Full manual valve body, yea or nay?

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diymirage

diymirage

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So my duster is needing to go in to get some transmission work done

At this point it has a mild shift kit in the 727, but it is still regular auto

I was toying with the idea of putting a full manual in there, and wanted to know what you guys think about that idea

(I've had manual cars before, but never without a clutch)
 
I have three cars with full manual valve bodies, two reverse in torqueflites, one forward with a transbrake in a powerglide. Next trans will be a turbo 400 with a brake and rmvb.
I guess i like em.
You will have to make every shift, up and down, yourself. Keeps you alert.
 
I love my reverse pattern manual valve body in the Demon. I would shop for one that has first gear band applied. There is no engine braking in first, which for driving isn't an issue to me, but I believe it helps with the overrunning drum issue as because of this, is safer. 2nd gear burnouts make it safe also.
 
Yea from me.
I had the 727 in the '69 340 Swinger I had back in the very early '70s built with a reverse manual valve body and loved driving it on both the street and strip.
I had a reverse pattern manual shift 200-4R built for my current '69 Dart build.
Yeah, I like them.
 
diymirage said:
So my duster is needing to go in to get some transmission work done

At this point it has a mild shift kit in the 727, but it is still regular auto

I was toying with the idea of putting a full manual in there, and wanted to know what you guys think about that idea

(I've had manual cars before, but never without a clutch)
Click to expand...
I like manual ability, but retain the automatic part.
Full manual is more for people who wish they had a 4 spd...kiddin.
 
MOPAROFFICIAL said:
I like manual ability, but retain the automatic part.
Full manual is more for people who wish they had a 4 spd...kiddin.
Click to expand...


Well, the duster is the first car I ever owned that isn't a manual (not counting family haulers)
 
I like manual valve bodies. Wish I had one "back when" I drove a lot in winter.
 
i daily drove one of my cars with a MVB column shift for ~ 8 years, love em. what are you using for a shifter? if it's still on the column, over shifts can get a little "interesting".
 
I have a reverse manual in my 69 cuda with a 470 that is my daily driver. I would have it no other way. It's like being in the game pole position every day. Makes the drive to and from work actually fun.
 
I have a FMRVB in my 72 Demon. It's a Griner valve body...came with the Cope trans I got with the car. Limited street driving and car has only been done a couple months. I like it but might consider a forward pattern manual valve body for drag racing if I was doing it myself again. For the street, no question the reverse pattern is fine. And I have a Cheetah shifter that I'm getting used to and think I really like.
Manual valve body? Absolutely!! You decide forward or reverse pattern depending on shifter.
 
kursplat said:
i daily drove one of my cars with a MVB column shift for ~ 8 years, love em. what are you using for a shifter? if it's still on the column, over shifts can get a little "interesting".
Click to expand...
Its a Hurst promatic


And this is mostly a street car, it's been to the track twice in the 7 years I've had it
 
Excuse my ignorance but just to fully understand. I don't want to hijack this thread
A "Forward" valve body in an Auto would be considered the "traditional" style with park towards the engine and "1" (PRND21) closest to the driver? While a "Reverse" valve body would have the highest gear closest to the driver (PRN123...)?

Would you be able to manually shift a traditional style aftermarket floor shifter as if it were a manual without causing harm to a 727?
 
diymirage said:
And this is mostly a street car, it's been to the track twice in the 7 years I've had it
Click to expand...
I would Not recommended it. Sometimes it's nice to just put it into D and forget about it.
I did the MVB one time for myself. It was a kit. The kit was designed so that you could make it either manual or auto. The only difference was the way I chose to shift it. And the swap back and forth was simple to do. I gave the manual shifting a chance, but it wasn't long and the pan game off to return it to auto/ semi-auto. For good measure, I installed a decent governor.
 
71GSSDemon said:
I love my reverse pattern manual valve body in the Demon. I would shop for one that has first gear band applied. There is no engine braking in first, which for driving isn't an issue to me, but I believe it helps with the overrunning drum issue as because of this, is safer. 2nd gear burnouts make it safe also.
Click to expand...

I agree with his recommendation. I would also suggest something better than OEM bands & clutches. It will likely hit hard and quality aftermarket stuff would be more durable.

I ran one in the street in my first car, a 340 Challenger. Under the right conditions, it surprised a lot of people when I was able to chirp the tires on the 1-2 shift, even at low rpm's. But the shifting got to be bothersome after a while. If I hadn't gone to race-only, I probably would have gotten the best shifting valve body that retained the auto feature.
 
Locomotion said:
I agree with his recommendation. I would also suggest something better than OEM bands & clutches. It will likely hit hard and quality aftermarket stuff would be more durable.

I ran one in the street in my first car, a 340 Challenger. Under the right conditions, it surprised a lot of people when I was able to chirp the tires on the 1-2 shift, even at low rpm's. But the shifting got to be bothersome after a while. If I hadn't gone to race-only, I probably would have gotten the best shifting valve body that retained the auto feature.
Click to expand...
I agree. I tried the MVB years ago and it got to be really annoying, so went back to plain jane valve body with a good shift kit. Manual 1-2 valve is there so I can pull it into 1st at higher speeds if needed, but the ability to concentrate on driving instead of what gear it is in means a lot to me.
 
Mostly track car.. hell yes. Street car nope. A good shift kit with the right 1-2 spring, get the line pressure correct and a 3500 stall converter. Then if you want to manual shift you still can. Best of both worlds.
 
Hellrats said:
Mostly track car.. hell yes. Street car nope. A good shift kit with the right 1-2 spring, get the line pressure correct and a 3500 stall converter. Then if you want to manual shift you still can. Best of both worlds.
Click to expand...
It's been a few years since I put the combo together, but I believe it may even be closer to a 3800 stall
 
Projectile Dart said:
Excuse my ignorance but just to fully understand. I don't want to hijack this thread
A "Forward" valve body in an Auto would be considered the "traditional" style with park towards the engine and "1" (PRND21) closest to the driver? While a "Reverse" valve body would have the highest gear closest to the driver (PRN123...)?

Would you be able to manually shift a traditional style aftermarket floor shifter as if it were a manual without causing harm to a 727?
Click to expand...
Not sure if anyone answered your first question. You have the correct understanding of forward and reverse patterns.
 
I have had MVBs in all my cars. In a country where petrol can cost $2 a litre for premium [ that is $7.50 a US gallon for you guys in the US, $10.20 when you factor in the current conversion rate ], the MVB can save money with fuel.
But that is not why I like the MVB, it is just a bonus. A V8 powered car on level road with a MVB can take off in 3rd gear, TC does the work. If on a slope, use 2nd gear.
Because the trans is not changing gear all the time, trans lasts longer. You also have full control of when the trans shifts gears, with every shift. Rarely does the trans shift optimally on every shift in full auto mode, sometimes shifts are earlier or later than needed/desired.
 
diymirage said:
So my duster is needing to go in to get some transmission work done

At this point it has a mild shift kit in the 727, but it is still regular auto

I was toying with the idea of putting a full manual in there, and wanted to know what you guys think about that idea

(I've had manual cars before, but never without a clutch)
Click to expand...

Yeah. I like um. Make sure whichever one you get has low ban apply.
 
Bewy said:
I have had MVBs in all my cars. In a country where petrol can cost $2 a litre for premium [ that is $7.50 a US gallon for you guys in the US, $10.20 when you factor in the current conversion rate ], the MVB can save money with fuel.
But that is not why I like the MVB, it is just a bonus. A V8 powered car on level road with a MVB can take off in 3rd gear, TC does the work. If on a slope, use 2nd gear.
Because the trans is not changing gear all the time, trans lasts longer. You also have full control of when the trans shifts gears, with every shift. Rarely does the trans shift optimally on every shift in full auto mode, sometimes shifts are earlier or later than needed/desired.
Click to expand...

I agree! I had a MRVB in the 904 in my 65. Hot 360, 3800 converter and 4.30 gears. I rarely shifted out of high gear on the street....well.....unless somebody wanted a piece. lol
 
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