Did Oldsmobile offer a dual gate shifter **** with a horizontal groove? I bought one at the Nationals in Cincy and neither Patton (70Post) nor I were certain it's correct for a late 60's, early '70's Olds. It's the same size as an OEM dual gate ****.


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My **** is original to the shifter and is very groovy. I had always assumed that the grooveless version was a knockoff.

 

Heath, I'm pretty sure that the original **** was completely smooth. The one in that yellow 70 car I had, as well as my Hurst both have the smooth ***** and I'm pretty sure both are original.


I remember buying a couple from Henry Butts Olds in the mid 80's and they had the groove, so I think the grooved one was available from GM as a service replacement.

 

I've had a handful & I "think" all of them had the groove.

 

never seen a grooved one - though that means little. I have multiple NOS and all are smooth

 

The original **** on in my 70 W30 (I purchased in 1978) was smooth but the threads were stripped. I purchased a new one from the local Olds dealer in the summer of 78. It is still on the car and is smooth. I had never seen the grooved one until this thread.

 

The one on my '70 Supreme was smooth. My Dad was the second owner in 1977 and the car was still all original at that time.

 

Thanks for the input, guys.

While unconfirmed, consensus does indicate the smooth **** as Oldsmobile original, "factory issue" and the grooved one as a potential GM service replacement part (as suggested by Costpenn and seen by others). A parts catalog, thru 05/80, shows one part # - 406653.

 

I never seen an original that was smooth. I have an NOS one now and it has the groove. There are some NOS ***** floating around that are smooth but I believe they are just a little bigger than the grooved ones and not the correct part number for the dual gate.


Maybe they used both?

 

Very interesting! Eric, does this **** come in a NOS box? If so, is there a legible part number?

 

It has the NOS box with it. Part number 406653 Group 4.006. I very well may be wrong but I was always taught that the original 70-72 dual gate ball had "DAKA-WARE" "CHICAGO" "MADE IN USA" on the bottom side. My NOS ball has that and my extra dual gate has the same ball and markings on it. These ***** are 1 3/4 inch diameter. I can't say for a fact this is how they were when they were new.

 

I have found the groved ball on Camaros and the smooth ball on Olds. I have a couple of each.

 

Mine has the same markings and is a smooth, non-grooved ball.

 

How many Oldsmobile assembly plants were there? In the Pontiac world there were 8 plants. The same part often came from different sources, sometimes loosely designed around the specification. Maybe folks can post where each car was manufactured along with which type **** they have. Pictures that have not been removed would help peeps like me too...

 

Fremont plant, smooth ****, 1970 Cutlass Supreme.

 

Here's a grooved NOS **** with GM box - part number 406653. This part number aligns with the dual gate shift **** in an Oldsmobile parts catalog.

 

An excellent data point, but realize that GM made many running changes that caused many replacement parts to only vaguely resemble their production counterparts.

 

Besides the groove on the one shifter ball, the non-grooved ball seems to have a texture, sort of like the walnut ball on the standard floor shifter. Has anyone determined if the groove or non-groove ball is correct, or if the one from the factory was the non-grooved textured ball and the GM replacement was the smooth grooved ball?


Does anyone have access to factory photos from 68-72 with clear photos of the dual gate shifter ball to determine which ball was used at that time? I know the factory photos do not always coincide with production, but at least it would give a general idea.

 

On my '72 Cutlass Supreme with dual gate, it did come from Lansing with a smooth non-textured shifter **** delivered new July 1972. I also have a NOS one in the box that is also smooth and non-textured. It also has "DAKA-WARE" "CHICAGO" "MADE IN USA" on the bottom side.

I have seen the reproduction one with a horizontal raised line and not a groove. It appeared to be where the mold came together. Probably a chinesium knock off

 

I was recently talking to another CO member about this. I have one of these as well, and the GM depot sticker on it has a date of Dec 86 where it was transferred to the dealer I bought it from. So in late 86, GM had already changed it's service item over to the grooved style.

 

No, but as I posted above, I have the original shifter ball from my 1970 Supreme. GAOldsman also has the original from his car.

 

Again, the one on the left in the first set of pictures by the OP is what without a doubt my 70 Rallye 350 with dual gate originally came with.

 

Ran across this thread and confirmed my dual gate shifter ball is original based on the "DAKA-WARE" "CHICAGO" "MADE IN USA" on the bottom side. Unfortunately the threads are worn and it only loosely sits on the shifter (which has become annoying).

What is the best practice to correct this? Should I try to keep the original on the car by using some loc tite or glue to secure it? If so, I expect it won't ever come off again.

Or should I just keep the original to the side somewhere and buy a repro to screw on?

Thanks!
Bill

 

I had a dual gate shifter that had a loose shifter ball also. I never did fix it but I was going to use some epoxy and completely fill the hole and then just drill and retap for the proper thread.

 

Install a heli-coil in the worn threads.

 

Cool - I'll check that out.

Thanks Joe

Bill