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Wed Jun 29, 2005 5:16 pm

Any ideas? I searched but didn't see anything about this. What would you kind folks recommend to polish it up a bit? I think it's the correct knob...on the bottom, it says DAKA-WARE CHICAGO MADE IN U S A

Thanks for any ideas!!!

Wed Jun 29, 2005 5:59 pm

Is it a metal finish or wood or what???? If its metal you can wet sand it with 1500 grit then polish it out with mothers , with wood you can sand it with 220 and then re stain it . I have an old t handle that was oxidised really bad . I hit it with 400 then 800 then 1500 and finished it with mothers and it looks good as new .

Wed Jun 29, 2005 6:46 pm

Well...it's not really metal or wood. Trying to think how to describe it...it's closer to some sort of polycarbonate, but the finish is pretty rough. Not really pitted...just flat -- no shine.

Thanks!

Wed Jun 29, 2005 6:58 pm

Like this?

Wed Jun 29, 2005 7:09 pm

Yeah, that's an example of my shifter in excellent condition... :D

BTW, I think I need to replace the spring in there to allow you to shift into reverse...it doesn't really move freely...

So yeah...that would be the type shift knob I'm trying to pretty up. :)

Wed Jun 29, 2005 7:10 pm

try some 0000 steelwool.

Wed Jun 29, 2005 7:25 pm

Glenn wrote: try some 0000 steelwool.

Excellent! I happen to have some in the garage I was using on the chrome. Thank you! Will give it a shot!

Thu Jun 30, 2005 9:09 am

The reverse-lockout is actuated by lifting the trigger which pulls up on a wire that runs through the whole length of the shifter shaft. If you're spring looks okay but you can't lift the trigger at all (it's too tight), you probably just need to clean and lube that wire. You can take off the shifter knob by unscrewing it and you should see the wire bent through a tiny whole in the top of the shifter, and then it runs through a channel. Spray down that channel with Brake Cleaner really well. Chase it with compressed air or let it dry, then shoot white lithium grease down the channel for lube.
If you are pulling the trigger but nothing is happening, then that wire that runs the length of the shifter shaft is probably broken. This is a tempered wire, you can buy 'music wire' from a RC hobby shop to replace it. I think the size is .050, off the top of my head. You have to take apart the shifter and it's a biotch to do. The wire length and bends have to be 'just right' for it all to work. I've done it though, so it's quite possible. Music wire can also be used to re-create te funky little W shaped spring in the shifter cage if that's missing. Other springs can be found at the local hardware store.

Good luck, those Hurst shifters are the best and they are getting harder to find, so it's worth puttin in some effot to getting them right. I like them better than the Gene Berg ones, personally. I have created some machined aluminum shifter base plates to replace the plastic ones in those shifters and they are 'in testing' now. If you'rs are broken or too worn PM me and we can talk.

Thu Jun 30, 2005 9:35 am

i rebuild hurst and hurst copy shifters. the heat cable from a beetle, for instance 1961, is exact same size as original hurst. if you want you can send to me and i'll rebuild it. pm me or [email protected].. since today is the day i work for a living i am looking for putzy stuff. retirement city tomorrow :D

Fri Jul 01, 2005 12:34 pm

The knob is black bak-o-lite. Just sand it using finer and finer sandpaper, then polish it with polishing compound.

Fri Jul 01, 2005 2:06 pm

Fix it yourself, it's easy.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=120323&highlight=

Thu Jul 07, 2005 7:00 pm

Thanks for all the help! You guys are great...You really know your stuff!!

Thu Jul 07, 2005 9:23 pm

if you lube the ring on the hurst with dish soap, the new boot will stretch over the ring and you dont have to take the shifter apart to reboot.

Wed Jul 13, 2005 6:29 pm

[email protected] wrote: If you're spring looks okay but you can't lift the trigger at all (it's too tight), you probably just need to clean and lube that wire. You can take off the shifter knob by unscrewing it and you should see the wire bent through a tiny whole in the top of the shifter, and then it runs through a channel. Spray down that channel with Brake Cleaner really well. Chase it with compressed air or let it dry, then shoot white lithium grease down the channel for lube.

Hey, I did this but instead of brake cleaner, I used PB Blaster. It worked!!! It moves a lot easier now! I sprayed copious amounts of PB Blaster down that channel and let sit overnight. After a few attempts to gently persuade it to work today, it finally does! I am going to spray it down a bit more, blow it out with compressed air and lube it up.

Thanks for the tip!

Thu Jul 14, 2005 7:31 am

Excellent tips here! Now a question: Does anyone know (Bill?) if a "generic" T-handle alloy handle with the HURST name on it, like from a domestic car shifter, will fit the Beetle shifter? Both threads the same?

On one of my swapmeet find original Hursts the "W" spring was out of position; it can be repositioned with a bit of fiddling. If missing entirely and you don't have another shifter to use as a reference for that spring, it might be quite hard to find such a specially-wound spring. However, my local HW store has straight spring wire, about 3' lengths of different wire gauges, that you can form and cut into the right shape. Try that too.

I think that if you bought a "bronze" colored Hurst VW shifter (the shaft was this color) back in the early '70's it would have the wooden ball shift knob.

Thu Jul 14, 2005 11:42 am

Rome wrote: original Hursts the "W" spring was out of position; it can be repositioned with a bit of fiddling. If missing entirely and you don't have another shifter to use as a reference for that spring, it might be quite hard to find such a specially-wound spring.

If you have a problem with the "W" spring and the little bar it pushes against, just leave them out. Their function was a 3rd-4th gear lockout when the trigger is held up. The reason you would want to have this feature is if you get stuck in the snow. Then you can hold the trigger up and shift from reverse to 1st back and forth without hitting 3rd gear. Nowadays not many people use their Bugs in the winter.

Thu Jul 14, 2005 1:38 pm

Dang- another totally previously unknown detail!

I'd imagine that such "vehicle rocking" with the shifter would promote a gear grind when you shift into R, since reverse is not synchro'd. You still hear such brief gear grinding on modern econo cars where the MFR saves $ by not installing a synchro for reverse. 25 years ago when I worked at VWAG in Wolfsburg and drove a Scirocco, then a Golf (Rabbit) GTi and encountered this reverse gear crunching after coming to a stop, somebody in the R&D group gave me a tip to eliminate the grinding that has become second nature and could also be done on ACVWs, especially with an aftermarket shifter. Namely, simply shift into any other FORWARD gear (with clutch pressed) after coming to a stop just before you shift into reverse. 2nd gear works fine for this. What this does is to spin up the shaft on which the reverse gear rides to the same speed as the forward gear shaft, eliminating the speed differential which is what causes the gear crunch. I'm embarrassed to admit that I'm not familiar enough with the workings of the tranny but I bet Bruce can picture and describe what goes on in there with this method.

Thu Jul 14, 2005 3:33 pm

Rome wrote: Excellent tips here! Now a question: Does anyone know (Bill?) if a "generic" T-handle alloy handle with the HURST name on it, like from a domestic car shifter, will fit the Beetle shifter? Both threads the same?

I got one from a friend, it threaded on, but it interfered with the reverse-lockout pull. I'd imagine you could drill a spot in the handle big enough to fit the lockout lever, although you wouldn't have as many threads. :?

Fri Jul 15, 2005 2:07 am

Here's the shift patterns of the Hurst shifter. Did you know the Hurst shifter was called Saf-t-trigger?

Too bad no one repro'd this label.

In your gearbox, when the clutch is out in neutral, the input shaft is spinning at engine idle speed. The output shaft is always connected to road speed, so if you are stopped, so is the output shaft. If your clutch is dragging, when you try for reverse, it will grind since the input shaft is driven and the output is stopped. Pulling it in 2nd will cause the syncro to slow the input shaft down to match road speed (stopped). However, this should not be necessary since the viscosity of the oil will cause the input shaft to slow down and stop.