good 4-speed, driveshaft, crossmember, and all the complete linkage, brake and clutch pedals. this seems very possible, if i had all the parts ready to do it. from anyones experience how hard are conversions, i would have to do all of the work under the car, i dont have time or resources to pull the whole set up.

i just need some advice on this, since i would have to do either in a short amount of time, so i dont leave it a sitting pile when i leave.
(i go home for short trips, kick it with my fam and friends, and trying to get my car shippable to come to hawaii)

So rebuild or convert, limited time, and not unlimited money

Thanks braddahs!

[Steve Chryssos]

Obviously the rebuild will be the cheapest, fastest route. And the four speed swap is a a bit of a waste if you have your heart set on a TKO.
Sounds like you need a quickie rebuild followed by a well planned TKO swap. Gather all of the parts for the TKO swap, but enjoy your car with a rebuilt TH350 in the meantime.

[ProTour69Bird]

Thanks for the reply.

your right about the 4 speed conversion, i would much rather try to get all the parts to convert so it doesnt seem so expensive, and den drop some dough on a TKO-500 or 600, not sure which yet.

could you recommend a good rebuild kit, i've seen a B&M kit for about $150, i mean im not trying to put that much into this tranny. i just want it to hold up to some power and driving. how hard is a rebuild going to be, about how long should i expect. could pulling the tranny, stripping it down, start rebuilding, and be close to pau (done) with the rebuild be possible in a day. i'm really familier with all the parts and pieces of getting it out and putting it back in. This would be my first automatic rebuild though and from what i've seen from pictures, they look a little confusing.

i know i can do it, its just the amount of time i have to get it done, it will have to be a pretty quick rebuild.

thanks for any advice.
Brian

[Steve Chryssos]

http://www.oregonperformancetransmission.com/

Talk to them before you buy to make sure that yo get all that you need. I see a TransGo high performance kit: PTM-P4400HP. Your converter might be full of trash, so that might need replacing as well. And get an ATSG transmission manual.