Aftermarket solid shifter?

[JSATX]

I know I’m sorry, I’m just so behind right now. I have the tunnel cover off, which is a pretty rare event so several wiring jobs are happing as well.

the F35 trans linkage is pretty different from the 23. Reversing that may be a little difficult.

I will take pictures tonight and post those of the things I did if that helps. My hope was to make a detailed video review as soon as it’s drivable.

 

[JSATX]

This is what I did for the F23 trans linkage.

I then cut the cable retainer off the trans tunnel cover and welded a new one on.

 

[JSATX]

The problem with the China shifter is, because it’s flipped 180° from its normal RSX position, the knob is offset forwards when it should be offset rear wards. You hit the instrument cluster and it requires full extension of your arm to get into 3rd/5th.

so this is the last part I’m working on. I did have it assembled and it shifts AMAZING. but took it apart to solve this last issue. Oh and unfortunately the goblin cables are significantly too long now, I’d say that’s the only real downside to this little project.

 

[JSATX]

Oh also had to weld an arm on the transmission side cable retainer bracket, forgot to take a picture of that. Flipping the lever at the trans means that cable has to be moved an inch or two over to line up with the new ball stud.

 

[Ross]

Thanks Justin. That transmission mount looks nice and solid! And thanks for taking the lead on this. Where did you get the ball stud from? What about the cable ends that connect to the shifter? I think you needed an 8mm hole for the cable end. So far just some welding, and drilling. No milling or lathe work? I wonder if the stock Cobalt cables might be a more appropriate length. I am looking forward to getting this on a F35.

 

[JSATX]

Cable to shifter: https://www.mcmaster.com/9416K84

Those worked, but this isn’t my final design. Flipping the top half of the shifter, drilling though the shaft and attaching the cable a different way. You will still need one of those anyway so get two and if you’re happy with that it’s by far the easiest way.

the ball studs are just standard 10mm available anywhere.

 

[JSATX]

Amazon.com: (4 Pack) 10mm Ball Studs With Hardware - 5/16-18 Thread x 1/2" Long Shank - Gas Lift Support Strut Fitting: Automotive

Buy (4 Pack) 10mm Ball Studs With Hardware - 5/16-18 Thread x 1/2" Long Shank - Gas Lift Support Strut Fitting: Ball Studs - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

 

[TheNuker]

I wonder if this is going to be possible with the F35... Guess i'll see when I get the frame.

 

[DCMoney]

For $105 shipped, it's really nice and legit.

 

[JSATX]

Just finished it up. Decided to flip the upper half so the knob is biased rearwards more. That required making a little adapter(thank you syntroniks) Playing around with the final prototype now. Got a whole new tunnel cover so it’ll be nice and clean once I get it located and adjusted correctly. (DC I see you showin off that microtech )

 

[DCMoney]

Haha nice. I love mine, had it for almost 10 years.

 

[TheNuker]

I just ordered one of these, Anyone else going to give this a shot on an F35?

Nuker-

 

[DCMoney]

I just ordered one of these, Anyone else going to give this a shot on an F35?

Nuker-

Yes, going to attempt what I outlined in this post.

Aftermarket solid shifter?

#1 is left/right, #2 is fwd/bkwd

dfkitcar.com

 

[Ross]

I just ordered one of these, Anyone else going to give this a shot on an F35?

Nuker-

I also have the shifter ordered. Still haven't figured everything out for the F35, so the fun will begin shortly.
The 3 of us are following Justin's lead.

 

[TheNuker]

Honestly this is the single most needed upgrade for me. So I will invest as much as I can into getting it working. I have mine on order too. Frame pickup is on the 23rd so I'm ready to get going. I have a CNC built that can mill aluminum now so that might come in handy. Sadly I'll be back in the Philippines most of dec so January is when I'll really get going.

Nuker-

 

[DCMoney]

Now I see the error in my original assessment. Left and right at the transmission stayed the same, forward and back is now reversed.

Will need to modify the shifter arm on the transmission similar to how JSATX did to get the throws going in the correct direction. Dont think this will be all that difficult but that's been said before in this thread. If I have time this weekend I'll pull the shifter arm off and see about attaching a 10mm ball to it.

Happy with the progress so far though. Scanned both bases and got bolt hole locations to replicate the mounting holes onto a new plate. Feels a little forward but hard to tell until everything is worked out. Got the same gas shock eyelet mounts, and some M6x1.0 all thread 200mm long, cut it down to needed length to connect between the shifter and cranks.

 

[Ross]

Now I see the error in my original assessment. Left and right at the transmission stayed the same, forward and back is now reversed.

Will need to modify the shifter arm on the transmission similar to how JSATX did to get the throws going in the correct direction. Dont think this will be all that difficult but that's been said before in this thread. If I have time this weekend I'll pull the shifter arm off and see about attaching a 10mm ball to it.

I wonder if it would work better if you leave the transmission mount the same, and remove the reverser from the shifter.
If you remove the ball stud from the blue circle, and mount it at the red circle, then the movement is reversed.
Of course it will require a new mount for the cable stay, and the cable will be a bit higher in the console... so it has some drawbacks, but it gets rid of the slop that the reverser will introduce.

 

[JSATX]

Wow your adapter plate looks nice

 

[Karter2026]

Now I see the error in my original assessment. Left and right at the transmission stayed the same, forward and back is now reversed.

Will need to modify the shifter arm on the transmission similar to how JSATX did to get the throws going in the correct direction. Dont think this will be all that difficult but that's been said before in this thread. If I have time this weekend I'll pull the shifter arm off and see about attaching a 10mm ball to it.

Happy with the progress so far though. Scanned both bases and got bolt hole locations to replicate the mounting holes onto a new plate. Feels a little forward but hard to tell until everything is worked out. Got the same gas shock eyelet mounts, and some M6x1.0 all thread 200mm long, cut it down to needed length to connect between the shifter and cranks.

Great! I was all happy with making a console of some sorts to cover the ugly plastic shifter. Now you have me looking at this. Adding it to my Christmas list.

 

[DCMoney]

I wonder if it would work better if you leave the transmission mount the same, and remove the reverser from the shifter.
If you remove the ball stud from the blue circle, and mount it at the red circle, then the movement is reversed.
Of course it will require a new mount for the cable stay, and the cable will be a bit higher in the console... so it has some drawbacks, but it gets rid of the slop that the reverser will introduce.
View attachment 10674

Thats a lot of extra work for not a lot of reward, theres far more slop in the shifter (can be worked out) and tunnel cover (again can be worked out, have a plan) than what the reversing cranks introduce. Between all the plastic and the rubber isolator bushings, the OEM shifter assembly feels like a cheap toy compared to the current setup and theres several areas for improvement left.

I wanted to come up with a solution that anyone can install, that's not going to require cutting welding etc. Might not be possible but it all depends on how much time I want to spend on it.

Creaking is mainly from the tunnel cover, little from the spring and shifter ball to brass bushing (some more break in and/or different lube might be needed).

Plan is to get this working with the test plate, then final version will be 1/2" aluminum, with the correct counter bores for the springs to stay in place, currently using 6-32 bolts threaded through the bottom of the plate to locate and hold the springs in place. The shifter only had 3 springs but spots for 5, JSATX might want to check and see how many springs they put in yours. If they only put 3 you could add a few more for more resistance.

With a little bit of R&D I think I could come up with a way to have the Ktuned shifter connect to the bottom of the crank, eliminating the reversing motion. Angle is getting pretty steep from the shifter to the crank so a custom connecting rod might be needed but not hard to do.

A quick idea I came up with, needs refinement, reversing cranks are not accurate, need to think through it some more and see if anyone here sees a reason why it wont work before getting more accurate measurement. Clearance might be tight on the left/right crank but nothing a grinder cant fix. Or might be able to flip the left/right crank so the ball faces inside instead of out that would give a little more room. Will have to see if the cable can attach on that side.