So I got to work on the shift knob last night. Confirmed that the shifter and handle are indeed Hurst, but it was 1/2-20 threads rather than 3/8-16. Not sure when that changed, but it did. I stopped by China Freight on the way home and picked up 2 "carbon steel" tap/die sets (SAE/Metric). Dad didn't think much of them until later...more to come on that.
Here you can clearly see the H on the handle, and the threads after some quick work by the bench grinder.
So, dad pulls out his ancient but hardly used tap/die set. We get to work on the handle, and can't get it to start even with a nice taper on the end of the handle. He suggests we try my new set and wouldn't you know, after some initial fiddling, I finally get it to start. New threads complete, ball and nut mount up perfect. I have to say, I've not had any bad luck with the HF Pittsburg branded tools. Heck, even the 1/4" ratchet I got to replace my Craftsman junked one is nice. A heck of a lot nicer than the Craftsman it replaced.
Back at my house, I set in on replacing the handle. I ended up spending another hour or hour and a half dicking around with the shifter. I adjusted the stops on the base, and had to re-glue the foam/rubber gasket around the lower shift boot to the frame, as it was coming off. Then, one of the clips that hold the bolts broke, and fell out under the car. Of course, it was the last one and I had the other three already in and snug. I had to retrieve that, I just taped it together enough for it to hold on long enough to get the bolt started. I didn't get a pic of the new assembly, it's just a black Hurst ball that we've all seen. I might get one at lunch if I swap out for the car. I was going to drive it this morning but the weather is yucky - it was supposed to be nice today. It might be nice later.
Here you can clearly see the H on the handle, and the threads after some quick work by the bench grinder.
So, dad pulls out his ancient but hardly used tap/die set. We get to work on the handle, and can't get it to start even with a nice taper on the end of the handle. He suggests we try my new set and wouldn't you know, after some initial fiddling, I finally get it to start. New threads complete, ball and nut mount up perfect. I have to say, I've not had any bad luck with the HF Pittsburg branded tools. Heck, even the 1/4" ratchet I got to replace my Craftsman junked one is nice. A heck of a lot nicer than the Craftsman it replaced.
Back at my house, I set in on replacing the handle. I ended up spending another hour or hour and a half dicking around with the shifter. I adjusted the stops on the base, and had to re-glue the foam/rubber gasket around the lower shift boot to the frame, as it was coming off. Then, one of the clips that hold the bolts broke, and fell out under the car. Of course, it was the last one and I had the other three already in and snug. I had to retrieve that, I just taped it together enough for it to hold on long enough to get the bolt started. I didn't get a pic of the new assembly, it's just a black Hurst ball that we've all seen. I might get one at lunch if I swap out for the car. I was going to drive it this morning but the weather is yucky - it was supposed to be nice today. It might be nice later.