[Z06] MGW Shifter, Whats all the Racket About?
10-10-2008, 10:57 PM
#1
Team Owner
Thread Starter
MGW Shifter, Whats all the Racket About?
After reading about the MGW shifter, and the many satisfied owners of it, I had to give it a shot. I ordered it last week and got it at the beginning of this week.
I had considered the Callaway shifter, but the MGW had gotten rave reviews from all who owned it, and with very good reason I found. This thing is machined to perfection.
The things I was looking for in an aftermarket shifter were.
1. Build Quality.
2. Shortend throw. (But not ridiculously short. I didn't want a toggle switch. I wanted a shifter.)
3. Precision.
4. Quietness.
The MGW was said to excell at them all, but there were a small number of people here, particularly in the Z06, who described an annoying rattle or buzz. Especially using the stock ****.
And especially when the stock **** is "cupped" in the palm of the hand. The noise is amplified. And gets annoying.
The best description that I can give you of the noise is, its sort of like...well imagine listening to a recording of cicadas on a summer evening with the volume turned down extremely low to where you could just barely hear it.
You'd hear it. It would be faint but you'd hear it. And after a while it would annoy you.
I found the MGW to be 10/10 in the first three criteria I centered on. But 8/10 in my particular case for quiet.
While quiet, it was not dead quiet. Perfection was what I was looking for, and that meant just as quiet as stock. Some cars get that some don't. Mine didn't. The occasional buzz and vibration using the stock ****, threatened to put a damper on everything.
The install had been a piece of cake, and there are several threads here on the install of it and other short throw shifters, so no need to rehash that.
I researched the cause of the buzz, read every post I could find on this forum. Especially the ones by Modshack and McMung.
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...5&postcount=33
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...post1567215642
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...post1564450825
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...post1567008655
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...post1566925168
And I called George of MGW. George was very helpful. Extremely helpful.
Turns out, there are many theories on the cause of the noise which some here have gotten with the stock ****. The ones offered by Modshack made the most sense to me.
1. Remedies included adding RTV inside the stock ****.
2. Adding RTV at the connection between the upper and lower shafts.
3. Using a smaller or a larger lower ball to change the "cup ball combination" which Modshack speaks of.
George provides a lower ball which is slightler larger and one which is slightly smaller than the one which comes already installed on the shifter.
You have to swap that ball out, and try one of the two, or both of the two if you don't succeed the first time.
I installed my MGW shifter Monday, and indeed got the buzz/rattle with the stock ****. Particularly when gripping it, and had to make a decision as to what to do.
Some have used the stock **** and placed the RTV sealant into the **** in an attempt to mute the noise.
The problem with this, is that the stock **** can only take so much of the RTV, before you cannot push it down onto the non threaded shaft.
I did this, and it did not solve the buzz/rattle. And I let the RTV cure overnight too.
My options at this point were to
1. Ditch the stock **** and go with one of the MGW *****. But the style of the MGW ***** were not to my taste. Or go with some other ****.
2. Try the lower larger/smaller ball kit, from George. Either a smaller ball or a bigger ball to change the amount of tolerence between the lower shift ball of the shifter, and the "cup" of the shift rod. This would require removal of the console again, and trying each ball.
Modshack implies that too big of a ball could cause even more vibration/buzz rattle as it will be very tight to the cup in the shifter rod.
I got the impression that use of the small ball, while it may make the shifter quieter, could sacrifice some of the rifle bolt precision that a short throw shifter is supposed to give you. For me, that would defeat the purpose.
3. Stick with the stock **** and live with it.
4. Remove the shifter and go back to stock.
I decided to ditch the stock **** and start looking for a heavier ****
But first, I added a bit of sound muting material over the shaft. Cut a hole through the material just large enough to allow the shaft to go through. That killed some of the buzzing noise which I felt was coming through the tunnel too.
I drove the car for a couple of days with no shift ****, only the non threaded shaft, and with the boot off. Very quiet for the most part.
Thats the thing with the MGW and the stock ****. Remove the stock **** and the noise goes away. Thats how many here know that its the cheap, plastic covered in leather, stock ****.
I called George again, and he sent me the lower ball kit. And a threaded shaft for use with an aftermarket shift ****.
I had also made up my mind on a new shift ****.
Having a fondness for the Callaway shifter, because of it's classic silver ****, but deterred from it due to it's rattle and no fix, http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...81&postcount=1
I chose the A6 Leopard. Same **** McMung uses, only I ordered it in the Mirror finish so that it would match the chrome trim of the 2008 console and the chrome trim around the radio and HVAC *****.
twmshiftknobs.com
(No links to non-supporting vendors please....)
That classic silver **** is similar to that found on Ferrari's and the Ford GT. I liked it. Ordered the boot retainer kit too, so that the stock boot would snug up.
The A6 Leopard is a heavy ****. Solid billet steel, weighing in at over 1lb.
Since the very slight vibration of the shifter/buzzing, comes up the shaft of the shifter, I knew that a heavy, solid steel **** would dampen it considerbly, if not totally eliminate it.
The heavy **** also would also compliment an already great shifter, the MGW.
I installed the threaded shaft. Did not go to the trouble of installing the ball kit. Did not want to pull the console again. Did not want to experiment with the different sized ***** and have to possibly repeat the process of removing and replacing the console.
The threaded shaft is secured by one screw now. Same as the non threaded shaft. And it is offset now just as the non threaded shaft is. I put a bit of RTV at the junction of it and the base before tightening and again drove for a full day with no shift ****. Very little vibration. Minimal noise which you had to try very hard and listen for to hear at all.
The A6 Leopard **** came today and I installed it and reinstalled the shift boot. This is as near shifting perfection as I have seen.
The A6 Leopard, coupled with the MGW is the ticket. Not even so much as a peep of noise. Hand on or off the shift ****.
Shifts are made with not much more effort than the flick of the wrist, and a tug with the fingers, due the weight of that ****, and the 30% reduction in throw is just right.
First can be gotten with a flick of the wrist. 2nd a pull back with the fingers. 3rd straight forward with a gentle push and an almost open palm. I believe that it is almost impossible to miss third with this set up. 4th, a pull back with the fingers. The weight of that **** helps.
5th, 6th, reverse are easy to find and get into as well
I think that the bottom line to all of this is that you could get some vibration/buzz, even with George's shifter, which is a great product, I might add. The build quality of the MGW shifter is nothing short of astounding.
But because there is no slop in it, and the tolerances are so tight, some vibration/buzz may occur. Especially with the stock ****. But its a trade off for the first three objective, I listed above.
If it does, then there are options to managing, if not outright eliminating it. One of those options is a heavier shift ****.
If you have a rattle with your current ****, whichever one it is, stock or one of the other cheaper plastic *****, then remove the **** (and the leather boot for that matter) and see if you still have the rattle while driving the car shifting with just the shifter's shaft.
If you do, then it might be time to try the ball kit.
But try and figure out where the noise is coming from. If from inside the tunnel area, then more soundproofing over the top of your stock rubber boots may help.
If the rattle goes away when you remove your ****, well then the **** is obviously the problem.
What I found was zero, to extremely minimal noise, minuscule noise, when driving the car with no ****. The heavier A6 Leopard **** kept it that way.
So I conclude that what you hear with no ****, is going to be what you hear with the heavy ****.
I had considered the Callaway shifter, but the MGW had gotten rave reviews from all who owned it, and with very good reason I found. This thing is machined to perfection.
The things I was looking for in an aftermarket shifter were.
1. Build Quality.
2. Shortend throw. (But not ridiculously short. I didn't want a toggle switch. I wanted a shifter.)
3. Precision.
4. Quietness.
The MGW was said to excell at them all, but there were a small number of people here, particularly in the Z06, who described an annoying rattle or buzz. Especially using the stock ****.
And especially when the stock **** is "cupped" in the palm of the hand. The noise is amplified. And gets annoying.
The best description that I can give you of the noise is, its sort of like...well imagine listening to a recording of cicadas on a summer evening with the volume turned down extremely low to where you could just barely hear it.
You'd hear it. It would be faint but you'd hear it. And after a while it would annoy you.
I found the MGW to be 10/10 in the first three criteria I centered on. But 8/10 in my particular case for quiet.
While quiet, it was not dead quiet. Perfection was what I was looking for, and that meant just as quiet as stock. Some cars get that some don't. Mine didn't. The occasional buzz and vibration using the stock ****, threatened to put a damper on everything.
The install had been a piece of cake, and there are several threads here on the install of it and other short throw shifters, so no need to rehash that.
I researched the cause of the buzz, read every post I could find on this forum. Especially the ones by Modshack and McMung.
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...5&postcount=33
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...post1567215642
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...post1564450825
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...post1567008655
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...post1566925168
And I called George of MGW. George was very helpful. Extremely helpful.
Turns out, there are many theories on the cause of the noise which some here have gotten with the stock ****. The ones offered by Modshack made the most sense to me.
1. Remedies included adding RTV inside the stock ****.
2. Adding RTV at the connection between the upper and lower shafts.
3. Using a smaller or a larger lower ball to change the "cup ball combination" which Modshack speaks of.
George provides a lower ball which is slightler larger and one which is slightly smaller than the one which comes already installed on the shifter.
You have to swap that ball out, and try one of the two, or both of the two if you don't succeed the first time.
I installed my MGW shifter Monday, and indeed got the buzz/rattle with the stock ****. Particularly when gripping it, and had to make a decision as to what to do.
Some have used the stock **** and placed the RTV sealant into the **** in an attempt to mute the noise.
The problem with this, is that the stock **** can only take so much of the RTV, before you cannot push it down onto the non threaded shaft.
I did this, and it did not solve the buzz/rattle. And I let the RTV cure overnight too.
My options at this point were to
1. Ditch the stock **** and go with one of the MGW *****. But the style of the MGW ***** were not to my taste. Or go with some other ****.
2. Try the lower larger/smaller ball kit, from George. Either a smaller ball or a bigger ball to change the amount of tolerence between the lower shift ball of the shifter, and the "cup" of the shift rod. This would require removal of the console again, and trying each ball.
Modshack implies that too big of a ball could cause even more vibration/buzz rattle as it will be very tight to the cup in the shifter rod.
I got the impression that use of the small ball, while it may make the shifter quieter, could sacrifice some of the rifle bolt precision that a short throw shifter is supposed to give you. For me, that would defeat the purpose.
3. Stick with the stock **** and live with it.
4. Remove the shifter and go back to stock.
I decided to ditch the stock **** and start looking for a heavier ****
But first, I added a bit of sound muting material over the shaft. Cut a hole through the material just large enough to allow the shaft to go through. That killed some of the buzzing noise which I felt was coming through the tunnel too.
I drove the car for a couple of days with no shift ****, only the non threaded shaft, and with the boot off. Very quiet for the most part.
Thats the thing with the MGW and the stock ****. Remove the stock **** and the noise goes away. Thats how many here know that its the cheap, plastic covered in leather, stock ****.
I called George again, and he sent me the lower ball kit. And a threaded shaft for use with an aftermarket shift ****.
I had also made up my mind on a new shift ****.
Having a fondness for the Callaway shifter, because of it's classic silver ****, but deterred from it due to it's rattle and no fix, http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...81&postcount=1
I chose the A6 Leopard. Same **** McMung uses, only I ordered it in the Mirror finish so that it would match the chrome trim of the 2008 console and the chrome trim around the radio and HVAC *****.
twmshiftknobs.com
(No links to non-supporting vendors please....)
That classic silver **** is similar to that found on Ferrari's and the Ford GT. I liked it. Ordered the boot retainer kit too, so that the stock boot would snug up.
The A6 Leopard is a heavy ****. Solid billet steel, weighing in at over 1lb.
Since the very slight vibration of the shifter/buzzing, comes up the shaft of the shifter, I knew that a heavy, solid steel **** would dampen it considerbly, if not totally eliminate it.
The heavy **** also would also compliment an already great shifter, the MGW.
I installed the threaded shaft. Did not go to the trouble of installing the ball kit. Did not want to pull the console again. Did not want to experiment with the different sized ***** and have to possibly repeat the process of removing and replacing the console.
The threaded shaft is secured by one screw now. Same as the non threaded shaft. And it is offset now just as the non threaded shaft is. I put a bit of RTV at the junction of it and the base before tightening and again drove for a full day with no shift ****. Very little vibration. Minimal noise which you had to try very hard and listen for to hear at all.
The A6 Leopard **** came today and I installed it and reinstalled the shift boot. This is as near shifting perfection as I have seen.
The A6 Leopard, coupled with the MGW is the ticket. Not even so much as a peep of noise. Hand on or off the shift ****.
Shifts are made with not much more effort than the flick of the wrist, and a tug with the fingers, due the weight of that ****, and the 30% reduction in throw is just right.
First can be gotten with a flick of the wrist. 2nd a pull back with the fingers. 3rd straight forward with a gentle push and an almost open palm. I believe that it is almost impossible to miss third with this set up. 4th, a pull back with the fingers. The weight of that **** helps.
5th, 6th, reverse are easy to find and get into as well
I think that the bottom line to all of this is that you could get some vibration/buzz, even with George's shifter, which is a great product, I might add. The build quality of the MGW shifter is nothing short of astounding.
But because there is no slop in it, and the tolerances are so tight, some vibration/buzz may occur. Especially with the stock ****. But its a trade off for the first three objective, I listed above.
If it does, then there are options to managing, if not outright eliminating it. One of those options is a heavier shift ****.
If you have a rattle with your current ****, whichever one it is, stock or one of the other cheaper plastic *****, then remove the **** (and the leather boot for that matter) and see if you still have the rattle while driving the car shifting with just the shifter's shaft.
If you do, then it might be time to try the ball kit.
But try and figure out where the noise is coming from. If from inside the tunnel area, then more soundproofing over the top of your stock rubber boots may help.
If the rattle goes away when you remove your ****, well then the **** is obviously the problem.
What I found was zero, to extremely minimal noise, minuscule noise, when driving the car with no ****. The heavier A6 Leopard **** kept it that way.
So I conclude that what you hear with no ****, is going to be what you hear with the heavy ****.
Last edited by Allthrottleandsomebottle; 10-14-2008 at 07:53 AM.
10-12-2008, 09:05 PM
#3
Team Owner
Thread Starter
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=2126040
I can say this, having this combination of the MGW shifter and the A6 Leopard ****, makes for a huge improvement over the stock shifter. A huge improvement.
It is dead silent, and an absolute pleasure to use. And while I never missed third gear with the stock shifter, it is even easier now to hit 3rd gear with the MGW.
Last edited by '06 Quicksilver Z06; 10-12-2008 at 09:11 PM.
10-12-2008, 09:17 PM
#4
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I have the shifter and racing **** in my 08 C6. I'd invest in the **** and see what happens. I would also call George at MGW. If I lived in Atlanta I would go over and see him at least once a week to shoot the breeze and take him to lunch. He has produced the most necessary mod for the MN6 at a cost which is unbelievable.
I am negoiating a trade for an 08 ZO6 and will swap out the shifter and **** if deal goes through. I will report my results.
Really, call George. He will help you get it right.
Jim
I am negoiating a trade for an 08 ZO6 and will swap out the shifter and **** if deal goes through. I will report my results.
Really, call George. He will help you get it right.
Jim
10-12-2008, 09:26 PM
#5
Le Mans Master
Nice write up. I have a MGW shifter in my cobra and the quality and craftsmanship is second to none. I had the same buzzing in my cobra with the stock ****, so I switched to their composite race **** which eliminated the buzzing. An MGW will be going on the Z as soon as I get back in the states! Do you have any noticeable heat buid up with the A6 ****?
10-12-2008, 09:50 PM
#6
Team Owner
Thread Starter
Nice write up. I have a MGW shifter in my cobra and the quality and craftsmanship is second to none. I had the same buzzing in my cobra with the stock ****, so I switched to their composite race **** which eliminated the buzzing. An MGW will be going on the Z as soon as I get back in the states! Do you have any noticeable heat buid up with the A6 ****?
If I lived in a very hot climate and left the car out in the sun a lot with the windows up, I can see how that might be a problem. But I don't so I don't think there will be an issue with it.
That stock **** though, well, you really have to use a quality designed **** to understand how lacking in quality of the stock **** is.
It looks nice and matches the interior of the car obviously. But the plastic just made the buzzing worse.
The MGW ***** just weren't for me, appearance wise as they didn't match anything else in the car, but some people like them.
My advice for anyone using this shifter is, and this is just one man's advice, don't have your heart dead set on using that stock ****. Because it might be noisier than you want, even after changing the lower shift ball.
If the stock shift **** works and is quiet, well then great, but find a good quality shift **** which is to your personal taste, for your best possible results.
If you are going to go with a short throw shifter, especially one the quality of the MGW, well then you may as well get full benefits from it and no noise. And I am not sure you can get that without one of their ***** or some other quality ****.
10-12-2008, 09:53 PM
#7
Pro
I also put the MGW shifter in my 08 Z a couple of weeks ago and I get the buzzing. I should call George and see what I can do about it. I like the look of the stock ****, but sometimes the noise is unbelievable, especially when I am above 4000 RPMs.
10-12-2008, 09:58 PM
#8
Le Mans Master
I chose the A6 Leopard. Same **** McMung uses, only I ordered it in the Mirror finish so that it would match the chrome trim of the 2008 console and the chrome trim around the radio and HVAC *****.
twmshiftknobs.com
That classic silver **** is similar to that found on Ferrari's and the Ford GT. I liked it. Ordered the boot retainer kit too, so that the stock boot would snug up.
The A6 Leopard is a heavy ****. Solid billet steel, weighing in at over 1lb.
twmshiftknobs.com
That classic silver **** is similar to that found on Ferrari's and the Ford GT. I liked it. Ordered the boot retainer kit too, so that the stock boot would snug up.
The A6 Leopard is a heavy ****. Solid billet steel, weighing in at over 1lb.
Seriously, ~$100 for a machined piece of steel and a small retainer? I'm glad this worked for you, but that part is highway robbery. Especially when you consider the difficult part (the shifter) only cost $200.00!
Last edited by Allthrottleandsomebottle; 10-14-2008 at 07:54 AM.
10-12-2008, 10:17 PM
#9
Team Owner
Thread Starter
There is a smaller ball and a larger ball.
One or the other should reduce the noise, if not eliminate it, vs the stock ball in your shifter.
But a big problem is that stock shifter ****.
The shaft of that shifter acts like a tuning fork and transmits slight vibration up from the shift rod, through that lower shifter ball, and up through the shifter's shaft.
Drive around with that **** off, and its almost silent. But if you put your hand around the shifter's shaft, you can indeed feel a tad of vibration.
If you cup your hand around the shifter's shaft, you can here it a tad more.
The trick is to dampen that slight vibration.
The stock shifter does it with that plastic piece which covers the lower ball, and the shaft of the stock piece is covered with a plastic coating of some sort.
This minimizes any transmission of vibrations up through the shifter's shaft and from there into the stock ****.
There are a couple of steps you can take.
1.Put some RTF inside the stock **** before pushing it down onto the top shaft. McMung even put some where the upper and lower sections of the shifter are connected. That might quiet it some.
2. The ball kit. When I initially talked to George, he told me that if you were going to get noise, that you would know it right away.
That said, if he sends you the ball kit, you can pull the shifter and try either the slightly larger ball or the slightly smaller one and take a drive. If it buzzes, then you would have to try the other ball.
There are some who say that you can remove this shifter without removing the console. But the insulation and the stock rubber boots seem like they would make this tough.
The only way I see is to remove the console, and like I said before, I didn't want to do that too many times. Doing that multiple times tends to make fastener's loose and could create other squeaks and rattles.
But if you are dead set on using the stock ****, then the attempts with the ball kit might be worth it.
However, one other thing which made me balk at this approach though was that there was no guarantee that trying all three sized *****, the standard one, and the other two, would cure the problem.
The other thing was that going to the smaller ball, might cost me some precision wise, though I don't know this for a fact.
I did know though that because of the tuning fork type effect, which in my opinion is what leads to this in the first place, that a good quality shift **** would put a damper on that vibration.
If the heavier **** had not worked, well then I would have gone on to try the ball kit.
10-12-2008, 10:36 PM
#10
Team Owner
Thread Starter
Just wanted to correct you here. I'm sure you meant to say "Solid GOLD" based on the price...
Seriously, ~$100 for a machined piece of steel and a small retainer? I'm glad this worked for you, but that part is highway robbery. Especially when you consider the difficult part (the shifter) only cost $200.00!
Seriously, ~$100 for a machined piece of steel and a small retainer? I'm glad this worked for you, but that part is highway robbery. Especially when you consider the difficult part (the shifter) only cost $200.00!
The stock cheap molded plastic, wrapped in leather, C6 **** is $65.05 from Gene Culley.
Part #15908045
Highway robbery??
Hardly. If I can't afford to pay an extra ~$30 bucks for what I want then I don't need to be driving a Z06 in the first place.Quality usually costs. At $200.00, that shifter is a bargain. Many people will tell you that its worth every bit of $300.00
The Callaway shifter goes for $269.00. $295.00 with the threaded ****. The Callaway was my second choice.
http://store.callawaycars.com/shifte...oemc6knob.aspx
I figure I am at a few dollars over that Callaway total, for a better shifter than the Callaway.
BTW, George's Gripper **** sells for $40.00 and his race **** for $55.00.
If I price it out, I am at $224.00 for the shifter with the threaded shaft, plus $89.95 for the A6 Lepoard, plus $14.95 for the retainer. So $328.90 vs $295.00. A $33.00 difference, and you are crying "robbery". Don't make me laugh.
You think $100.00 was too much for the **** and retainer??? How much do you think I should have paid???
But on something like a shifter, I'm not pinching pennies. Its something I use every time I drive the car.
But if you price out billet steel, it is usually expensive. What do you think these should go for?
Last edited by '06 Quicksilver Z06; 10-13-2008 at 02:08 AM.
10-14-2008, 12:14 AM
#13
Le Mans Master
Excellent write up, as usual!! But be careful, that **** gets COLD in the winter & HOT in the summer.
I had a similar **** on my C5Z for a short time & took it off for these reasons.
Ron
I had a similar **** on my C5Z for a short time & took it off for these reasons.
Ron
10-14-2008, 07:01 AM
#14
Race Director
Member Since: Jan 2005
Location: Bay Shore, NY 11706 MILD2WILD (M2W)
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St. Jude Donor '06-'07
I had a few customers beg me to make them to fit the OEM, but I refused for that reason. If that car sits in the hot sun that **** can easly be 130F and will be too hot to touch 
10-14-2008, 12:06 PM
#15
Pro
He'll send you the ball kit.
There is a smaller ball and a larger ball.
One or the other should reduce the noise, if not eliminate it, vs the stock ball in your shifter.
But a big problem is that stock shifter ****.
The shaft of that shifter acts like a tuning fork and transmits slight vibration up from the shift rod, through that lower shifter ball, and up through the shifter's shaft.
Drive around with that **** off, and its almost silent. But if you put your hand around the shifter's shaft, you can indeed feel a tad of vibration.
If you cup your hand around the shifter's shaft, you can here it a tad more.
The trick is to dampen that slight vibration.
The stock shifter does it with that plastic piece which covers the lower ball, and the shaft of the stock piece is covered with a plastic coating of some sort.
This minimizes any transmission of vibrations up through the shifter's shaft and from there into the stock ****.
There are a couple of steps you can take.
1.Put some RTF inside the stock **** before pushing it down onto the top shaft. McMung even put some where the upper and lower sections of the shifter are connected. That might quiet it some.
2. The ball kit. When I initially talked to George, he told me that if you were going to get noise, that you would know it right away.
That said, if he sends you the ball kit, you can pull the shifter and try either the slightly larger ball or the slightly smaller one and take a drive. If it buzzes, then you would have to try the other ball.
There are some who say that you can remove this shifter without removing the console. But the insulation and the stock rubber boots seem like they would make this tough.
The only way I see is to remove the console, and like I said before, I didn't want to do that too many times. Doing that multiple times tends to make fastener's loose and could create other squeaks and rattles.
But if you are dead set on using the stock ****, then the attempts with the ball kit might be worth it.
However, one other thing which made me balk at this approach though was that there was no guarantee that trying all three sized *****, the standard one, and the other two, would cure the problem.
The other thing was that going to the smaller ball, might cost me some precision wise, though I don't know this for a fact.
I did know though that because of the tuning fork type effect, which in my opinion is what leads to this in the first place, that a good quality shift **** would put a damper on that vibration.
If the heavier **** had not worked, well then I would have gone on to try the ball kit.
There is a smaller ball and a larger ball.
One or the other should reduce the noise, if not eliminate it, vs the stock ball in your shifter.
But a big problem is that stock shifter ****.
The shaft of that shifter acts like a tuning fork and transmits slight vibration up from the shift rod, through that lower shifter ball, and up through the shifter's shaft.
Drive around with that **** off, and its almost silent. But if you put your hand around the shifter's shaft, you can indeed feel a tad of vibration.
If you cup your hand around the shifter's shaft, you can here it a tad more.
The trick is to dampen that slight vibration.
The stock shifter does it with that plastic piece which covers the lower ball, and the shaft of the stock piece is covered with a plastic coating of some sort.
This minimizes any transmission of vibrations up through the shifter's shaft and from there into the stock ****.
There are a couple of steps you can take.
1.Put some RTF inside the stock **** before pushing it down onto the top shaft. McMung even put some where the upper and lower sections of the shifter are connected. That might quiet it some.
2. The ball kit. When I initially talked to George, he told me that if you were going to get noise, that you would know it right away.
That said, if he sends you the ball kit, you can pull the shifter and try either the slightly larger ball or the slightly smaller one and take a drive. If it buzzes, then you would have to try the other ball.
There are some who say that you can remove this shifter without removing the console. But the insulation and the stock rubber boots seem like they would make this tough.
The only way I see is to remove the console, and like I said before, I didn't want to do that too many times. Doing that multiple times tends to make fastener's loose and could create other squeaks and rattles.
But if you are dead set on using the stock ****, then the attempts with the ball kit might be worth it.
However, one other thing which made me balk at this approach though was that there was no guarantee that trying all three sized *****, the standard one, and the other two, would cure the problem.
The other thing was that going to the smaller ball, might cost me some precision wise, though I don't know this for a fact.
I did know though that because of the tuning fork type effect, which in my opinion is what leads to this in the first place, that a good quality shift **** would put a damper on that vibration.
If the heavier **** had not worked, well then I would have gone on to try the ball kit.
Nice write up...I'm thinking of of going with the MGW...but worried about the rattle as well. Since I'm a bit A.D.D., the cliff notes version of what you did is what? Went with MGW, replaced stock ****...problem fixed? You did not switch the ball kit out right?
Thanks.
10-14-2008, 06:47 PM
#16
Burning Brakes
As mentioned I also have a TWM ****, and I love it. Makes the shifting action so much easier thanks to counterweighting of the shifting linkage.
I only had a noise problem from the linkage between upper and lower shafts, RTV solved that problem for me. Interesting, are all of the MGW shifters now coming with the offset upper shaft now? I still have the straight through shaft, not sure if there is a noticable difference, anyone?
Also it's funny someone mentioned solid gold, I believe TWM DO make a gold plated ****... for $240
I only had a noise problem from the linkage between upper and lower shafts, RTV solved that problem for me. Interesting, are all of the MGW shifters now coming with the offset upper shaft now? I still have the straight through shaft, not sure if there is a noticable difference, anyone?
Also it's funny someone mentioned solid gold, I believe TWM DO make a gold plated ****... for $240
10-14-2008, 07:51 PM
#17
Team Owner
Thread Starter
Quicksilver,
Nice write up...I'm thinking of of going with the MGW...but worried about the rattle as well. Since I'm a bit A.D.D., the cliff notes version of what you did is what? Went with MGW, replaced stock ****...problem fixed? You did not switch the ball kit out right?
Thanks.
Nice write up...I'm thinking of of going with the MGW...but worried about the rattle as well. Since I'm a bit A.D.D., the cliff notes version of what you did is what? Went with MGW, replaced stock ****...problem fixed? You did not switch the ball kit out right?
Thanks.
But to sum up my initial post, I managed to get rid of the fine buzzing/vibration of my MGW shifter, by going from the stock shift ****, to a heavier shift ****.
As mentioned I also have a TWM ****, and I love it. Makes the shifting action so much easier thanks to counterweighting of the shifting linkage.
I only had a noise problem from the linkage between upper and lower shafts, RTV solved that problem for me. Interesting, are all of the MGW shifters now coming with the offset upper shaft now? I still have the straight through shaft, not sure if there is a noticable difference, anyone?
Also it's funny someone mentioned solid gold, I believe TWM DO make a gold plated ****... for $240
I only had a noise problem from the linkage between upper and lower shafts, RTV solved that problem for me. Interesting, are all of the MGW shifters now coming with the offset upper shaft now? I still have the straight through shaft, not sure if there is a noticable difference, anyone?
Also it's funny someone mentioned solid gold, I believe TWM DO make a gold plated ****... for $240
When I ordered the threaded shaft, I fully expected it to be straight. As is pictured on the MGW site.
So I wonder if they have gone to the offset design for both the threaded and non threaded.
Last edited by '06 Quicksilver Z06; 10-14-2008 at 08:00 PM.
10-15-2008, 11:32 AM
#18
Pro
I did not switch the ball kit out.
But to sum up my initial post, I managed to get rid of the fine buzzing/vibration of my MGW shifter, by going from the stock shift ****, to a heavier shift ****.
My threaded MGW shaft is offset. Just like my non threaded one.
When I ordered the threaded shaft, I fully expected it to be straight. As is pictured on the MGW site.
So I wonder if they have gone to the offset design for both the threaded and non threaded.
But to sum up my initial post, I managed to get rid of the fine buzzing/vibration of my MGW shifter, by going from the stock shift ****, to a heavier shift ****.
My threaded MGW shaft is offset. Just like my non threaded one.
When I ordered the threaded shaft, I fully expected it to be straight. As is pictured on the MGW site.
So I wonder if they have gone to the offset design for both the threaded and non threaded.
Thanks.
10-15-2008, 11:33 AM
#19
Pro
As mentioned I also have a TWM ****, and I love it. Makes the shifting action so much easier thanks to counterweighting of the shifting linkage.
I only had a noise problem from the linkage between upper and lower shafts, RTV solved that problem for me. Interesting, are all of the MGW shifters now coming with the offset upper shaft now? I still have the straight through shaft, not sure if there is a noticable difference, anyone?
Also it's funny someone mentioned solid gold, I believe TWM DO make a gold plated ****... for $240
I only had a noise problem from the linkage between upper and lower shafts, RTV solved that problem for me. Interesting, are all of the MGW shifters now coming with the offset upper shaft now? I still have the straight through shaft, not sure if there is a noticable difference, anyone?
Also it's funny someone mentioned solid gold, I believe TWM DO make a gold plated ****... for $240
