Those are Super Shifter rods, if memory serves. You need to mount the shifter mechanism very high in order to use them, which means serious floorpan hackery, a stock console is out of the question, and you may need a sunroof depending on which stick you use.
The reason the shifter needs to go up so far is because your reverse rod now must go over the transmission crossmember, rather than below it. Also, the 1-2 and 3-4 rods can't be in the same horizontal plane because they'll hit each other. Yes, the levers on the shifter are offset, but the ones on the transmission are not.
Now that we've established that you probably don't want these, I've got to wonder exactly how people are bending solid steel rods. Powershifting? OK, I can see that happening with misadjusted linkage, and I really don't want to see what their synchros look like if that's what they're using as a stop when they're jamming the gear lever with entirely too much force. These are the same guys that yank the lever out of bayonet-style shifters.
If you're going to drive your car hard, it takes about 20 minutes and a couple of drill bits to make the setup bulletproof and virtually ensure you won't bend the linkage. Anyone with a four-speed can learn from this if they don't already know it, so continue reading...
- 1. With the shifter mechanism out of the car, remove the handle and place the mechanism in a vise. On virtually every Hurst shifter I've ever seen, on the front and back sides of the housing there is an indentation. Center-punch that indentation on both sides so you can drill accurately, then push the stick mount "into gear" in the same direction as the side you're about to drill. Drill and tap those indentations for two 3/8" coarse-thread bolts, 1-1/4" or 1-1/2" will do. Coating the drill bit and tap with Vaseline will help keep the shavings out of the mechanism. Thoroughly clean the shifter, and if desired spray some kind of aerosol lube into it while working it back and forth while still in the vise.
- 2. With the car safely supported on jackstands, reinstall the shifter mechanism to the transmission without the handle, but don't connect the linkage yet. With the shifter in neutral, you will see an alignment notch in the bottom edges of the sides of the shifter body, which align with holes in the shift arms. I don't have a shifter in front of me at the moment, but if memory serves it's for a 1/8" alignment pin, or as I like to call it, "drill bit." Insert the drill bit through the notch, all three shifter arms, and then the notch on the other side. It'll take a little wiggling, but once the drill bit is in place your shifter is in absolute neutral.
- 3. Install your shift linkage, making sure each transmission lever is in neutral with no load against it (if there is, you've got issues inside). Install the fixed ends first, then use the threaded swivels to get each rod so the swivel's pin will go through the shift arm with the least amount of resistance. If you think you're going to have the shift rods out a lot, you can use some low-strength threadlocker on the threads so the rods will stay adjusted. Install your clips, and you're done with the linkage. It's adjusted better than the factory did it. Remove your drill bit or alignment rod.
- 4. Install your shifter handle without the boot, and gently place the car in first gear. Get under the car, and make sure that the linkage rod is not bound tightly. You should be able to easily wiggle it. If not, see the note in bold type below. If so, get back topside and run a 3/8" grade 8 nut all the way up each of your bolts from Step 1. No need to tighten it, it just needs to be out of the way. Apply some weak threadlocker in the threaded hole at the rear of the shifter, and thread a bolt/nut assembly in until the end of the bolt touches the bottom part of the handle mount inside the mechanism (it'll be below the pivot pin). Thread the bolt in about 1/2 turn further. Apply some weak threadlocker on the bolt's threads where it meets the shifter body. Keep the bolt from turning and thread the nut down to the shifter body. Hold the bolt with a wrench and use another wrench to tighten the nut snugly against the shifter body.
- 5. Now, put the car gently into second gear, check your linkage again, and repeat the bolt installation procedure from Step 4, obviously installing the bolt in the front hole this time.
- 6. Check your linkage-rod play in third and fourth gears to make sure that rod does not bind with the bolts at their current depth. If it does, find the problem and rectify it.
There! You've just installed & adjusted shifter stop bolts, as were used in virtually all aftermarket Hurst shifters for many years. No bashing the synchros, no unnecessary stress on your linkage rods. If your parts are in good condition you'll fall in love with your four-speed all over again, doubly so if you have bushed linkage (I prefer the steel bushings, but the nylon ones are an improvement over nothing). The bolts and therefore the shifter takes the brunt of your hammer-jockey driving style, but even on normal shifts you'll appreciate the positive feel of a solid stop. You could have shift rods made from 3/8" steel fuel line and not bend them.
So, with that knowledge in your thought bucket, you can go ahead and order
these gems from a fellow maple-flagger at a reasonable price, and have a factory-engineered setup under the tunnel with no worries of bending or failure. Get cuttin'... you've got a
manual transmission to install! :dance:
***NOTE: If you do not have matched parts the above procedure may not work for you. Generally speaking, the transmission levers are critical and need to be the right ones for the transmission. Hurst shifter mechanisms are a little more forgiving, but not perfect and your linkage rods may not account for differently-shaped mechanism arms (curved v. straight, etc.). Simply put, if you can't get the linkage rods installed with the drill bit in place, something's wrong and you need to replace whatever's causing the issue. Old Hurst catalogs had a pretty thorough listing of mechanisms with line drawings that referenced the models they fit. If you can't find that resource, just keep an eye on eBay. Original mechanisms pop up pretty often and you'll get an idea of what you're seeking if nothing else.
