My head is sore from bump

was alot of fun doing putting trans in with tim. tim i will have to get you that lense for the console. so how does it feel and the important part have you done a burn out yet. not bad for a weekend project and you can still make work monday

mike is the blazer console man. looks great. i will have to get that lense for you. where did the shifter boot come from i did not see that before i left

Stock blazer/bravada boot (leather one) with the "bellows" plastic supports removed and the corners pushed in.

All seems to work, but it grinds going into 4th. Already contacted my re-builder, will have to have him straighten it out

Oh an no smoking the tires for 500 miles as per my warranty.....

Looks like you guys had a great time and the install came out great. Those first 500 miles are going to be hard to deal with

Nice!

tim you need a beige boot and a wood knob that matches perfectly or a B&M hammer

Way to go, guys! Looks like fun!

And too funny, cuz I thought erector set first thing, too!

That is SO COOL! I bet it's a ball to drive!

-Mike

I worked on the console again tonight. Made a cell phone compartment out of the PRND hole, put a LED light in it and put a LED light between the cup holders. Looks good so far. Also shorted the knob and straightened the shifter lever a bit. More tweeks and pics to come.

tim did you get the trans looked at yet for the 4th gear problem

I had the builder go for a ride with me. It is either the 4th gear syncro or 4th gear itself and 4th gear is the input shaft. So it will be coming out to be re-done as soon as I have the chance. Might pull it on Thursday and drop it off Thursday night. Pick up on Friday and re-install Saturday.

Wow! What fun to drive, I'm going to start looking for good deals on 6 speeds for my wagon. What a flippin' blast.... Some day. Thanks for the good time Tim.

John, sorry I got to drive it before you.

Good job Tim and John.

Mike

200OZ wrote:

John, sorry I got to drive it before you.

No you're not.



And Tim, can I have my F2B kit back? lol.

I sure would not be sorry either!
Jim

[quote="toomanytoyz"]

200OZ wrote:

John, sorry I got to drive it before you.

No you're not.



how true

John, Truly.... I feel bad, you did most of the work and didn't get to reap any of the reward.

Mike

BigBlackBeaSSt wrote:

I had the builder go for a ride with me. It is either the 4th gear syncro or 4th gear itself and 4th gear is the input shaft. So it will be coming out to be re-done as soon as I have the chance. Might pull it on Thursday and drop it off Thursday night. Pick up on Friday and re-install Saturday.

Not going to happen this week........

toomanytoyz wrote:

And Tim, can I have my F2B kit back? lol.

Not a problem. It now cost $7000 and comes with a 4800lbs growth. . I felt bad about it until I drove the car the first time, then I got over it!!

So I have continued to tweek the console as I cannot do the tranny. I turned the PRNDL hole into a pocket for my phone/headset.





I noticed that the couple holders where hard to find at night with the stick in the way and the loss of the light in the PRNDL opening. So I put a couple of LED's in it to light the pocket and the cup-holders. Initially the one in the cup-holder was a little bright. I partially covered in with a strip of felt and that seem to filter it a bit. I am happy with it now. The picture makes it hard to see the light but the forward one is in the back (seat side) of the cup-holders in the middle.



Straighted the shift lever a bit and re-did the knob a bit. It is a little shorter, but I think I need to shorten it a bit more (1-2") and try it there.

Before


After


I also put some felt around the leather where it hits the plastic as it was a bit squeaky then you go into 2nd and reverse. All quite now. More to come.

Looks good Tim!

Thats looks awesome, it's all the little things that make it stand out. You're making me want to install a center console.

92cappy wrote:

Looks good Tim!

Thanks.

Stemmler wrote:

Thats looks awesome, it's all the little things that make it stand out. You're making me want to install a center console.

Thanks Bill.

I like the little DETAILS Tim.

Mike

200OZ wrote:

I like the little touches Tim.

Mike

I didn't realise just how close you two are,..

Nick

Thanks Nick, maybe I should have worded that differently.

Mike

Tim, that console looks awesome and like it belongs there. nice job.
I gotta ask, does the stick feel comfortable in the car? it almost looks like you'd hit your hand on the dash when you shift the stick forward.

The knob never gets close to the dash. Does not get to the cup holder.

That's looking awesome! Very neat mods, and yes it's the little stuff that stands out!

I like that the six speed works with the bravada console! Really has me thinking!

But what are you using for a shifter? Stock with the L bracket from the f2b kit? I had a Hurst with a long stick and it still didn't look as tall as that shifter!

Tim,does the knob fall naturally into your hand or do you have to raise your hand up to the knob.
I now that sounds strange but finding the sweet spot really makes a difference.Looks a little
tall to me but I would take no more than a 1/2 inch at a time until you are happy.Read a story
years ago about how hard the Lemans drivers work at getting everything perfect in the car.
This was before 2 hour stints and flappy paddle automatis clutch controls took over along with
AC suits.As much as you drive weekly,it really matters.
Jim

toomanytoyz wrote:

I like that the six speed works with the bravada console! Really has me thinking!

But what are you using for a shifter? Stock with the L bracket from the f2b kit? I had a Hurst with a long stick and it still didn't look as tall as that shifter!

This is a Hurst shifter that I found new on ebay. It was the model that originally came in the SLP camaro's. 391-0060 is the part number. It is listed for a 93-95 Camaro. The shifter itself is straight, but the shift stick is round and had about a 40* angle toward the driver at the base. I has a 9/16" threaded end (stock camaro) on it so i am going to lengthen the threads and cut 1" at a time until I like it. I used the F2B spacer and still needed a few washers to space it over more. I am going to have a spacer made to replace the washers after I am SURE it is where I want it.

So I started looking at the shifter, it is actually 16mm threads on the end of this think. I cut the threads off and threaded it with 5/8 fine threads. Cut about an inch total. It is only about 8" long contrary to how it looks.

One of the issues with the stick that is not apparent at first glance is the set back. From the shifter center to the stick looks like about 3" or so. It also raises the stick up about 2". When in 2,4, & 6 it looks short because of the extension. In 1,3,5, & R it gets relatively longer making it look huge. You would be hard pressed to get it into reverse with any shorter of a stick and now it is comfortable just about everywhere.

I got it on a lift today to check to see if anything is rattling loose or leaking. All apears fine. I pulled the slave cylinder and inspected in there as well. No excessive dust, grease, or oil. Does anyone know how to shorten/tighten an emergency brake cable? Now that I need it this becomes an issue. Thought about a hand brake, but I do not need another project right now.

Final console pictures. 1" was plenty to remove.

2nd gear





1st grear



Reverse

Looks great, Tim!

Now I need to find another F2B kit...

That looks a lot better! Glad you cut it down. NICE!

Tranny is out. New clutch is in. Funny wear on the clutch. Optimistic and getting it all done by Sunday night before I sleep.

BigBlackBeaSSt wrote:

Funny wear on the clutch.

mebbe you're driving while laughing too much?

nick

phantom 309 wrote:

BigBlackBeaSSt wrote:

Funny wear on the clutch.

mebbe you're driving while laughing too much?

nick

Funny guy!!!!

Well the swap-a-roo has gone very smoothly so far. I put the car on the lift at 8:30 ish Friday night. The tranny was out and the new clutch in by 10:34 the same night.

The flywheel was only wearing (shinning up) about 3/4" evenly around the outer edge of the wear surface. The pressure plate was wearing the same but only 1/2 to 2/3rd of the way around the surface. This explained the chatter I was getting when releasing the clutch.

We inspected and measured a few things with the old clutch. The clutch I got from AdvanceAuto is a Perfection (Zoom) clutch was the one I am having an issue with. The pressure plate was dish shaped by .004+. The new one I bought from Pep Boys is a LUK and it measures absolutely flat. The Flywheel is marked GM and LUK so my whole system is now LUK. I had a tough time measuring the flywheel as I did not have a good straight edge to do it with, but it did seem to also have a slight (.002") dish to it. The bolts holding the pp to the flywheel were also a little questionable. There was Loc-tite hardened in the top of the threads right by the shoulder. If they had fully tightened there would not have been any space for this to happen, so I suspect they hung up on us and it was not noticed. Both of these issues can explain the wear. AdvanceAuto has offered to take the Perfection clutch making the financial hit $10 for a new set of bolts for the cross-member. Someone forgot to tighten them so one was missing and one was loose. I blame the plumbers union, but that is another story. Swapping stainless 3/8" bolts and washers for grade 8 flange bolts and teflon lock nuts. I am sure it will come loose again!!!

I dropped the tranny off to the rebuilder this afternoon at 1 pm and he called me by 3:30 to tell me good news it was a broken blocker ring. This was a new part he had installed. It must have been DOA and he had not noticed. 4th gear and all the syncro's were fine. The blocker ring was cracked and impossible to see unless you pulled out of the ring. He had a new one installed and back together by 7:30 pm tonight. It sits in the back of the car in my driveway as I write this. Going back in tomorrow after our church morning service. Hope to have it running by 4 ish. Other than 2 trips to Frederick MD with the tranny (1.5 hours each way) it was a pretty painless experience so far.

I am praying that it all works now. Updates to come.

Hopefully everything will go smoothly from here on out!

92cappy wrote:

Hopefully everything will go smoothly from here on out!

Thanks you sir.............

Best of luck Tim and be careful and take your time.
SAFETY FIRST
Jim

[. I blame the plumbers union, but that is another story.
thank god it was not my side

I JUST FINISHED AND IT IS A DIFFERENT CAR!!!! WOOOOOOOOOT!!!

SMILE IS PERMINENT!!!!

Congrats! Now starts the 500 mile wait til you can lay down some rubber!

I may have smoked my tires on the way home from my buddies....... oooops!!!

Thats how you break-in a clutch?
Jim

That's what I was expecting to read the first time! THERE it is!!! WEWT!!!!!

did your rpms drop at a given speed. maybe now that the clutch is fully engaging your milage will increase

It was fully engaging when it was all the way out, just shuttered until that happened.