Driving the green 40 has been a bit of a chore.
There's no shifter so doing a 3-point turn is a series of crouches.
I've gotten used to it but this weekend was time to get real.
With the help of a tasty payback beer from Chip,
I scrounged the yard for some donor parts.
My original idea was to rig up the original column shifter to the AOD lever.
Although this would have been the best plan,
the levers didn't line up easily without some serious modifications.
For now I'd be happy with a simple floor shifter.
Typically I'd make a spring-loaded pivot bracket,
and bend up a fancy stick,
until this trophy appeared out of the depths.
The perfect shifter donor.
With the help of the trusty 34 watt light bulb,
a simple L bracket was cut out and mounted on the transmission.
The beer didn't really help with my progress.
I spent way too much time sitting and thinking,
and ultimately it backfired as I couldn't even go for a late night drive.
The workbench did end up a bit cleaner!
The next morning was strange.
A couple weeks ago I joined Instagram,
and found there was this whole community of picture addicts.
Hot rodders are really fond of this program,
and this guy nortongrimm was one of my first "followers".
There's a quick assimilation with the HAMB,
so I had recognized some of his posts on that forum.
Well while lying in bed expecting to see some shameless self-promotion pics,
it was a shocker to find out that he had died that night.
What?
He had just posted a picture of a fireplace and some car stuff,
and now he's dead?
Folks Of Interest Rest in Peace NortonG - THE H.A.M.B.
A quick search confirmed this and wow what an eerie feeling.
It's like you know someone with similar interests,
see there life through their camera eyes and what they write,
but don't expect it to just end in an instant.
The morning was melancholy for me,
a good time to get out to the garage.
RIP Dave aka Norton Grimm!
The rest of the shifter went together so smoothly,
I wondered why it had taken so long for something so simple.
How many times have I wondered that?
Yeah you may be shaking your head at this point.
I did warn that this was a shifter made from scrap!
And here's the almost finished product.
It's like driving a totally different car,
no more struggling trying to find the shifter in the dark.
Now I can finally make the tranny hump!
TP
There's no shifter so doing a 3-point turn is a series of crouches.
I've gotten used to it but this weekend was time to get real.
 |
| 1940 ford coupe - garage time |
With the help of a tasty payback beer from Chip,
I scrounged the yard for some donor parts.
 |
| alpine beer company |
My original idea was to rig up the original column shifter to the AOD lever.
Although this would have been the best plan,
the levers didn't line up easily without some serious modifications.
For now I'd be happy with a simple floor shifter.
 |
| scrapola |
Typically I'd make a spring-loaded pivot bracket,
and bend up a fancy stick,
until this trophy appeared out of the depths.
The perfect shifter donor.
With the help of the trusty 34 watt light bulb,
a simple L bracket was cut out and mounted on the transmission.
 |
| optimum work conditions |
The beer didn't really help with my progress.
I spent way too much time sitting and thinking,
and ultimately it backfired as I couldn't even go for a late night drive.
The workbench did end up a bit cleaner!
 |
| parts |
The next morning was strange.
A couple weeks ago I joined Instagram,
and found there was this whole community of picture addicts.
Hot rodders are really fond of this program,
and this guy nortongrimm was one of my first "followers".
There's a quick assimilation with the HAMB,
so I had recognized some of his posts on that forum.
Well while lying in bed expecting to see some shameless self-promotion pics,
it was a shocker to find out that he had died that night.
What?
He had just posted a picture of a fireplace and some car stuff,
and now he's dead?
Folks Of Interest Rest in Peace NortonG - THE H.A.M.B.
A quick search confirmed this and wow what an eerie feeling.
It's like you know someone with similar interests,
see there life through their camera eyes and what they write,
but don't expect it to just end in an instant.
The morning was melancholy for me,
a good time to get out to the garage.
RIP Dave aka Norton Grimm!
 |
| template |
The rest of the shifter went together so smoothly,
I wondered why it had taken so long for something so simple.
How many times have I wondered that?
 |
| hidden gem |
Yeah you may be shaking your head at this point.
I did warn that this was a shifter made from scrap!
 |
| linkage |
And here's the almost finished product.
It's like driving a totally different car,
no more struggling trying to find the shifter in the dark.
 |
| AOD shifter |
There's a spring at the pivot,
which allows the shifter to cock over a bit.
I'll remake or modify the bracket,
to add a reverse/park lockout.
 |
| holey chit |
Now I can finally make the tranny hump!
TP
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