Читать книгу Chrysler TorqueFlite A-904 and A-727 Transmissions - Tom Hand - Страница 7

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Some friends leave lasting impressions because of their patience and generosity; Scott Thibault is one of them. Scott shared his transmission shop, tools, and his after-hours time to press bushings and teach me about transmissions. I owe him much.

Kyle Drake and I cruised the Kansas City streets; he was in his 1968 Roadrunner, I in my 1969 Dart. Kyle has always been one of my best Chrysler friends. He and his family trusted their Superbirds, Roadrunners, Little Red Express Truck, and other TorqueFlites with me. I am deeply indebted to Kyle and his late father and mother, Dick and Beverly Drake.

Bob Craighead, a terrific Service Trainer for Chrysler, shared information about A-904s, A-727s, and FWD A-404s/413s/470s and A-604s. Bob provided so much to me on his own time; I am honored to be able to use this book to share some of his wisdom.

Stuart Davis, one of my best Chrysler Corporation engineering friends, was instrumental in setting me on the right path with many of my projects; I thank him for the support on this one. John Donato, a “factory” TorqueFlite expert, provided valuable information and support years ago and again on this project. Thank you both.

Some books are boring without decent photographs and getting them requires skill. Brandon Waldrop suggested the hardware I should buy and he walked me though the basics of using it all. Dennis Hedberg took time to “dial me in.” Paul Catlett and I worked together for years and when it comes to shooting inanimate objects with tough-to-see details, Paul is one of the best. I very much appreciate their help.

Being on the streets in some of the best years (late 1970s and early 1980s), people ended up in parking lots with owners of similar types of cars. Stuart Bays, Barry Spillman, Tom Palmer, Clark Riddle, and Mark Breeding were out and about in Mopars. When they needed transmission help, I was honored to have been allowed to “experiment” with theirs.

The FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) organization exposes high school students to the technologies and skills needed in today’s workplace. Designing, building, and testing 120-pound, 5-foot-tall robots in six-week build periods requires ultra-dedicated students. My daughters, Emma and Becky, were on their winning high school FIRST Team (#1987) and it was then (as a mentor) that I worked with the Team’s CAD expert, Logan Smith. Because of his tremendous design and drafting skills, I asked Logan to help illustrate many sections of this book. Kenzie Settle, another FIRST Team #1987 member, was also responsible for the Team’s CAD work, and she provided more of the illustrations. Logan and Kenzie, thank you.

It is because of the generosity of my automotive friends over the last 37 years that I was able to amass all of the valuable references used for this book; thank you all.

One of the most honest repair shops (Steve’s Auto Service) in the Kansas City area is run by the Hollo family: Steve Sr., Steve Jr., and his son, Joey. Since 1969, the shop has been known for its integrity and honesty. I married into the family and am forever grateful.

In the early 1980s, R. Michael Noe took the time to highlight a few parts I left out of an exploded view of an A-727. I wondered why he knew so much and learned that he was a final inspector at the Kokomo TorqueFlite Assembly plant. Michael arranged a tour of the Kokomo plant and he helped me throughout the years. I appreciate his help and friendship.

Mick Dobbins spent a lot of evenings in 1982 drawing the first diagrams that demonstrated what was on when the TorqueFlite was operating. His work was invaluable then and I appreciate even more now the time he spent with that drafting pencil.

Jerry McLain is a Chrysler parts expert and I asked him to help me complete the list of TorqueFlite numbers. Having collections of parts manuals on Microfiche, I knew he would help, and for the ones he lacked, he had a guy who helped fill in the blanks, Brent Piburn. Brent opened his machine shop and library so I could review and copy parts books and training publications. For newer numbers, I turned to a current parts manager, Mike Gibbons. These three (and Bob Craighead) helped me compile part numbers of TorqueFlites.

When you do anything with TorqueFlites, converters soon enter the conversation. I met Kris Abrahamson of Continental Torque Converters in the late 1980s. He was known for his ability to build converters that work amazingly at the strip but act like stock converters on the street. Kris always took time to talk converters with me and before his recent retirement, he spent a lot of time doing so again. I owe much to Kris Abrahamson.

Rob is “the guy you all knew back then” who had the cool Mopar stuff. Rob has evolved into a premier Hemi collector and he gladly loaned me Hemi TorqueFlite parts. Rob is one of the most organized and knowledgeable Hemi guys I have ever met, and I am thankful I met.

Tyler and Tim Schloss provided the measuring equipment, a lot of the supplies used in the photography backgrounds, and water-jet and machined parts. Their support is much appreciated.

There are many performance parts for TorqueFlites and one way to share information and pictures was to borrow them from suppliers. Rick Allison from A&A Transmission, Roy Baker from Alto Products Corporation, and John Sackevich and Gregg Nader from Sonnax Industries Inc. took time to read my original requests and trust me with thousands of dollars’ worth of their parts. Their help was very important and appreciated.

I want to thank a few Mopar enthusiasts. Rob Merritt provided names and contacts; Al Vasquez offered suggestions, comments, and questions; David Zatz put CarTech and me in touch; and Rodney Byrd, Tracy Lambeth, Rick Allison, and Lon Kopaska took time to provide input to the Modifications chapter.

A&Reds Transmission Parts in Wichita, Kansas, has been my choice of suppliers from the beginning. Leon Autry, president, and his wonderful and efficient wife, Pam, have been so kind and helpful from the first time I met them in the early 1980s. Their Kansas City, Missouri, store, operated by Gale and Valetta Autry and Bob Belzer kept me supplied with the transmission parts I needed. (Over the last 35 years, if I accidentally ordered incorrect parts, Pam was always happy to take them back.) I thank the entire A&Reds organization for all they have done.

The late Gil Younger, Mr. Shift from TransGo, always took time to answer my questions and offer words of wisdom regarding TorqueFlites and life in general. He used to tell me, “his printed materials were worthless unless they were ragged and worn out from usage.” Gil, you would be proud to know that I have almost destroyed some of the pages of the books you sent me so long ago. I thank you sincerely.

Finally, I want to express thanks and appreciation to my dad, Jim Hand, one of the smartest Pontiac guys around. Dad worked with CarTech in 2003 to write one of its first Pontiac performance books, which is now, unfortunately, out of print. Dad spent so much time making sure his book was accurate and useful to the reader and I hope I have done the same with this one.