I had a nice chat with Paul Forte today and now I have a better understanding of what is going on. He said I can reduce the harshness of the 2-3 shift by loosening the front band a small amount. He thinks I might have it a hair too tight. He also suggested a full synthetic trans fluid to reduce the shift harshness that I feel when the transmission is cold.

He also said that I shouldn't down shift into first gear unless I'm stopped or moving very slowly. I told him I had downshifted to first for a traffic light but then got back into it when the light turned green. He said if you down shift into first at too high of a speed and then hit the gas hard you can break the sprag. They have had people do that when they use the race valve body on a street car. He builds a pro street valve body that prevents the problem but I don't really want to change valve bodies right now. I don't really need to down shift to first when the car is moving anyway so I just need to stop doing it.