Today I've been cleaning out my garage to make it a decent place to work, therefore I still haven't fabricate the tool to remove the snap ring from the rear and from the front flex plate. This tool seem to be a must now, to measure the input housing shafts length to get an accurate Sonnax Smart Input Housing.
While tearing out the input housing, I found the culprit of 3-4 gear slipping. Actually I am wondering if it had a chance of being engaged at all. The clutch packs are completely gone, pure polished steel rings:

 

Mike, here's some info that I stumbled across on the 4L60e differences including the input shaft I think you was asking about. Not sure what year 4L60e you are trying to rebuild and use.
--------------------------

Transmission Identification

Now, while most or all 4L60E transmissions seem identical to the untrained eye, there have indeed been changes over the years to distinguish them from other models. Launched in 1992, the 4L60E has kept some features the same, such as a 12-pin connector from the harness. However, the color of this connector can still differ based on the year of the model, being either purple or green. Some other constant features include being shifted by the vehicle’s ECM, or engine control module, essentially the brain of the car, and each of them share the same type of casing coating the transmission, that being a cast aluminum build.

While the 4L60E does have some features that remain the same, with the passage of time comes improvements to the original model. There have been three distinct eras for the 4L60E: the original run from 1993-1997, having taken over from the 700R4, otherwise known as the original 4L60 with the hydraulic control over the electronic that General Motors uses today, the second being from 1996-1999, and the most recent beginning at the turn of the century in 2000. The original 1993 model only used one piece case while the 1996 and 2000 models have two pieces for their casing.

Besides the casings, there are smaller, though still important, methods of differentiating the transmissions. The main way to identify the model is to take a look at the bellhousings. More bolts were added between the upgrade in order to tighten up the grip to the transmission and the engine itself. Where the 93-97 model had 6 bolts to connect to the engine, the 96-99 has 9 bolts. In addition to this method of identification, the design of the bellhousings changed with the year of the model. These differences may seem small, but that does not change the fact that they are present.

A major change on the 2000 model was the size of the input shaft and torque converter. Prior to 2000, it had been 298 millimeters on both the 93 and 96 models, but when 2000 rolled around, the size was increased to 300 millimeters even, making it incompatible with any of the earlier models. Along with this, the size of the actual transmission was increased as well, being ¾ of an inch larger than before. These changes were implemented due to a new series of engines being rolled out around that time, the LS series. While these changes may seem miniscule and irrelevant, they still greatly affect the way the transmission works in the vehicle.

 

Yep, I've seen it.
From what I read, the type of the transmission input shaft must correspond to the exact torque converter type (they go in pairs).
Both transmissions I have are the 9 bolts. The ride is from '00, the transmission I am working on has a tag 0TAD which stands for '00 too (https://blazerforum.com/forum/engine...59/#post685479)

The quoted info You posted says, that there were two types of 9 bolt ones: with 298mm shaft and 300mm shaft, both manufactured in 2000.

The question that concerns me is if I have the same transmission (input shaft) paired with my engine in a Blazer to the transmission I am working on?

The one I tore doesn't have the reluctor ring and I can identify shaft easily just by measuring it. The one I have in my ride is hard to say. I am aware these transmissions were used in wide variety of cars and boats, so - at least - the ones with reluctor rings might be used somewhere else. If none of the Blazers had them, this would rule out the 300mm reluctor one.

 

I thought what I posted said that 2000 and up were all 300mm. But it didn't say anything about reluctor rings.

Probably we should ask Transman 304. He would know all this stuff.

 

The 300mm is for V8. The 298 is the V6. The reluctor was introduced in 2006 model. Do you have a torque converter for the transmission you are building.

 

Thanks for input Transman!
298mm then.


I do have the torque converter in an unknown state that was together with this transmission. I also have the other set (engine+transmission) in my '00 Blazer. I am hoping for bolt on & play.
EDIT:
After doing some additional checks, as per described here:
https://d2q1ebiag300ih.cloudfront.ne...f?v=1542052114
- apply ring dimension (3.676") and stamped "7" (positive)
- steel forward piston and (positive)
- dual cage return springs (positive)
i should be good to go with Sonnax Smart-Tech ®Input Housing Kit with Heavy Duty Input Shaft (77733-10K) or Smart-Tech®Input Housing Kit (77733-06K), that comes without an input shaft.
A good question here is what are the handling capabilities of torque/power of generic input shaft?

 

The converter should have a 4 digit code on a tag. Something like TBMX or HJ2B (not these specific examples). To be quite honest the Smart Tech drum is way over kill I believe for your build. I would spend the money on getting a remanufactured pump and valve body. These parts develop wear that is not detected with out vacuum testing. And then require expensive reamers and tooling to repair. If you have any more questions please feel free to ask. I can give you recommendations on to what to look for when inspecting parts and what parts I use in overhaul.
Brad

 

Just saw the wear on your input drum. This is a replacement part that will allow you to reuse that drum if you chose.
https://www.altousa.com/downloads/te...-270-BM324.pdf

 

The torque converter is tagged as "DCNF 2420" with "6164" below.

As for the build, my target would be up to 450HP maximum. If You could share Your experience what is a "must" and what is an "overkill" for the build, I would be extremely grateful. I understand there is no guarantee on that, but it's a good way to start doing the list of a needed components for the build.

Indeed, my intention is to get an upgraded valve body for the reasons You've posted. Reamers cost a fortune, besides they would be probably used this very one time.

 

I'm done with another step - the pump disassembly. There are two different types - a regular one (an older design) and the PWM type. The difference is that the PWM has a feature of hydraulically modulated converter clutch. How to tell which is which? The PWM one has a "PWM" word in a front of the cast.





What I had to do is to:
- remove the TCC apply valve
- remove pressure regulator valve
- remove the rotor and vanes
- remove the 5 M13 bolts that required quite of a force
to get to this state:



Luckily the body of the pump is in a good shape. Although You may see the circular traces left by the rotor and its seals, the surface isn't scorched and has no fingertip detectable wear. That's a good news!

Now, what I am supposed to do is to:
- replace the bushings (there are two in the support shaft and one in the front end. The front end has to be pressed into an inside direction, as there may be a rim at the outer end. The stator ones have to be pulled out
- replace the seal at the front
- replace the filter neck
- replace the output filter (or just an o-ring)
- replace the big o-ring that is located on the outside of the pump body
- modify the p-p valves with Sonnax ones
- get the big black gasket that goes in between the pump body and the transmission body
- measure the rotor and check the clearance in between the front cast

I've had an idea of removing the shaft support so that I would have the two body parts ready to drop to a local machinist for polishing to get a very even surface with minimal clearance, but after removing the three torx screws on the back I found, the support fits snug enough, so it cannot be easily removed. I am not sure if that's a good idea. I have to find out what others do. The manual says nothing on the bottom cast, just advises to polish either the rotor or the front cast surface.