pHEnomIC

iTrader: (14)

I have a hurst shifter on my t56 with pistol grip and ws6store short handle. I find when I am racing, sometimes 3rd is easy to miss. What can I do technique wise to make sure I never miss it again?

Usually what happens is i slam it forward and miss the notch and it just gets stuck out of 3rd.

I usually am pretty good about it but it still gets me once in a while.

85MikeTPI

iTrader: (9)

I'd "really" try a new shifter... The springs/tension on the shifter should default it to the 3/4 gate firmly, so you'd really have to try hard to miss them...

My $0.02

mike

SladeX

It really is in the hand position, if the shifter centers itself like any normal shifter would, then its your hand orientation that is causing you to miss.

The pistol grip puts your hand in a position that is literally the same for each shift so your muscle memory has no distinction between gears.

I rarely think about my shifts anymore, its just I choose my gear in my head and my hand acts accordingly. The hand orientation positions for the 2-3 and 4-5 upshift are identical to me. Palm facing away with my thumb hitting the side of the shifter. I keep a distinction between the 5-4 downshift and the 3-2 downshift to prevent overtravel.

The point is you can train your arm to "remember" which gear is which with separate orientations for your hand.

There is a guide to shift positions somewhere that I recall seeing. Mimic that and it should help. If your pistol grip prevents that, then I'd look into a shift **** for function rather than how cool it looks or else you'll find on occasion you'll miss 3rd or will be forced to purchase a shifter that really springs it into 3rd like a pro 5.0.

P Mack

iTrader: (6)

My stock hurst had much stronger springs than my pro 5.0. I'd try a regular shift ****.

chevrunner21

iTrader: (1)

im stock shifter with a ws6store short stick and the stock hurst **** and i missed it again last night. pisses me off but id say i miss 3rd once out of 10runs. just like you said though go to hit third and it like hits a wall.i've been debating on a pro 5.0 and a lous stick but kinda pricey. my shifter doesnt center by itself and if i take it left and right in neutral some times it likes to get stuck to the right. i heard it was a factory hurst thing. let me know what you do and how it works out please.

Striped02WS6

iTrader: (6)

go pro 5.0 or similar...i just got rid of the factory hurst because of this exact problem...missing 3rd 1 out of 5-8 runs ...havent had a problem since!

MeentSS02

iTrader: (11)

I never have had the best luck with the factory Hurst...it was always harder to get into gear. The pistol grip shifter doesn't help since it won't let your hand really go where you need it.

The best I've found so far is my regular length B&M Ripper with the stock leather "H" shift ****. I also have an MBA billet aluminum shift ****, but my hand slips off too easily, and the pistol grip never let me put my hand in the palm facing away position I wanted.

pHEnomIC

iTrader: (14)

I got a couple riends with the pro 5.0, I will try theirs and go from there but yeah id say its similar to your stats. 1 out of 5-8 runs i miss 3rd. Usually i can recover it, but its still lost time that is unacceptable. I read that guide once, and use those same principals even with the pistol grip, i dont think it is the problem.

SladeX

My current combination is the

Hurst Comp / Billet Shifter
C6 Shift ****
WS6 Store 6.5 inch short stick modified for a 5 degree angle towards the driver

Spring tension is set to the stock hurst tension.

My stock shifter never had any problems centering itself, which is why when I upgraded to a short shifter, I set the springs to have the same feel.

The C6 **** is ergonomically designed. My previous was the ball shifter, but I found I wanted more. The C6 fits that bill. I've tried plastic and metal ***** to only find they slip too much.

Technique really does make a large difference in shifting. This combo is perfect for me at the moment as it fits the arm height and minimizes the amount of travel my arm does when shifting. So hand position really dictates the shift and very little movement of the arm is required. The more your whole arm is involved in the shift, the worse your shifts will be. Literally I shift just at the wrist rather than the whole arm. During WOT runs, I add a bit more arm strength into the mix, but never really that much more than a shift would require.

To really make it easier on your arm you have to find the combination that shortens the throws while giving you leverage to get it into gear. The shorter the stick/**** combo, the more you have to rely on your arm to get it in gear. If you find yourself "hitting" yourself with your elbow, your arm is way too involved in the shift and you will have to rethink yourself.

BALLSS

When i bought my "new" T56 i removed the shifter that came with it and put on the HURST Pro Billet....great shifter and did not "soften" the spring settings from the way it came.

Sounds like you need to replace the shifter you have. drive a HURST and Pro 5 and see which one you like.

cobalt9123

do the !miss3rd
or the "Driver Mod"
Ha, just kidding.
I'd go with replacing the shifter, a B&M would be best suited for you in my opinion.
hth

Cvaught

iTrader: (13)

I have the exact same setup as you, ws6store short throw and hurst pistol grip shifter and I love it. I have had this combination for about 6 months now and I used to miss 3rd all the time. Since I changed to the shorter stick and pistol grip, I haven't missed 3rd a single time. I have only missed 2nd once (wierd fluke) since I bought this combination. I know everyone has said above the pistol grip doesn't allow you to grip your shifter in the proper position, but it feels pefect to me. Maybe just work on perfect timing between your clutch, shifter, and gas. Just be sure all is in perfect synchronization and practice a lot.

pHEnomIC

iTrader: (14)

So i played around with it today. It seems to work very well for first and 2nd to use the pistol grip, i dont see how it would be possible to miss these two. Then for third i put my palm on top and just push diagonal to the middle vent direction and that gets the gate no problem, thanks for the reminder. Ive never had a problem with any other gears with this setup. Works really well from 4th to 5 too.

Randy WS6

iTrader: (69)

I have the Pro 5.0 with a Hurst pistol grip.

Cvaught

iTrader: (13)

I decided to throw on my stock leather hurst **** on today and take a little drive. I got it up to speed 3 times and missed 3rd gear 2 of the 3 times. There is no way in hell I could ever bang the gears like i do with my Pistol grip. I also NEVER miss gears with the pistol grip. I think the stock **** is more comfortable, but my Pistol grip allows me to slam the gears and it feel very precise. Just thought i would throw this tid bit of info out there

pHEnomIC

iTrader: (14)

Agreed, the pistol grip is generally awesome for fast precise shifts in all other areas. I just have a problem 2-3 sometimes.

greysteel_M6

iTrader: (5)

I agree with sladex, it all has to do with muscle memory, if a shift is missed then I'll orient the shifter **** toward the direction of the missed shift so it feels exaggerated and it inspires more effort to push it away. /\/\ That pistol looks like ***, but I might have to get one.

Dex

iTrader: (5)

I don't know how you shift but i never death grip the shifter i just cup or palm the shifter and throw it for 3rd never fails and if it gets hung up on a gate instead of forcing it in my hand slides off and i just try agian no harm done.

Cvaught

iTrader: (13)

"Greysteel M6" That pistol looks like ***, but I might have to get one.
Here is a picture of mine. The black looks great with my ebony interior.

1994Z28Lt1

iTrader: (1)

i've never had much trouble hitting third with the stock shifter in my car, it got a lot better after i went with a shortstick, with the stock medicine ball shift ****, i know some people probably hate that damn thing but it works perfectly for me

the key for me is hand placement...

on the 1-2 shift i grab the shifter with my palm facing the left side of the car with my fingers also pointing towards the left side of the car

on the 2-3 shift which i wrap my hand around the shifter with both my palm and fingers pointing towards the bottom of the car and basically you just have to pretend your punching your radio

on the 3-4 shift i simply move it back with my fingers alone

everyone has a different technique but i know for me if i would have a pistol grip i dont feel like i could be as accurate shifting compared to the stock lt1 camaro shift **** and my shortstick