shifter

[Robk]

All,

It appears my shifter is worn out on my four speed manual.  One minute it was working great and then all of a sudden it would not go into 1st a or 2nd then after some tweaking it would go in about 50% of the time.  I had a friend who owns a transmission shop look at it and he says my shifter is worn out so bad it is not repairable and he doesn't know where to get replacement parts.  He said a Hurst would not look at all original although I recall that Jay had a Hurst in his car in Ames which looked quite good.

Is there any new replacement parts for the four speed shifter in the marketplace?  I'd really like to stay correct.  Any ideas on a good used one?   

As always..  Much obliged.

Rob Keena

[Mark Ascher]

Rob,

Call me.

Mark

[Brian]

Rob, they are repairable--very simple design.  All you need to fix it is a mig welder and a grinder.  Also, the mechanism is the same with the one used in all the mid-60's Chevys with the Muncie M20 and M21--only difference is the linkage, but you don't need that anyway.

[Robk]

Thanks guys.  This is helpful.  Mark, I'll call you Tuesday. 

Rob K

[Robk]

I tracked down a few muncie shifters on ebay. They do not  i.d. them as correct for a M20 or M21.  I have it narrowed down to a few and would appreciate any insight. 

#1.  http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MUNCIE-SHIFTER-LINKAGE-CHEVELLE-/380267286915?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item5889b25183

#2  This one seems right to me:  http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MUNCIE-SHIFTER-LINKAGE-CHEVELLE-/380267286915?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item5889b25183

#3   This one is better priced    http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1964-1965-1966-67-68-Chevy-Chevelle-Nova-Muncie-Shifter-/200502916878?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item2eaee7b70e

#4   This  is a set up whereby you can use a hurst but keep it looking origninal. I don't need the other stuff he sells.  http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1965-66-67-NOVA-MUNCIE-HURST-SHIFTER-KIT-BUCKET-SEATS-/350330431360?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item5191522780


Thanks! Rob

[Jay GS conv]

Rob,

I was told that those shifters are made by Buick, and are for the 65, 66 Buick's only, no other GM shifters bolt to the crossmember or are supported by that bracket that goes to the floor brace.
The shifter in my GS is a Hurst competition plus with a Buick handle fabricated to it.
I think your shifter can be rebuilt, I looked at my original shifter and think it can be refurbished with a little of research.

Jay

[65GS]

Rob

What trans do you have? The only one I have seen in a 65 is the B-W T-10.
As to the shifter, the late 65 & 66 had the shifter with the support that bolts to the cross member. The early cars did not have that support. Not sure of the bolt pattern between a B-W & Muncie.

Al

[Robk]

I have the BW T-10.  Trying to find a muncie that will fit it or some guidance on fixing the original.  My car is April of 65.

Rob

[Mark Ascher]

Rob,

Missed your call today. I'll call you in the am as early as I can. The shifter can be fixed.
I have mine totally disassembled, so if you need to you can see what might be worn or
not adjusted properly. Brian is correct, any part of it can be repaired.

Mark

[65GS]

Rob

How are the ends that the shifter rods go into? Are the holes out of round (oval) or are any shift rods bent?

Al

[Robk]

Rods seem ok but the holes are oval.  This seems to allow too much movement with the rods which then results in essentially it getting caught up in the shifting process. 

Rob

[WkillGS]

Rob

What trans do you have? The only one I have seen in a 65 is the B-W T-10.
As to the shifter, the late 65 & 66 had the shifter with the support that bolts to the cross member. The early cars did not have that support. Not sure of the bolt pattern between a B-W & Muncie.

Al

Al, the 1966 GS shifter definitely bolted to the crossmember.
My Aug '65 built 65 GS shifter bolted to the trans.
Did some 65's also bolt to the crossmember?

I once found a shifter at a swap meet for $10. Different handle, but the shifter body is identical to the 65 GS shifter.
They're made by ITM, supposedly owned by GM.

Rob, take a look at shifter bushings for a Hurst. You may be able to drill out the worn holes and use the bushings.
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/HUU-3327302

[Brian]

All the '65 GS models had the shifter mounted to the tailhousing of the trans and it is the identical mechanism that Chevy used on the Muncies--just had different linkage.  The '66 and '67 GS are the ones that had the shifter mounted on the crossmember.  If the holes are egged out, you can either drill them larger and put the hurst bushings in them, or simply weld them up with a mig, grind everything down flat and smooth, then redrill the hole back to the original size.  Pretty easy to do actually. 

[Robk]

Mine does not mount on the cross member.  Only the transmission.  I think with three bolts but it is hard to tell until i start removing it.   The problem with my shifter is not limited to the oval holes.  The mechanism itself seems so warn out that there is a bunch side to side play in it.  So even if the holes were made round, it would still miss the gears as it is very loose and cant be shimmed into place.  So it basically allows too much movement in the rods both because of the worn out holes and the mechanism itself.  I have not taken it out to photograph but i will this weekend.

Brian - what do you think of the muncie shifters i posted from eBay?  Any model or year you partiularly suggest that would have a m20 or m21 as factory correct?

Rob

[Brian]

Of the links you posted, #3 is the only one I saw that is correct (the one for $75 with the straight handle on it).  The other ones are something different that I am not familiar with.  Once you get it out and get it apart, you will see how simple it is and you will know right away what broke.  Something had to have broken for it to start giving problems all of the sudden like it did.