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What is your rear gear ratio...now that harland has mentioned it?

Stan's Customs

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 10, 2004
Messages
226
Location
Ft. Worth, Texas
Corvette
Project 1961....
Just curious what rear gear ratio everyone is using and for what application (year model)including engine , trans, and rear tire size...if convenient. Trying to decide myself...what would be best.

I have one P-Trac w/456 gears in the project car....which had solid lifter non #'s match 283. Haven't checked the parts car gear yet....but it has a non P-Trac housing....and no motor. Both factory stock for '61. Doubt that I will use either...

Stan....
 
Forgive me if you're just asking about solid axles.

3.08:1 rear, 502ci, 5-speed Richmond (5th is 1:1), currently P275-60x15 rear tires; also have a set of P295-50x15


67HEAVEN-Wilson-Niblett01-600.jpg
 
Since i`m not interested in driving at speeds of buck fifty plus, my gears range from 4.11 to 4.56 in my Chevy powered pieces starting the with little fuel injection Vette clear up to the L88 powered Vette and 396 L78, 427 L72, and 454 LS7 Camaros and with one extreme of a 5.13 in my A990 Race Hemi 70 Cuda. I must admit the 5.13 is too much for the street. :L All of these are very quick cars, no slouches here. :upthumbs
 
3.55 posi in the 60
 
3.36:1 non-posi ;squint:
its ok with the wide ratio muncie but my next will be at least a 3.55:1.

Brian
 
3:36 in the 61 would probaby like 3:54 better but the 3:36 are a relief after driving the 69 on the highway with 3:73 :ugh Steve
 
Hmmm.....

I had a '55 Chevy years ago with 456's and a strong built 350 engine that I recall being a little deep for the street. Long time ago though.

Maybe that 456 posi I have would be all right after all....with a mouse motor.

I'm thinking of building a cheap (relative to what, Ha!) hot rod from my parts car ....and want to make sure I don't sell off any gears etc, that I might need..

If I do that, it came with a 283 w/202's and some kind of solid lifter cam. The motor was a fresh build that had been sitting many years without being cranked...so the assembly grease(lubriplate) is crusty and so on. The cylinders were just honed and ringed ...like many did back when.

It also has a wide ratio muncie and an aluminum flywheel.....neither of which I have used previously. All my 4 speeds have been close ratio's and heavier flywheels.

Seems like the wide step between low and second would tend to let a little motor fall on its face....even though it would have a lower gear starting out. Comments..? The only small motor I've had was a 302...at least any worth mentioning.

Wally, what engine was in your 456 car?

I'm just kicking this around.....if I thought this stuff would work it might be a fun thing..that would pacify me a little...

The other one is taking forever because of the tens of thousands needed to do it right.


Thanks for the post everyone...
Regards...Stan M.
 
3:36 in the 61 would probaby like 3:54 better but the 3:36 are a relief after driving the 69 on the highway with 3:73 :ugh Steve

Thats about the way I remember Steve..
But I was in the plains of west Texas then..

Maybe city driving exclusively would make a difference...seems like some like deeper gears than I thought approiate.

Or a big difference in the type motor I was running comparatively...

Stan...
 
I have a 3.36 open gear in the '59. It is a 2.20 low close ratio 4 speed and the engine is a 283 built to 270 horse specs except for the cam. It's an old Wolverine solid lifter with the same duration as the Duntov but with .428 lift. As I said in the other thread it is somewhat of a chore to move off of a dead stop with the lack of manifold vacuum and bottom end torque but it will smoke 'em f I want. I also have a 3.70 open and a 4.56 Twin Pull under the bench. I had a 3.70 posi in it and it was great for driving around town and even on the highway up to about 65. Faster than that and it spins the engine a little hard.

I had a '65 327/300 4 speed wide ratio with a 3.36 posi and it was a great combo. 3000 rpm @70 mph and 18.5 mpg. Also my '67 427/390 was a wide ratio 4 speed and a 3.36 posi. It was also very easy to drive with that combo.

My old '70 454/450 horse LS6 El Camino SS was a 3.55posi. With all of that grunt it really didn't need a steeper gear. I rarely had to downshift to pass unless I wanted to get it done real fast.

Tom
 
Thanks for that comparison Tom

I just haven't had a 283 so I'm in the dark till try one. Can you tell me what you think of the step between low and second with the wide ratio trans? Which is the better of the two transmissions for a 283 in your view...I see you have run both?

Stan
 
You have to get used to the 3.00 inch stroke's weaker low end torque. It's a lot different than a 350. But on the other hand you will love the way it revs. I think I could live with the 3.36s in my car if I had the lower 1st gear of the wide ratio trans and if it was a standard cam and single carb. I think that if you look up the gear ratios for both you will see that they are both spaced fairly evenly, just further apart in the wide ratio. Don't get the idea that a wide ratio behind a 283 is like skipping a gear on the 1-2 shift because it isn't that bad. It just drops your rpm more out of the torque sweet spot on shifting during normal driving but not so much when you are taching it out to 6 + grand.

Another car I had was a '56 Bel Air 2 door hardtop with a Corvette close ratio 3 speed behind a built 283. It had a Duntov cam and a single E series AFB, ported heads and Headman headers. I ran a 3.70 Twin Pull and with this trans the 1-2 shift was a big step. The 3.70 made it livable and when I was embarrassing a GTO or something I was pulling enough rpm's that the 1-2 shift kept the engine on the cam.

I think those 202 heads will kill the bottom end of that 283 even more. They were really too much for the 302 in the Z28 at low rpm cruising. I'd say run at least a 3.70 with a close ratio to have a nicely drivable car. If that cam is a big one and with those 202 heads I'd go 4.11 at least with the close ratio to be able to move off of a dead stop and keep the engine in the power band during shifts. I have never seen a big cam, big valve 283 that liked to be run on the street, just cruising around town. To me it sounds like an engine that won't start to work until 3500 rpm.
 
You have to get used to the 3.00 inch stroke's weaker low end torque. It's a lot different than a 350. But on the other hand you will love the way it revs. I think I could live with the 3.36s in my car if I had the lower 1st gear of the wide ratio trans and if it was a standard cam and single carb. I think that if you look up the gear ratios for both you will see that they are both spaced fairly evenly, just further apart in the wide ratio. Don't get the idea that a wide ratio behind a 283 is like skipping a gear on the 1-2 shift because it isn't that bad. It just drops your rpm more out of the torque sweet spot on shifting during normal driving but not so much when you are taching it out to 6 + grand.

Another car I had was a '56 Bel Air 2 door hardtop with a Corvette close ratio 3 speed behind a built 283. It had a Duntov cam and a single E series AFB, ported heads and Headman headers. I ran a 3.70 Twin Pull and with this trans the 1-2 shift was a big step. The 3.70 made it livable and when I was embarrassing a GTO or something I was pulling enough rpm's that the 1-2 shift kept the engine on the cam.

I think those 202 heads will kill the bottom end of that 283 even more. They were really too much for the 302 in the Z28 at low rpm cruising. I'd say run at least a 3.70 with a close ratio to have a nicely drivable car. If that cam is a big one and with those 202 heads I'd go 4.11 at least with the close ratio to be able to move off of a dead stop and keep the engine in the power band during shifts. I have never seen a big cam, big valve 283 that liked to be run on the street, just cruising around town. To me it sounds like an engine that won't start to work until 3500 rpm.


Good mornin' Tom and thanks again.

I was under the impression that the transmissions were about the same ratio wise in all the gears except 1st. Then I assumed that wide ratio had a lower first gear which created a bigger step between low and second.....almost like like the three speed close ratio you mentioned. I need to rethink that I guess.

I think the heads would kill the low end too...it's just the way it came.

Since I already have a wide ratio trans and I'm sure I have some 1.94 valve heads or can get some easily.....with that wide ratio trans trans and a new cam and a 4bbl. looks like 3.54's would be the optimum choice on gears with the mouse...or still stay with the 3.70's ? I'm guessing the 3.54's with the changes...since you mentioned 3.70's with the 2.02's and a close ratio trans would be good...

One other thing ...heavy or light flywheel?

Thanks again
Stan...
 
Hmmm.....

I had a '55 Chevy years ago with 456's and a strong built 350 engine that I recall being a little deep for the street. Long time ago though.

Maybe that 456 posi I have would be all right after all....with a mouse motor.

I'm thinking of building a cheap (relative to what, Ha!) hot rod from my parts car ....and want to make sure I don't sell off any gears etc, that I might need..

If I do that, it came with a 283 w/202's and some kind of solid lifter cam. The motor was a fresh build that had been sitting many years without being cranked...so the assembly grease(lubriplate) is crusty and so on. The cylinders were just honed and ringed ...like many did back when.

It also has a wide ratio muncie and an aluminum flywheel.....neither of which I have used previously. All my 4 speeds have been close ratio's and heavier flywheels.

Seems like the wide step between low and second would tend to let a little motor fall on its face....even though it would have a lower gear starting out. Comments..? The only small motor I've had was a 302...at least any worth mentioning.

Wally, what engine was in your 456 car?

I'm just kicking this around.....if I thought this stuff would work it might be a fun thing..that would pacify me a little...

The other one is taking forever because of the tens of thousands needed to do it right.


Thanks for the post everyone...
Regards...Stan M.

Hi Stan,

As you can see I like short gears for my drivers. I have two 4.56 pieces, one is the 62 FI Vette and the other is a 68 SS Camaro that I replaced the 396 with a off road 454 LS7 service package engine. I Put the Camaro together just as a lark never dreaming how fast it would be. I got told to go home from my then favorite track {Detroit Dragway} for lack of a roll cage after running consistant 11.2-4`s at over 120 top end speed. :L I have never raced the 62 but did use it to pull one of my Altered race cars to the Indy Nationals a few times. Ah, but maybe a few red light blasts over the years.

PS the Camaro uses a turbo 400. :upthumbs
 
Gear Ratios...

My 65 has 4.11 Posi...this is being driven by a 383CI SB. It does move right along...;)
 
I run 3.54 gears on both my C1 and C2, but with the 3.09 first gear in the trans, it is the same as a 4.97 gear behind the muncie. With the .60 overdrive high gear, it is the same on the highway as a 2.33 behind the muncie. Modern transmissions will offer eyelid peeling acceleration as well as good fuel economy on the highway. You might want to consider stepping up to a more current 5 or 6 speed trans.


Regards, John McGraw
 
Thanks for the info Wally and Mike..

Hello again John...and thanks that's really the way to go. ...but I'm really just kicking this around....to see if I could do it where it would drive OK. It's not something I would spend much on...I'd just use mostly parts I already have. I thought they might be worth a lot more in a driving car, albeit sorta thrown together. I'm sure I would get tired of shifting quickly.....but it would be fun for a while and I could vent off a little steam until it's sold.

I'm not going to get off course on my real '61 project very far.....but building this might help finance the other one... and I could probably put this parts car together in a month.

Of course the real short cut would be to buy your '59...Heh Heh! Who knows... stranger things have happened...all it takes is a fist full of $$$... what a car though! Wish I could afford it...

Thanks Stan...
 
Rear end ratio

My 59 hybrid has an 85 Corvette rearend with 3:73 gears. Paul Newman did the frame conversion and suggested these gears with the T-56 6spd vs the factory 3:08 or ??? high gears the rearend came from the factory with. Connected to GM 383 crate with fuel injection.
C Ya, Joseph Rock
Frankenstein 59
 
About ten years ago I was driving a 65 small block, and had access to quite an assortment of rear ends. Over a two year period I actually swapped out every ratio from 3:08, to 4:11, and the very best performance, vis a vie all around driving, was with a 3:55 ratio.

Excellent acceleration, and decent highway rpm. It would be my choice for a "driver" that would not see any track time.:lou

Stepinwolf
 

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