by Tacoclaw » Mon Nov 04, 2013 3:28 pm
Mine was bent when I got it, I heated it up then bent it back straight. It made the shifting feel really sloppy the way it was. However, once I put it back straight, it pit the shifter really close to the dash, so what I did was heated the steel part that's connected to the ball in the top of the trans, the piece that the handle screws onto. I soaked a shop rag in water and layed it all around the shaft, then hit it with the big boy torch so it would get hot fast. Pulled it back where I liked it, then cooled the shaft down as quickly as I could so I didn't get anything hot that wasn't supposed to be.
I like it a lot, as nice of shifting as can be expected and it stayed strong. I recently broke the threaded "nut" out of the rubber that's supposed to dampen vibrations. I welded it back in solid, so there's no more cushioning there, but it's not too noticeable.
Maybe unscrew your shifter and weld the nut-part to the rest of the shaft? It'll get rid of the rubber isolator deal built into it. That may be an easier step to try before all the above crap.
1990 W250 4x4
Rattles, growls, whistles, and whines.