Quote:
Originally Posted by Talon
Making a cable shifter may be kinda tricky. The shaft is pointing out to the rear, which is what it should do in the original car, and requires both push/pull and twist it appears. In my rear engine setup, the shaft will be pointing towards the back bumper, so I'll need something to completely reverse the inputs and put them on the other side of the engine and forward around 3-4 feet, while hopefully keeping something that still resembles and H pattern. I'm gonna have to think on that one. . . any ideas?
|
Man have I got good news for you! You can "completely reverse the inputs" by using the stock shifter mechanism (the shift lever, base, and pushrod) and turning it around so the pushrod points backward. You'll have to lengthen the pushrod by cutting it and welding a tubing sleeve to it, and you have to make an upright "U" that welds to the end of the pushrod (with holes in the legs to bolt to the sleeve on the end of the shift rod that sticks out of the transmission) and the U has to be tall enough that the pushrod can go under the engine, but it works, and keeps the same H pattern as the original.
Here's the deal. When you push the shift lever to the right, it rotates the pushrod (looking at the trans from the rear) clockwise, and that doesn't change, whether the engine is forward of the shift lever or rearward. When you push the shift lever forward, it moves the pushrod backward (there's a pivot on the shift lever and the pushrod connects to the bottom of the shift lever). When the shift lever is mounted behind the engine (as in a Metro), moving the pushrod backward pulls the shift rod backward. When the engine is mounted behind the shift lever (as with your and my middies) the pushrod pushes instead of pulls, but sonofagun, when the push-input comes from the front, it pushes the shift rod backward. Ta dah, pattern unchanged, and no cables to mess with.
The brace rod will be on the wrong side of the pushrod, and if you want to use the original shifter bracing you'll have to pass one of the rods under the other, and you'll probably have to do some bending to snake the pushrod through the chassis, and...dang, there goes the bell. The details will be left as an exercise for the student.
