Truck Shop
Senior Member
The Roth----------Rat Fink. 56 Ford Rat Fink eating a 55 Chevy
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Tall shifters
- Thread starter Welder Dave
- Start date
dieseldog5.9
Senior Member
The late 90's early 2000's Mack RD686 with a fuller has a rather tall shifter, you would think for tall drivers, however that particular truck the heater box must have been designed for someone max height about 5'6", after a day running that particular truck my knee is sore from banging it on the heater all day.
I put 16 ape hangers on my road king classic, perfect height right at shoulder height, took 3 tries to get the right height.
After bending the Western Star shifter into a boomerang when the reverse gear snap ring groove broke, I had an shift lever from the mack, welded it to a new isolator I had setting around, put the shifter about dash board height.
At least put a classy shifter on it.
Notice the glitter.
I put 16 ape hangers on my road king classic, perfect height right at shoulder height, took 3 tries to get the right height.
After bending the Western Star shifter into a boomerang when the reverse gear snap ring groove broke, I had an shift lever from the mack, welded it to a new isolator I had setting around, put the shifter about dash board height.
At least put a classy shifter on it.
Notice the glitter.
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Truck Shop
Senior Member
You don't even need to be drag racing all you need is a guy named Tinker-He could tear up a ANVIL just looking at it.
I was working at my previous employer the Ag company and there was this idiot that worked there named Tinker aka Tinker Bell. I get this call that he was stuck out in the country on a delivery
and there was a air leak and couldn't shift the truck. I get there and he had been yanking the shifter so hard he bent the lever smashing the air lines into the floor board cutting one spaghetti
line in two. I installed a union and got it back to the shop, removed and straightened the shifter and replaced the air lines. Then I had a discussion about finesse when shifting with Tinker Bell.
The discussion went like this--T-Bell there is a spring loaded sledge hammer hidden in that cab now-make one more bad shift and POW it's right in the Kisser.
dieseldog5.9
Senior Member
I had a Tinker, In mud season we were putting pannels on a 650 Deere, he was "helping" broke 4 bolts off the floor panels before I caught him for the righty tighty lefty loosy talk and took the air gun away. Then he broke 4 putting them on with a ratchet. I called him mongo. He thought the dump truck was a racecar, got a bunch of phone calls for driving to fast, he has a new job now, just couldn't have the liability with him driving 75,000 pounds around the streets, it was like a time bomb.
Birken Vogt
Charter Member
It is a wonder these crash boxes hold together as well as they do. My dad and grandpa did not stand for any grinding at all and I took it to heart. But some guys don't see it that way I think, as long as it got from point A to B they figured it was all right. It was my suggestion to go to automatics (Allison), some had to swallow pride but I was over the shifting all day long thing.
Mother Deuce
Senior Member
I met Ed Roth... he painted a couple signs for me. He was about the nicest guy in the world!
Truck Shop
Senior Member
Your right BV. Through the years and all the Eaton twin counter shaft boxes I've rebuilt I bet that at least 20 had the keys broke on both front counter shafts, those front four are pressed on.
The gears on those would move on the shaft not far from going out of time. Main shafts with a twist in the splines-probably 15.
RollOver Pete
Senior Member
Tall shifter on the roads here would would end up slapping me in the side of the head and knocking my s't out and I'd crash.
Old boy I worked with would freak out if you palmed a shifter- "If you caint' float that in there with TWO FINGERS on top of that knob you aint' no driver!!!!". I can just hear him on the tall shifters- "Jeezus....."
Old boy I worked with would freak out if you palmed a shifter- "If you caint' float that in there with TWO FINGERS on top of that knob you aint' no driver!!!!". I can just hear him on the tall shifters- "Jeezus....."
Hallback
Senior Member
Pretty sure the knobs are shaped for finger shifting with the lip by the high/low switch.
I always shook my head at the guys who grabbed the shifter.....
I always shook my head at the guys who grabbed the shifter.....
Hallback
Senior Member
Cab high stacks for me!
terex herder
Senior Member
An old timer thought the same thing about suicide doors. Much nicer to watch a lady get out of a suicide door.
Hallback
Senior Member
Was it the W900L?
Yeah. LIME green. Really, really lime green.
Hallback
Senior Member
Probably white sunglasses too
dieseldog5.9
Senior Member
This is a great video with Bob Spooner, At about 8:00 he talks about learning to drive, I am guessing in the 50's, and how the guy he rode with would rap your nuckles if you missed a shift, or were rough on the truck.
Truck Shop
Senior Member
Fact is-nobodies timing is that good/100% all the time. As the day wears on a person starts to loose the finesse, it just happens. Really the main point is not forcing a shift.
I don't drive all the time anymore, not as smooth as I use to be. Sometimes I just tickle them into gear, the way it is some days. Some of it depends on the brand of engine
in front, I've driven Cats that were so smooth on throttle response you had to be pretty inept not to make smooth shifts. 2 stroke Detroit's you don't mess around you just
shift it. One 855 Cummins may have quick throttle response the next not so. So in that respect being use to one brand or another can make the difference of looking good
or sad setting in the seat
As far as using two fingers to shift with-Eaton designed the air control knob to fit the palm of a hand. I use the palm of my hand to shift not fiddling around with two fingers
{that's for people who think they are gods gift to a shift knob}. When driving in downtown streets stop light after stop light a person has to much to pay attention to- to be
farting around playing shift wizard.
The last part all depends on how worn or tight a gear box is to how good it's going to shift. If some one has changed the detent springs from the standard {Orange to
the Green detent springs trying to hide a problem inside the box {popping out of gear} that can make it a tougher to shift. The other is the shift tower-there are three
different heights {short, medium and tall}. Tall has been used in damn near all trucks the last 35 years, Short and medium was dropped years ago. Because the tall tower
has more leverage and a shorter throw. And some Transmissions new or rebuilt just are sour apples when it comes to shifting. When Eaton changed to higher tooth count
transmissions starting with the RTO14613 shifting became easier/smoother. The RTO 12513 and earlier were a lower/coarser tooth count and naturally were harder to shift.
To use the term BV used {crash box}. The other factor is the oil inside, one that has fresh 50 wt synthetic is going to be slightly easier to shift.
I don't drive all the time anymore, not as smooth as I use to be. Sometimes I just tickle them into gear, the way it is some days. Some of it depends on the brand of engine
in front, I've driven Cats that were so smooth on throttle response you had to be pretty inept not to make smooth shifts. 2 stroke Detroit's you don't mess around you just
shift it. One 855 Cummins may have quick throttle response the next not so. So in that respect being use to one brand or another can make the difference of looking good
or sad setting in the seat
As far as using two fingers to shift with-Eaton designed the air control knob to fit the palm of a hand. I use the palm of my hand to shift not fiddling around with two fingers
{that's for people who think they are gods gift to a shift knob}. When driving in downtown streets stop light after stop light a person has to much to pay attention to- to be
farting around playing shift wizard.
The last part all depends on how worn or tight a gear box is to how good it's going to shift. If some one has changed the detent springs from the standard {Orange to
the Green detent springs trying to hide a problem inside the box {popping out of gear} that can make it a tougher to shift. The other is the shift tower-there are three
different heights {short, medium and tall}. Tall has been used in damn near all trucks the last 35 years, Short and medium was dropped years ago. Because the tall tower
has more leverage and a shorter throw. And some Transmissions new or rebuilt just are sour apples when it comes to shifting. When Eaton changed to higher tooth count
transmissions starting with the RTO14613 shifting became easier/smoother. The RTO 12513 and earlier were a lower/coarser tooth count and naturally were harder to shift.
To use the term BV used {crash box}. The other factor is the oil inside, one that has fresh 50 wt synthetic is going to be slightly easier to shift.
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