Looking for some input from those of you who may have "been there, done that" (or are currently doing it). My build is a 72 Demon with a new 408 stroker/727 trans. Engine dyno'd at about 525 #-ft and roughly the same hp. This car will be a 95% strip/5% street car. It's got a 4.56 axle (may drop it to 4.10) and will weigh about 3200-3300 with me in it. Can't say for sure on everything as other than the engine, the car is still in the build phase.
I've talked to many of the torque converter companies about an appropriate converter for this combo. Likely looking at something in the 4500-5000 flash stall (it's a foot-brake car) so there are various ways to do that. Either a "tight" (or more efficient) 8" or a "loose" (ie. inefficient) 10" (or 9.5") converter. I'm leaning towards the 8" due to this car's intended purpose as a fun and quick track car first. But my question is if anyone has used an 8" and actually driven it on the street and made it work. The car has a BeCool alum radiator with a trans cooler in it and a separate trans cooler as well. But if the car was used to drive to a local cruise or car show or something that is 10-20 miles away, has anyone been able to get away with an 8" converter without overheating the trans? Also, how about just normal driveaways from a stoplight - how high in rpm does it go before it moves the car?
I have a 10" TCI converter that flash stalls at around 3300 in another car (440 engine/4.10 axle) and you wouldn't know it had a non-stock converter in it under normal driving. And it never even hints at getting the trans too warm.
So as always, looking for any experience and collective wisdom that's out there using an 8" converter or other similar stall range converter. Thx for your input!!
