iroczrockz

I bought a B&M Torkmaster torque converter. It has about 500-600 more stall than stock. I am wondering if anyone else bought one and did you have the problems that I am having?

I put mine in and the engine had a balance problem afterwards. I was told to spin the torque converter around and rebolt it. That didn't fix the problem. So I took it out and sent it back to B&M. They said they're balanced before sending them out and that it's rare to have one out of balance. They sent me a new one and it's the same way. You can feel the unbalance effect when you start the car up.

Anyone else have problems with them?

Dizturbed One

maybe you torqued it funny the first time and it warped your flexplate

i'd put the stocker back in and see if it still does it

mean57

silly question, did fill the converter with tranny fluid before installing it?

iroczrockz

Yep, did that with both converters. I haven't checked yet but I wonder if the harmonic balancer could of been messed up when I was turning the flywheel around.

I have heard of people disconnecting the torque converter and starting the engine. Has anyone ever heard of doing that?
That would eliminate the torque converter from the problem.

mean57

just trying to eliminate possible mistakes

did you turn flywheel or crank pulley when rotating?

flywheel being good; crank pulley being bad.

i know it sucks to repull a trans but to answer your ? yes you can start car with trans removed. personally i would only start it to verify if it still shakes then shut it down. at that point if it still shakes time to check hamonic balancer and flywheel

iroczrockz

Well, the first time I tried troubleshooting this I unbolted the torque converter and rotated just the torque converter and rebolted it. That did'nt fix the problem though. I was thinking about just unbolting it again and starting the car. That won't be that bad really.

I didn't have any trouble with the pulley (vibration) before I took out my stock tranny. It is also a underdrive pulley for what that is worth.

89Nighthawk

Well, all I can say is I fragged a B & M Holeshot coverter and it took my transmission with it. I would never buy B & M.

TCI Streetfighter converter, same story.

Vigilante, so far so good.

iroczrockz

I don't think I will ever buy B&M again myself.

pmpn

Mine seems to hold up fine. Never raced though.

iroczrockz

I had to buy a stock replacement. I think it had to do with the balancing of the B&M torque converters. The stock one is fine. Go figure.

mw66nova

iTrader: (13)

in the case of torque converters, it really is a "you get what you payed for" situation. B&M converters are cheap cause they use cheap parts. if you want one that will last and works great in all applications, check out the guys at ATI Performance Transmissions. they build the converter to suit your needs. but please be warned, you'll drop close to $800 on a good converter from ATI or any other company out there that makes high quality converters.

88IROCZZ4

i have a B&M holeshot 2000 on my car, and so far haven't had a problem with it (been on since about feb.- march). although a little while after it was in i did notice a vibration while i was between 2000-2500rpm's, not only while driving but also in park or neutral. i was also having other problems at the time though. i wont go into too much detail, suffice to say it involved someone (not me) forgetting to disconnect the kickdown from the tranny when we pulled it, then replaced the broken cable with the wrong one(from a th350). a shop that then didnt properly adjust the NEW cable i had to buy afterwards, so my car wouldnt shift until 2600rpm's no matter how i was driving. then a broken rear sway bar endlink, an intake leak (rear intake seal, vacuum leak, oil leak, etc.) a messed up carb(probably due to trying to pull it off by leaving the kickdown attached and dropping the tranny, lol) needless to say that a few things have been going on since the holeshot was installed, but now that everything is fixed, i just replaced the stock intake with a Weiand Action+ and put on a rebuilt carb 8/27/05 with the help of a friend. i haven't noticed any vibrations and the car drives great. i don't know if i'll buy b&m again, or try someone else... but i feel the converter is better than the stocker and it was also what i could afford at the time. i'll probably try another brand when i move to a higher stall ... which won't be until i complete a few more mods. sorry to hear about your problems with the b&m ... apparently quite a few people have had problems with them ... so far i've had problems with pretty much everything BUT the converter ... go figure.

good luck!

88IROCZZ4

wow ... didnt realize how long that post was , heheh ... sorry

iroczrockz

Thanks, good luck with yours too. I'll definately not buy another torque converter from B&M again but I'm glad someone got some use out of them.

F-BIRD'88

Although I have a new B&M Holeshot 3600 In my car ( th-350) and have had no problems. (we've used quite a few of these converters without a problem at all.) You definatly get what you pay for. A real good custom built converter will cost you $800 or more. MW66Nova is right, If you want a good converter for a Th700 expect to drop close to a grand for a good lock up.

FbodyDave

I completely agree with this statement. I have also had a bad experience with a B&M converter. I actually have had better succes with a stock GM #5 behind a high torque engine. If I ever use a high stall again it will be a Yank/Vigilanty/Edge or some other high end converter. I also belive you get what you pay for.

Shagwell

Torco makes good converter, especially for the $. Cheaper(by far) than many others. - We're running one in my old man's blown drag car(TH400). - Also couple people around here running them w/ 700r's. very happy with them. - another thing... RAPTOR!!!

- I agree on the B&M converters. JUNK! You can easily buy better if you shop around. B&M and TCi both have yet to build anything for 700r's thats worth a crap.