Bought an '85, input is welcome...

[gezn2]

It's been a few years since I was a regular here, glad to find my login still works
Last weekend I rescued an '85 Scottsdale LWB freetside from the junkman, it came with the owners manual and assorted paperwork, it's spent its whole life right here in road-salt country and while Ziebarted it's got some funky rust issues, I'm expecting some fun with that later
The P.O. was no mechanic, this thing was the subject of a really fubar engine swap just before he got it and it's never run right.
First on the list is installing a functional thermostat and an oil pressure gauge sender so I can get a glimmer of a clue how much life this engine might have left
Today was warm enough that I ventured out to pull some numbers, the engine has the code K1102SDA on the front pad which NastyZ28 tells me makes it an '84 McKinnon 305, no problem as I had my doubts about the claims of it being a 350 anyway
I was interested in this thing as the base for a trailer puller, I'm well aware that a 2.73 rear and an early 700r4 are going to require some TLC to survive long in that role, would I be better off scrounging up a long-tail TH350 and some more cubic inches?
I'd love some input

[DustyRusty]

I think the 700R4 is essentially the TH350 w/ overdrive.  Not sure you would be really gaining anything w/ the TH350.  Personally, I'd opt for steeper gears like 3.47 or 3.73 depending on tire size you plan to run, how big a load you want to pull, etc.

Don't know what kind of shape the 305 is in but if it was decent, I'd probably go with the steeper gears until the 305 gave out and then replace with a crate 350.

My $.02

[gezn2]

The 305 seemed fairly tight when I drove it home, it kicks out a nice plume of blue smoke on startup so valve guide seals are on the agenda if oil pressure turns out OK.
I've had decent luck with 305s, bought an '83 Vandura off of 'death row' back in the '90s and replaced a 250 with a cracked head and baked 700R4 with a seasoned 305 and TH350, it pulled a 15' travel trailer with no noticeable hiccups and made fully loaded auto swap-meet runs for a few years, still miss it sometimes
It certainly won't hurt to keep an eye out for a different rear, I just remembered that there's a set of good 2 1/2" drums and backing plates stashed away at the farm
This is all at planning stage until some snow melts
Thanks

[VileZambonie]

I agree, start with gears 3.73:1