New floor shifter questions

[wildcard]

The only one I have any experience with is a universal one from Auto Zone. (Can't remember the brand) Piece of junk. Only me and my GRANDdaughter can shift it. At least if it gets stolen I'll find before they get to 2nd gear.

[ka_jd7and1]

So would this shifter work for me?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... &viewitem=

Or would I want something like this one?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... &viewitem=

I don't want the shifter to be hitting the seat, so I'm not sure which would work better? The first one says it's for trucks but doesn't say how long the stick is.....

[texrodder]

The Hurst shifter is a nice piece,I had one in my 67 and never had a problem with it,installed in about 2 hours and was far better than the column shift.At the $65.00 buy it now you cant go wrong,locally they sell for $120.00.My current 71 has one also and by the looks of it its been in a long time,and it shifts like new.

[ka_jd7and1]

Well I just bought it, so I can blame you if something goes wrong.

Thanks for the input.

[fordman]

one thing i have noticed abotu previous owners and thier floor shift installs. make sure and cut a hole the size of a grand canyon. before you sell it. that way someone else can call you a previous owner.

[ka_jd7and1]

Is there a template or something to figure out how big of a hole I should cut?

I've seen a couple of the pictures on here, I don't want to hide everything under the boot.

[fordman]

do you have the high hump or the low hump? also positioning is a factor. i would cut as small as hole as possible to figure out the position for it. if you havethe high hump remove it and figure your position and then measure and cut the smallest hole you can to mount it.

[ka_jd7and1]

It's a light duty 3 speed, which (if I read this site right) should be a low hump?

I have no problem taking the hump off in order to figure out what's where.

I'm sure the shifter will come with instructions on where to put it, right?

[fordman]

they might show or tell you soemwhat. you probably have the low hump its not removeable. so you are goignt o have to do alot of measuring to get the hole in the right place. be careful. measure twice cut once they say.

[texrodder]

I held the shifter in place and marked the imaginary center of if on the underside and drilled a reference hole to show me where to start the cut out that I thought would clear,then after it wouldnt completely clear I cut a little more(never works out the first time),really the hardest part was bending the rods around to clear the other shift arms,it really was not that hard,good luck with it.

[ka_jd7and1]

So I typed up a big reply and then accidentally hit the wrong button....oops.

Anyway........
I bought a Hurst Indy shifter for the truck. Got the shift linkage disconnected from the column, got under the truck to do the transmission side of the linkage and noticed there was a bracket for a floor shifter already installed on the transmission. I then tore out the 2 layers of carpet and 1 layer of rubber mat, and discovered there were 2 holes already in the floor. One was cut prettY square and was covered by the cardboard from a shifter boot package, the other one was covered by a piece of galvanized metal and looks like they used an air chisel to hack a hole in the floor (and then folded the metal underneath). The floor is also swisscheesed by shifter boot trim ring installation holes.

So I have new questions:

How does the shifter assembly mount to the transmission bracket, and which way should it go (should it default to the R/1 side or the 2/3 side when I let the shifter go?

What can I do to fix my floor? At this point I think I am just going to patch panel over 1 hole and cover the other with the shift boot. As a permanent fix though, would I be able to get a high hump cover and cut patch panels out of that, or....?

Thanks.

[FreakysFords]

If the hole(s) is inside the area of the imaginary removable hump, then I'd just cut one from a good floor, going to the 'groove' and cut yours along the stamped area, leaving the tabs (where the high hump would bolt). Then just lay the new over the now large hole in your truck and drill the tabs through both layers. Use what you will for a gasket and bolt down.

[fordman]

my thoughts are if it is bad enough you want to patch it you could just get some flat metal and patch it. or you could get a removeable hump cover and install it and that would patch the hole and give you a new surface to install the shifter. i have no idea how to hook up the shifter. i haven't seen your brackets or the shifter hook up onthe shifter.

[papabug71]

You do realize your going to have to change the steering colum also...right??

Your Non P/S colum will be too long if you hook it up to a P/S gearbox.

Find a P/S 3 speed colum, rebuild it & have P/S & a 3 on the tree. If I remeber correctly, Hawkrod has one & he was willing to part with it...

Just an idea....

[ka_jd7and1]

Yes, I do realize the steering column will need to be changed. The one I have now is kinda messed up anyway, a fresh start wouldn't be a bad idea.

Already got the floor shift installed, need to mess with the linkage a little bit but it works fine so far.