thoughts on ratchet shifters?

[diymirage]

hey guys
I would like to pick your brains on the different ratchet shifters out there (and if it is even a good idea at all)

the car would be a 73 duster, with a 318, 904, bench seat and column shift
one of the reasons I am considering it is because at some point in thinking of adding headers to the car and ive read the shifter linkage tends to interfere?

also, I just like rowing through the gears


so, what is all out there?

do they still make the old "his and hers" type shifters that will allow you to run it in drive and let the tranny do the shifting when you want an extra hand free for the little lady and still be able to ratchet it when you want?

anything I should stay away from ?

 

[BrianT]

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.

 

[Abodybomber]

Same shifter,I have.^^^^ Works good. The "his/hers" shifter you referred to,is the Hurst Dual Gate I believe. B&M and Hurst ,are now the same company. Depends on your budget.

 

[diymirage]

sounds like what I am looking for...
Bomber, does yours have a bench in it?

from Brians pictures it looks like it might interfere
looks like it has an indicator on it, does it only show P-N-D-R or does it also show 1-2-3 when it is in the ratcheting mode?
and is the indicator illuminated?


and I guess im trying to figure out how this works exactly, when I shift it in drive I can ratchet it down into second and it is in ratchet mode?
(drive and 3rd gear in ratchet mode are the same location?)

does that mean that if I ratchet it for a while and then leave it in 3rd (same as drive) it will revert back to regular automatic operation or would I have to shift it past neutral and then back into drive?

 

[grassy]

Mine is a '75 Duster, B&M Pro Ratchet, 360/727, Lokar cables, with TTIs..I'll tell how it works next year Cannot wait to play.

My '07 Mustang gt has a TCI. A compromise between my wife's inability to drive a standard and me wanting one. I had a problem with this one and had great difficulty resolving the issue. The company I bought the product from (a dealer) was less than useless.

 

[Abodybomber]

sounds like what I am looking for...
Bomber, does yours have a bench in it?

from Brians pictures it looks like it might interfere
looks like it has an indicator on it, does it only show P-N-D-R or does it also show 1-2-3 when it is in the ratcheting mode?
and is the indicator illuminated?

Yes ,it is illuminated. Yes,on the visible markings.The shifter in non ratchet mode,stays in the "Drive" position. In the Ratchet feature,stays in the "Drive" post ion between shifts. Bucket seats,unfortunately.

 

[dgibby]

I've got the Pro-matic II also. Love it, run it with a full manual V/B so the free hand is only in high gear. Not sure on the gear indicator, not using it on mine.

 

[68dodge]

I have the B&M ratchet shifter, reverse shift pattern in the trans. Works great down the track, especially after my burn out. Can go right to neutral with out the worry of going to reverse

 

[diymirage]

thanks for the replies guys

I think a reverse valve body would work best with this set up
(after all, if you stomp on the gas the car pushes you in your seat so upshifts would feel more natural being pulled back, just like a 1-2 or 3-4 shift in a stick)

Gibby, that is pretty much how I would imagine installing it
(though with the regular valve body for now but the trans does have a shift kit in it)
can you reach it allright or do you have to slant over to the right and forward?

and does it limit the adjustment of the bench?

 

[bOb shingler]

I have been using these shifters for 40+ or - years and wouldn't ever use anything else. they are just to foolproof.

 

[dgibby]

Gibby, that is pretty much how I would imagine installing it
(though with the regular valve body for now but the trans does have a shift kit in it)
can you reach it allright or do you have to slant over to the right and forward?

and does it limit the adjustment of the bench?

Have not really notice if I'm reaching for it or not, seems to feel normal to me. Seat adjustment is fine I can move it all the way up no problem. The shifter justs bolts the the floor so you can postion it were it feels and fits best with your seat setup.

 

[Dart Sport 360]

B&M Quick Silver is my weapon of choice... I think its basically the same as the hurst ones shown in this thread. One of my winter projects is to put one in my stock console. I've seen it done on here somewhere. I think they console may need to be raised slightly.

I have a manual valve body which I love but its standard pattern right now. That being said I will have to ratchet thru all the gears to start in low then ratchet back up into high as I drive. Our race truck has the same shifter with a reverse pattern and its great. I'll probably but a reverse pattern in mine but first thing is to try to mount this shifter in the stock console.

 

[hemichuck]

Just my opinion, I hate ratchet shifters for a multitude of reasons. In the last 35 years I've owned a bunch of them and I never had one I thought was worth a darn. When I run manual automatics I will use a Winters/ Fairbanks/Turbo action cable shifter and the reason for that is that when you shift them there is a positive gate for each position so you never have to guess where you are in the pattern and they have a block that keeps you from accidentally shifting past neutral (I think we all know how that turns out) and the most important thing of all is the cable comes out the back of these shifters which makes it easier to run away from headers and other hot things that melt shifter cables. Almost all ratchet shifters have the cable coming out the front which has it running right up the back of the trans and curving into some hot exhaust component while getting routed down to the shift rods. Like I said, Just my opinion, but based on lots of experience. I personally have run lots of headers on everything from slant sixes to Hemi's and never had them interfere with the factory linkage either column or floor shift.

 

[YY1]

What about a slap stick?

 

[diymirage]

What about a slap stick?

not sure what they are exactly?

as for the winters, they seem to be along the same prices as some of the ratchets mentioned (if anyone stocks them)
but is that a complete conversion or will I still be able to run it in auto?

 

[qkcuda]

B&M Quick Silver is my weapon of choice... I think its basically the same as the hurst ones shown in this thread. One of my winter projects is to put one in my stock console. I've seen it done on here somewhere. I think they console may need to be raised slightly.

I have a manual valve body which I love but its standard pattern right now. That being said I will have to ratchet thru all the gears to start in low then ratchet back up into high as I drive. Our race truck has the same shifter with a reverse pattern and its great. I'll probably but a reverse pattern in mine but first thing is to try to mount this shifter in the stock console.

Darcy, I put one in my console. I figured it would be too low if I fit it under the console so I mounted the cover on top. I also moved the console back a few inches so the shifter position felt right.

 

[younggun2.0]

love my b&m quick silver. i look mine apart and built my own shift arm. then i made my shift cover.

 

[inkjunkie]

Hate them......had a few many years ago, they just felt loose.....Gate all the way for me....For the trans I will be using Turbo Action's shifter has no available gate so I will be using a SideWinder, I believe it is made by Winters....

 

[younggun2.0]

Hate them......had a few many years ago, they just felt loose.....Gate all the way for me....For the trans I will be using Turbo Action's shifter has no available gate so I will be using a SideWinder, I believe it is made by Winters....

you are correct. when i first got my b&m it was pretty sloppy. felt cheep. the stick would flop side to side about 1/4-3/8". when i took it apart and built the new stick i make it about 1/16" thicker and now the play is gone. i slam gears hard as hell now and has nice solid positive shift.

 

[hemichuck]

The Winters/Fairbanks/Turbo Action shifters are available for forward or reverse patterns. They are far superior to any ratchet shifter made. I used to call my B&M shifter a rat sh#t shifter or a jack off shifter because it always felt like that's what you were doing to get them in gear. I bought my last Turbo Action shifter at a swap meet for $80 bucks but they are worth every penny they cost. Not to mention when you look in a car and see a Winters/Fairbanks/Turbo Action shifter it just looks like something you should take more serious than a ratchet shifter.

 

[Dart Sport 360]

Darcy, I put one in my console. I figured it would be too low if I fit it under the console so I mounted the cover on top. I also moved the console back a few inches so the shifter position felt right.

Cool! I've never see it done like that. Its good to know it will fit that way. I think I will try and mount mine under the the console. There's a thread on here where a guy took the entire top off his column 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.

Its pretty slick you can swap out the shifter arms on the B&M. For the one in the truck I made a shifter arm thats about 4 to 6 inches longer since we sit up so high in it. Works great, never had an issue in 20 years.

I got a b&m mechanism for free. My father in law tossed it because it was too stiff. Its been lubricated with some really thick white grease. I'm hoping if I wash all that off with some gas and then re lube it with some light oil I can free it up. See what happens.

 

[hemichuck]

"one of the reasons I am considering it is because at some point in thinking of adding headers to the car and ive read the shifter linkage tends to interfere? "


I ran a 1966 Belvedere with a 426 Hemi that had 2 1/4 primaries on the headers and they didn't even interfere with the column shift linkage. I ran a manual valve body in that car and the column shifter worked pretty well. I wouldn't recommend using the column shifter with the standard pattern and shifting it a lot(shifting up towards neutral is pretty dangerous)

 

[Dart Sport 360]

Is this the turbo action your talking about?

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!

 

[qkcuda]

Darcy

When I first got mine the through bolts which hold the ratchet mechanism together were too tight and it was binding . I loosened them a bit and it was smooth as silk.

 

[Bad Sport]

Is this the turbo action your talking about?

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!

I run the Cheetah and am quite happy with it. I replaced the Hurst Promatic-2 I had in the car.