I work at a large manufacturing plant and we have a machine shop. I have been toying around with the idea of having a shifter gate fab'd up from some kind of billet.

I could get it made out of Stainless, aluminum, brass, plastic... whatever.

Any ideas how to get the measurements and fitment right? Also, how do i make a nifty little sliding plastic shield to protect from stuff falling into the shifter mechanism and also to protect from heat coming out of it?

to make it fit properly, get a piece of easily machined plastic, mount it (you'll probably need a hole to slide over the shift lever) and cut away @ the plastic until your shift can go through all the motions (tada, instant template)

Have fun with the plastic shield thingy.

This would be friggin awesome...I would love one...

wouldnt it be different for :regular, and short throw, also each short throw manufactutrer

Originally posted by p7r4e7y
wouldnt it be different for :regular, and short throw, also each short throw manufactutrer

probably....

if you are successful...let me know...definitely interested

if you leave the gates a lot wider, it might fit a wider array of shifters *nods* and it probably wouldn't interfere

i like the idea of using soft plastic. I could go out there with the plastic and a cordless dremel and work at it until the template is perfect....

As far as the shield goes... i'm baffled as to how to make the plastic sliding thing.

I guess if I'm successful I will have several made and i'll sell them cheap. Is brushed aluminum the material of choice? say... 1/8" thick? I am pretty sure I'd have to use something like nylon bristles on the underside instead of the moving plastic shield.

Didn't somebody have a shifter gate made already? I could use that for a template.

I think I would want the slots a little more open than usual to allow shifting more directly instead of at 90 degree angles. know what I mean?

Anybody got any diagrams w/ dimensions or anything else helpful that will get me started on this?

you mean like a ferrari shift gate? don't you need to redo the shifter itself to make it fit into the shift gates? I would love to have one of those Ferrari looking shifter/shift gate combo :eek:

what I envision is a nice-looking gate in place of the leatherette shifter boot. Then the shifter itself would be bare metal. I understand that there is a difference between shifter gating. I've read that most trannies (like the WRX) are internally gated, making a gate on the center console not necessary... but this would be cosmetic only. I'd make the gate open enough to have it not even really come in contact with the shifter very much.

-nick

I will share my crude thoughts on how to make a template. Attach a stick/rod to pencil at a 90' angle. Then attach that to the shifter itself at the level where you want the shifter gate to be. Next, get a flat board to write on, and put it under the pencil. Then go through all the gears, and you should have a stencil of what the template should look like, because the pencil will mark down all the shifts. Did I make any since?

yeah isn't that something like those old spiralgraph things i played with as a kid? translate the motion to a writing utensil...

I got it. It'll be tough to secure the pencil and hold everything in place but.... i could give that a shot to get me started.

I'll snag some plastic sheeting today and take it home to begin this endeavor.

It's way early but i see about 5, 6 people interested in one? Should I make that many? I wouldn't be looking to profit. More of a favor to the people who want them and can assist with good suggestions/advice.

-Nick

I'm so interested...
What are the odds of getting the #'s tapped into the metal?

Or maybe the WRX logo??? *hops around*

better yet, get one of those ball type Ferrari shifters, those are nice!

ok i snagged a chunk of 3/16" plexi sheet so i can probably begin the pre-fab design process now. will keep updating.:)


I'm so interested...
What are the odds of getting the #'s tapped into the metal?

Or maybe the WRX logo??? *hops around*

yeeesh. this is getting tougher. I don't know if Tim can do precision engraving. I'd have to go to some place and get that custom done. that stuff costs money!

just get the gate...I'll get the engraving ;)

ok I took apart my center console...

I removed the little plastic trim ring and used this as the guide.

I made a plexiglas model of the shape but the actual part will need to be ever-so-slightly curved so i put it in the toaster-oven...for a little too long. It foamed up on one end.

Drat. So I still had the trim ring out. I used my flatbed scanner and whatnot to get a black+white drawing scanned in. Hopefully this will be good enough to make a prototype... maybe not.

I have no web hosting anywhere, but i can send the pic to whomever wants a look. It's just a two-color tracing. Nothing special.

Anyway, I got the shift-pattern measured and here's the problem. The stock shifter is so portly that it would not even be able to utilize a gated cover. The shaft is nearly 1" diameter (maybe less) and the center-to-center spacing of where the shaft would be in 1st, 3rd, 5th gear is only 1/2".

See the problem? So i need a short-shifter before this can be realized. Anybody want to loan me one (or hehe donate) for measurements and whatnot? Preferebly somebody who lives near me so i can return it more quickly.

btw, front-to-back throw is about 2.5" at the gate. I suspect this will be significantly less with the short-throw!

Just get the KB short throw shifter and make it for that. (you know you want to find an excuse to upgrade anyway) heheheeh :D

Originally posted by JenisonWRX
just get the gate...I'll get the engraving ;)

word:D

Kartboy eh? I was thinking about the cobb one...

hehe.

There are places that do engravings for a reasonable price. Here, in MI, we have 'em in the malls. I imagine that if they can engrave a watch, they can do the gated shifter ornament.

do it for the Kartboy :) heh

Originally posted by: SleeperWRX
do it for the Kartboy heh

i second that!
let me know how it comes out.... i may think about trying this as a DIY...or maybe just buy one from you...heheh

I am also very interested in the gate shifter. I just ordered my Kartboy shortshifter today so yes I would have to agree with the above posts to design it for the KB shifter. :) How much would it cost and how close are you to getting it to work. Do you need to get reimbused for the funds for the raw material. I was running the gate shifter idea a few days back and it seems people are already ahead of me ... cool. Do you have a number which I can call to discuss the status further? Thanks.

how this thing coming along? I think making it for factory shifter would be the best as it is a big fat piece and has longer throw, so I guess any other short shifter will have more than enough room in them and some that didn't purchase a short shifter could enjoy the looks too.

btw, Kartboy SS ROCKS :D

got this from Japan's site

http://members.home.net/ernest.tam/metal_shift.jpg

I Nick uses the factory shifter then the short shifter way have way too much clearance. Anyways Nick you should try to get either one up, I'd be interested in the short shifter version since I use the Kartboy setup. The previous picture looks nice ... hurry up Nick and get me a prototype ... hehe. Actually I think Ryan is also ineterested.

my machinist got laid off!!!!!!!! crap!

although I think perhaps I was taking the wrong route after looking at that picture. Perhaps I'll redesign... but for now my project is grounded. this economy sucks.

At least you're still there ... they might hire an new person and he/she could be even better. You like to work on stuff .. you should machine it yourself ... hehe. :lol:

The shift gate in the picture looks sweet! I would love to have one of those.
Ben