B&M Hammer shifter install issues. Need guru help!

lrsudog

Registered User
Trying to install a Hammer shifter in my '90 AOD and ran into some wrinkles. Can someone answer the following stupid questions for me?

A) Does the interlock cable also operate the nuetral safety & reverse light switches?

B) If so, any suggestions on modifications to allow proper operation? If not, where are the Nuetral safety switch & reverse light switches located?
 
The neutral saftey switch is in the tranny on the drivers side, so you should'nt have to worry about it. I dont know about the reverse light switch. I've been trying to get my center console out of the car but cant get the damn shifter handle to come off.
How did you do that?
I've done the push the button and pull thing, but it dont work for me.
I wasnt looking to change the shifter from stock but pretty soon I'll get the portaband out and then I'll be looking for a shifter.
What is the hammer? is it that wide aluminum T handle shifter?
Is it a B&M?
Tell me why you like the one you chose please.:)

EDIT: Nevermind the B&M qeustion....Duhhhhh.:rolleyes:
 
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Mike 38sc

Mike I'm probably wrong on this but you can try it. Look on the side of the shifter handle and see if you can locate one of this little c pins that hold alot of the shifters on. Just figured I would try and help.
 
It is the hammer. I followed GD's advice & baught the "Universal" shifter rather then the 'Stang/AOD version. The cable comes out the wrong end on the 'Stang unit.

Excellent info on the Nuetral safety switch. I bet that that's where the rev switch lives as well. That means that if I trim about a 1/4" off the left side mounting flanges on the shifter chassis and widen the cable exit hole, it'll fit in exactly the right location. Damn, but this is gonna look bitchin'! I and (you) may have to drill and tap a mounting point for the slide cam that pulls the steering column interlock, or clamp the cable so that you can get the key out of the ignition. I'd prefer it to operate the same as stock.

Anyway, you don't need to pull the old shifter handle off. The Console has a top half & a bottom half (If you get what I mean) and after you get the two cad washed screws in the center box and the four or six other hex head screws at the front of the console, you can remove the console by moving the Parking brake handle at the right time, both parts of the console coming out seperately. Then it's the four 8mm(I think) screws, plus the light & switch plugs, plus the switch for the box light, plus the two 10 mm bolts for the tranny cable (From under the damn car!) PLUS, one hidden 8 mm screw under the ebrake bracket right behind the shifter, PLUS the little (Very) interlock cable anchor screw (5.5mm). You have to unbolt the ebrake bracket for that "Hidden" screw BTW.

Also BTW, IMHO the B&M Mega shifter with the old school handle won't work right with these cars. The chassis and the handle are too tall, unless you go to a five speed console top maybe.
 
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The backup light is part of the backup/neutral safety switch on the left hand rear side of the tranny. (At least on the early models.) It's been a while since we hooked mine up, but it does seem that the interlock cable will do both things.

P769sm.jpg
 
MIKE 38sc said:
What about the Quicksilver?

I personaly never really liked the action of the Quicksilver, so I didn't even consider it. It will work with AOD's, so it should work in the T-Bird, but I much prefer the trigger gate actuation to the "Lift the handle" type action.

Whichever, you would still need to get the AOD adapter kit.


The backup light is part of the backup/neutral safety switch on the left hand rear side of the tranny. (At least on the early models.) It's been a while since we hooked mine up, but it does seem that the interlock cable will do both things.


George, do you remember if or how you fabricated a linkage for the interlock? From looking at the Wiring diagram in the big old Factory manual, it looks as though the interlock can be "Left open" (This is what B&M recomends in the universal shifter install instructions) But that would mean that you can lock the wheel & pull out the keys while the car is not in park.:eek:

Russ
 
George thanks for posting that pic I have been to B&M's site and could get no more info on there shifters than you get in the Summit catalogue, which isnt much. Is that the Hammer also George?

Irsudog:
What do you mean about the action of the Quicksilver? I'm try to learn things like that about the different shifters because I havent used an aftermarket auto shifter since around 1981.
I went to manual trannys back then and havent kept up with auto shifters. I never thought I'd go back to auto's but the SC pulls it off so nicely I'm back into them, although it is the only auto in my stable.
I dont mean to hijack the thread but I'd like to learn as much as you fella's will tell me about how the different shifters you know about work.
Which B&M shifters work with the AOD in the SC and which ones can be made to work with the stock center console? I dont know....I may just keep the stock shifter if I can figure out how to get the thing apart without using the portaband on it. I need to remove the entire interior of the car to do some work but the shifter is holding me up.
But I think I would like an aftermarket shifter if it is'nt a bunch of trouble to oporate it.
Thanks guys.:)
 
No worries on highjacking the thread, as you answered my question (As did George) pretty darn quick.

According to a friend of mine who used to work at B&M as a draftsman, all the B&M auto shifters that support the AOD (That info is available at the B&M site) will work in the Thunderbird, with varying degrees of fabrication (Hacking) needed to fit nicely in the console. In other words, if there was no console, any of them would work in a mechanical sense.

The "Trigger" type shifters (Hammer/Mega/Starshifter) have a trigger that you pull up with two fingers that functions just like the side button on the '89-'90 factory shifter handle. The only difference is that you can also position the shifter handle so that it ratchets, meaning that if you start in 1st gear, you can hit the handle as hard as you want when you hit your shift point, and you don't have to worry about shifting past 2nd or even all the way into nuetral or reverse like the factory shifter. When you hit your 3rd gear shift point, smak it again, and you are positively in 3rd. You just watch your tach and bang out the shifts. If you have the Lentech valve body, you can even keep it from shifting into OD before you hit the traps, although at full pedal the AOD is supposed to stay out of OD anyway.

The quicksilver works the same way as a ratchet, but you have to cup the shifter knob and lift up instead of pushing the button or pulling up the trigger. Once you set it in "Ratchet" mode, you just hit it to upshift.


They are called "Gate" shifters because you physically have to lift the handle or pull the trigger (Nuetral and reverse are "Gated" off) before it will let you shift into nuetral or reverse. When I was into the 1/4 mile (Back when we had to chase the woolly mammoths off the track), you HAD to have a gate shifter with positive reverse lockout for your auto to race at the strip in the brackets. I guess more then a few guys accidently hit reverse at 80 mph and yard saled their drivelines.
 
Thanks Irsudog for the info, that was exactaly what I was looking for. Now I can at least make a halfway educated decission about my shifter.
 
I just talked to John Shelton on the phone who was kind enough to give me all the skinny on the Hammer install. Essentially he says that it needs to go as far left as possible, which means a little grinding on the left "feet", and needs to be shimmed up a bit to make it fit the console and to clear the EBrake handle.

He left his interlock to dangle, and has had no issues.


Excellent!
 
Wait a minute!.....Dangling interlock? I dont like the sound of that.
What does he mean? I dont mind modifying things to get them to work but that dangling comment sounds like that part does'nt work any longer.
I'm sorry to be such a pain in the *** but could you elaborate on that?:confused:
 
Putting the Factory shifter in any gear besides Park pulls the interlock cable about 1/4 " by way of a sliding semi-cam.

Putting the shifter in "Park" slackens the cable, allowing it to retract under it's own tension.

A "slack" cable allows the steering column to lock and the key to be removed.

A "pulled" cable prevents the steering column from locking and the removal of the key.


This factory setup prevents any possibililty of the steering column locking and the removal of the key while the car is in gear.


If you do not fabricate a way to actuate the cable and don't hook it up to the aftermarket shifter somehow,(let it dangle hidden under the console), you will be able to lock the steering column and remove the key without first putting the car in park.

This isn't a big deal for me, but I am still going to try and fabricate something so that it works exactly like the factory shifter, just in case I ever sell the car.

Sorry if my description was confusing. I could show you how it works in two seconds, but describing it is a bit harder.
 
Actually, it may be a PIA, because you have to figure out a way to pull, but not more then about 3/8", and then only when you put it in gear.

#654 on my projects list!

If you suss it out, let me know!
 
I'm at work from dark to dark this time of year, so I might not be able to get to it until this weekend. I'll try sooner.
 
Had a Lentech valve body installed in the 90 yesterday. Looking at a shifter that'll keep me from going into reverse by accident I found these posts.

Did anything ever come of getting the interlock setup?

I'll probably look at doing this when I take the 90 down to do the ABS master, so I've got a few weeks yet. Gotta get the 93 running first.
 
Had a Lentech valve body installed in the 90 yesterday. Looking at a shifter that'll keep me from going into reverse by accident I found these posts.

Did anything ever come of getting the interlock setup?

I'll probably look at doing this when I take the 90 down to do the ABS master, so I've got a few weeks yet. Gotta get the 93 running first.



It's been a while since I did the install with the Hammer, but IIRC, the interlock cable ended up a non-issue. Not hooking it up does allow you to start the car in gear, but since I still have to press the brake for the ignition switch to work, it has not been a problem, safety wise.
 
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