Dave's shortshift - now under the management of Bob Brown

[alan e]

Is this kit still available and if so how much is it now.
Regards Alan

[bobbrown]

Need to make some more but yes and £70.00

Please note the original cables be they SE or S2 are not very strong and do break and shorting the travel will put extra strain on the cables.

Even the S2 ones part company

[alan e]

thanks bob for quick reply can you please put my name down for the kit also i know you make the s/s cables how much are the cables and are they easy to fit

[rip]

thanks bob for quick reply can you please put my name down for the kit also i know you make the s/s cables how much are the cables and are they easy to fit

FItting the cables at the gearbox end is easy.
Fitting them to the gearshift is a bit fiddly but not too bad.
Feeding them through the front of the chassis & then bending them sharply towards the selector will have you swearing. An assistant will be very welcome.
None of it needs any specialist skill or equipment.

[paulous]

Please ad me to the list for a kit and cables whenever they are available again. Don't suppose you offer a fitting service too?

[DeanG]

I would go for a complete kit.

[paulsmithmk]

Need to make some more but yes and £70.00

Please note the original cables be they SE or S2 are not very strong and do break and shorting the travel will put extra strain on the cables.

Even the S2 ones part company

S2.jpg

drove rips car on Sunday - please put me down for some!!

[paulous]

If the opportunity arises I'd like to sample the shortshift, maybe at one of the local south east / hertfordshire/essex group meets. My desire for one is largely based on everything I've read here, however now I've actually got my car (rather than just reading and searching!) I'm very pleasantly surprised by how good my gear-change is. It's not too bad at all. So if the shortshift improves things as much as you guys describe on here then it really must be the dogs danglies! (and I want one)

[bobbrown]

Easy if you come along to the meet at Ricking Green

[dapinky]

At risk of getting shot down in flames (but I've said it before, so I'll stick to my stance on this one ).....

I'll start off by saying that the short-shift is a brilliant bit of design and engineering.....

....I have one on the blue car, but not on the red one, so get to drive both versions - as such, I offer an opinion based solely on what i like, and feel is good.....

....personally, i don't find that the standard gearchange is at all bad, especially if the bushes on the gearstick linkages are nice and tight (I changed mine for new ones).

Angie hates the gear change when driving the blue car, but loves the red one - i sometimes found myself 'forcing' the stick when it is already in gear - but not once i've been in the car for a while, so you soon get used to it....

So - is it necessary?

Hmmm - difficult to answer - i got it as the blue car is for the track and the red one for the road - as such it does what i wanted, on the track, but isn't really that beneficial on the road. It also puts more strain on the gear cables (basic laws of physics), so if you're on the originals, and are anything less than sympathetic with your shifting, they WILL break sooner or later - probably at the most inconvenient of times.

I would strongly recomend getting a set of either Bobs stainless cables or AB cables and fitting them at the same time to avoid any worry in that department.


The only real way to see if you like/need it is to try driving one - if you do decide to go down that route, and then dont like it, at least it is reversible and the parts will usually sell on quite easily.


I'll now go and find my tin helmet for when all the flack starts coming my way

[bobbrown]

....personally, i don't find that the standard gearchange is at all bad, especially if the bushes on the gearstick linkages are nice and tight (I changed mine for new ones).

I tend to agree with the bit about the bushes and as far as the short shift is concerned it is a bit of horses for courses and the whole thing is reversible.
Also mine is adjustable on the fore aft lever e.g. 1st to 2nd so you can have a short throw, a shorter throw and an even shorter throw the middle option being the same as Dave's. On my car it is set on the shortest setting as it should bring out any problems with my cables if indeed there are any as it should have increased the loading on the cables, nothing to report on that score to date.
As a point of interest the bushes I use on the bell crank for the crossgate also fit the original and are a much more suportive than the originals and are a press fit in to the folded metal bell crank.

Not sure how they compare price wise to the OEM ones as SJ's site seems to be down at present but the bushes I use are £2.00 + p&p the pair and are made of Iglidur® M250.

Bush.gif (3.87 KiB) Viewed 4683 times

[Sy V]

The Administrators/Moderators have been made aware of some unease within the membership with regards to the lack of information and progress of this and associated (by project leader) group buy projects. Whilst LEC hold no responsibility for this and similar projects we are sufficiently concerned to recommend that no further commitment/agreement to such ventures be undertaken by LEC members while an agreement, between the group buy instigator and those Members owed money, as to the way forward of this and associated group buys is sought. We suggest that all those involved in these group buys contact the project leader for either a full refund of their monies or a confirmed delivery date which should be expected to be reasonably practicable. It is our opinion that group buys organised by a single project leader should be restricted to one thread at a time and each project should be completely satisfied before another is started. As a group we cannot and will not intentionally provide a platform for any person to take money for goods and not produce them on a reasonable timescale.
This thread and others started by the same project leader have been locked and an exclusive area for Members to muster and air their grievances has been constructed. Access to this area can be gained by contacting me [Sy V] by Private Message (PM). We will update the membership of this area with any information as we receive news of progress.
A spreadsheet of monies owed to Members is being set up, please contact DaveT by PM to add your details to the list.