TCI heavy duty 904 rebuild kit will make tranny handle 550 hp

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I buy TCI brushed stainless steel governor covers for the th350 by the dozen from Jeg's; never once failed on me..
 
In the direct drum?
I’m pretty dang sure, my brother and I put it together...oh jeeze...10 years ago. I just don’t remember the specifics. I DO remember adding more clutches. I swapped to a 4 speed a couple months after I installed the 904.
 
A TCI story.....
About 20 yrs ago I bought the TCI o'haul kit for a 727 & included was the 'TCI' shift kit. The instructions were photo copies, not good when you need to drill holes & install the right valves. After reading the instructions, they looked familiar....
Yep, a copy of the Transgo instructions almost word for word....
 
I'm tempted to put together a kit with all rings gaskets and seals; filter, duprene pan gasket, thick thrust washers, all Red Eagle thin clutches, kevlar front band. And maybe pump bushing and direct drum bushing.
Could you post the link you sent me the one I posted doesn’t seem to work so I deleted it
 
That kit has 5 grooved front clutches. That's equal to four smooth. I always put five smooth in the direct...no problems. Not oem, only Red Eagle. That's equal to over 6.5 grooved.
 
TCI from my perspective; I bought an HD 727 from TCI a few years back (3-5). I put it in a basic stock 318 71 Duster, the only modification was an LD4B intake & a 650 VS Holley. I installed it per THEIR instructions & used the fluid recommended, put an after market transmission cooler on, hooked up & installed the kick down linkage, adjusted it per the instructions & returned the car to it's owner. The transmission lasted about 10 days of mostly around town driving with a little highway driving. The customer brought it back complaining about slipping & over revving the engine when shifting. Check fluid level, level is fine, fluid is dark, dark brown & smelled burnt. Phone call to TCI, take the car to AAMCO, they are an authorized TCI outlet. Sent the car to AAMCO on a tow truck & followed. Car is dropped off & I wait for for 4 hours before someone gets to me & tells me the transmission was cooked due to low fluid. I called BS & showed pictures of the stick when I checked it. I wait for another hour, only to be told I would have to take it up with TCI. Another tow truck bill to have it hauled back to my place & a wasted day.

Next day, call to TCI & explain the previous day to CSR. I'm told to remove the transmission & ship it back to them on my dime so they can check it out for warranty purposes. Fast forward 2 weeks, I get a call from TCI & get the same story about low fluid causing the problem & that is not covered under warranty. Next day, I get my lawyer friend involved, sending them a "Letter of Demand" about refunding cost of transmission, cost of towing & cost of shipping. One month later, I get a check for the afore mentioned cost of the transmission "only". My lawyer buddy ended up taking them to court for the balance owed, TCI rep didn't show up, the judge awarded me the balance of the money, plus $1000.00 & TCI was ordered to pay court costs & my attorney fees. The lawyer filed a lien against TCI for the monies owed & to this day, I've never seen another cent from TOTAL CRAP INSIDE.
 
It probably really was low fluid level. This is why I don't ever provide any type of paperwork whatsoever.
 
I guarantee the fluid level was good, I check it multiple times before any vehicle leaves my shop. I also instruct the owners how to check fluid levels to make sure they understand the importance of it. I serve a limited amount of customers at my discretion & have many return customers.
 
Once it leaves your shop, you can't be sure that the customer makes sure that the fluid level is maintained. Even without paperwork, I stand behind my builds. Sometimes a customer runs it low or doesn't hook up their kickdown, then I charge for the repair. While I get trans work from hundreds of miles away sometimes; I prefer it be close by. If you order a heavy bulky item online and shipping it is expensive, I would think a warranty would be about worthless. I've repaired several TCI transmission that were still under warranty because it was cheaper to fix them than to ship. TCI is picky about their warranty. There's no "fix it no matter what" with them. For instance; if you break the pump installing it, they won't work on it at all for any amount of money. When people ask me about a warranty, I say, "If I screwed it up the first time, why would you want me working on your transmission again?"
 
Once it leaves your shop, you can't be sure that the customer makes sure that the fluid level is maintained. Even without paperwork, I stand behind my builds. Sometimes a customer runs it low or doesn't hook up their kickdown, then I charge for the repair. While I get trans work from hundreds of miles away sometimes; I prefer it be close by. If you order a heavy bulky item online and shipping it is expensive, I would think a warranty would be about worthless. I've repaired several TCI transmission that were still under warranty because it was cheaper to fix them than to ship. TCI is picky about their warranty. There's no "fix it no matter what" with them. For instance; if you break the pump installing it, they won't work on it at all for any amount of money. When people ask me about a warranty, I say, "If I screwed it up the first time, why would you want me working on your transmission again?"
Well there's no TCI in my future if that's the way they treat there customers!
 
TCI has a reputation to match their prices. I would never deal with a company far away if I didn't trust their builds. But getting back to kits, all I've seen is overpriced kits that really don't have the builder in mind, and the pieces are available individually for lots less. You'd think volume would reduce price. I would get a cheapie gasket rings and seal kit, a duprene pan gasket, nine red eagle smooth thins, selective thrust washers,filter, pump bushing and one for the direct drum, and a kevlar front band. That's it. Probably about 150 total.
 
What fails in the TCI...go after that components maker. C'mon if the Firestone tires suck and fail on the Explorer, is Ford to blame? Well..maybe. Disclaimer: I own nothing from TCI
Pishta, it was some of their odd modifications and their technical support provided (or lack there of) after a low mileage failure. We were trying to put their trans back together they way they sold it. No luck getting exact technical help from their on-line support folks so i just built it a proven way and returned it to the owner.
 
Pishta, it was some of their odd modifications and their technical support provided (or lack there of) after a low mileage failure. We were trying to put their trans back together they way they sold it. No luck getting exact technical help from their on-line support folks so i just built it a proven way and returned it to the owner.
At this point I don’t think I will be buying any TCI stuff
 
I had a TCI trans come in that wasn't shifting right and it had NO endplay. The bottom friction in the direct wasn't engaged with the splines. And they're always just oem frictions from what I've seen.
 
Well...... the van I bought a while back ('89 B250) had a new TCI tranny in it with a chrome deep pan that has "TCI" stamped in it. The PO bought it new from them, installed it with a new Hughes converter. He pulled a camper from NW IL to Florida and back. I've driven it very little so far, but so far no issues.... yet! LOL
 
Automatics are extremely unforgiving. You can throw a motor together and it will at least run, but one tiny mistake in a trans...and it's no go. So your B250 is probably going to last for many many snowbird round trips..
 
Called TCI tech said the heavy duty 904
Rebuild kit will make tranny handle 550 plus hp
Jegs has it for 250 out the door
Part 129000
IMHO what's missing from this thread to achieve your goal of being able to handle 550 horsepower is your intended valve body or shift kit. The best clutches and bands still will not hold without sufficient line pressure and a stock valve body won't get it done. The line pressure is even more important on a 904 because it has less clutch surface area than the 727. I agree with Tony, the vast majority of rebuild kits are made by a handful of companies and they are rebranded.
 
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