Bending a shifter?

KLF · 10-08-09, 09:27 PM

Anybody ever done it, intentionally I mean? Both my son and I have swapped R151F trannies into our trucks in the last 2 weeks, they work great but the stock shifter angle sucks. We tried heating with a propane torch and bending, all we accomplished was to break my old bench vise. Maybe I need a hotter torch?

His is actually bent as a weird angle, his knuckles smack the e-brake handle when it's in 1st gear. We're thinking the tranny rolled over in the back of a truck with the shifters inserted.

2ndGenToyotaFan · 10-08-09, 09:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KLF

We're thinking the tranny rolled over in the back of a truck with the shifters inserted.

....... well...????

I'd get a couple cheater pipes on it and go around a tree with it maybe?

missouriman · 10-08-09, 10:02 PM

I have done it.
just pulled it over, lucked out didn't break any thing.
look at the bottoms of the shifters, the handle and see if you can tell where it is bent.
or pick and pull.
I don't think a new shifter is all that expensive if you do break one of them.

get a bigger vice, a propane torch will not be hot enough for steel to soften. if there is a plasic part to the shifter you could end up messing that up.

WristPin · 10-09-09, 02:38 AM

yeah i bent mine over for a trans thats no longer in there. i did use a bad ass vice, and a pipe to bend it. i got it glowin orange from a oxygen acetylene torch. werked out good

archtimb · 10-09-09, 04:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KLF

Anybody ever done it, intentionally I mean? Both my son and I have swapped R151F trannies into our trucks in the last 2 weeks, they work great but the stock shifter angle sucks. We tried heating with a propane torch and bending, all we accomplished was to break my old bench vise. Maybe I need a hotter torch?

His is actually bent as a weird angle, his knuckles smack the e-brake handle when it's in 1st gear. We're thinking the tranny rolled over in the back of a truck with the shifters inserted.

Hi Ken!

I've done it on our H55. O/A, vise, bent by hand. You will need more than propane or mapp.

Yep, I'm thinkin about a truck...I might give you a shout one of these days!

Mitch

toy4xfun · 10-09-09, 04:55 AM

i did not bend mine i did this

hicruise55 · 10-09-09, 05:08 AM

My H55 was done by hand as well as my X-fer on the FJ62 no heat

some might argue I'm not average size though...

I say some cheater pipe and a good vice, best of luck- Aaron

cruiser88 · 10-09-09, 02:48 PM

Will a torch,vise and a conduit bender work?

hardontoyotas · 10-09-09, 07:02 PM

i would put it in a vise and heat itt up with a set of torches and try to bend it that way

toy4xfun · 10-09-09, 09:56 PM

just go to ebay look for hurst shifters. then get a couple cheap ones. and you know what to do from there a torch a portaband welder and you still might have to bend them. you want to do your bends be fore you weld them. now the trans that is in my truck is from an 87 normally aspirated engine 22re. and the bend in the shifter where it comes out of the trans is opposite of the original trans. the bend goes toward the pass. side on the 87 trans, and it goes toward the drivers side on the 84 trans. hope this is understandable.

cruiser7773 · 10-10-09, 10:15 AM

I put two bends into mine when I had to move the trans forward. 90* aft and about 60* forward to get around the stock heater and back to stock location. Oxy/Accet torch and a vice. Don't try to force them too hard. Good even heat and you can move it by hand. Let it cool slowly.

KLF · 10-10-09, 11:56 AM

I'm really not into the Hurst shifters, thanks.

I'm gonna try to get my hands on an O/A torch, and a bigger vise. I'm worried about melting the rubber inside the tapered section, and the little rubber boot, but I guess some wet rags wrapped around it will keep the heat away.

cruiser88 · 10-10-09, 12:32 PM

The vise might suck a bunch of the heat up. Let me know how it turns out. I would love to bend mine.

Quote:

Originally Posted by KLF

I'm really not into the Hurst shifters, thanks.

I'm gonna try to get my hands on an O/A torch, and a bigger vise. I'm worried about melting the rubber inside the tapered section, and the little rubber boot, but I guess some wet rags wrapped around it will keep the heat away.

raydouble · 10-10-09, 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KLF

I'm really not into the Hurst shifters, thanks.

I'm gonna try to get my hands on an O/A torch, and a bigger vise. I'm worried about melting the rubber inside the tapered section, and the little rubber boot, but I guess some wet rags wrapped around it will keep the heat away.

Just heat the smallest of sections you need to get it back into shape.....

GRM · 10-11-09, 09:05 PM

Last one i did, I flipped the shifter upside down in a vice, and bent it by tossing a 2.5' piece of 1.5" .120 wall DOM over it.

No heat. Bent pretty easy. Took 3 trys to get it right. You guys are really over thinking this one. The shifter is only about .25" OD solid stock.

cruiser88 · 10-11-09, 09:09 PM

Never thought it was that thick?

Quote:

Originally Posted by GRM

Last one i did, I flipped the shifter upside down in a vice, and bent it by tossing a 2.5' piece of 1.5" .120 wall DOM over it.

No heat. Bent pretty easy. Took 3 trys to get it right. You guys are really over thinking this one. The shifter is only about .25" OD solid stock.

pappy · 10-15-09, 08:33 AM

I used lots and lots of heat. I had to bend the shifter to my H55F to fit in the FJ40. Pulled out the grinder. Cut a notch at the bend below the boot ... just enough so it would bend. Bent where I wanted. Welded it back up.

mainahh · 10-15-09, 05:54 PM

yeah i agree, its not that big of a task, sure, a torch would make it much easier, but you could do it my hand if you know how.