You need gears. 4.57's or at least 4.30's . If you have stock 3.73's or worse you'd have the equivalent to 2.73's or thereabouts in a passenger car. SUCK ASS GEARING !!!!!

Dont get me wrong. Hi gears have their place. If you want good gas mileage ... buy a Honda . Use the truck for what God intended. And that would be hauling ass!

I would also say a higher stall, I have a 3000 stall with 3.55 gears in mine and I have to actually try NOT to burn out at stoplights but I'll admit it's fun when it does he he!! I have to really be carefull, it spins into second too, and it's an auto Tranny!

Stuff in a 502HO with a 3.07 Posi--smoke without power braking.

Damn, that's another problem I forgot about: a posi diff. So, I have posi-traction, big tires, low HP, 3/4 ton drivetrain, TH-400 tranny, ALL WORKING AGAINST ME!!

EDIT: The only thing I've got going for me is my 4.57 gears :D

ANOTHER EDIT: I'm going on the assumption that it's posi-traction, but it's a Corporate 10-bolt, which is the same as an Eaton, right? In that case it could very well be a locker? The option listed on the options sheet says "NO-SPIN REAR AXLE". Hmmm, I have no freaking clue what I have...:(

YET ANOTHER EDIT: Ok, after reading about the characteristics of lockers vs. posi vs. open etc., I'm thinking it might be an Eaton locker, because the tires do make that "chirping around the corners". Yes, I know, not scientific analysis, but it seems most likely.

I've tried to power break too and no go. I can mash it from a stand still and leave a blackie for a at least a city block, but I can't power break. The 402 is makin about 425hp and 550ft.lbs. of torque, I don't think power is the problem. I can't find the happy medium, either I push the truck b/c breaks aren't pressed enough or they lock up and non of the wheels turn. I am running a stock TH400 and 3.54 gears and I figure a higher stall will do the trick.

A good way to tell if you have a locker in that eaton is to turn the truck off, put it in neutral and grab your rear driveshaft. If you can rotate it 30 degrees or so one way or another then you have a locker. If you had that much slop with an open rear end the thing would self destruct. With the locker you'll have that much slop between the cogs of the locker unit. If you notice when you are going down the road and you let of the gas quickly it will "clunk" a bit as the lockers cogs shift into their coast mode. Give it gas again and it'll clunk the other way.

You just need more power ....or a higher stall converter...or both .

Tonight on my way home from work I started from a dead stop in 2nd gear. I don't use 1st really at all, unless I am up to shenanigans or offroading, I start in 2nd when street driving. Didn't dump the clutch, but almost. Truck couldn't get traction to save its life. Big cloud of smoke, lots of spin & noise. Didn't move forward til I let off the gas. So it must be my truck is cooler than yours. lol

Edit: While doing this I also burned thru an 1/8th tank of gas.
Also, I let off the gas about 5500 rpm, I'm afraid to rev it higher than that. I heard that the redling is about 6 grand on a 350. I know I sound like an idiot doing this, I just want to explore my truck. In my normal driving, I never ever take it over 3 grand. I usually try to keep it under 2.5. I have 3.73 gears, or at least thats what the p/o told me. Originally 4.10's but were swapped, now speedo is off so I assume he's right.

yea..thats one bad mamajama you have there...ever feel like racing??????..lets see if I go to kansas to pick up a new engine..its not that much further to Ohio...lol

I don't know what you're complaining about. I wish my truck hooked up as good as yours. I've got 275/60's on the back of mine, and they'll go up in smoke. I wish I could get it to bite better. Everyones been talking about horsepower. It's torque you need to spin tires. :flag:

So that's what that clunking is!! I've been wondering forever why it did that! It was actually worrying me, thinking there was something wrong with the driveshaft or something :) Thanks Mike!

Now I'm gonna have to go out tomorrow (if it's not still raining) and check the slop in the driveshaft.

lol, I am taking it to the track tomorrow to see what I can do in the 1/4 mile. This will be my first time ever to drag race (believe it or not, in ANY of my cars) and I will prolly smoke the tires and do bad. But it's a fun thing my co-workers do, they have ran just about every kind of vehicle at the track...my buddy is runnin his new Kawasaki bike w/ us, and another in a brand spankin new F-150 4x4, not to mention my friends with ricers, and my 350+lb. manager in her primer and purple Mitsubishi Eclipse...lol. I don't really consider my GMC "badass," although I am being pitted against a S10 with a 2.8 V6 because my friends think my truck is so slow. I am 99% sure I will whip the S10, i think its stock...only advantage he has over me is that its an auto.

can someone explain how a power brake is done. Thanks ed ke6bnl So.Calif.

Put your tranny in 1st gear, hold down the brakes while you press the accelerator, then when the rpm's are high enough, you let off the brake and hopefully the tires break loose.

I think that's the simplified way of doing it; I've seen some people that have really good brake control and are able to let off the brakes just long enough to get the rear tires spinning, then tap on the brakes again to stop the vehicle from moving, but have the rear tires keep spinning.

This is all for an automatic transmission; if you have a manual, just dump the clutch :D

Thanks for the explanation. My boys 70 sb will easily smoke the tires without any help. I know from the $175 ticket he got because it was hard not to cherp the tires. He now carries 4 five gallon jugs of water tied to the back of the bed of the truck for better traction. That was with 275x60x15 tires 3.73 gears. Ed kebnl So. Calif.

My truck will spin the street tires a long ways.

Stroker, is that from that video?

Long Knight, yeah that's from the video on my website. That was before I got nitrous, I will get some more video soon with the nitrous. It will spin the street tires in high gear now.

I spun my tires yesterday and I thought the engine was about to blow. Maybe I should wait till I rebuild mine before I try anything like some of you. :D

I've managed to get the power braking routine down quite well, as you may see in my Avatar

1. Put right heel on brake pedal.
2. Right toe on gas
3. Left foot on clutch
4. Give'r some gas as you let off the clutch, just like you are trying to take off really fast, but don't dump the clutch.
5. As the tires spin, move your left foot to the brake pedal
6. Hold until desired tire smoke level is acheived
7. Release brake, mash gas, lay rubber!

I am currently unable to play video on my computer, but I remember Slammed67 showing me the clips of Stroker383 awhile back! Outragious!
Hey, Greasemonkey, better to screw something up in the motor now than after the rebuilt, right? LOL If you do screw something up, it will just move the rebuild date up a little! Woohoo!

I wouldn't mind that, but I am flat broke right now. If I screw it up now, I am out of a ride. Hopefully I can find a job so I can rebuild it this fall. I plan to buy a cheap crate engine so I can still drive the truck while the rebuild is going on. ;)

tires make all the difference in the world too! I used to have 32x11.5 AT's(very little tread left) on my truck, and I could spin the tires pretty easily. Now I have a new 31x10.5 with a very aggresive tread, and i'm lucky if I can kick them out around corners
The same was true for my jeep i used to have. With the bald tires it would spin with ease....as soon as I put the aggresive tires(same brand as truck's) it wouldn't even chirp!
i'm pretty sure my truck has the high rear end though.....not a lot of bottom end torque, but once it's going it accelerates pretty well

Jason:canada: