69 GMC "Ol' Blue"

[mud.man.rj]

I doubt that, I have twin 18 year old girls, they are way smarter than we think.

[mjensen]

Haha...then I guess I'll have to find another excuse Maybe I get this truck done and start on a car for her

[7dee2]

Originally Posted by mjensen

So, I've been out of town all week and don't have any new progress to report. I did realize that I never posted pictures of my latest mockup for the 4wd lever. I do have a lot of snaking and moving around to do here, but I think this will end up working out. I will have some items to address with the floorboard, but hey...we'll figure it out

See how high the pivot point ends up having to be though. I am not sure I like that idea, but honestly I'm not sure if I have a choice.
Nothing is set in stone here, so if someone has a better idea, I'm all ears. After sitting here staring at the picture, maybe it would be best to go back to the original mounting location and see if I could tweak the shifter to keep it out of the seat.

Your making great progress! I know you want a bench seat (would buckets make this easier?) so how difficult would it be to build a custom 4x shifting arm rather than moving the pivot forward? Thinking you might be happier with that in the long run.

[mud.man.rj]

Must be able to mod some kind of single shifter, you know like a boomarang, ok kidding on the boomarang but always a way to bend something then weld it to the base of the original type.

[mjensen]

Originally Posted by 7dee2

Your making great progress! I know you want a bench seat (would buckets make this easier?) so how difficult would it be to build a custom 4x shifting arm rather than moving the pivot forward? Thinking you might be happier with that in the long run.

Thanks Brett! I really want to stick with the bench seat just because I prefer them. I think reworking the shifter arm itself is going to be the way to go. It can't be that hard right?

Originally Posted by mud.man.rj

Must be able to mod some kind of single shifter, you know like a boomarang, ok kidding on the boomarang but always a way to bend something then weld it to the base of the original type.

Haha...boomerang....I like it I think you're right on this one. I'm going to work on doing that this upcoming weekend.

[rgunlock]

Good progress Mike - even if the progress is learning what's going to work or not for that shifter. May be just camera angle, but that overdrive(?) shifter looks like it is going to be hard to access behind the TC shifter. Have you stuck a seat (or box) in there to sit on and see if they'll be in good positions?

[mjensen]

I am going to end up moving it back to its original position and fixing the TCase shifter. I hope so anyway

[rgunlock]

Acetylene torch and a bench vise will fix whatever ails ya Good luck with it!

[mjensen]

Originally Posted by rgunlock

Acetylene torch and a bench vise will fix whatever ails ya Good luck with it!

You betcha!!! Thanks!

[mjensen]

This weekend I was able to move back to the original position. It's actually going to work out well. I do need to tweak the 4wd lever a bit, but it's going to work well.

[mud.man.rj]

So you will still have 3 shifters or 2.

[rgunlock]

Good job! Looks like that got the TC shifter both lower and further forward and out of the way. Plus the mount looks more stable than before.

[swamp rat]

And the Hi-Lo lever will clear the TC lever ok? will being in 1st clear as well?

This is gonna be an interesting ride!

[mjensen]

Originally Posted by mud.man.rj

So you will still have 3 shifters or 2.

It will have 3. I can't wait

Originally Posted by rgunlock

Good job! Looks like that got the TC shifter both lower and further forward and out of the way. Plus the mount looks more stable than before.

It's definitely out of the way, but it's going to put it right into the seat which is why I will need to adjust the shift lever itself. It's going to be easier to finish up

Originally Posted by swamp rat

And the Hi-Lo lever will clear the TC lever ok? will being in 1st clear as well?

This is gonna be an interesting ride!

Yeah, it clears both just fine. The hi/lo has a very short throw. First is way out of the way, but the TC lever is very close to the shifter when it's in second.

I really can't wait to drive this thing!

[7dee2]

If all else fails you can notch the seat. This made it interesting when we had 3 going for a ride!

[mjensen]

That's a beautiful car Brett! I really don't want to mess with the seat, but you never know. Seems like everything I've been trying to do to avoid that has added years to this build

[Molberg]

Originally Posted by mjensen

That's a beautiful car Brett! I really don't want to mess with the seat, but you never know. Seems like everything I've been trying to do to avoid that has added years to this build

Lol.... 3 shifters all the way Mike! Looks good man

[mjensen]

Originally Posted by Molberg

Lol.... 3 shifters all the way Mike! Looks good man

Thanks Molberg! It's nowhere near your quality of build, but it's definitely been fun

[mjensen]

Ok, so this is all getting really old

The lever is going to need a some more work.

[swamp rat]

Can you make that bracket just a little shorter and lean it forward just a little?

[7dee2]

I think keeping some room between the 3 shifters is best. It appears from your pics that the seat is hitting when it is in the forward position? Also assuming it cannot be shifted in that position? That's kind of why I posted the pic of the 55 Pro Street car (thanks for the compliment, seat is in the rear position). That had an extreme seat notch in it for a Nash 5 speed with a Long shifter. Your notch would not need to be as extreme I don't think? Another plus is you would not be using the 4x shifter all the time. As long as you can select your range with the seat in the forward most position you have kept all the functionality yes?

[mjensen]

Originally Posted by swamp rat

Can you make that bracket just a little shorter and lean it forward just a little?

Originally Posted by 7dee2

I think keeping some room between the 3 shifters is best. It appears from your pics that the seat is hitting when it is in the forward position? Also assuming it cannot be shifted in that position? That's kind of why I posted the pic of the 55 Pro Street car (thanks for the compliment, seat is in the rear position). That had an extreme seat notch in it for a Nash 5 speed with a Long shifter. Your notch would not need to be as extreme I don't think? Another plus is you would not be using the 4x shifter all the time. As long as you can select your range with the seat in the forward most position you have kept all the functionality yes?

Well, everything I tried to move the bracket forward/backward/sideways/upside down just doesn't let the shift lever on the TCase work. It hits the seat when putting it in 4-lo. In 2wd, it's perfect and it clears all the other levers perfectly. Tomorrow I'm going to bolt the cover on the TCase so I can feel the detents. I will re-evaluate tomorrow and see which direction to go. I was looking at my cousin's '91 with a manual transmission, and noticed that the seat seems to be a little thinner on the bottom and a little taller from the floor. That might be an option. The other two will be to notch the seat, or buckets.

[7dee2]

Originally Posted by mjensen

Well, everything I tried to move the bracket forward/backward/sideways/upside down just doesn't let the shift lever on the TCase work. It hits the seat when putting it in 4-lo. In 2wd, it's perfect and it clears all the other levers perfectly. Tomorrow I'm going to bolt the cover on the TCase so I can feel the detents. I will re-evaluate tomorrow and see which direction to go. I was looking at my cousin's '91 with a manual transmission, and noticed that the seat seems to be a little thinner on the bottom and a little taller from the floor. That might be an option. The other two will be to notch the seat, or buckets.

What did you find out? If you need a newer seat I've got several that are in the way. One we took it out of the motor home, or an even uglier one out of the K3500!

[mjensen]

Originally Posted by 7dee2

What did you find out? If you need a newer seat I've got several that are in the way. One we took it out of the motor home, or an even uglier one out of the K3500!

I never did get back to working on the truck. I've had some busy weeks, and this weekend I helped a friend adjust his valves in his Accord. But, I'm hoping to get some time tomorrow.

[7dee2]

So here are some more pics for thought? The lower part is shaped like you said do you wanna try it? Pull the headrests, recover and she'd be a beauty. This is the seat somebody put in our old motorhome in front of the pass-thru.