thoughts on ratchet shifters?

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"There's a thread on here where a guy took the entire top off his console and remade it with a slot for the shifter and a couple cup holders. I think I'm going to be adventurous and attempt that. I'd love to have a couple cup holders anyway."


That would be me..lol

I installed a Hurst Promatic II a couple years ago, and then decided I wanted to add
a factory type console to the car. Didn't like the look of the shifter cover that came with it.

My car was not a factory console car, I had to make my own mounting brackets. I just
designed them so the console would sit as low as possible and still clear the shifter mechanism.
I wanted as much handle sticking out the top as possible.

I decided not to use the factory console top-plates cause I wanted a way to add cup holders and couldn't figure how to work that into the factory top-plates.

The rubber gasket around the slot, is the one from the hurst cover. Top plate is painted base/clear metallic gray with a black stripe down the middle similar to a factory 68 console. Cup holders are 3" stainless from Gander Mountain, they are actually for a boat.
 

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Of course I also modified the steering column so you cant tell that it was ever
a column shift car.
 

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younggun: that handle looks great, I think I have actually seen a build thread on it (something in a kitchen right?) or I would never have known it is not the stock handle)

and your comment on making it 1/16 wider then stock makes me think I could add some bushings to a stock unit to get a more solid feel...if needed


MileHighDart: that does look great, I may have to consider building a cover around whatever shifter I end up getting with those same cupholders, only I would put them on the side instead of behind it on the count of the bench seat
 
BrianT said:
I have a Hurst Pro-matic II shifter and it works great. When it's in the ratcheting mode, no way to over shift or hit reverse. You have to pull the handle up to engage reverse and park. Drives like any other car when in D. Hope this helps.

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Sweet looking interior! I love the black on black on black
 
I had a B&M ratchet shifter years ago on my 67 Firebird. It was made VERY well, shifted perfectly, felt super heavy duty, never had any problems or complaints.

I'm considering a ratchet shifter for my Dart, but I hope the quality has not changed significantly since my last one thirty three years ago...
:burnout:
 
I run a stock floor shifter with rev pattern VB. Works great because you can toggle between D & N. YOu also hit the gate lock between each gear so you can't overshift.
 
bighammer said:
Did you modify the existing column or replace it with a floor shift column? Looks great, by the way... sorry for the hi-jack
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I modified the collars on the original column. Removed the shifter, ground off the mount, ground off the shift indicator housing. Filled the holes with a little JB-weld mixed with some fiberglass strands, some more sanding, a skim coat of Dolphin glaze filler, more sanding, paint, clear, and finished !
I think it came out pretty nice.
 

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MileHighDart said:
I modified the collars on the original column. Removed the shifter, ground off the mount, ground off the shift indicator housing. Filled the holes with a little JB-weld mixed with some fiberglass strands, some more sanding, a skim coat of Dolphin glaze filler, more sanding, paint, clear, and finished !
I think it came out pretty nice.
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:prayer: That my friend is a great job
 
I see some are saying how sloppy the ratchet shifters are. I was having the same problem with my B&M. I used copper washers on the pivot points where the pins and bolts pass through both mechanisms. This tightened up the whole shifter and works way better than before. There is still some movement but it's nowhere near what it was.
 
Years ago I ran a B&M Quick Click ratchet shifter in a bracket car. Well, it cost me a race when it fell apart shifting from 1st to 2nd in the burnout box. The little ratcheting pawls that engage the teeth of the shifting mechanism would not engage in one direction. Turns out the springs that worked the pawls were cheap and broke. Not the thing you want to happen when pulling to the start line. After that I went with a B&M gate shifter. Not quite as 'ugly' or bulky as a Winters or Cheetah, and the B&M one had a feature where you could unbolt the gate and swap it for a reverse valve body gate or a forward pattern gate, unlike the Hurst quarter stick - a similar type of shifter. I still have that shifter after nearly 30 years and it works just fine.
 
Dart Sport 360 said:
Is this the turbo action your talking about?

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IMO that one looks like junk.... I never liked the thought of moving the lever left and right to change gears. The ratchet is fail safe. As long as your smart enough to let go after you pull back.... I've never missed a shift, ever!
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Yes, That's the one I'm talking about. If your basing your opinion on the way it "looks" then theres not much use in talking about it. Based on 35 years of real world experience the Cheetah is an infinitely better shifter for all the reasons I mentioned. Go to the US nationals and walk around the pits and see what the real racers prefer and ask them if their choices were made on the way the shifter "looks"
 
hemichuck said:
Yes, That's the one I'm talking about. If your basing your opinion on the way it "looks" then theres not much use in talking about it. Based on 35 years of real world experience the Cheetah is an infinitely better shifter for all the reasons I mentioned. Go to the US nationals and walk around the pits and see what the real racers prefer and ask them if their choices were made on the way the shifter "looks"
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No need to get so defensive buddy... I was commenting on the shifter not your wife.

I'm offering the OP my opinion based on my 20 years of experience... He can decide for himself which POS he wants to use.
 
hemichuck said:
Yes, That's the one I'm talking about. If your basing your opinion on the way it "looks" then theres not much use in talking about it. Based on 35 years of real world experience the Cheetah is an infinitely better shifter for all the reasons I mentioned. Go to the US nationals and walk around the pits and see what the real racers prefer and ask them if their choices were made on the way the shifter "looks"
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real pro racers might make the choice on which sponsor pays more , then get some custom built unit you'll never see for sale on the store shelves
 
I used a B&M star shifter in my Willys wagon for 15 years or so, lived it and have been thinking about getting another for my cuda.
 
For what its worth I cleaned up this old B&M shifter... Like I said it was caked with old thick white grease. I clean all that off and oiled it with some 3n1 and it works great now. It wouldn't drop into the 1st gear slot before and you have to wrestle it thru the normal motion. Now its a smooth and can be and there is next to no play side to side.

This unit was used by my father in law for 20+ years in his car and he recently replaced it with another B&M that's excatly the same. He thought it was screwed since it was so tight.
 
so I came across a CL add for some B and E body parts, including some stock slap stick shifters for 75 bucks a piece
does that sound like a good option for a 73 duster?
how much work would be involved making this to work with the 904 ?
 
diymirage said:
so I came across a CL add for some B and E body parts, including some stock slap stick shifters for 75 bucks a piece
does that sound like a good option for a 73 duster?
how much work would be involved making this to work with the 904 ?
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You really can't go wrong with a Slapstik shifter, they lock in each gear (1,2, & 3) and require a slap to change each gear (1 slap wont row you from 1st to 3rd). Can't really overthrow into reverse either (not saying it can't happen, anything is possible, but they're designed not to let that happen)

I ran a 1970 Only Challenger Slapstik Shifter in my '74 Duster for years (prior to converting to a 4-Speed), with a Manual Shift Kit & 727. And I run a 71-74 Barracuda Slapstik Shifter (with E-Body Console) in my '73 Duster with a Manual Shift Kit.

The beautiful thing about the Slapstik, is they fit right into a Stock A-Body Center Console and you have the ability to Downshift a gear. That's a big deal if you've got a Manual VB in a Street Driven Car.
 
I didn't have a problem with my column shift and hooker headers. On my wifes car she demanded a floor shift and went with a Hurst promatic 2. It's a great shifter and after 10 years, no issues with getting sloppy. Plus I fit it below the console so it still looks kinda factoryish.
 
74Dusted said:
You really can't go wrong with a Slapstik shifter, they lock in each gear (1,2, & 3) and require a slap to change each gear (1 slap wont row you from 1st to 3rd). Can't really overthrow into reverse either
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This is exactly why I use the factory floor shifter with a RPVB.
 
I've got a B&M Quicksilver in my 71 Dart, reverse manual valve body, mildly built 360... I love it.. with the way I've got the trans set up, it shifts instantly, and there's NO screwing up the shifts.
 
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