What do you guys think of this shifter?
 

http://board.hondasociety.com/showth...threadid=57351

A suposedly true SS modeled after C's, selling for $120. I was going to swap a 4th gen lude shifter w/ a B&M adapter into my Accord, but this might be nicer. Anyone have any thoughts? I don't want to waste money, as I'm still trying to buy a set of coilovers. :o

i cant see, gotta register..

can you post the pic/specs/details whatever?

I think I can post pics, specs, etc. Just to give credit/contact info, AccordSiR is selling them on HondaSociety.





AccordSiR:
"I'm now selling a true type short throw shifter for the 5th gen accord. This is NOT an adapter unit that bolts to your OE shifter. It replaces your OE shifter. Installation is easy (requires phillips head screw driver, 10mm/12mm wrenches, and pliers. Instructions are included. This unit is very similar to the C's unit which is no longer in production. The best part, MSRP is nearly half the cost of the discontinued C's unit which retailed for 32000 YEN (US$250).

I just got the first five in from the factory and they are sweet. It reduces the throw without being notchy, and gives a more positive shift throughout all the gears. Comes in a powdercoat gloss black finish and is compatible with OE shifter and shift boot. First five will be available for shipping 7/23/02"


Here is a link to his tutorial: http://www.p0w3r.com/pspec/tutorial.php

He also writes later in the topic:
The stick isn't shorter than the OE unit. It’s actually the same height. This unit is a short throw shifter. It reduces the throws by as much as possible while remaining smooth. It actually makes for better shifting than the OE unit by creating a more positive shift. It’s hard to explain without out actually showing you, but this shifter "wants" to go into gear more than the OE unit does.

I considered reducing the length of the shift rod itself, but I found that this would actually hinder shifting performance. My shifter increases the angle of the shifter cable. This reduces the distance between gears. If the length of the shift rod itself was also reduced , the unit would become too notchy. This is because your hand would be too close to the pivot point of the unit. You can try this on your car by grabbing your OE shifter, under the shift knob, by the base of the shift boot. Try shifting like this and you will get an idea of what I'm talking about. This effect is even greater when you have a shorter distance between gears.

I believe that the people who designed the C's unit also realized this and that’s why they kept the C's unit at the OE height. Another advantage of leaving the unit at the OE height is that it places the shift knob in perfect alignment with the center console armrest. So your wrist, forearm, and elbow can remain in a straight line during shifting.

A friend of mine has a shifter on his civic, which reduces both the distance between gears and the shift arm height. The unit barely sticks out of the center console, all you can see is the shift knob sticking out of the shift boot. The unit is so notchy that he constantly scratches second gear when drag racing. Sure it looks cool, but the performance is actually worse than the OE unit. I would prefer the stock shift lever over that one any day.

Believe me guys; if there were an advantage to reducing the length of the unit itself, other than an aesthetic one, I would have already done it. Maybe I can take an inch or so off the unit without it getting too notchy, but that will just throw off the alignment with the center console. I have always believed that performance comes first, and that’s how I am going to be designing my products. It’s just not worth it to me to take away from the performance of the unit to make it look cooler to some people. My unit really does perform beautifully and I recommend it to anyone looking for that extra bit of driving pleasure.

at that price, I would try one..

I've never heard of this in particular.. But after reading the whole thing, everything seems legit.. No BS.

About the lenght of the shifter, that is so true... Especially for the Accord population.

I wish C's still made the short shifter. ;(

If one comes available for the 6th gen then I'm sold. I want a true short shifter, I don't want some crappy adapter. Especially since the adapters usually give far less throw reduction than a true short shifter. I wonder how much this one reduces it?

b

Yeah, the guy just started making them after designing them after the C's model. I might give one a shot sometime soon.

sounds good to me

I just emailed the guy and he says that the throw from 1st to 2nd is about the same as 1st to neutral stock.