I plan to upgrade from 4.11 to a 3.25 or 3.54 gear set when I build the banjo in my car. What is best? 1932 Roadster, no fenders 1934 Banjo 1932 transmission Fresh 1957 283 with power pack heads and comp cams xe262h camshaft Rear tire 700 or 750/16 We have lots of hills here just building the car and the rear banjo axle so no experience with the 4.11 1. Stick with 4.11 2. 3.25 new 3. 3.54 new 4. Machine up some later 3.78 to fit the 1934 axle I am converting to 9” axles so it should all hold together. Any real work experience? Thanks
I swapped out to a 3.24 in my banger coupe... From 3.73.. drastic difference... But cruising 60 to 70 like butter now... 750-16 rears... The stock trans shifts from 2 to 3 at about 40 mph and that feels great all in all. No shim on one bell and 1 shim on the other.... Tip of the day, put drivers side bell in a vice or what not when checking pattern, tons easier and all you have to do is to pull the passenger bell and if you need to add or change shims on drivers bell your just pulling the center section off to get right, re shim and check again... My pattern came out spot on first hit. Quiet and rolls good. Its not rocket science... Either gear will do you fine with enough tire. I see why alot of folks stick to 3.50 area cause with the taller tires it is probably good enough... But If you want top end and freeway cruising, then drop down...
+1 on the 3.25 gears. Went from 3.75 to 3.25 in my '32 hiboy with Ford 9" rear, a SBC crate engine, and a Richmond T-10 4 speed. Still pulls great in lower gears and lowered the RPM while crusing at 70-75. Car weighs around 2500 lbs., rear tires 30" tall.
My sedan has 3.78 rear gears with 7.00x18 tires. It runs about 2700 RPM at 70 MPH. I had considered swapping in 3.45's, but probably won't.
I’d use the 3.25’s with todays roadways where I live. You say your in hilly country and that makes it different especially if a lot of stops are on hills. It’s tougher on a clutch. 3.54’s may be better tor you. I would also look into an overdrive conversion that attaches to the trans and still uses the stock style rear. A friend just did one to his 32 roadster which had 4.11’s and loves it on the road/freeways now.
I'd do 3.54s. With 750 16s you can run highway speeds and stay well under 3k RPM. And, that gear will give you a little more pull off the line than 3.25s behind a 283. I had a 350 with a banjo and 3.54s and 750 16s. It was a good combo. A 283 aint exactly the torque monster of the SBC family. So the 3.54s will help with that. If you had a 350, 3.25s would work fine.
go with the 3:54 gears. I have a nice little 283 in my 39 with a 3 speed from a early 60's fairlane, with 3:50 gears in the nine inch. It was much better than the 3:78 gear that was in the banjo the nine inch replaced. plus with a 7.50 16 tire i was rolling at 80 MPH through most of Nebraska at right at 3000 RPM. Still great on hills and did great in the mountains through Wyoming. Plus remember a 283 is not a torque monster and they like RPM. Get the cruise RPM to low and that 283 will feel like a slug.
Except in the instance of a torque monster, when faced with the choice of two gear ratios that are close to each other, choose the numerically higher one. It is better to turn an engine a little faster, under better mechanical advantage, than it is to spin on more slowly, with worse mechanical advantage. No engine likes to be lugged. In the case of early engines (not a SBC) that have fewer main bearings than later ones, lugging can be fatal. TL;DR: 3.54:1
Thank you everyone. I have been really worried about too high of gears for the 283. The cam specs state 1,300-5,800 rpm. Specs are usually based on a 350 so the 283 might be higher? Used the calculator above: 4.11 City -30 mph- 1,346rpm Country 37mph 1,606 rpm Local highway 61 mph 2,649 Big Highway 68mph 2,953 rpm 3.78 city-30 mph-1238rpm Country 1,478 rpm Local highway 2,436 Big highway 2,715 Will even the 3.78 be too high geared for the 283? Trips on a big highway will be rare. I have never had a 283 before so I am not sure what to expect? Thanks
If you're going to the trouble of changing the gear, go with a 3.54. Most guys have 3.78s already, so most of them, (me included) aren't willing to change from a 3.78 to a 3.54, too much work, not much gain. But from a 4.11 it will be a big difference. However, if highway trips are rare, go with the 3.78. Clear as mud?
I'm running 3.78 gears in a banjo with 7.50 x 16s and it is ok, I don't do a lot of highway driving mostly 55 to 60 mph. and the ole Y block needs as much help at it can get!
I ran my 39 with 3:78sgor about 5000 miles before I swapped it out to the nine inch with 3:50 gears. You’ll be just fine with the 283 and 3:78s. It was great in mine. I went with 3:50 gears cause I had them.
I built a rpm calculator. I also included 1st and second gear. Does this look OK for a 283? I think it might be? @squirrel what do you think? Thanks
Someone, Crower IIRC, used to have a chart that showed the “relationship” between a given cam and engine displacement. I think a call to comp cams asking about the rpm range in a 283 should be your first step. They’d know. That gives you a lot more info to base your decision on. I don’t know where in BC you are, but I’m on the East side of Seattle, and in and out of the foothills and passes all the time. So that plays into too. The other thought is when they were new, 283’s turned higher at cruise than the later larger engines. You don’t need to be afraid of that.
Based on the 283 is 4.11 correct? I found a conversion factor for the cam specs. Power range goes up 200 rpm for every 25 cubic inches less than 350. So this cam will make power above 1,800 rpm.
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