Quote:
Originally Posted by Marv D
Curious. I seldom see anything but brass and friction dust in a trans pan. Not saying it's not worth the effort but,, ...well I guess the goal is to never see anything on the magnet hu! Unless something goes horribly astray,, I thing that's what you 'll see.
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Not a transmission expert but most of that "friction dust" will stick to a magnet and help keep the abrasive material out of the fluid. On the 4L60E for example, the magnet has "rows" molded into it. And even on low mileage transmissions, I've seen material build up on these rows to form stripes on the magnet. I don't want that crap in my fluid.
You could clean a spot on the pan (similar to the stock location) really good with brake cleaner. Use a piece of sand paper and scuff up the area. Clean it again. Dry it with compressed air. Then use JB Weld or the aforementioned 2-part industrial epoxy. Not the cheap Harbor Freight stuff either.
I like the surface area afforded by the stock magnet. I think a magnetic drain plug will work too... but only if the fluid is changed more frequently or the truck is used for light duty.
FWIW, I've had conversations with several good transmission guys over the years and none of them like the aftermarket cast pans. They all tell me that the pickup tube is the biggest concern with non-stock depth pans. Even the ones with risers that retain the stock pickup and filter is no good in their eyes since they claim the risers never properly support the filter. They also claim that the extra fluid in deep pans do very little for the life of the transmission. They also told me to make sure the new pan comes with bolts. if not, you can strip the case if you use the original bolts since they won't thread in far enough. I've actually been burned by this too and had to use helicoils over the years to fix this mistake. So if you must use a cast pan, make sure you use longer bolts!
They all tell me that a cooler is a better investment.