You folks have never failed yet so here's another request for your collective valued opinions.
Like most Z owners, I love almost everything about the car with two exceptions. The one that I find most annoying is the less than smooth and quick operation of the shifter. This is especially annoying when winding the thing out, and shifting from 2nd to 3rd. I am trying to decide how much better a Hurst or B&M shifter is over the factory unit. Also between the two, which one is the best overall,i.e. smoothness and positive shifts in each gate etc. Hurst or B&M? SInce I'm an old GTO guy, I have only had experience with the old style Hurst shifter which was on my M-21 four speed, which I thought was flawless. BTW, the second item I'm less than happy with are the look of the gray-painted wheels. Look forward to your responses. Thanx, J

 

I have the ripper and I am happy with it, however it came with my car and I have no major time with stock shifter so really can't compare. It is notchy and harder to shift but seems to be percise. As for the wheels, you can strip the paint and polish like the o4 z16 wheels or have aftermarket wheels put on = i have fikse which are very similar to stock wheels in spoke design, polished and wider in back than stock 11". I also have 18" wheels in front.

 

I have been using the stock shifter for over a year now. (Also my first stick ) I am having a B&M ripper installed soonish (hopefully within a week of its arrival) So I should be able to give a good comparison then.

 

Unlike the Hurst shifter for your M21 4 speed the aftermarket shifters for the Tremec Transmission do not replace the shift linkage. The linkage is part of the transmission and the shifter is nothing but a stick that that goes through a hole in the shifter base plate and is then stuck into a hole in the shift linkage. The difference in the shifters from stock are a shorter stick, a higher fulcrum point, a narrower hole for the stick to go through in the shifter plate and the addition of little tabs on the side of the stick that allow centering springs to be added. These springs provide additional pressure to center the shift linkage to the 3-4 gate. Most of the manufacturers provide several different spring sets so the user can adjust the amount of centering force. Nothing like the old Competition Plus.

When GM improved the shift feel of the C6 they did it with changes internal to the transmission and the use of a shorter stick.

If you scan down to Post #11 in this thread: http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1520282 you will see the shift linkage and a stock shifter laying beside it. All the shifter does is turn the shift rod sideways and move it back and forth. The transmission provides the centering force for the stock shifter and is starting point for centering force for aftermarket shifters that have springs. The addition of springs along with the reduced leverage of a shorter stick can make it difficult to get into the 1-2 gate and the 5-6 gates. The notchiness can not go away since that is inherent in the transmission. Some people like the centering force changes provided by the springs and the increased effort required of shorter sticks, etc. Other people who like quick easy shifts using their fingers and palm Vs grabbing the end of the shifter in their hand and jamming it into various gears do not like the increased effort since it tends to make gear changes problematic especially when downshifting to 2nd or upshifting to 5th on a road course.

Bill

 

...Wow, that about covers it - and then some!...Respect!

 

Yep.... after fighting a Hurst for 3 years I now have the C6Z06 assembly and love it. It's far better suited for road racing and the daily driving I do.

The Hurst is a better drag shifter, but then again if you have a little skill you can row the C6Z or even the stock shifter plenty fine.

 

Very good post! I personally just ordered a B&M percision. I can give a report once I get it in and tested.

 

I had the Hurst for a while; to notchy and it rattled a lot on hard throttle. Switched to the B&M Precision, it has an isolated shaft, no rattle. Not quite as "precision" feeling as the Hurst but I like it.

Jeff

 

b&m sport shifter from corvettes of houston about $175 and well worth it. no complaints. just takes a little more muscle than the stock shifter. some women or wimpy men might not like it but then, they probably wouldn't like a z anyway. they'd be driving a vw with a flower in the vase.

 

Thanks all. Banging gears from first to second is just fine, but from second to third seems to be the most clunky. I probably need to rely on the centering spring and just slam it into third and hope that it aligns with the right gate. It makes sense that it is the linkage that is most culpable. I've missed third gear on more than one occassion while speed-shifting. I guess it is the linkage flexing or something like that. Probably not a problem when road racing but can really screw up your time when running in a straight line. Thanks a bunch, you guys are always reliable.

 

I have the Ripper and my friend has the hurst. To me there isnt a big difference when I drive his car. I have a hurst laying around and have never installed it. Its all personal prefrence I think, they are both great shifters.

 

What is this B&M precision?
I have the (I guess) older B&M and like it.

 

There are two kinds of Hurst!
First is the original Hurst with the bolt on stick,this one tends to rattle.
Second is the Hurst billet which is one piece and very solid.
I like my Hurst billet

 

http://www.corvettesofhouston.com

 

Was in this spot a short while ago myself. I was considering a B&M or Kirban (locally recommended) shifter to reduce the travel in my stock shifter. Also, found the shift from 2nd to 3rd sometimes touchy for rapid shifts. A fellow C5 owner let me try his C6Z06 converted vehicle and found it very much to my liking except for the small ****. But, that change cost about $200 for basically the same shift unit slightly shorter with a bend near the top of the shaft.

I removed my shifter to lube/adjust and after consideration realized it could be modified. An existing post to shorten the stock unit by cutting off the uppermost threaded portion is on another forum. Accomplished the job nicely and looked fine except you do lose threads. Since I was going to replace anyway I decided to modify the existing stock unit.

I removed the unthreaded portion above the vibration damper and below the threading. Next, I reinforced the internal hollow part of the shaft and completed the job by welding the circumference of the shifter shaft. The vibration damper is not affected in any way nor is it damaged by the welding if done properly.

The finished painted shifter was properly lubricated/adjusted and re-installed. I preferred a different **** so I threaded on a Hurst black **** with a thin black jam nut. The stock shifter boot was used and the top now fits snuggly against the bottom of the shift ****. It looks very good and obviously doesn't stick up so far at the console or near the climate control *****.

How does it work? Very well indeed. Improved shifts from 2nd to 3rd (possibly the lubricant/adjustment) and no problems going into 1st or Reverse. No vibration or noise. The shifts feel crisper and for me clearly equal to the C6Z06 shifter. Like many things on our vehicles this is somewhat subjective but nonetheless the action is very similar. And no, this isn't a true "short-throw" shifter but provides similar end results.

Doesn't take too much effort to complete this modification with some shop tools and welder. I may consider doing this modification for others if there is any interest and time permits (retiring soon). A nominal fee would need to be charged (my time/materials/equipment) and perhaps I can do this on an exchange basis. Please, this isn't a solicitation for business but instead wouldn't possibly mind doing the modification for others. Trust some of you may find this useful.

 

Is COH actually shipping the new B&M sport shifter, or the old Ripper? Their website doesn't actually list a part number. The picture on their site shows the new one - 45044. Does B&M actually make the old 45057 any longer?

I'm just curious, since my wife ordered me the B&M as a Xmas present for my '04 Z. I definitely want the newer, refined sport shifter and I'm hoping I get the right one! UPS is supposed to deliver in a day or so. Thanks for any info...

 

give them a call. that's where i got mine for about $175.00 which included shipping. that was well over a year ago and i still like it. very tight quick shifts that require more effort. you will get used to the more effort and it will seem normal pretty quickly. its called a sport shifter and i think its the same as the precision shifter.

 

I have a ripper and I have to say the best thing about it is the fact that I can hit all gears with out having to lift my elbow off the center console. Is a bit stiffer then the stock but I enjoy the feel of it "clicking" into gear.

 

I've had the ripper installed for a while now and it was very noisy at first but most of that seems to have gone away. Not sure why but it's fairly quiet now used to be raspy even in gear. (had to cut some of the padding around the shifter to get it in guess it shifted around and that fixed it?) Anyway the actual shifts are night and friggin day. Very fast shifts hard and notchy but no mistaking if its in gear or not. Wayyy nicer than the stock shifter. I kept the stock ****. I'm no expert but I am loving it.

 

I have the Hurst shifter in my 2002 Z06. I originally used a ball shift **** which made shifting very difficult. I then switched to the Hardbar C5R Delrin shift **** which made it much smoother and better. As for your comment on the internal redesign of components in the C6 tranny for its short shifter. Mine just had its 3-4 & 5-6 sheet metal syncro guides replaced with billet guides by Raft Racer. It is now a totally different animal with its shifting much much smoother, better and more fluid in its feel on a road course. The notchness is still there but not as in your face as it was before the guide switch.