[NovaSS350]

Hello,

Any of you have any experience with V-Gate inline shifters from hurst. I am looking to upgrade from my Competition plus and thought that the v-gate shifters looked like a neat idea with just forward and back movements. Anybody ever use them on the street and how exactly do they work? Also the fact that it wont fit a center councle is of no concern.

thanks.

[kain13]

my best Friend father had one on a 64 vette 454-4 speed said he could beat his buddy s 65 454 -4speed hurst just by sheer speed of the v gate i tried to find them jegs hade no clue were to get one so i gave up

[IanRiordan]

Mr Gasket ( Joe Hrudka) sold heaps of his v - gates here in the 70's and 80's.
Not as well made as a Hurst, but I've never seen a Hurst v - gate. I only ever used the comp plus or super shifter.

[35WINDOW]

I had one in a '63 Super Sport Impala, and loved it (felt like Ronnie Sox). Never had any problems (it was behind a high horsepower small block). The car wasn't extremely streetable, but during the time I had it, I never missed a shift, it didn't exhibit the sloppiness that sometimes a "H" gate can-at the Track it was flawless-

[k-star]

Yep i ran "V" gate shifters on the street before... They usually make a bunch of noise (rattle around)...Plus some times they can be a pain because you need to put the shifter in neutral then shift another lever for reverse... Like backing into a parking space and missing it the first time and then pulling foward and reverse again.... But for me the cool factor always was better then the minor hassels with then...

Never missed a gear with one, but then again after i figured how to set-up a H pattern shifter i didn't miss any gears with them either....

If you drive the car on a regular basis you will have the strongest middle and ring finger in your state!!!!!!!From pulling the gate for first gear....


keith

[NovaSS350]

Yeah the first gear lock out would be one of the major draw backs. The car is only driven at the most twice a week so its not a daily driver. Just wondering though, how do the V-Gates work. Are they set up like a motorcycle shifter or what?

[larryblack]

The shifter sits high up on the tranny and to the left. You will need to cut the tunnel to clear the linkage too. At least I did in my 69 camaro.

the shifter moves about 2-1/2 inches front to back. NO side to side. You pull up on the small lever to allow shifting into first or second.

When you shift you have to basically yank it to second or it could drop into fourth. A buddy of mine had this problem and I got a chuckle out of it until he learned to be a bit quicker on the shift. Second to third is a shove it forward. You cannot miss it or going into fourth either.

For reverse, you have to put the shifter into neutral and then move the reverse lever. My T10 had been modified to shift smooth at 8K so I had to pull it into second, put it in neutral then shove the reverse lever.

Set up was fairly easy. You attach the levers to the tranny. You put the pin into the shifter. You use the screw adjustment to get the pin to fit exactly into the shifter slot. Lots of WD-40 helped. They were a tight fit but when you pulled the pin, there was absolutely NO SLOP in the linkage.

I daily drove the car for several months and did not mind the efforts. Watching jaws drop when they saw the shifter was payment enough.

BTW, the super shifter used the same linkages and you could "upgrade" to the "RAM ROD" shifter. I actually put the shifter body in a friends camaro that had a super shifter on his munchie and gear changes happened faster.

V gates were Mr Gasket.

[fitzwell]

make sure the bolts on the shift arms stay tight.......




don't ask

[larryblack]

Originally Posted by fitzwell

make sure the bolts on the shift arms stay tight.......




don't ask

LOL

When I installed mine in my buddy's car, I made sure and used a bit of blue locktite. I kept a long box wrench handy while it was in my camaro. Seems the instructions said to locktite them once I got around to reading them.

[NovaSS350]

I am asumming that to down shift from third to second for example you need to lift the lock out lever or is this just for first gear?

the shifter moves about 2-1/2 inches front to back. NO side to side. You pull up on the small lever to allow shifting into first or second.

Do you mean 2-1/2 inches total travel or 2-1/2 from center giving five inches total?

[larryblack]

Yes, you have to lift the lever for down shifting into second from 3rd or 4th.
.
This style shifter is not for road racing.

The 2-1/2 inches is total movement front to back. You have about 1 inch into first and 1 inch into second.

It is the original "SHORT THROW" shifter.

[k-star]

And also you need to pull the rings when going from second to first... that the shift that will build the finger muscles.....


Keith

[Guy Hiltz]

Well I actually use one of the Hurst Vertical Gate Inline shifters in my street driven 86 Monte SS with a Doug Nash 4+1 5 speed.It was a real dissapointment when I first installed it,continually locking up in second gear when shifting to third,didnt matter how much you adjusted it,the instructions also say not to touch the tower unit because it is set from the factory,but after it almost fell off I took it apart and Loctited it.Finally found out why it locked up so much,turns out Hurst quality is a thing of the past,the shifter rod bushings had so much play in them this was what was allowing it to lock up.Had my local machine shop make me a bunch of custom made bushings to get rid of the excess play,also shimmed the space between the spring clip and the rod arms,this got everything nice and tight,no more lock up's,I was finally able to put my 9/16 wrench back in my toolbox.I have also heard of people making up shifter rods with heim ends.As far as the trigger being hard to pull up,all you have to do is take one spring off.As far as driveability goes,once you get the hang of it,downshifting is relativley easy.And yes they are noisy,I have the inside of the boot stuffed with foam,and the trigger has a small piece of foam in it,it is the trigger that rattles the most.

[larryblack]

Originally Posted by k-star

And also you need to pull the rings when going from second to first... that the shift that will build the finger muscles.....


Keith

Not if you yank it fast enough.

Guy, I heard a few stories about the "V" gates. I never met anyone that had the original Mr. Gasket V gate shifter that liked it. I saw numerous Hurst RAM ROD shifters at the drags and was told they were worth the money. The hurst cost 50% more than the Mr. G. Now that Mr. G owns Hurst makes one wonder. I now have the Hurst competition plus on my T5 in my Sonoma and love it.