History In 1959/60 Hurst made the coolest damn Shifters EVER...

I can rember in 1963 when i was in tech school a cat the name of Gary Schafer from Minot ND put one in his 1957 chev and I lusted for that
managed to buy a $9 shifter and a couple used ones BUT

many years later like 10 years I got a 4 speed with a Hurst Super Shifter for my oval track car and could row a bunch of gears before the first corner when the green droped Ah finally delivered from the frustrations of childhood

 

I know this is an older post, but these shifters are so damn cool! I got mine on the internet, it was listed for only 1/2 hour when I bought it, wont say how much, but it was a steal! Just glad I have one in my collection!

 

Why are there cats on the box?

 

Because of the TWIN H-Pattern and the shape of the tail/shape of the shifter... "Siamese twins"

 

This is my collection -

 

Those things rule!! never seen one before. I have a Sparkomatic Shifter (obviously a knock off from this Hurst) that I got 20 years ago that looks almost just like that. It was NOS in the still in the box in the trunk of a 64 Nova I bought. Looked almost just like these, save for the really cool acrylic knob, and Hurst quality. I put the sparkomatic shifter my 65 chevy pickup then my 72 chevy pickup...Ripped the whole thin apart in that truck. it just fell apart on a 1 - 2 shift. but I saved the handle and adapted it to a Hurst shifter. It will go on the T10 in my 31 sedan

 

And because cats rule?!

And so does Tuck!

 

I believe Siamese cats were a bit of a sensation around the time the shifter was made (there was some movie about them....).

The box from the shifter seems to indicate a black knob:

 

I recall a guy at the Turlock swap many years ago, going thru a box of misc. stuff...Dropped the HURST knob back in, muttered, "Yo-yo...All kinds of **** in there," that's when my bud grabs the box, reaches in, and retrieves the knob!
I looked thru too, and found the Hurst Compe***ion Plus shifter, no stick. Just the perfect shifter, with the stop bolts for 'overshift prevention'!
I gave the guy his asking price, ($5!) Gary got the knob for $2! Same day, I found another Hurst shifter (non-Comp. Plus, but with the tall stick. Tiny dots of surface rust, polished right out. That one was $6!
Love that Hurst stuff, and Linda most of all.

 

^ That would justify a plexigl*** ****** tunnel^.

 

I didn't realize that I have gold in my hands, but I went into my stash and pulled out my near new Syncro_Loc 3 speed shifter that I bought in 1967, and Compe***ion Plus 4 speed shifter that I bought in 1970. I even have the instructions for the Syncro Loc
For the 4 spd, I only have the bracket and the box, I have somehow lost the handle and the rods. I let a complete Comp Plus shifter with a M21 that I sold, and I am still kicking my **** for that one.
I'll unpack them, and take some pictures after dinner.

 

My shifters. 2 Comp Plus 4 speed, 1 Syncro loc for 3 spd, and 3 spd Mastershift controllers.
The instructions are for the Syncro Loc 3 spd into my 55 Cameo.
This was the 2nd swap into the truck, I replaced a weak 283 with a 327 and 3 spd from a Canadian Pontiac Pariseanne. The 3rd swap for the truck, was a 350hp 396 and 4spd done in 1971. Now I am replacing the 396 with a warm 454 with a TH400 with a shift kit and Starshifter controller.
The truck likes the feeling of power. I just go along for the ride.

Bob

 

Does this ever bring back memories. I bought one for my '56 Ford Vicky hardtop. I bought it from the Western Auto store in Webster City, IA. The knob would go from the seat to the dash. I had to not grab the know or I would mash my knuckles on the dash. It seemed like there was an adjustment so you could go with an H pattern or a straight pattern. I would grab the shifter at the floor level and throw one nasty shift to 2nd. Thanks for the great pics.

 

Gee Moriarity, Can I come over to your garage and play...

 

Tuck,

Do you have any info/literature on this shifter? My father built a 1932 Plymouth Roadster which he dragged back in the late 50's which has this shifter in it. Looking for more info on it. Thanks.

 

I was doing some reading, and found out that Ed Almquist was one of the first people to design that type of shifter, and that he and Hurst were the co-designers of the Hurst shifter.

I bought my first Hurst shifter in 1967, and still have it. It is the dual pattern with Synchro Loc. and I had it installed in the Cameo until I switched to the M-21 Muncie with a Compe***ion Plus.
I loved the unit, because it made the 1 - 2 shift a couldn't miss proposition. My shifter was a later design, because it has the bolt on handle and a screw on knob.
Bob

 

I was just wondering if anyone has ever come across a barrel knob 4spd unit? I haven’t.

 

Mr. Bowie- As far as Hurst shifter production, we did not produce one. Once we created the the t- handle
knob, the barrel type from the 3 spd S/L was not popular. As you know, being a collector, the round knob
was replaced on the 3 spd. Even when I raced my S/L in 1964, I changed the round knob to Spark-o-matic
t-handle, later changed it back to a round knob. As I may have mentioned in my Hurst thread, the change was
cost driven. I agree it was a cool shift lever / knob set-up.

 

That's a cl***ic alright !! I remember sitting in new '63 Chevy Impalas with factory GM floor shifter, and thought "what a piece of ****........can't they do any better than that?"
The shifter wobbled all over, and it seemed you had to hunt for the gear you wanted.

That's how Hurst became successful; outdoing the Big 3 (or 4) with a quality product.
Short WIKI article about Hurst Performance;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurst_Performance

The ad that @Little Wing posted shows the Hurst Dual Pattern on display; great pic BTW.



But, can someone explain the "Dual-ness" to the patterns; what exactly is happening?
The LEFT pattern shows a smaller black line from R to 1, the RIGHT shows a typical H pattern.
Is the LEFT pattern spring-loaded to keep the shifter in 2nd to 3rd throw?
The display says "Converts to Either Pattern". How is this selection done?

gatz

 

I had one those shifters in my '57 Chevy bench seat equipped high school car. If I remember correctly it was spring loaded to the 2 - 3 side of the pattern. It was my introduction to Hurst shifters, and never forgot how well it worked. Thanks for the memories.

 

I had a handle like that on my Hurst Dual Gate, the one for the early hydra-matics with the key.. I never got to use it. I ended up with the Hurst Autostick I.

The modifications were for the 61 to 64 three speed Roto hydra matic that came in the Catalina, Grand Prix and the big Oldsmobile..

I drove a 63 Catalina with this shifter and the modifications. It had a very nice feel. It shifted swiftly and wouldn't change gears until shifted..

 

Mine’ s got a woody.... seriously this would be the last barrel handle design syncro-loc with stops version with the 15” handle. I would think Cal Custom was trying to emulate Hurst’s knob style , when they came out with their barrel knobs.

 

... from a '63 Honest Charlie catalog (I think... its was missing the cover)

 

As I stated on the other two Hurst threads, why do I have a feeling that at some point somebody’s gonna think this thread is shifty? lol.

 

I had one just like this one in 1962 in my '56 Victoria. It is spring loaded for the 1-2 shift that makes it a straight line pattern vs the standard H pattern. I woul grab it at the botton and with a flick of the wrist you were in 2nd gear. Loved it. It seems like it had a pin or something to put it back to the H pattern.

 

A few days ago, there was a multi-page discussion here on this forum regarding 3-on-the-column vs 3-on-the-floor.
I think this featured Hurst shifter puts the cork back in that bottle for good.

 

I think that is pretty shifty of you to say!

 

Ohh stop it, you’re just upset cause you had to change gears in order to keep up.

 

I wasn't gonna try to push my point any further on that thread but for me the fuse was lit in 1969 when I put a Hurst Syncro-Loc shifter in my first car, a 61 Impala, I was fifteen.
Every car I had after that had a four speed in it, not one of them was a column shift either.
Wonder why that is!