Vette is a '95 with a 6-speed -- everything is stock.

The shifter buzzes, moderate but not loud volume, in 5th when under load. If I shift into 5th hard, really stick it in there, that kills the buzz sometimes.

Any ideas? Please don't tell me 5th gear in my ZF6 is shot

 

Only when I've had too much coffee....

 

See if it has any front to rear slack movement in the handle when it is in neutral. If it has much movement, then you might need to put some shims in the ends of that shifter rocker cage to tighten it from vibrating front to rear. You have to pull the shifter boot off and then there is another rubber boot with a metal hold down ring that screws around the top of the transmission tower where the shifter sticks through. There is sort of a cage assembly under it that has a bushing in the front and back so the shifter can move left and right. There are shims in each end that limit the front to rear slack.

 

This happens with my hand off the shifter, also


I measured the freeplay. Total for front to rear is 3mm. Left to right is 5mm, just for fun. Does that sound like alot? Do I start by popping off the plate with the shift pattern numbering and go from there?

 

Your free-play doesn't sound like a lot to me unless it is really loose feeling. Mine moves almost that much but you have to move it, it's not loose feeling. Maybe if you pop off the boot you could see what's making it buzz. It's kind of a pain to get the boot completely off because you have to pull the **** off. To get the **** off, first you have to pry out the plastic shift pattern button in the middle. It is just a press fit and can be carefully lifted straight up with something thin and flat so as not to gouge it or your **** leather. Under the **** is a square pin that looks kind of like an old horseshoe nail. That fits (hammered) into a groove between the **** and the handle to keep the **** from twisting and unscrewing when you're shifting. People have all kinds of methods for pulling that thing, but I used a small pair of vice-grip pliers and just tapped it up with a small hammer till it turned loose and came out. With that pin out, you can unscrew the **** and the boot will lift off. You can then see the rubber dust seal you need to remove from there to have a look inside the shifter tower. My rubber dust boot had some kind of super messy goo that was smeared all around the edges to keep out dust and water I guess. I had lots of throw away rags and some goo-gone to wipe it off. Once you can see down in there, you can see how the shifter moves and you'll probably be able to find your buzz. You could even have a friend drive while you look in there with a flashlight and feel/wiggle the shift handle.