who has rebuilt a 700r4 before ?

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i have a silverado with a dead tranny. im considering to rebuild myself. im trying to find a good dvd that shows how to do it so i know what im getting myself into.

ive been told if you have patients,time, and common sense its pretty easy but i want some other feed back.

local shop here in town gave me a ~$1000 including torque converter.
 
I tried to do a th350 once.after the 3rd try I towed it to a shop.there's lots of parts and reasons why a trans don't work and if you don't fix the reason it won't work.

One of those things best left to a shop. My boss just paid $1300 to have his rebuilt
 
I have done quite a few GM transmissions. You have been lied to, its not that easy and you need more than a DVD and a book to do this job.
Who knows what you will find there and what special tools you will need. At a minimum you will need a cone set for the teflon seals (teflon seal installer/resizer), long snap ring pliers, bearing race cup installers and a few other things. Probably $250 in special tools.
IMHO your better off paying the 1K and being done with it and have a warranty.
 
What Trav said, and about that warranty... my local transmission shop offers a warranty that is honored by thousands of independent transmission shops all over the country. Ask about that.

Personally, after bad experiences, I avoid the national chain like the plague.
 
I have done a couple, but only with expert supervision. I was helping a friend who stuffed himself under a guardrail off his motorcycle.....He was present mentally, but physical took some time.

The actual disassembly/reassembly are not that difficult, but diagnosis and recognizing what parts are not up to snuff is not easy at all. Plus, as noted, access to special tools is a requirement.

I would take it to a good independent shop, with some gray haired guys working there. Experience is gold, in this particular area.

Or, just buy a good national name off the shelf built trannie, and put it in yourself.
 
Getting it loose from your vehicle will save you some $$$. Flush the lines and get a parts store rebuild with decent warranty. It'd still be iffy but so'd anyone's first shot at rebuilding their own.

On the 700R4 specifically, throw a "corvette servo" on it before you put it back in the truck. Makes shifts faster and with less wear.
 
agree on the first time rebuild, it may take you a few to get good at it. i pulled a TH400 off a 78 chevy one time with transfer case attached and man that was a chore(recommend tranny jack!) I was younger and stronger back then. i had a shop rebuild it and put new seals on the transfer case as chain was still in great shape, but costs were much cheaper back then in the '90's when I did this.

I can post up a schematic of the 700r4 if you like. i have a friend who rebuilt one several years ago and he didn't get it quite right, so he ended up getting a rebuilt one, but he said he knows what he did wrong and that he would rebuild one again if he had too.
 
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You could invest in an ATSG book for it to see what you're getting yourself into...

http://www.transmissionpartsusa.com/ATSG_Transmission_Repair_Manuals_s/3766.htm

I don't think a 700R4 would be a good first try and would not characterize it as "EASY".

Can an advanced do it yourselfer with a good set of tools, a willingness to buy more tools, a willingness to ask questions and make some mistakes (read do it over)... do it - yes...

Are you likely to save any money on doing one mild or stock rebuild, vs an exchange or professional job - unlikely...
 
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Originally Posted By: 4wheeldog


The actual disassembly/reassembly are not that difficult, but diagnosis and recognizing what parts are not up to snuff is not easy at all.


Thats the trick right there. Knowing what you can reuse and cant is a big part of the deal. When you have start throwing hard parts at it other than clutches and steels it can get real expensive real fast.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
Originally Posted By: 4wheeldog


The actual disassembly/reassembly are not that difficult, but diagnosis and recognizing what parts are not up to snuff is not easy at all.


Thats the trick right there. Knowing what you can reuse and cant is a big part of the deal. When you have start throwing hard parts at it other than clutches and steels it can get real expensive real fast.


Right, definition of "dead tranny" would be helpful...
 
I've done a Mopar 727, wouldn't hesitate to take on a TH350 or TH400...

But a 700R4 is more demanding. Not only more parts, they were notorious for needing some very careful assembly in order to actually work well and last long. Better than the factory did in the early days, for sure...

If you've got plenty of time and actually *understand* why you're setting up each clearance the way it says to be set up, then go for it. But if you're planning to just follow a procedure without figuring out exactly why, I'd leave it to a pro.
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
I've done a Mopar 727, wouldn't hesitate to take on a TH350 or TH400...

But a 700R4 is more demanding. Not only more parts, they were notorious for needing some very careful assembly in order to actually work well and last long. Better than the factory did in the early days, for sure...

If you've got plenty of time and actually *understand* why you're setting up each clearance the way it says to be set up, then go for it. But if you're planning to just follow a procedure without figuring out exactly why, I'd leave it to a pro.



Well said. A TH350 is a great "starter" transmission to learn to rebuild on. A 700R is far more complicated for a first timer.
 
Originally Posted By: DuckRyder
Trav said:
4wheeldog said:
Right, definition of "dead tranny" would be helpful...


found it in my uncles garage, clean but no history of it.

put it in our 82 c10, drove it for 6 months. hauled a trailer to the dump and it started to slip in 3rd. drove home from the dump and it started to slip in all gears. pulled off the highwway and it never pulled out of 1st gear. truck sat for 4 years. with proper fluid level now the truck doesnt move in any gear.

thats what i define as dead
 
Wonder if the pump is shot? Pull a cooler line and see if it sprays fluid.
 
i bought my '78 chevy from a feller one time because he said the transmission was out, said he needed $25 bucks for it cuz that is what it would cost him to haul it to the junk yard.

gave him the money, got title and drove it home in first gear only. when i got there, i looked under neath truck and found the vacuum advance was disconnected, hooked it up and put 50-60k miles on the truck until i broke the crank shaft on it.

just a story.
 
Originally Posted By: leroyd92
Originally Posted By: DuckRyder

Right, definition of "dead tranny" would be helpful...


found it in my uncles garage, clean but no history of it.

put it in our 82 c10, drove it for 6 months. hauled a trailer to the dump and it started to slip in 3rd. drove home from the dump and it started to slip in all gears. pulled off the highwway and it never pulled out of 1st gear. truck sat for 4 years. with proper fluid level now the truck doesnt move in any gear.

thats what i define as dead


Sounds like more that just what a "soft kit" will fix... I'd try to determine if the pump is putting out pressure before I took it out.

As Trav said, you start having to buy hard parts it gets expensive fast...
 
Originally Posted By: leroyd92
i have a silverado with a dead tranny. im considering to rebuild myself. im trying to find a good dvd that shows how to do it so i know what im getting myself into.

ive been told if you have patients,time, and common sense its pretty easy but i want some other feed back.

local shop here in town gave me a ~$1000 including torque converter.



Here is a 700R4 build thread I did on another site 700R4 Build

700R4's are not really a beginner unit, Read the build thread then make a decision.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
I have done quite a few GM transmissions. You have been lied to, its not that easy and you need more than a DVD and a book to do this job.
Who knows what you will find there and what special tools you will need. At a minimum you will need a cone set for the teflon seals (teflon seal installer/resizer), long snap ring pliers, bearing race cup installers and a few other things. Probably $250 in special tools.
IMHO your better off paying the 1K and being done with it and have a warranty.


Well said
 
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