JTR VSS setups NEW! (1 Viewer)

[orangefj45]

a coup,e of you guys might have seen these already........but there has'nt been much talk about these new VSS setups so i thought i'd post up.

greg and mike from JTR have been making parts and doing V8 conversions ( not on cruisers ) for about twenty years now. i remember getting a VSS for one of the first 5.7TBI swaps we did in a 60 about twenty years ago.

anyhow, mike ( the machinist at JTR ) came by a few weeks ago to pick up a split case and some other donor items so he could do some work on a new VSS setup. it's similar to Downey's old design but quite a bit improved and more user friendly.

so far they're available for the early case in 10 and 16 spline as well as the split case. the guys are now working on the kit for applications where AA spud shafts are being used since they're a standard thread not metric. cost should be very similar. i'll post a few pics of the kit components as well as the parts installed on R&D cases.

these parts can be purchased directly from JTR or thru resellers like myself. not trying to pimp parts in the hardcore forum, just trying to get the word out. Mike and Greg have been super cool to work with so i'm trying to help them out a little. i'll start another thread about some of their hose splicers and heater hose T-fittings as well. great for conversion work........especially vortecs for the steam port requirements.

georg @ valley hybrids

 

[orangefj45]

mock-up pics.

 

[muddogbob]

Very cool!

 

[fjfodee]

Nice! Cost?

 

[LCOwner]

I'm down. What's the rub on a split case unit?

It will read wrong in low range but that shouldn't make a difference. I didn't seee them on their site, only the FJ40

 

[spotcruiser]

It's not difficult to make your own.

 

[spotcruiser]

More.

 

[orangefj45]

It's not difficult to make your own.

;p

Nice work!

 

[spotcruiser]

Thanks Georg. They hadn't actually completed theirs yet when I called and were missing some important dimensions. I gave them the dimensions and didn't hear back from them, so I just went ahead and made it. Their's is nicely done, but I don't agree with a few of things they did. For one, I think they should eliminate all of the seal areas and just weld it up. We all end up with enough leaks as it is. Another issue is I think all of that machine work is unnecessary and needlessly expensive, when you can just weld up standard material. The last issue is that sleeve/nut. I just cut down my stock spacer to place the reluctor under the pick-up and used the stock nut and heavy washer to lock it in place. I can shim the reluctor or reduce the spacer length, if adjustment is needed. I did have to remove a little material from the ID of the Chevy reluctor, so that it would fit the output shaft, but it wasn't much. The pick-up is stock for my '96 5.7 vortec.

;p

Nice work!

 

[Elbert]

more good stuff...

I have one of the last downey units on mine....at the time it was about the only option.

Is the above adapter setup to just bolt on the GM VSS sensor in the port on that housing...such that you don't have to make any adjustments?

 

[spotcruiser]

I built mine to suit the OEM '96 pick-up/Suburban sensor, which just has an o-ring seal. I made it so the tip of the pick-up is about 1/32" from the reluctor with no shimming. That's closer than needed, but I made it that way so that I could shim it where it needed to be. Typically, mag pick-ups are set at about 1/16" from a flywheel, but I have seen gaps larger than that. I have mine shimmed with a gasket of standard brown gasket material. Your mileage may vary, depending on runout.

I believe JTR's unit is threaded, although I don't see a locking nut in the photos above. It may just screw down to a proper thickness gasket or shim. Typically, threaded pick-ups are 16 tpi for ease of adjustment (1 turn = 1/16").

more good stuff...

I have one of the last downey units on mine....at the time it was about the only option.

Is the above adapter setup to just bolt on the GM VSS sensor in the port on that housing...such that you don't have to make any adjustments?

 

[orangefj45]

as with anything else, there's more than one wayto skin a cat and there is not necessarily one right way and a wrong way to do things.
one of the guys at JTR, mike, is a machinist. has his own machine shop and that's where they make the parts. so they've opted for the billet route. and it works. very well actually. sure, it's a lot of work but that's where the "CNC" equipment comes in....
on the flip-side, a machinist ( or anybody else for that matter ) could argue that fabricating ( welding ) a housing has it's own potential issues:
1) leakage ( unless your welds are perfect )
2) warpage ( even if bolted to a jib; that's pretty thin material )
3) serviceability
yak
yak
yak
ask me, they both should work well if built properly.

as for the JTR vss sensor, it screws in just like the oem sensors on the gm t-cases and quite a few other applications. i like this better than the "set-screw" setup downey had because it takes all the guess work out of the proper spacing and there's much less chance of the sensor being damaged by the installer.

just happy that we have options.

georg @ valley hybrids

 

[Elbert]

I adjusted mine (downey model) by gently bottoming out the vss sensor and then just backing up a small amount. As I recall the gyrations mentioned in the downy instructions did not make much sense to me given the design of the parts.

I'm glad someone has come up with a good solution that runs a GM VSS sensor. SO far I"ve not had any issues with mine (very similar setup).

 

[phishincruisin]

Any real life results on these? Anyone run this with an LSx motor and verified operation through a Scan Gauge or some sort of other computer reader? Any installation photos? Thanks!

 

[belaw]

What's the cost on the JTR unit? I looked on their website and couldn't find it.

Using a GM style 40ppr VSS would make things easier for me on a couple of counts, but I'm cheap and there are work arounds. Are there any homebrew alternatives for split cases? I seems like the biggest problem will be with the fact that the tailshaft doesn't extend past the face of the case like on a one-piece.

 

[gurskey]

Are these available now? If not, has anyone figured out a good option to mount the VSS to a splitcase? I am trying to plan a V8 swap and this so far seems to be one of major gremlins in other swaps I have read about.

 

[gurskey]

Answered my own question. Jags That Run do have them.

 

[Flipper1938]

I finally got around to ordering my reluctor ring and VSS. I'm gonna try and make me one too.