3 on the tree to floor shift.

I have a 63 mecury comet with the straight 6 270 and I want to convert it to a floor shifter until I can find a new column. The one I have is trashed.

Has anyone done this before? Are the cheap ones on ebay and autozone worth it or should i look elsewhere?

Also is it really as simple as people make it sound?

Thanks

My friend's parents had a '70 Pontiac Bonneville wagon with a factory 3-on-the-tree . They always had trouble with the cables and converted it to a floor shifter using a Hurst kit.

Only problem they encountered was an issue with the lever rods that bound up. They solved it by reversing the pattern left-to-right. I'm sure there was probably a better solution to that.

Yeah, just buy the cheapie set, hack the floor, and you're good. Pay special attention to the alignment(put a bolt, or something through the notched out place at the base of the shift handle, make sure trans is in neutral, and screw the shift rods to proper length) Make sure it's mounted solidly.

I'd try to find a Hurst Indy 3 speed shifter. They may be more money than you want to spend for a new one, but you may be able to find a used one. The cheapo shifters can be frustrating as they just aren't going to work as well.

I used a Hurst kit on my old 67 Chevy PU. worked like a charm for 5 years when I sold the truck.

When I was a kid I remember my dad swapped his 3 on the tree F150 with a 300 6 to 4 on the floor with a granny first. The granny first might be handy for burnouts in your comet.

My dad did a 65 rambler. It worked ok.

I'll be no help, but a high school buddy did it with a 289 Fairlane ... hurst shifter... turned out ok in retrospect ... to a 16 yo it was awesome

I did my '65 Falcon with a Mr. Gasket shifter. It didn't turn out so well, the biggest problem was the shifter could move on the mount bracket leading to all kinds of misalignment weirdness. Given access to a welder I probably could have made it work very well.

Hurst is prolly best bet, make sure they have brackets for install on 3 on tree trans as the tailshafts may be different from an original floor shift trans.

I put a 4 on the tree in my 300 6-cyl. '77 F-150. Replaced the 3-speed truck trans w/ a T-10 4-speed, 1-4 shift linkages bolted right up to the column links. The old reverse on the column became 1st, 1st on the column became 2nd, so on... except there was no reverse on the tree, had to mount a separate lever on the floor.... put tree shift in neutral, shift to reverse on floor. It was pretty cool, even freaked a few ppl out.

Took the truck in for annual inspection, told the mechanic in detail and taped explicit directions on the dash how to operate my 4 on the tree. Two days later he called and said: WTF, you come down here and drive it in if you want it inspected !! I can't figger this MOFO out.

mrhappy wrote: I have a 63 mecury comet with the straight 6 270 and I want to convert it to a floor shifter until I can find a new column. The one I have is trashed. Has anyone done this before? Are the cheap ones on ebay and autozone worth it or should i look elsewhere? Also is it really as simple as people make it sound? Thanks

Before you do all that, what's worng with your column shift?

They do have adjustments in them that are pretty simple. Most of the column shift problems I've dealt with are related to poor adjustment.

Duke: There's no cables in a column shift, they all use linkage rods.

Shawn

I agree with Trans_Maro, new bushings will make it feel like a new car; but if you really want that sports car feel by grabbing something off the floor, JCW.com has quited a few.

Dan

I really, really miss the three-on-the-tree shifting of my old '64 Chevy pickup and would never have swapped it for a floor shift. But the Ford TotT shifters of the era were nowhere near as much fun to shift, so I support this swap.

Don't get me going about '63 Comets...please post some photos.

I've done the bushings on it, but the real problem is that one of the POs decided it was a good idea to attack the shift collar and lever with a hammer and drill. Its broken in a few places (missing chunks) and where the lever goes in has been wollowed out alot.

I will be going back to three on the tree later on im just tired of not being able to drive it and this could be a nice bandaid while I finish up the rest of the car.

That is if the vr6 bellhousing adapters aren't made.

$80 @ JC Whitney, there are others....

Have used Hurst and Mr Gasket shifters in the past. Liked the Hurst better. Best one though was one my father and I built ourselves. Ball bearings and teflon bushings made a very smooth shifter and we designed it to have a 3" throw.

I've had the Mr Gasket (sparkomatic) and the Hurst Indy.

If you have a bench seat, be sure to buy the truck shifters. I've found most of the "car" shifters don't have enough of a bend to clear the bench seats.

Also, these things mount on the side of the transmission. You may find that it puts the shifter through the floor right under your right leg. You may need to bend the shifter a bit to make room.

Shawn