Which short throw shifter to get
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,130
Likes: 3
From: Winter Park FL
I have the Hurst. It's very notchy and I would like something a little smoother when I drag race. I am going to look into the c6z shifter. I hear it is a lot smoother and many people like them.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 1,201
Likes: 0
From: San Antonio Texas
Both of you may want to look at the B&M Sport Shifter. It's very smooth with just a hint of notchiness feel, very short throws. And if you install a C6 shift **** on it.... you'll love it just like I do !!
Bottom line, it all comes down to your likes and dislikes.
Pro
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 542
Likes: 0
From: Mokena IL
I did the hurst too. It was way too notchy for my taste. As much as it broke my heart, i went back to stock for now.
my suggestion would be to drive another vette with a different shifter in it and see if you like it. (if possible).
my suggestion would be to drive another vette with a different shifter in it and see if you like it. (if possible).
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 6,366
Likes: 249
From: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
I have the Hurst and I do like it. You can do the "anti-venom" mod to get rid of a lot of the notchiness (that a word?). Do a search for the mod, it's real easy to do and cheap. If you decide to go with the Hurst, buy it from www.jegs.com. Their price is considerably cheaper than any Vette parts house, $169 compared to $249 elsewhere. Also here's another tip. Buy a rubber pvc tubing end cap of 2" i.d. and cut a 1/2" hole in the center. Before finishing the installation, slip the cap over the shifter and down on to the pivot base. This will cut out alot of the noise and vibration from the shifter. The Hurst may be somewhat notchy, but it's a hell of a lot more direct and accurate than the stock shifter.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,847
Likes: 1,144
From: Sleepy Hollow- NJ
That shifter is nice but it's still a stock shifter. The only this I found real nice about it was the shift ****. I went through 4 shifters to find the one I have now.
Both of you may want to look at the B&M Sport Shifter. It's very smooth with just a hint of notchiness feel, very short throws. And if you install a C6 shift **** on it.... you'll love it just like I do !!
Bottom line, it all comes down to your likes and dislikes.
Both of you may want to look at the B&M Sport Shifter. It's very smooth with just a hint of notchiness feel, very short throws. And if you install a C6 shift **** on it.... you'll love it just like I do !!
Bottom line, it all comes down to your likes and dislikes.
I went with the B&M, with a C6 shift ****. ( the **** made a pretty big difference in comfort)Love it! My brother has the stock **** on a Hurst and it's much more notchy than the B&M.
Instructor
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 111
Likes: 0
From: Barrie Ontario
That shifter is nice but it's still a stock shifter. The only this I found real nice about it was the shift ****. I went through 4 shifters to find the one I have now.
Both of you may want to look at the B&M Sport Shifter. It's very smooth with just a hint of notchiness feel, very short throws. And if you install a C6 shift **** on it.... you'll love it just like I do !!
Bottom line, it all comes down to your likes and dislikes.
Both of you may want to look at the B&M Sport Shifter. It's very smooth with just a hint of notchiness feel, very short throws. And if you install a C6 shift **** on it.... you'll love it just like I do !!
Bottom line, it all comes down to your likes and dislikes.
Pro
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 507
Likes: 0
From: Owatonna MN
Just wondering if there is a shifter out there with a spring loaded third gear made for vettes? I seem to miss third a lot seeing as I have only had the car for a month or so. I know there is one made for mustangs and makes it impossible to miss third, once the shifter is released out of the gate it pulls it towards third so all you have to do is push.
Sorny
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,094
Likes: 5
From: The 7th layer of hell - Western Washington
MTI - but make sure you talk to them when ordering and make sure they have solved their rattling issues.... I have a rattler and it's taken me months to learn to ignore it....
Burning Brakes
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 961
Likes: 0
From: Torrance CA
Just wondering if there is a shifter out there with a spring loaded third gear made for vettes? I seem to miss third a lot seeing as I have only had the car for a month or so. I know there is one made for mustangs and makes it impossible to miss third, once the shifter is released out of the gate it pulls it towards third so all you have to do is push.
Racer
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 382
Likes: 0
From: Arlington VA
As you probably realize, shifters are VERY subjective things. What one person LOVES, another HATES. Having said this, I LOVE my Kirban!
The way I see it, here's the low down on the Kirban shifter vs. Stock: I will begin with what I see as positives and then highlight some minor negatives (caveat, I do not have any first hand knowledge of other shifters)
1. Stock shifter is NOT horrible. I drove the car quite happily for over 2 years and 15,000 miles with the stock shifter. Were the throws on the longish side? Yes. Was I ever TOTALLY pleased with the 4-5 up-shift or the 6-5 down-shift? No. (Something about 5th never felt as "solid" as the rest of the gears, I don't know if this is true of all M12 transmissions, or just mine, but mine felt somewhat sloppy or vague). But again, I enjoyed driving the car VERY much.
2. The throws of the Kirban shifter are MUCH shorter then stock.
3. My 5th gear "vagueness" is GONE. The 4-5 shift is a much more positive and rewarding feeling.
4. The 1-2-3 up-shifts are like working the pump action on an Ithica shotgun both in feeling AND in sound. The Kirban's shifts are louder then stock. Too loud? No. But again, this is subjective. I like it, and I'm not a noise junkie at all. For example, I'm not one of those guys looking for a louder exhaust or ANYTHING like that.
5. The down-shift from 5-4 was never bad, but now, it's awesome. Noticable improvement.
Now for what I consider some downsides:
1. There is some noise from the shifter at idle. Is it bad? If I could snap my fingers, sure, I'd make it disappear. Am I over it? TOTALLY. Do I hear ANYTHING once it's in gear and I engage the clutch and drive? NO. Nothing. As soon as I drive even 2 feet, literally, it is GONE. Kirban does now include a "silencing" ring, made of aluminum I think, which I believe that my mechanic installed, but maybe he forgot. I do wonder. Do I care? No.
2. Your girlfriend WILL NOT BE DRIVING YOUR VETTE. The shifter is now sufficently stiffer (both north and south, as well as east to west) from stock, that I really doubt many women would feel comfortable driving it. I'm not trying to be sexist, I'm just telling you chances are good that a woman will no longer find the shifter "easy" to manipulate. You have to shift this thing with intent.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
I think trying to pick a shifter is a leap of faith unless you can actually drive a vehicle so equipped. I took a leap of faith based off my mechanic's recommendation. I'm very glad I did, my car is better for it. FYI, my mechanic said that he preferred the Kirban because it had "over-travel stops" I'm not sure if other short-shifters have this feature.
Oh, and I purchased mine from Lingenfelter and I believe Doug Rippie (http://www.dougrippie.com/ sells them too.
- Max
The way I see it, here's the low down on the Kirban shifter vs. Stock: I will begin with what I see as positives and then highlight some minor negatives (caveat, I do not have any first hand knowledge of other shifters)
1. Stock shifter is NOT horrible. I drove the car quite happily for over 2 years and 15,000 miles with the stock shifter. Were the throws on the longish side? Yes. Was I ever TOTALLY pleased with the 4-5 up-shift or the 6-5 down-shift? No. (Something about 5th never felt as "solid" as the rest of the gears, I don't know if this is true of all M12 transmissions, or just mine, but mine felt somewhat sloppy or vague). But again, I enjoyed driving the car VERY much.
2. The throws of the Kirban shifter are MUCH shorter then stock.
3. My 5th gear "vagueness" is GONE. The 4-5 shift is a much more positive and rewarding feeling.
4. The 1-2-3 up-shifts are like working the pump action on an Ithica shotgun both in feeling AND in sound. The Kirban's shifts are louder then stock. Too loud? No. But again, this is subjective. I like it, and I'm not a noise junkie at all. For example, I'm not one of those guys looking for a louder exhaust or ANYTHING like that.
5. The down-shift from 5-4 was never bad, but now, it's awesome. Noticable improvement.
Now for what I consider some downsides:
1. There is some noise from the shifter at idle. Is it bad? If I could snap my fingers, sure, I'd make it disappear. Am I over it? TOTALLY. Do I hear ANYTHING once it's in gear and I engage the clutch and drive? NO. Nothing. As soon as I drive even 2 feet, literally, it is GONE. Kirban does now include a "silencing" ring, made of aluminum I think, which I believe that my mechanic installed, but maybe he forgot. I do wonder. Do I care? No.
2. Your girlfriend WILL NOT BE DRIVING YOUR VETTE. The shifter is now sufficently stiffer (both north and south, as well as east to west) from stock, that I really doubt many women would feel comfortable driving it. I'm not trying to be sexist, I'm just telling you chances are good that a woman will no longer find the shifter "easy" to manipulate. You have to shift this thing with intent.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
I think trying to pick a shifter is a leap of faith unless you can actually drive a vehicle so equipped. I took a leap of faith based off my mechanic's recommendation. I'm very glad I did, my car is better for it. FYI, my mechanic said that he preferred the Kirban because it had "over-travel stops" I'm not sure if other short-shifters have this feature.
Oh, and I purchased mine from Lingenfelter and I believe Doug Rippie (http://www.dougrippie.com/ sells them too.
- Max
Safety Car
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 3,799
Likes: 1
From: Northern Virginia
St. Jude Donor '08
I have a little experience with this issue. Don't just look at the shifter. Look at the whole shifting mechanisms. The reason for you problem with shifting gears could be the detente bolt that connects the shifting rod to the transmission. On the passenger side of the transmission in the middle at the top is where the bolt is. The bolt has a spring loaded ball inside. There is something called the anti-venom mod that helps to lessen the spring load inside the transmission making it much easier to shift.
Here is a link.
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1464382
My brother and I made the change to my 99 FRC. What a difference. Now I just have to work on putting in lighter springs on the hurst short shifter I have.
FWIW, some people have just cut their stock shifters to make a shorter shifter. I think if you do a search you might find some info on how to do this.
Hope this helps.
Here is a link.
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1464382
My brother and I made the change to my 99 FRC. What a difference. Now I just have to work on putting in lighter springs on the hurst short shifter I have.
FWIW, some people have just cut their stock shifters to make a shorter shifter. I think if you do a search you might find some info on how to do this.
Hope this helps.
Race Director
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 19,459
Likes: 48
From: Schaumburg IL
CI 7-8-9-11 Veteran
St. Jude Donor '06-'10, '13
My vote hands-down is for the B&M Ripper..I was very worried about short shifter being to hard to shift, or to notchy...the B&M is notchy somewhat but that's with any percision shifter.
I installed it last week and could not be happier. The ONLY negative I see so far is that it is a little tough to get into reverse.
Again , this question is very subjective due to each person's definition and feeling is different. What is too stiff to one person, may feel smooth to another. Best bet is to test drive a car with the shifter you are considering and see how you like it.
I installed it last week and could not be happier. The ONLY negative I see so far is that it is a little tough to get into reverse.
Again , this question is very subjective due to each person's definition and feeling is different. What is too stiff to one person, may feel smooth to another. Best bet is to test drive a car with the shifter you are considering and see how you like it.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 2,715
Likes: 0
From: Tinker till it blows... then back it off a notch, maybe!!
St. Jude Donor '08
B & M old style ripper, BUT
want NO more notchiness?
My cure, cheap parts wise, but labor intensive
step 1: do the shim the external ball detent deal
Not enough? want smoother...?
step 2 r & r the tranny, open it up and remove 1 or 2 windings from the main ball and spring detent system, or install a weaker spring.
Result: I cut 1" off my ripper and am using hurst ball. Shifts smooth as butter, and even reverse is easy to get into.
My throw = less than 2" fom 3rd to 4th measured at top of ball.
I am ready to cut another 1/2 to 3/4 "off the ripper shaft...it shifts that easy. ( and I'm an old fart )
Other recommendations: bronze shift fork pads, billet 3/4 keys, steel 3/4 fork and give it hell.
JMO
Oh, and if you drop the tranny, do the clutch bleeder line while you're there
want NO more notchiness?
My cure, cheap parts wise, but labor intensive
step 1: do the shim the external ball detent deal
Not enough? want smoother...?
step 2 r & r the tranny, open it up and remove 1 or 2 windings from the main ball and spring detent system, or install a weaker spring.
Result: I cut 1" off my ripper and am using hurst ball. Shifts smooth as butter, and even reverse is easy to get into.
My throw = less than 2" fom 3rd to 4th measured at top of ball.
I am ready to cut another 1/2 to 3/4 "off the ripper shaft...it shifts that easy. ( and I'm an old fart )
Other recommendations: bronze shift fork pads, billet 3/4 keys, steel 3/4 fork and give it hell.
JMO
Oh, and if you drop the tranny, do the clutch bleeder line while you're there
Instructor
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 111
Likes: 0
From: Barrie Ontario
Instructor
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 111
Likes: 0
From: Barrie Ontario
As you probably realize, shifters are VERY subjective things. What one person LOVES, another HATES. Having said this, I LOVE my Kirban!
The way I see it, here's the low down on the Kirban shifter vs. Stock: I will begin with what I see as positives and then highlight some minor negatives (caveat, I do not have any first hand knowledge of other shifters)
1. Stock shifter is NOT horrible. I drove the car quite happily for over 2 years and 15,000 miles with the stock shifter. Were the throws on the longish side? Yes. Was I ever TOTALLY pleased with the 4-5 up-shift or the 6-5 down-shift? No. (Something about 5th never felt as "solid" as the rest of the gears, I don't know if this is true of all M12 transmissions, or just mine, but mine felt somewhat sloppy or vague). But again, I enjoyed driving the car VERY much.
2. The throws of the Kirban shifter are MUCH shorter then stock.
3. My 5th gear "vagueness" is GONE. The 4-5 shift is a much more positive and rewarding feeling.
4. The 1-2-3 up-shifts are like working the pump action on an Ithica shotgun both in feeling AND in sound. The Kirban's shifts are louder then stock. Too loud? No. But again, this is subjective. I like it, and I'm not a noise junkie at all. For example, I'm not one of those guys looking for a louder exhaust or ANYTHING like that.
5. The down-shift from 5-4 was never bad, but now, it's awesome. Noticable improvement.
Now for what I consider some downsides:
1. There is some noise from the shifter at idle. Is it bad? If I could snap my fingers, sure, I'd make it disappear. Am I over it? TOTALLY. Do I hear ANYTHING once it's in gear and I engage the clutch and drive? NO. Nothing. As soon as I drive even 2 feet, literally, it is GONE. Kirban does now include a "silencing" ring, made of aluminum I think, which I believe that my mechanic installed, but maybe he forgot. I do wonder. Do I care? No.
2. Your girlfriend WILL NOT BE DRIVING YOUR VETTE. The shifter is now sufficently stiffer (both north and south, as well as east to west) from stock, that I really doubt many women would feel comfortable driving it. I'm not trying to be sexist, I'm just telling you chances are good that a woman will no longer find the shifter "easy" to manipulate. You have to shift this thing with intent.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
I think trying to pick a shifter is a leap of faith unless you can actually drive a vehicle so equipped. I took a leap of faith based off my mechanic's recommendation. I'm very glad I did, my car is better for it. FYI, my mechanic said that he preferred the Kirban because it had "over-travel stops" I'm not sure if other short-shifters have this feature.
Oh, and I purchased mine from Lingenfelter and I believe Doug Rippie (http://www.dougrippie.com/ sells them too.
- Max
The way I see it, here's the low down on the Kirban shifter vs. Stock: I will begin with what I see as positives and then highlight some minor negatives (caveat, I do not have any first hand knowledge of other shifters)
1. Stock shifter is NOT horrible. I drove the car quite happily for over 2 years and 15,000 miles with the stock shifter. Were the throws on the longish side? Yes. Was I ever TOTALLY pleased with the 4-5 up-shift or the 6-5 down-shift? No. (Something about 5th never felt as "solid" as the rest of the gears, I don't know if this is true of all M12 transmissions, or just mine, but mine felt somewhat sloppy or vague). But again, I enjoyed driving the car VERY much.
2. The throws of the Kirban shifter are MUCH shorter then stock.
3. My 5th gear "vagueness" is GONE. The 4-5 shift is a much more positive and rewarding feeling.
4. The 1-2-3 up-shifts are like working the pump action on an Ithica shotgun both in feeling AND in sound. The Kirban's shifts are louder then stock. Too loud? No. But again, this is subjective. I like it, and I'm not a noise junkie at all. For example, I'm not one of those guys looking for a louder exhaust or ANYTHING like that.
5. The down-shift from 5-4 was never bad, but now, it's awesome. Noticable improvement.
Now for what I consider some downsides:
1. There is some noise from the shifter at idle. Is it bad? If I could snap my fingers, sure, I'd make it disappear. Am I over it? TOTALLY. Do I hear ANYTHING once it's in gear and I engage the clutch and drive? NO. Nothing. As soon as I drive even 2 feet, literally, it is GONE. Kirban does now include a "silencing" ring, made of aluminum I think, which I believe that my mechanic installed, but maybe he forgot. I do wonder. Do I care? No.
2. Your girlfriend WILL NOT BE DRIVING YOUR VETTE. The shifter is now sufficently stiffer (both north and south, as well as east to west) from stock, that I really doubt many women would feel comfortable driving it. I'm not trying to be sexist, I'm just telling you chances are good that a woman will no longer find the shifter "easy" to manipulate. You have to shift this thing with intent.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
I think trying to pick a shifter is a leap of faith unless you can actually drive a vehicle so equipped. I took a leap of faith based off my mechanic's recommendation. I'm very glad I did, my car is better for it. FYI, my mechanic said that he preferred the Kirban because it had "over-travel stops" I'm not sure if other short-shifters have this feature.
Oh, and I purchased mine from Lingenfelter and I believe Doug Rippie (http://www.dougrippie.com/ sells them too.
- Max
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,094
Likes: 5
From: The 7th layer of hell - Western Washington
here is the thread with both anti-venom and shifter adjustment detailed...
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...ght=anti-venom
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...ght=anti-venom