"Low first gear ( granny) is useless in normal driving other than parades. So it’s really a great three speed."
Jerry's story is better than mine:
I (my 1954 Suburban with a 1960 261 engine and SM420 transmission, and a 3.55 rear end) won a slowest truck race - they called the race due to time. (I have posted this story before - sorry).
Tune the carburetor to lowest maintainable RPM
Start off carefully in 1st gear
Pull out the throttle cable to the minimum rpm to keep the truck moving/creeping
Set the truck wheels straight ahead
Get out of the truck and walk next to it, talking with onlookers and judges
They stopped the race after all the onlookers left - the truck was still barely/smoothly creeping along.
And, this same truck will cruise all day at 65 mph (12-15 mpg).
I have always said that drive-train combination was perfect for winning such races, and for pulling VW bugs out of steep ravines, and for driving up the side-wall of a barn (I have done two out of three).
useless SM420 granny gear - hah
And, normally, I start in 2nd gear - allowing me to downshift to 2nd without grinding/double-clutching.
The only problem with having an SM420 is the floor-shifter. In is a pain in the ***** for the passenger in the middle front seat.
