I think its harder to find a V10 tranny than it is to find a Diesel trans. lol

 

lol i dk. when i was looking to do my swap i found a 47rh in a v10 before i found one in a diesel.

As far as between building ur 518 or swapping to the 47rh. Go with the 47rh. You'll love the lock up towing. Swapping the n47rh isn't too difficult. And its not a whole lot more to get the parts to swap it in. An adapter plate (which i got when i got my 47rh from the salvage yard) and a new started are the only new pieces you need. All in all its an easy swap.

 

If you do find one out of a V10 however, the govener wieghts in the OD are the ony things that needs to be changed. As far as i know.

 

I have done a lot of thinking about time & money. I think rebuilding the A518 is the right thing for me to do at this time. I totally agree that the 47RH transmission is a much more superior automatic for the sake of sticking with an automatic. My budget is tight and the summer weather doesn't last too long around here. I'd like to get my transmission rebuilt with some better internals and go with a DTT torque converter before the summer is over. I think this combo will no doubt serve my needs of towing the 23ft travel trailer of mine on weekend camping trips. I really believe my problem is my 207K mile A518 is at the point of a good rebuild. Eventually I will gather parts and pieces to do a 47RH swap later down the road. Right now its a matter of getting the truck back on the road.........

 

My dad towed our 24ft camper with an 85 chevy C10 with a 305 v8 and 2.73 gears.

So i'm positive your truck will pull your little camper fine without having full lockup.

 

Haha, yeah I was driving down the freeway a few weeks ago and saw an old man and his wife bombing along in a 91-93 club cab 4x4 (very stock) pulling a 27-29ft travel trailer @ 60mph. This really ticked me off ........... my darn 93' can't even handle my 23ft trailer cruising @ 55mph. Again, it's time to freshen up things on the transmission. I know what I'm trying to expect from my pickup is not asking for much.

 

There are a lot of other good choices out there, and some with GREAT customer service

 

I'd PM "The Head" about his PATC built 518 trans. I think he had to go through some trouble to get it all figured out with PATC because they didn't think a Diesel a-518 Non lockup existed.

 

So what kind of specific upgrades can a transmission builder do to a A518? I guess I'm wondering what parts on the 518 were weak from the factory and are a must for replacing/upgrading. I already have the converter figured out. What kind of options does a person have for clutches and bands?

 

I asked this question before in this thread...

https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...8-t227727.html

PATC really really wanted to build me a lockup transmission. I had to talk them out of it because I already had non lockup hardware waiting. My opinion is they don't build a lot of diesel stuff, they do more muscle car stuff. That doesn't mean they can't do diesel stuff well however.

 

You MUST upgrade the bands at least. they were the weakest part of the torque flite trannies

PATC makes a band they say there the only ones who make it. Its super strong

Alto red clutches, kolene steels, direct clutch powerpack, carbon fiber bands etc.

Read here, everything you wanna know. http://www.transmissioncenter.net/dodge.htm

 

Beware of the reds, slip them once and they seem to die, a high energy borg warner or raybestos will be a lot more forgiving

 

Well im pushing over 500hp and almost 1200tq and im using red eagle clutches and borgwarner steels. New oem band, steel 2nd gear planetary, transgo shift kit, super servo, a quicker ratio band apply lever for firmer 2nd gear shifts and some other goodies. We have used red eagle clutches and borgwarner steels in all the trannys we have built and have never had a problem.

Jason

 

What about the planetary gear sets, aluminum housings, or steel?

 

I belive steel is the way to go. aluminum is the weakness of the 727, i know for a fact.