Greetings StormJ, Welcome to The Diesel Stop;

Yes, you have alternatives to BTS transmissions,,,,
I might recommend that you consider a Ford Remanf. Transmission which you could buy from AutoNation [Tousley] Ford [at their discount] or any other Ford Dealer...
Your local mechanic could order it for you thru a Ford Dealer, and have it put in for you...
Depending on what you want to spend and the type of service you would require from your tranny would depend
on whether you want an "HD" tranny like from BTS, or a Ford Remanf. "4R100 HD" ...
You could also buy a 'standard' Ford Remanf. tranny at considerably less price
I had a BTS tranny for 9 years, and 140K/m and it served its purpose well, towing my 10K/# camper all over the US..
After selling the camper, the tranny finally went, and I opted for a ' Standard' Ford Remanf. since I wasn't towing any more..
My total cost was $3000, plus you must also put in an updated 6.0 cooler ..
"IF", you've got $5000, and can wait 3 months, the BTS tranny is the way to go..
"IF", you've got $4000, and want to get a Ford Remanf. " 4R100 HD" [Similar to the BTS], plus a new cooler....
that would be the way to go
"IF" your going to be using you truck for 'conventional use', a 'standard Ford Remanf. may suit your use...
My guess, is for $3000-3500 you could get a Standard Ford Remanf. tranny taken care of for you...

So many options ...."" SO LITTLE MONEY"""

Take Care

 

I say go with a Sam wyse stage 1. Good up to 450hp and is only a little more than a standard ford reman.

 

As I stated on another forum you posted this on, it really depends on what kind of power you are after. If you are not looking to go big in that area, the HD4R100 from Ford is a great option. 3 year, unlimited mileage warranty too, and it can be taken to any Ford dealership across the country..

 

After checking a local transmission place a rebuild with an upgraded torque converter was going to cost me $4,217.40. After speaking with Corey at CNC Fabrication, my estimated costs for a Sam Wyse Stage 1, with a 6.0L cooler, and included fuel and hotel stay was $4,293.00. I am pretty sure everyone can agree, even if you are a non mechanic such as myself. That the Sam Wyse package deal is much better than the rebuild. Now as usual actual costs tend to be more than estimated, MPG was not as good as hoped, my father-in-law wanted to get out of the house and took the ride with me, google failed to tell me about the tolls, etc. So final cost out the door for the Stage 1 transmission, 6.0L cooler, install with Amsoil fluid, fuel, hotel, tolls, and grub ended up being $4,603.76. While there, I had Corey do some additional upgrades/maintenance on my baby. New Stainless Steel HPOP lines (considering mine were 16+ years old and had 194000 miles on them) Corey makes these himself and from a layman's point of view, they are beautiful piece of work. Sam Wyse mentioned that the Edge I had in the truck did not play well with his transmissions, so I removed that and had Corey put in the PHP Hydra 17 Position Chip.
I was very impressed with Corey's customer service. He offered to take me back to my hotel and pick me up when the vehicle was done, eliminating the cost of a rental or taxi. He made mention of a few things he noted when working on the truck that I should have looked at (which I would have had him repair if getting back to CT was not time sensitive for me). I found Corey a pleasure to converse with and would have loved to spend an evening swapping stories. He worked around my schedule for I did not have to have train someone to do my duties at the animal rescue I assist with.
Admittedly I was very sceptical to make the 1400+ round trip to have work done on my truck. But I am very glad I did. Clearly only time will tell if the new transmission will do me as well or better than the OEM. But I do not believe that people like Sam Wyse or Corey Hurtt get the reputations they have by putting out junk. So if you are on the fence, I can say from one person's opinion, swing by, make the trip, give them a call.

Storm Johnson

 

Good decision!

Thanks for the Feedback. Sam has torn apart a few 4r100 hd from ford and found nothing fancy. In fact they reuse as much as they can.

 

A little late, but I think disregarding BTS due to long wait time is a mistake.
I went through CaryT to get my BTS (granted I put it in myself), with minimal delay.
For those of you looking for options:
1- Ford HD- for stock or mild use trucks (I was concerned warranty would be void due to tuner and other mods).
2- Other custom builders- hit or miss on warranty and quality
3- BTS/John Wood- premium quality, BTS warranty the best.

So for me it came down to the warranty. Given my mods I had no choice and I love my BTS.
Given how Brian has one shop to service the country, I suggest going through CaryT as I did for prompt service.

I suspect StormJ found one of the good builders and will be very satisfied with his purchase. I paid only $700 more for my BTS, but had to put it in myself.

 

Sam Wyse does the same stuff to his stage 1 as a standard bts.

His stage 2 has a lot of upgrades only Sam does.
Corey could Better explain the differences but most guys are seeing a 2 mpg increase running his stage 2. I know he uses roller bearings just about everywhere.

 

Tag to remember this when it comes time for mine to get done. I'm in the Las Vegas area so while John Wood is closest at about 4 hours/300 miles, it's a couple thousand more than the Sam Wyse.