Oh To be the little dude that lives inside my head. The stubborn little phck that cannot come to terms with " giving in".
It frustrates me to no end to have to have to give up on this, and send the converter away..it has me considering.....
Alternatives.
I'm surprised that nobody here has asked ( Well, Steve did..I take that back) I guess it's just too complicated to consider the alternative..
Well Mike,....What is the alternative then?
Well then, since you've asked...
There are two different bellhousing configurations to work with. Two starters, two flexplates,....
I thought itd be easier to use the 2j starter/ flexplate combo because it's the smaller of the two, and the flexplate bolts directly to the crank.
But....I'm gonna have to modify a $500+ converter to make it fit..Potentially damaging it on one hand, additionally altering it to where it wont fit anything else.
So,....if I fck it up to where it cant be fixt, I've created a $500 piece of sht. ( to go with the $6000 piece of sht currently sitting on the floor)
To add to that, I called PTC this morning..turns out that cutting the converter open can be done by a competent machinist with a full size lathe.
I just happen to have a friend that has a full size lathe. Even if he cant do it, their charge to cut it open is 25.00 bucks.
I just have to make time to get there and back.
If, on the other hand my friend can cut my converter open........I can weld it up, then either drive up there and pay 200 bucks to get the converter refreshed, and welded back together.
OR..
I abandon that path. ( pay attention now, cause this all boils down to a matter of time, stuff I can control, and money)
Here's the problem with using the 4R starter mounting location, and the Ford flexplate.
See that freakin extended pan rail? It's about right where the ford starter will be.
That forces me to either relocate the starter down, or....twist the whole transmission. As in: cut the starter recess off of the bellhousing, move it down, then weld that thing using a spool gun. Then, patch the hole that I created to add back the integrity that I cut away.
I'm also gonna have to do something with the ford flexplate to adapt it over to the 2j crank bolt pattern.
The upside of all of this insanity is that it doesnt cost dick.
And....I dont have to have the converter cut open, cut the existing feet off of it, and weld new ones on, then pay $200 to have it freshened up, and welded back together.
So....do I step back,...resign myself to butchering a converter to make it fit an application it wasnt intended to, forever limiting myself to that one converter, or..
Do I plunge forward, and modify the starter location, so I can leave the converter as is...which gives me the opportunity to change/upgrade that converter with another thatll only need to be bolted up to the flywheel that it fits up against.?