Auto to manual , pilot bearing question

OK maybe I need to tell you about my winterbeater engine.
Back in winter of 99 or maybe 2000. I would yank the 360/4spd out for the winter. In it's place I put a 73 teener,with a stock long block. Just a TQ and I left the TTIs in there. And I put a 904 behind it with about a 2400 stall. The 3.55s came out and 2.73s went in. 14 hours to do the swap, on the September long-weekend.
So this pkg was a real blast for winter,and I enjoyed it very much. I think I ran this combo for 2 or 3 winters. But one winter, I wanted to run the 833-od and GV to see how that went. Well even with the 3.09 low, take off with 2.73s was lame.And that poor S was sounding just like the Mustang boys with their little 5ohohs, and that deep low 5-speed they have. So in about 2 blinks of an eye, the 3.55s were back in. So now I had a starter gear of 10.97 again. But to take off on a par with the 2400TC and 2.73s , the stick was still lame. Well since I had the double od, and also had 3.91s; in they went. This gave me a starter gear of 12.08,and a cruiser gear of 2.16. The 3.91s now took off with the M/T, like the automatic did with the 2.73s. I think 3.73s would also have been enough, but I didn't have those, and the teener was quite happy to cruise at 1750=65
This was my experience.
If you do the math on that; 3.91/2.73 = plus 43% gear to break even. So Ima guessing that was what the TC was worth; at least 43%. Since the torque-multiplication factor in the TC is in fact fleeting; The 2.2 (estimated) ratio, falling to 1.00 in just a second or so, Plus the 2400 stall, were worth the average of plus 43%. With the 3.91s, I also did not HAVE to rev it to 2400 to get good take off. With a heavy flywheel, it was more of a blip the throttle and slip it out kindof deal. That is why I think 3.73s would have been enough. But the 3.55s kindof sucked. And that in itself is a wonder, cuz the 367 has no problems with blip-it and go, with those same 3.55s.

The following winter, the 904/2400 went back in.lol
And the winter after that I had a different winter beater. I sold that teener to my son who put it into an 84 D100. Eventually he tired of that truck and I bought it back for the teener/904; which I have yet to make use of........ :(