Frankie the Fink

Some problems with the fit using the Keisler TKO-600 C1 kit but not insurmountable....had to 'slot' the transmission crossmember to get the driveshaft/yoke off the driver's side of the tranny tunnel but then everything else went fine. I don't see any way to avoid cutting the ashtray pocket with this setup....its really the only mod to the original configuration required. Tranny installed with the engine in the car but had to tilt it back 9 degrees to get things hooked together. Definitely 'notchy' feeling shifting via rails instead of the more 'vague' linkage arms...you can't beat the cruising though! 5th gear/overdrive is wonderful above about 60mph; below 55mph its useless with my car as the RPMs are too low. The other benefit is the 1st gear...no more feathering the clutch and almost stalling from a stop light on a hill with my 3.7 rear to get going. The deeper first gear lets me slide right away from a stop....very nice.

midyearvette

that's pretty impressive frank if you can lug that low an rpm at 70 mph.....do you have any oomph under those conditions and if you can still handle hills and slight rises in the road, it really lets the mill loaf.....the notchy shifting will get better over time and you will get used to the very narrow gate and the 2 to 3 shift,,yeah i really like mine too..congrat's...

Frankie the Fink

The low 5th gear overdrive RPM with my cam is ok on hills or rises and during steady, even acceleration. If you try to floor it though and dump a gallon of gas in the engine via the dual carbs at this low an RPM it'll pretty much bog (time to downshift).

My Duntov cam has to be at least at 2200 RPM before you can kick the car in the *** and do a moonshot takeoff. As long as you keep that in mind you can tool down the highway at a good clip in overdrive and the engine is just running at a fast idle.

I can finally keep up with these crazy Florida turnpike drivers.

stratplus

Frank

Very nice and enjoy. I would love to put a 5 speed in the 60, but $$$...

Does the ashtry still fit in the pocket once the pocket is cut, or does the ashtry bottom have to be cut also?

Frankie the Fink

The flip-cover, metal ashtray insert has to be shortened so if yours is original then store it and get the $30 repro to cut up. Keisler's instructions tell you to cut the fiberglass ashtray pocket off at the very bottom just as the corners start to curve up and reattach it to the trans tunnel. My installer didn't agree with that so he cut the pocket way up near the top and fabricated a short cover for the ashtray hole. This allows you to keep the complete old fiberglass pocket which can be easily reglassed to the tunnel if somebody takes the car back to original in the future.

Kerrmudgeon

Can we learn what the whole project cost? Are you selling the old set up?

Frankie the Fink

I priced complete kits from 3 manufacturer's and they were all fairly close....figure $3,200-$3,400. Some vendors price the custom, shortened driveshaft separately (Keisler includes it in their kit price) so the they look cheaper at first but you need to add about $225 back in to the cost for an apples-apples comparison. Some kits include a clutch disk (Keisler does) since the splines change in the upgrade .. some others do not. I think the $3,400 figure applies and then if you are smart and add in a pressure plate and throw out bearing figure another $100 or so on top of that. (I went 10-1/2" for the clutch and components). If you want the replica shifter handle to look like a stock C1 its another $90-$145 depending on the vendor.

Again, you better price in a clutch fork (with the spring already attached), boot and pivot ball stud...$53, $14 and $9 respectively IIRC. Thennnn....if you need flywheel work such as mine requiring resurfacing and a new ring gear you have to add that in. Synchromesh fluid doesn't come with the kit so figure $25-$30 for that.

The rest is labor (if not self-installing) and I got quotes from $450-$720 for the turn-key job. Not the place to 'cheap out'. The $450 guy was working out of a storage shed in a part of town where an Uzi is recommended.

Wife ponyed up for this amount as a gift and to keep me from destroying our quiet neighborhood due to my cursing and the noisy ambulance arrivals if I tried it in the garage. Without getting into gory detais I went with Corvette Masters of Maitland, FL and they were simply superb. I got a long phone call every night from the shop owner (Robbie) on the status and pictures emailed to me of progress. They really did go the 'extra mile'. For instance...to get the driveshaft away from the driver's side of the tranny tunnel we had to 'slot' the vendor-suppled crossmember bolt holes per the instructions. Robbie was not happy with this so after doing the slotting and final installation he fabricated and welded a plate over the open part of the slot so there is no way in hell the transmission can ever move around in the future.

This is a pricey upgrade, no way around it...even if you do it yourself. Of course there is some payback in gas mileage and substantially prolonged engine life but your mileage may vary.

Not on your life ...

I have every original part for this car (somewhere) including the old valve springs and front drum brake pieces! Some masochist who wants to go NCRS in the future can do so if he/she cares to.

Interestingly...my BW T-10 is an aluminum case with a 1-30-61 date....which is intriquing because they were cast iron nearly through Jan of '61. So do I have one of the first aluminum case versions ? Could be.

L78racer

i'll bet it's nice to drive. what does the finished shifter/ boot in the car look like? any pics of that?

lynns59

I had to cut the ash tray pocket on mine with the T5 but I was able to use the original ash tray without modifications. Of course I had to raise that area and the tunnel about 3/4" or so which probably had something to do with it.

Kerrmudgeon

thanks Frank for the very informative answers to my questions, your a true gentlemen.

Frankie the Fink

Pics attached. Probably the one area of this mod that I'm not 100% tickled with. The added height of the replica C1 shifter is about 1" over the original. This is probably a good thing as it provides a longer perceived 'throw' between gears....if it was any shorter it might feel like you aren't moving it enough. The 5-speed shift pattern plate is pretty slick and speaks for itself.

What I really don't like is that the factory rubber boot is a sloppy fit now....instead of having the low appearance with the sort of trough in it that I'm used to, it actually climbs up the shifter's shaft now and has to sit on top of the driver's side block attached to the shaft that lets you screw it into the shifter adapter on the tranny.

The stock boot is clearly going to tear pretty quickly after numerous shifts...Keisler should think about a custom boot to make this part of their kit prettier.

Kerrmudgeon

Is that white **** bigger than normal or is it my imagination?

C-1 Generation 2

Quote;

The stock boot is clearly going to tear pretty quickly after numerous shifts...Keisler should think about a custom boot to make this part of their kit prettier.

I'm clearly with you on Keisler should make a custom boot.I replaced mine once and looked for something on line that might work instead.I'm always pulling up on the boot to try to cover the shifter.

On the ash tray pocket I just cut it completely off but had problems with the ash tray blowing out of the pocket with speeds above 70.So I used a few coats of liquid tape on the bottom now it stays in place.

C-1 Generation 2

I don't know about Frankie's shift **** but on mine what I did since I didn't like the feel of the stock size I took the white 4-speed **** I had on my Hurst shifter with embossed shift pattern found a bolt that would thread into the **** and then cut the head of the bolt off and put the bolt withe the **** attached in a battery operated drill and used course sand paper first and finally all the way to 2000 grit to get the shift pattern off and polished it to a nice shine. then put JB Weld in the threads and retapped the treads.

L78racer

I'm sure you'll come up with a fix. It doesn't look too bad though.

62Jeff

Frank,
I'm envious of all of your progress. I'm finally able to get out in the garage and tinker with my 62again after 4 months of non stop job commitments, so I'm looking forward to driving mine - but I think you are catching up with Roy and his 55 for pure enjoyment of ownership.

Jeff

Frankie the Fink

I think if the shifter **** from the kit is larger its by no more than a hair...it 'feels' pretty much like the old one...

Jeff - took the wife out to dinner at a really nice place last night in the vette...rolling along the turnpike at 75 mph with everybody else. Fun seeing the looks on folks' faces when a 50 year old car rolls past 'em..
You'll get there too...keep pluggin' away...

Fawndeuce

Sounds great Frank, glad you're pleased with the way in turned out.



Paul

Frankie the Fink

Been fumbling around on the web and it looks like a 1978 Volvo shifter boot may be the ticket.....right dimensions and height but who knows for sure?

I ordered one and will know soon.

Frankie the Fink

Hacked up 1978 Volvo shifter boot. Not quite perfect but better than the stock one looked stretched over the taller/fatter Keisler shifter. A little narrower center shaft hole would be nice and a little longer front to back.... May look for a grommet for the shaft hole to tighten it up unless it'll look too dorky.

This works for now but still looking...