Pics of 67 trans tunnel needed for auto shifter mounting
 

Hey all. Original trans and shifter combo in my 67 was an ST300 2 speed, converted to th350 by previous owner. Shift detent didn't support manually rowing through gears 1/2/3, so I adapted a spare 2nd gen shifter to fit during my racing days. When I became dissatisfied with the 2nd gen, I went to a Hurst ratchet shifter. It is a blast to slam through the gears, but I haven't been able to get the opening in the console trimmed out properly. I am tired of the unfinished way it looks.

Anyways, I don't race anymore. And I don't want an unfinished mess around the shifter opening. I have the factory shifter I saved, but I DID cut/mod the tunnel sheet metal during my journey. I now need to find out what factory looks like so I can go back to stock, but with updated detent.

Anybody have pics? Thanks!

Without walking out to take more pics, this is what I have saved for my '67 with 400/TH400. The body is currently a bare shell. I can get pics of the opening with the rectangular reinforcement if you'd like.

Holes arent pretty
cut with a torch freehand

Thanks, that helps. I was looking today for the piece I cut out, but couldn't find it. I couldn't remember if the area was reinforced, or just a cutout on the tunnel sheet metal. I am trying to plan the job before I start pulling things apart. I will also need to refurb my shifter, and convert the detent plate for a 3 speed.

I will need to get one of those templates I see online to locate a new hole.

Glad I kept the rest of the setup!

That would be awesome, thanks.

I demo'd the sheet metal that I had tacked on over the trans tunnel. It turns out I cut more out than I remembered. But thankfully I did not chop out the forward and left side shifter mounting holes, so I can use those two holes as reference for drilling the other 2 holes.

I am now fabbing in a patch piece to support the factory shifter.

A side note: I like that the 1st gen trans tunnel is fairly flat. Easier to work with.

I take it you sh$t canned the idea of the electronic rotary shifter you picked up out of a BMW

Get with the now dude. That was multiple fever dreams ago, and I am pretty sure it was a paddle shifter from a mid performance Toyota...

Yeah. I have no real love for the 67 factory shifter, but the opening in my console looks like trash. I went from factory 2 speed shifter with a th350, to a 2nd gen where I cut the floor, then to a Hurst ratchet shifter, and now full circle back to factory. Gonna mod my detent plate to get access to manual first gear, or just go with shiftworks conversion parts. I just wish there was detent plates that gated the 1-2 and 2-3 shifts.

They have detent plates for 68+ with shift gates. Maybe this is my chance to make a new thing.

If I had skills at CAD, I would make such a thing and take it to somebody to get cut. For now, I will simply get this thing working and installed, and try to make a template/tracing of the detent plate for future tinkering.

As it is, I need to cut the existing plate to allow manual 1st gear, since low on the 2 speed shifter would be 2nd gear on a th350.

I got mad CAD skills, ya heard.

Word.

Want a project?:D

67 Bird shifters look to be the same as 67 Camaro and 68-72 Nova. Shiftworks seems to only sell the detent plate with an entire conversion kit with more bells and whistles than I need. But even their kit doesn't have a gated detent plate so you don't shift from 1st into neutral.

What about the detent of 69 shifters with the HIS n Hers feature

I found my answer.

https://youtu.be/VGsK2K6h6rs?is=FQN9-gMjsLHfmbpn

I am in contact to get his TSC3 detent plate which will solve my problem. It was apparently something he had done earlier, but I couldn't find it on the web until he sent me the vid.

He also does other shifter makes, and does OD and reverse pattern versions too.

Sweet.

Certainly very very cool. But too pricy to speculate on "will it fit?"

I have as of late started to appreciate the factory looks, or else I might try to install a 2nd gen console and shifter. The 67 console is soooo low, and not usable as an armrest. Trying to resist the urge to "Pimp My Ride".