If so could someone point me in the right direction as I can't find it again. Anyone have thoughts on this or know of a better solution as the linkage MK made me is simply not going to work.

Hi

Ive done a cable change. It works very well actually. Cant remember where i got the cable, but ill ask my mate who's also doing the same as he got the cable. Cable cost about £40, and the brackets and lever i made myself.

Its a push pull single cable linked to a gear lever shift. One end has an m5 clevis and the other end i have an m5/m6 connector that goes straight onto the R1 gearbox lever arm.

Not sure if any of my pics show what ive done but ill put up some pics in the next few days.

[Edited on 8/4/08 by ChrisS]

Hellfire Team

Cheers mate, is there much play on the gear lever?

Re: above, I think Hellfire's is same as mine unless they changed it since the re-build?

[Edited on 8/4/08 by eznfrank]

I have a cable gear shift on mine. Used a Teleflex or Morse control cable, from a yacht chandlers. They use them to turn outboard motors and have M4 or M5 threads on both ends. Then I made up a keyhole bracket for the cable to fix to, bolted that to the chassis, and then connected one end to the bike gear lever (cut down a little) and the other to a lever welded up from a bit of steel and a L shaped bracket. All connected up using tiny rose joints.

Works well!

HTH

Mike

Do you have any photos by any chance?

Cable shifter on mine, not a seven. 1/4-28 thread on either end to rod ends. Cost was $36 CDN, maybe the same as the boat motor one described. The mounting plate is 1/8 steel, it flexes slightly, Ill fix that with either a longer gusset or a doubler. the stroke of the cable is 3 inches, it only needs about one though. I also would not bend it at a smaller radius than this. heres some pics.

Andrew

Description

Description

Description

That looks like a much better idea than all this p1ssing around with rose joints and rods at ridiculous angles. I've just seen some of those cables on the bay for about £15 - bargain.

We did have a rod gear change but have since fitted a cable operated paddle shift. We used a series 4 control cable from Cable-Tec .

Here's a picture of the connection to the paddle shift.


Paddle shift end

And here's the connection on the gear lever


Gear lever end

If you need any other pictures or further details, let me know.

Phil

mine is pants too! so much play!
Making a new one now but very interested in the cable option.

Hellfire, How much did the cable cost?

This is mine...
Still pleased with it thoug I think it may be a little worn inside from a tight curve an may need replacing after 2 years use.

http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=35650

I think a price of £40 is acheivable no matter where you order it from...
U2U

Steve

quote:

---

Originally posted by matt.c
mine is pants too! so much play!
Making a new one now but very interested in the cable option.

Hellfire, How much did the cable cost?

---

Thanks for all the responses, think I'll give this a go, why don't more people do that rather than all the rods and rose joints??

But now I'm thinking, what's to stop me using a push/pull solenoid and having a button shift, that would be pretty cool I reckon.

Or would it not work cos the solenoid would not return to center?


[Edited on 9/4/08 by eznfrank]

The cable was about £35 IIRC. Probably best to give them a ring though.

Some people prefer the feel of the rod operated shift. We personally went for the cable because we felt it was a neater solution and more direct.

Phil

I have a shift cable available for £20 + pnp if your interested?

I will measure later and give the manufacturer etc

It cost me £35 and i didnt use it - only because i couldnt find the bloody thing!

Yeah if you could u2u me the details re: length, and what size the ends are etc,and I'll let you know.

I couldnt figure out how to post a pic in U2U so here it is, excuse the quality it off my phone because my camera batteries are dead.

Its made by B&M - link to someone selling their cables. Click



Overall length is 920mm
Length of casing is 750mm
Throw 65mm

Threaded end is M5

Eye end is 6mm Diameter hole

Cable sheath is 10mm Diameter.

Securing hole at eye end is 6mm diameter

Bulkhead or panel securing end needs a 12mm diameter hole then it clamped with a nut either side of the bulkhead or panel.

Part number on the cable is B&M 4000990 2C2 OR

Hope that helps

Poxy photo wont show!

[Edited on 9/4/08 by locoboy]

[Edited on 9/4/08 by locoboy]

We at KEP Engineering currently make an aluminium billet paddle gear change that has been used in the race winning stm pheonix(the purple car in front of you!) and now the aries motorsport 7. After talking with Steve at Aries today I am re-designing the shift system to be fully SVA compliant (collapsable, fixed steering wheel) with the option of the removable steering wheel (not SVA) at no extra charge. The system replaces the old Ford steering assembly and is easily retrofitted to most sequential gear boxes (generally bike engines) it will come with most fittings necessary to get you going but may need brackets for certain fitments - we can advise. This is a new project for us and we would apreciate feedback before we invest too much! The kit will sell for £349.99 and be available in various colours (Gold, Black, Red, Blue, Silver etc.) Please reply as this is my pet project and I would like to get it right. Is the price right? We could probably reduce it but in my opinion it would compromise the product. I have seen other versions and they would look good on farm machinery, but ours is the biz!! its going on My Phoenix! I will upload pics when I have them - there should be some on the Stuart Taylor site, and other bits we made - see "shiny bits".

Sean

seant@sky.com
KEP Engineering Ltd
tel 01159 780777
fax 0115 9422000

[Edited on 16/5/08 by Ali_Minium]

[Edited on 16/5/08 by Ali_Minium]

Just found the thread and have a general question. You might have to excuse my ignorance, but I struggle to understand how anyone can build a rod type gearchange linkage that creates any more play than a cable linkage has? I am well aware of the inherent benefits of the cable, but at the end of the day, it still has 2 connection points - one to the gearstick/paddle, and one to the gearbox lever. These will inevitably be subject to the same hole tolerances as a rod type linkage. It's not as if the route of a gearchange linkage on a 'seven' type BEC is particularly convoluted....i.e. forwards down the tunnel, turn right through 90 degrees. End. (for a tunnel mounted stick - for a paddle it's a not much worse, forward through the bulkhead, turn down through 90 degrees. End)

I made mine from a couple of small kart rose joints from demon tweekes, and a length of steel tube from B&Q. Not overly expensive. Or heavy. Absolutely no free play. At all. None. Other than the couple of millies that the gearbox selector lever moves before engaging next gear. Plus it's a lot easier to lube a rosejoint than it is to strip and lube a cable...(anybody tried?)

Is it perhaps that the (poor?) design of some linkages are making the cable method attractive?

The differences between a good cable set-up and a good rod set-up are minimal. The advantage of cable is that you are able to use the same adapter points (the point where the cable connects to the linkage) on various applications, enabling positioning to be more flexible. Every engine is different. This can also be achieved with rods but may need modification, ie lengthening / shortening of the rod length. There may also be extra play if rods need to be extended/re-routed. Rods also add a certain amount of torque to the equation and depending on the angle can induce some flex in the linkage whereas a cable puts the energy exactly where it is required.

Hope this helps

Sean

[Edited on 16/5/08 by Ali_Minium]

Thanks Sean,

I guess I was lucky enough to build my linkage from scratch, so no flex issues involved. But surely if the position of the engine becomes an issue, then it's only a case of redesigning the linkage properly? Providing the correct ratio's in the bellcrank keeps the change feeling tight. I have to admit, mine was a case of trial and error as it was built.