440 and 833OD
Wasn't one of the overdrives weak because there wasn't countershaft bearings or something like that?
None of them use countershaft bearings, not the standard 833’s, not the 833 OD’s, none of them.
In the iron case transmissions the countershaft is a light press fit into the case. In the aluminum case transmissions there is a .005” clearance between the countershaft and the case.
Much is made of it, but unless the transmission has been seriously abused it really shouldn’t be an issue. That’s where the bushed countershaft “fix” comes in that the article covers. Like any magazine article I think they’re a bit overly dramatic about how needed the fix actually was.
But who knows, at this point 40+ years later I’m sure there are 833OD’s that have been abused and worn out and probably should have that fix. But the few that I have look fine there and I wouldn’t hesitate to run them as is. Yes, the 833OD’s are theoretically weaker than the standard 833.
If you look at “strength considerations” in this article it covers the differences between the 833 and 833OD pretty well.
4 Speed Transmissions transmission
I personally think most people m underestimate the 833OD’s. The gear spread I think is the most undesirable part. But behind a mild big block I think they’d work pretty well, you’d have the torque to carry the gear spread. More so than with a small block anyway. I wouldn’t use one for racing, but again, that has more to do with the gear spread than the strength.