i have a 55 chevy with the bench seat,I had a57 with bucket seats and Hurst with shorter lever. i am afaid if i use the long "c" handle made for the bench seat, i maybe unhappy after i pay for it. Which do you think will work..i mean which would you prefer . i can always sell the bench seat or keep it and get a console and two buckets .
Sounds like its all in what your ultimate plan is. If you plan on keeping the bench you will obviously need the shift arm for it. If you later swap to buckets, i dont think that shifter will look too bad in there but people will know why you have it in the car. You are talking like 100 new for it and could probably sell it for 75 used down the road.
Back in the 70's, I had the shorter shift lever in my '56 with a bench seat. After a couple of years, I installed the longer handle and was pleased with it. I didn't have to lean over to shift like I did with the old one. If you keep the bench, that would be the way to go.
If you plan on banging some gears the longer handle will give you more leverage and and a bigger run at the next gear.
Here is a photo of mine with it in neutral. As you can see, you have plenty of throw without hitting the seat.
56 Don that Hurst shifter is what's planned for my 56. They look great and I didn't want to remove the bench seat....JT
I have a nice Comp Plus shifter I've been using off and on since 1978 and its for a bench seat Belair. I really love the shifter and have banged many a gear with it. It still may look good with buckets, I've always used it with a bench seat. My '65 Belair had a leather Caddy bench seat in it.
I guess it's what you get use to,,it does have a long throw but with the amount of overhang on the seat a long shift gives you more bang for the buck! Don,that looks great! HRP
FWIW I've driven a tri-5 with a bench seat & the C shaped Hurst handle designed for it. Not an issue a all, worked great. If you go buckets later, & decide you want to change it, there's a guy on that auction site who sells new genuine Hurst bolt on handles for $70-$100 or so. About 25 different designs if I recall.
I ran a Muncie with the Hurst shifter in my D/G '57 and banged a lot of gears with no problems. Street and strip use. I think the part number was C-5557-M and I bought it in 1965.
I used the big C-shaped "Competition Plus" shifter with the stock bench seat in my Muncie M-22 equipped '55 hardtop. It was comfortable for me (6'2" tall) to drive, but the shifter prevented my wife (5'2") from sliding the seat all the way forward so she could reach the pedals. She didn't let that stop her from driving, though- she just speed-shifted... not bothering with the clutch.
So are you using a muncie/if so /you are using the long c shaped lever ?[bench].---as per this picture it almost looks abit to tall ?//
Worst case... the handles can be changed. I've modified a few over the years, pie-cut, tweak and weld back together. That part is hidden by the boot anyway.
One of the Tri-Five vendors sells brackets to move the stock bench seat BACKWARDS a couple/few inches; that may work for you depending on how tall/short you are. The 55-57 Hurst 4-speed shifter has a WELDED ON stick; they also sell a "similar", curved, BOLT ON stick, but it WILL NOT work, as the tower assembly for the shifter still pokes up through the floor enough to contact the lower rim of the seat. That part is actually a bit shorter with the WELD ON stick. You could also have the seat notched for clearance, which was popular in the 60's. You "might" be able to tilt the tower mounting bracket forward, so the entire tower/stick assembly also tilts forward, but then you have to lean in to shift, or have a long, curved up and back shifter stick. I have been working on this myself, as my Delivery has 69 Chevelle SS buckets, and I want a bench seat; I have ALL the shifters/parts to do either, just have't gotten around to it. I'm just average height (5' 10"), so the seat being moved back won't work in my case. I am Butch/56sedeandelivery.
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