It may be normal put it ain't proper. No amount of flair is proper. If you have a virgin 82 tranny then there are a number of reasons for it flairing. The band for second gear had its friction coefficient lowered so that the modulator/shift pressure could be raised without the harsh 1-2 shift. The valve body was extensively modified with a different intermediate plate with different sized holes to improve flow to fourth gear clutch pack. The free play on both clutch packs were reduced to allow quicker fill times.

If the tranny is over 150k miles old it should be resealed .... or lived with till the next failure.

BTW the control mechanisms are just under infinitely adjustable. Which do you hate more; harsh 1-2 or 3-4 flair. As a quick improvement I would tighten the modulator one turn and make the car shift earlier by a turn and a half on the control pressure cable. If I was doing it I would also shorten the vacuum span and modify its relation to the throttle. But just do those two reversable adjustments and tell me what happens.

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Steve Brotherton
Owner 24 bay BSC
Bosch Master, ASE master L1
26 years MB technician