Making A Wooden Shift Knob - Chapter 2

[TomoHawk]

Could you modify the knob to fit the automatic shifter?  all you'd need is a short of sliding button with a ramp dealto push the release rod down.the diameter of the shifter lever is slightly larger too- about 13 or 15mm.

[Captain Obvious]

Haha! Well I hadn't given a lot of thought about going into the knob business. I'm not sure how many shots I'm going to get out of my mold for the shift map. It's certainly not what I would consider a production endeavor. I did cast a few extras but didn't finish the process. Let me dust off the project and see what I got.

 

siteunseen, I believe those knobs that MSA sell are Nissan's current factory offering and are the same ones that show up on ebay as well. They look very nice but it looks like the dimensions of the wood is off from the original and the font on the shift map is different as well. I mean, if your original knob is a mess, then those are certainly a huge step up, but someone who knows what they are looking for would be able to spot the difference.

 

I've not yet seen a highly accurate recreation of the original knob other than what I produced. On all the aftermarket options I've seen, either the wood dimensions are off, the lettering on the shift map is off, or the map is just two dimensional design without the "depth" of the original three dimensional reverse lettering design.

 

I would put mine on a stock restoration and let the show judges see if they can tell it's a repro. Other than the fact that the threads on mine aren't all stripped out inside, I would challenge even the vintage experts to tell the difference. 

[Captain Obvious]

Could you modify the knob to fit the automatic shifter?

 

I have no idea at all how the automatic knob mounts. But I'm a little confused about the "why would you want to"...

 

You're thinking you would put a manual knob on top of an automatic shift lever in an auto car? Why?

[TomoHawk]

I've never been too crazy about those chromed T-handle shifters for the automatic Zed.  Since mine was broken, I substituted one from a Dodge Stratus, and it works fine.OTOH,  people think it now has a manual-shift trans, so why not 'give the people what they want'  and  install a properly sized and decorated shift knob.

 

The auto knob attaches to the lever with a short sleeve that fits over the lever tube, and a set screw.  Inside is a 5mm pushrod to actuate the detent feature of the shifter's gate, which only allows you to shiift from reverse to drive, then to higher gears.

Edited April 21, 2015 by TomoHawk

[DavidF]

 

Haha! Well I hadn't given a lot of thought about going into the knob business. I'm not sure how many shots I'm going to get out of my mold for the shift map. It's certainly not what I would consider a production endeavor. I did cast a few extras but didn't finish the process. Let me dust off the project and see what I got.

 

siteunseen, I believe those knobs that MSA sell are Nissan's current factory offering and are the same ones that show up on ebay as well. They look very nice but it looks like the dimensions of the wood is off from the original and the font on the shift map is different as well. I mean, if your original knob is a mess, then those are certainly a huge step up, but someone who knows what they are looking for would be able to spot the difference.

 

I've not yet seen a highly accurate recreation of the original knob other than what I produced. On all the aftermarket options I've seen, either the wood dimensions are off, the lettering on the shift map is off, or the map is just two dimensional design without the "depth" of the original three dimensional reverse lettering design.

 

I would put mine on a stock restoration and let the show judges see if they can tell it's a repro. Other than the fact that the threads on mine aren't all stripped out inside, I would challenge even the vintage experts to tell the difference. 

 

 

Thank you! I'll go and check that one out.