[rgunlock]

I've read likely most of the threads on this forum about NV4500 swaps. The ones that use the AA adapter to the figure-8 style NP205 generally complain that the AA shifter bracket is flimsy or has too much flex. I have not run across a thread yet that shows what anyone has done to beef up the bracket. Surely someone has.

I've been test fitting and figuring out how this goes together. The shifter bracket is 1/4" and is gusseted, so I am assuming that the flimsy/flex issue is that it only bolts in through 2 of the NV4500 top cover bolts. Or possibly also that the shifter mounts so far from anywhere that the bracket bolts to something solid. Also, where the shifter mounts, it seems like an awful lot of the thread sticks through the bracket.

So, if anyone has fabricated their own bracket, made the AA bracket better, or knows of a source for a better bracket I'd appreciate the info. I'd like to just deal with the issue while I'm still in the planning & gathering parts stage of this.

This will be going into my 78 K15 to replace the SM465/NP205 combo currently in there. I pulled the NV4500 from a 3/4 ton 1992 chevy truck and had a reputable drive line shop "go through it". I'm running 33" tires and it currently has 3:07 gearing. I'll also be swapping my axles for some I've got that are 4:10s. I've been driving the truck daily for over a month since finishing restoration "phase 1", and with the existing setup there just doesn't seem to be a correct gear for things like slow right turns - too fast to get into 2nd, and slow enough to lug down in 3rd. Plus I'm looking forward to having the OD.