reverse stoped working in my 77 power ram.. lol...Help

[69 charger man]

hey all... well today the reverse stoped working in my 77 powerwagon.. it still drives fine, and does not slip at all going forwards, but i suspected a problem internally..  so i droped the pan and found a piece of metal at the botom of the pan and the reverse/low  (servo??  hanging.. after the filter came the valve body, and anouther piece fell then i found the problem.. the reverse band was loose and the two pieces of metal broke off of it..  i looked in the fsm for my 70 charger since the 727 is bascially the same and it appears that i have to remove the trans and pull out all of the guts and replace the band that way, or is there anouther way? and also, whats the best band to get.. ive seen kelvar ones, org ones, carbon fiber ones.. list goes on...or wahts a good kit, since once i open it up the clutch pacts will prob be toast too..... o yea the truck is a 77 dodge power wagon- sno commander with a 318-727.. and yes i do plow with it in the winter..lol
thanks ray

[Charger_Fan]

It's been about 15 years since I've done a reverse band on a 727 & I did mine with the trans out. I don't remember seeing a way to replace it without removing the trans. While you have it apart, make sure your reverse drum is smooth, not scored from metal-to-metal.

Nice lookin' workhorse.

[Mean 318]

That is one awesome truck! any more pics?

[Lurker]

tranny has to come out, or atleast get slid back 2 feet, reverse band goes in through the front, its not a hard job just pay attention taking it apart and make sure you reset the band properly when done.

[69 charger man]

yep thats what i figured.. trans has to come out or the motor, or maybe both and ill put my extra 440 from a camper with 18,000 miles in there haa .. thanks all for answering my questions.. and here are some more pics i have of the truck..its really a sick truck full time 4x4 front and rear dana 60's w/ 410's.. some of the pics are old from when i bought the truck last year, but she still looks the same.. the previous owner took off the plow setup a wile bc he said it was too heavy, so the truck never seen alot of abuse.. i just like the lines of older trucks.. anyways shes off the road till about october till i complete the swap..
thanks ray