anyone have any advise/ preference ? I am trying to decide wether to buy the common Lokar street rod shifter or The B&M street rod version of that shifter. I seen the lokar shifter at a vendor booth, it doesnt seem to have any ability to prevent over shifting while upshifting thru the gears? never seen the B&M in person. >33 coupe, th350 trans. any opinions?
The universal B&M has detents, I don't think they call it a street rod shifter though. It looks like any flat handled shifter you would have out in a car in the '60s. no help I know but it is a cheap option.
I guess it's personal preference but the B&M shifters just don't look right in the earlier body styles. I equate them to the street fighter type cars of the 60's & 70's. HRP
I just bought a Kildruff shifter. Love the looks and quality is excellent. He sells them on ebay and I'm pretty sure he has a website as well.
I use the B&M street rod shifter it works well. although if you want a shifter to row thru the gears you might look at some thing else. the shiter has detents but it is easy to over shift. and unlike the lokar you can use any knob you like.
i like the option of using any knob.-B&M. I'll check out the kildroff shifter fxcomet is referring to also as an alternative. thanks for the feedback. this site is awesome. sorry not fimilair on how to post pics.......
has anyone tired or heard pro-con about american shifter company. tripped over it on line, "american shifter dual action shifter". their description sounds like a 70's hurst dual gate type deal? looks like a lokar shifter?
I like the B&M I dont like haveing little options for the shifter knob. thats my only issue both are well made.
I played around with the American Shifter Company (Hoffman Group) shifters both at the local parts store and also at their own booth at the Portland swap meet and it feels like garbage. It was sloppy and felt like it was binding up and loose at the same time, not sure how they managed that. with the dual action mechanism It was almost impossible to determine what position it needed to be in to shift, it just felt like moving a stick around in a big bucket of gravel trying to get it in to the next gear. At the swap meet booth the Hoffman rep said it was just because they hadn't taken the time to adjust it correctly on the demo transmission, but it felt terrible. It felt better on the demo display at the parts store, but still felt sloppy and inaccurate, and felt like it could come apart at any time.
If they can't take the time to adjust it so it works correctly at a auto swap meet, how do you think they'll be to deal with if (when) you have a problem?
Never liked the Lokar shifters. What about a vintage hurst dual gate, or adapting a period factory floor shifter?
Street fighter type car dude checking in. For my 64 Fairlane HT I wanted something somewhat period correct for the 70's but no ratchet shifter. The detent shifters are easy to over shift so I went with a B&M Z-gate which is vertically gated with the lock out lever. Don
I have one of each and have had no problems with them. Personal taste would be the only thing I'd think about in the rod it was being installed
B&M quality is pretty poor. I installed one, at owner's request, in an OT El Camino, just to change it out later, as it was wobbly, hard to work the lock outs, not easy to adjust, etc. Put a factory GM shifter in it, and it's great. Just put a Lokar in my own truck, and I like it...except for the button actuated lock-out. I used to like the old Genies, but not sure of them now-adays.
sounds like i'm looking for the best of all worlds. no overshifting past gears, the look of the old skool lokar, and the flexibility to use what knob i want. the car had a hurst 1/4 stick in it for the past 15 years. worked great, impossible to blow by a gear or into neutral, was small in size, but just don't look like it belongs in an older style rod. looks like lokar is the best choice......... thanks again for all the input
I am a Gennie Shifter vendor, i believe they are out of Business. try to call them, and if you can get hold of them let me know because i cant!
Lokar also has a knob adapter so you can put any knob on their shifter. The to activate the lockout you push down on the entire knob instead of a button. I'm a vendor for them too.
I put a Lokar in mine... the shifter works great (once adjusted)... not a real fan of the "button" but it is good to have when the wife uses the truck.... I did have one of the mounting bolts strip the threads out of the mount (did not cross thread, or overtighten) not sure how this happened, but it really pissed me off, just as everything is adjusted properly, the damn thing strips... Tom
I hate the lokar in my 32, put the knob adapter on, no matter how you adjust it it rattles in certain positions. Id try the B&M, or Hurst old style floor shifters next time.
I have a Lokar on a TH350 in my coupe and I like it. I just have the stock push button knob right now, but I may buy the adapter and switch the knob some day. Like some have said it is personal preference to a point. I might like the others as well, but I like the looks of the Lokar and it shifts nice. I got the 23" Nostalgia shifter.
Personal preference, I guess. I have the Lokar on the 700R4 in my avatar, I like it but of course you have to get used to the push button... It seems like a good safety feature. Be sure to adjust it correctly regarding neutral safety and shift points... do that and it works well.
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