greasemykey

iTrader: (5)

been looking at Jakes, Monster, and FLT. monster doesnt seem to build their trans nearly as tough as Jakes but its a hell of a lot less. On the plus side i called Jakes and talked with him about building me a trans. very nice guy. almost worth it just because of the customer service. anyway what im looking for are pros and cons if any of using these companies.

SnIpEz

iTrader: (3)

I have no comment on Monster 4L80Es as I know nothing about them. As someone who has been immersed in the 4L80E industry for years now, that's probably not a good thing. I just looked at their 2WD build for $1,800, add $600 for a core, which is ridiculous, and suddenly the value goes way down. Not to mention, I'm not a huge fan of their build list.

FLT builds a decent transmission, had one of their 4L80Es on my bench awhile back, but I think they've updated a few things for what they've done. You can most definitely get a better or equivalent unit for less though, I promise you.

As for Jake, well I used to be one of Jake's two 4L80E builders, and at times the only one I am no longer affiliated with the company as I work for/with someone else now, but I can definitely tell you of the 3 options, Jake has the best transmission for sure. He also doesn't try to make a profit off of core charges which is nice. I don't really know the guy building them now, met him once during the summer when I went up there in July, but the build procedure should still be the same and I hear he has a lot of experience.

Of the 2 other guys I work with now, I and one other both used to build for Jake, and the other, who has somehow never built a transmission in his life, designed some of the parts he currently uses (Manual box and a couple of other things), so we know Jake's units pretty well.


By the way, how is ole' NorCal? I'm from San Jose, really wish I could be back there Been gone since the last couple of days of 2010, not a day has gone by where I haven't thought about it since then in these nearly 3 years now.

greasemykey

iTrader: (5)

i hate it here. i hate california with every fiber of my being. i am from Livermore and grew up here. i would rather stick my nuts in a meat grinder than stay here longer than i have too. i miss North Carolina. actually i miss the south.

as for transmission companies i was thinking of going with Jakes. i just like to hear others storied of companies they have used. i have a Mad Dog stage 3 4L65E now and both transmissions he has built me have failed within a year.

SnIpEz

iTrader: (3)

Damn man that sucks, I am sorry to hear that. I'm sure the outrageous cost of living probably doesn't help California win you over at all, THAT is definitely one thing I don't miss and the biggest reason I don't go back. As time goes on, the reasons I wanted to stay begin to fade (mainly different people), so it's become easier for me.

Yikes, it's not really professional of me to say anything bad about a competitor, but I'll be honest, for anyone else who may see this. Don't bother with Mad Dog. He seems like a genuinely good guy who is trying to fix his business, but after the scandal of parts being paid for but not being put into the transmissions, it really damaged him. I won't attack the man's 'knowledge' on transmissions, but from what I glean from his posts and videos, it's relatively limited and I think the guy just picked the wrong industry. He seems like a smart businessman all else aside, just picked the wrong, wrong business.

Are you using any power adders? If you are using nitrous, I'm sue Jake already told you, but billet parts are a crucial, prudent investment, namely the input shaft and forward hub.

Mangled03gmc

iTrader: (95)

Monster is JUNK. Jakes is good. Havn't heard much on FLT lately. Performabuilt makes nice units, Ace makes good units. RPM used to have a great rep also, but have not heard much on them lately.

greasemykey

iTrader: (5)

no power adders yet. just running whats in my sig. i want a jakes stage 3 4L80E. i have been debating on converting my center console to a H2 setup but im getting tired of all the projects piling up.

i am willing to bet that my issue on my trans is he didnt install that billit accumulator that i paid for. the last trans he built did the exact same thing. i paid for another rebuild only to find out the accumulator had failed. now every time i call him he blames Circle D saying my converter failed. i keep saying that with a failed converter i wouldnt loose all movement in my trans. i pulled the pan off and its clean as a whistle in there. hardly anything on the magnent.

bud8fan

iTrader: (9)

jakes is the ticket

Vortec350ss

iTrader: (20)

I have an FLT and had a phenomenal experience.

Chuck knows how to build a tranny, and he was very very helpful with problems I was having prior to purchasing a trans from him. He earned my business and I'll remain a loyal customer, and from what I have heard behind the scenes I wouldn't have trusted any of the other more common names to build a unit for me.

02_Orange_D1SC

iTrader: (30)

i say either JAKES or FLT I've I've never delt with FLT but JAKES i have very nice to deal with on the phone and answered all my questions and the other plus about jakes is they specialize in building TH400s and 4L80Es

1FastBrick

iTrader: (17)

The Monster isn't going to be any better then Mad Dogs Unit. If you have a basic knowledge of transmissions and watch there videos You will see why you Not to use either one.

ACE, FLT, Jakes, and RPM all build a Good Unit.

Dont make the decision based on price. Call each one and see what they have to offer for the money, Then see how long until they can deliver and how they treat you as a potential customer. Then make your decision.