Hey guys,
Im new to all of this stuff.
any ideas on getting rid of or minimizing the 1st gear in an au 1 gearbox?

Pretty sure it can't be done. (Getting rid of 1st gear)
Why do you want to anyway? I know the 1st gear in the auto is pretty long and doesn't lend well to quick acceleration, but you can overcome that with a shorter gear ratio in your diff. That comes at the expense of top speed however. You could also look at putting a shift kit on the auto to give firmer shifts.
Taking off in 2nd all the time would put a fair amount of strain on your motor.

diff ratio change would be the way to go.

even with 3.46 in mine i can get about 180 out of 3rd gear, so not much lost.

how much does it cost to change the diff ratio? (roughly)
what car can i pull one out of?

From what i'v heard it is around $1000ish including installation by a professional. Unfortunately it isn't really a diy job due to all the technicalities involved, in other words its not just removing the diff centre and chucking on some gears with more teeth.
With what car you want to pull diff gears out of, you could get an entire diff (housing and all) from an xr6 or ghia which is usually a 3.45:1 ratio, but you'd still feel first is a bit too long. So it would be best to get something even lower such as 3.7:1 or onwards (The higher the number, the shorter your gearing would be) to get that low down acceleration you crave. You'd also have to get those gears aftermarket due to them not being on any cars that can easily swapped over.
also if you get nef diff gears, your speedo will need to be corrected.

Thats pretty much all i know, ask edfairmont4.0 about diff gears as hes apparently had a few...
Also feel free to correct me if im wrong

im actually a range rover apprentice so im not afraid to get my hands dirty sounds expensive anyway. If i got a Diff from a xr6 or ghia would it bolt straight in or do i need to change the housing?

I think the technicalities are mostly around setting up the tooth contact, which does take some know-how. Replacing the complete diff with housing as a unit would avoid any setup issues. I would expect it to be a straight bolt-in swap.

If you are wanting more jump off the line, get a high-stall torque convertor (or get your stock one modified for high stall). If your engine is near stock, your stall is probably about 2100rpm now. Going up to about 2500rpm would make a big difference. The torque curve climbs very steeply between 2000 and 2750 rpm, so increasing the stall gives you much more torque off the line. If you have a performance cam, you need to go higher - even up to 3000rpm if you have a lumpy cam. Highway manners and fuel economy are unaffected if the lock-up is retained. But don't go higher than your cam needs, as it will just give you unnecessary slip around town. Be aware that if you rev it against the brake, the ECU will go into limp mode (in gear + 2500rpm + 0 kph = failed convertor), unless you adjust the limp mode stall rpm with a J3 chip.

Even with a high stall I would go for at least a 3.45 diff. My moderately-cammed EF XR6 has 2900rpm stall with the factory 3.45 LSD, and the launch is just about perfect. 3.7 gears would be ideal, but not worth the expense and hassle for the little extra benefit I would get.

well in that case. does a ef xr6 3.45 LSD bolt in on a au1?

AU has a different off-set to E series so I believe not.
If you tried, the wheels would be too far in.

DAM