Blowfish Racing Shifter Fix

[302 Hi Pro]

The TSB # is 13-12-5. Ill list the parts they replaced and the write up on the page
Hub Syncro
Ring synchro
Output shaft bearing
Counte bearing assembly
Support plate
2nd gear main shaft (5%)
snap ring
gear shift rail
fuid and a nut and gasket for the exhaust that was rusted.
Diagnose for intermittant grinding 1-2 upshift at slow speeds and low rpm. Scott duplicated with customer. Confirmed second gear grinding. Found TSB 13-12-5.
Removed trans. Seized exhaust bolt mt. Mounted trans in holding fixture Disassembled trany as per TSB. Found debris on magnet. Second gear damaged. Center support shift fork bearings damaged. Require complete inspection TSB no longer applies. Comlete inspect damage only at second gear and 1st second synchro and center support with reverse shift shaft. Installed new parts assembled trans bled clutch test drove no further concernes.
Hope this helps. and yes it was covered by warrenty.

Did this repair fix your second gear crunch?
2HP

 

[Ultrakla$$ic]

Steve the instructions are not clear as to which way the adapter bracket should face. Rounded edge facing rear of car like Skewrl did:




Or facing forward like Moto did

I put mine like skwerl did because the PIC in the instructions looks just like that orientation but the instructions could use more detail referring to this IMO.

 

[pufferfish]

i didn't get too specific with the orientation of the MGW adapter block because it may fit better one way or the other.

on another note. step 1 of isolation testing is complete and verified effective. hoping to get step 2 installed tomorrow and verify its effective and doesn't give up performance.

 

[Fiddler49]

...on another note. step 1 of isolation testing is complete and verified effective. hoping to get step 2 installed tomorrow and verify its effective and doesn't give up performance.

Great to hear Steve!

 

[moto]

Installed mine today. MGW shifter. I did put the vacuum caps on the factory studs in case of contact. Oh, and I removed the whiteline bracket as that has too much NVH for the street (but nice on the track) and I figured it wasn't necessary now with this bracket. I wanted to make the MGW heat shield work if possible, as alot of heat comes through the shifter area on track. I was able to notch the heat shield at the back where the bracket connects to the rear shifter support.


It should have enough play for the bracket to slide around forward/aft under loads. The heat shield fits nicely between the BF bracket and the lower shifter box and now holds the heat shield in place, yet allows it to move around nicely with the shifter.

All Buttoned up!

UPDATE: I drove the car 3 times after installing and I did have the shift handle harmonic causing the rattle at roughly half to 3/4 throttle. I have modified 4 things and have SUCCESS, virtually removing the harmonic causing this rattle(MGW SHIFTER).

1. I switched the MGW adapter around (rounded side aft) which moved the shifter bracket more forward. This actually seems to put it farther forward away from the floor studs (which I have the vacuum caps on).

2. I put the MGW rubber rectangular vibration "gasket" that was between the MGW bracket and the floorboard between the MGW bracket and the BF adaptor(simular to the rectangular cut inner tube rubber in an above post). This will not have any actual rotational flex but maybe absorb vibration?

3. Put the heat shield bolts back on to hold it off the BF bracket (maybe?).

4. I realized that when I let the shifter drop during install that it pulled the boot down and was no longer seated/sealed correctly. I had to pull the console out from inside the car and reseat the boot to seal properly.

Since I changed 4 things, I am not sure which one had the most impact but it is MUCH better now.

 

[ford20]

I saw this on a different forum and figured some positive praise and thanks is always a nice thing to hear.

I went to the drag strip last night on my drag radial pros and cut several pass's between 1.50-1.55 60's with this bracket, and not once did I get locked out of gear which is a huge improvement as before I was locked out of 2nd nearly every pass. It was actually very shocking to me when I was able to start power shifting again it was so nice.

This bracket truly does what it states. To me this has to be the best mod I have done to my car besides the blower. Thanks again to Blowfish for coming out with a product that works. Thanks

 

[pufferfish]

good stuff! thanks for sharing!

 

[Calif boss302]

My last modification this weekend was to pour in Motorcraft XL-18 Additive into the transmission. The info I have is cars mfg after 8/15/2011 have the newer XT-11-QDC fluid (for those of us still running factory transmission oil) and the XL18 additive began on 7/9/2012. Since my car was mfg on 3/12/2012 it did NOT have the XL-18 installed at the factory.

My first thought was it was "snake oil" but for $25 bucks I'd give it a try. Worst case I was going to swap for Redline or Amsoil for the last little improvement.

Anyway jack to handwash was 12 minutes. Took car for ride didn't notice all that different on Sat. Took the car out Sunday morning and it felt really good. All in all I'm happy with my final configuration.

On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being perfect:
Stock Shifter with Barton 2-Post = 4-5
Swapping MGW for Stock Shifter = 6-7
Adding Blowfish to MGW Shifter = 7-8
Adding XL18 to Stock oil = 8

While not perfect it's really nice to drive now. I even got my MGW "Boss" Replacement Shifter Ball back from MGW and the entire project is finally complete.

For Steve . . . if there is a way to have the MGW heat shield work with your Bracket that would be the end-all-be-all for me!

 

[seca954]

Check out this video ;D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=RX8z8q7GSVE

That's funny. That vid should have it's own thread.

 

[Ultrakla$$ic]

Here are pics of my install. No way was I NOT going to use my MGW heatshield and noise cancelling matte wiith this BF Bracket because of it's intended purpose which it does so well btw.


Scribe the holes on the heat shield from the upper portion of the BF bracket for drilling.





Put rubber hose over the frame studs to keep the vibration away between the studs and rear shifter bracket





Holes cut/drilled on the heat shield and noise cancelling material from the MGW package



Assemble BF bracket AND MGW Heatshield/noise cancelling matte.........NO PROBLEM!!









I have mine pulled down to where the upper and lower BF Bracket's sit flush with each other............NOTE THE CIRCLED AREA OF THE PIC FOR REFERENCE

I have (2) barriers that keep unwanted NVH away as well. One is the aluminum heat shield wrapped in noise cancelling matting, the second is asbestos style heat reduction material. All this used together has given me an OEM style shifting experience WITHOUT the NVH, slop, or transmission crappy marbling sound.

If I didn't have to shift my car, it drives and is as easy on the ears and hands as an automatic. Swear.

Unless some people are having parts touching and vibrating against each other, I'm having a hard time understanding how yall are getting all the unwanted shifting experience with this combination.

In reference to mine, I let the revs get over 4k in 2nd gear and held it there while I drove it and it was quiet and the shifter was not buzzy at all. Got up to speed and held it there........notta. Went from 4th to 3rd instead of 5th , held it there as the RPM winded and notta............not sure I can replicate any unwanted stuff as I think I tried it all. Dropped down to 2nd and got squirrely ripping through the gears........notta. No notchy shifting between gears either. smooth gear to gear selection no matter what kind of accelerating or decelling.

 

[Calif boss302]

Nice write up Ultrakla$$ic thanks . . .I'm going to re-install my heat shield with your write-up. Mine is perfect now but adding the heat shield seems prudent.

Thanks again . . .

 

[Ultrakla$$ic]

Nice write up Ultrakla$$ic thanks . . .I'm going to re-install my heat shield with your write-up. Mine is perfect now but adding the heat shield seems prudent.

Thanks again . . .

The only thing I can attribute the value of the heatshield, other than the obvious, is the fact that the area I have circled in the pic(which pertains to both sides of the heatshield) press firmly against the transmission tunnel. I say "firmly" because when adjusting the shifter UP or DOWN in the application, the heatshields make it difficult to push too far UP because they press against the side of the trans tunnel. The aluminum heatshield is wrapped in a sound deadening material AS WELL AS the white asbestos type heat shield/sound deadening material being used in conjunction. These two "factors" used simultaneously, pressing against the sides of the trans tunnel creating a layer/eliment of "stability" from any lateral shifting/torquing seem to help. It's as if these aid in keeping the transmission "still" inside the trans tunnel during operation.

I also RTV'd a small layer between the metal to metal contact on the BF Shifter adapter and MGW rear shifter mount to suppress any potential NVH.

 

[2013boss302]

Looks like CJ Pony has a lot in stock.

 

[athens7]

Installed the shifter bracket Friday afternoon. I have a late 2012 version MGW (the first version to use the rear mount with street and track bushings), along with an MGW shift ball and jam nut sleeve. I kept the heat shield installed, with holes drilled out for the BR top bracket. I put sections of vacuum hose around the stock rear shifter mount body studs. I also installed the track bushing (I previously used the street bushing). My version of the MGW shifter does not include the additional noise canceling material shown on Ultrakla$$ic's install photos. In very limited driving so far, I am pleased with the noticeably improved shift action. I also find the vibration felt through the shift ball to be insignificantly greater than it was previously. I do have the rattle under throttle, which I find unacceptable.

When installing the bracket, we measured the position of the shifter (from below) prior to disassembly. During assembly, we marked the bracket to indicate the same position of the shifter (seen in one of the photos). This was done with the heat shield installed, but not the rear mount and BR adapter. Once we installed all components and attempted to adjust the height of the assembly, we found that the upper bracket was resistant to moving as far up as necessary to maintain the correct position. We were ultimately able to match the marks on the bracket, but it is obvious that the assembly is a tight fit, and is likely in contact with the body. I feel no vibration in the body, however, only the rattle. It appears that I am positioning the upper bracket higher than some others displayed in this thread. The relevant photo shows the marks where they would be if no additional force were used to line them up correctly. Even in this misaligned position, the assembly seemed to be in full contact with the car. There was certainly no free room to move the bracket up further before contact was made.

I believe Steve is still working on a solution for the rattle. What I have seen (and heard) so far is that If I grip the ball tightly in hand while the rattle occurs, it gets even louder. I wonder if the rattle has to do with the plastic collar that allows the shift boot to move around the shifter shaft? The MGW shifter has a rubber bushing between the boot collar and the flange in the shifter shaft, but the problem still exists. I wondered about the jam nut rattling against the boot collar, but the problem seems to exist for others with the stock Ford shift knob as well, which doesn't contact the shift boot in the same way. Has anyone tried placing some form of insulation between the shift boot collar and the shifter shaft? Should the entire shifter/BR bracket assembly be completely clear of the body? If so, is that possible with the MGW shifter including the heat shield, or is there inadequate clearance? I'm thinking the contact point for the body/shifter assembly is the MGW rear mount, but I cannot see the mount with the heat shield in place.

I could spend a lot of time on trial and error testing, and will as necessary, but I am hoping someone smarter than me is closer to a solution. In the mean time, I am heading to Roebling Road this coming weekend, and look forward to seeing how the new assembly performs under load. The rattle will have to wait until I get back.

 

[thehueypilot]

Maybe this info will help those with shifter knob buzzing. I glued a 0.114" thick piece of rubber to the top of the shifter rail support housing (MGW) which allowed me to push the assembly up against the floor pan to maintain at least 1/16" of clearance. This allowed the stock shifter height of 4.074" which is from the top of the shifter ball (in neutral) to the top of the center console (in my car) measured with a adjustable square.
The heat shield also puts the shifter in a bind and may also cause buzzing. I cut off the back part of the heat shield so I could see the rail support which was in a bind with the heat shield and no shims. I added 0.191" shim (In between the rail support block and the blowfish bracket) which leveled out the shifter. So far no buzz and stock like vibration. Hope this helps.

Tim

 

[F.D. Sako]

Tim,
Do you remember how much of the heat-shield you cut?
It might save me a few trips under the car later. Thanks.

 

[johna]

I have the stock shifter but it seems some noise has been associated with the install of the blowfish device? Any solutions reported for this yet?

 

[thehueypilot]

Tim,
Do you remember how much of the heat-shield you cut?
It might save me a few trips under the car later. Thanks.

I cut off three inches off the back which put the new end just in front of the mounting bolts of the blowfish bracket. If you shorten the heat shield you must add shims under the mounting bracket as explained above.

Tim

 

[Fiddler49]

I have the stock shifter but it seems some noise has been associated with the install of the blowfish device? Any solutions reported for this yet?

A fix has been prototyped and is currently being tested with good results so far. More to come...

 

[Ultrakla$$ic]

Cool!