When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Custom Dana Transmission Shifter

-

TRM

Wore out three sets of tires already!
I was asked to post some pictures of the shift linkage that I made to replace the original cable shift for a Dana 3 speed transmission on my Raceliner bike.

Here are some pictures and a brief explanation of what's going on.

This is how the tranny looked when I opened it up to rebuild it.
The boss for the original cable shift is made of plastic. It's the white plastic piece in this picture:
100_6520_zps29282be5-1.jpg



I didn't feel that attaching something directly to the plastic would hold up over time, so I made what is essentially a socket to fit over the plastic shaft. It just so happened that the top of the seat tube that I had cut from the frame was just the right size and even had a collar on it that saved me a step.
shiftercoupling_zpsa8bab899-1.jpg

50b094f252de4ea98110657adf7abb83_zps1a27-1.jpg



Next, I fabricated a bridge piece to hold the 'socket' in place and allow it to turn.
shiiftboss_zps376f7467-1.jpg



Everything up to this point was designed to give me a metal shaft in place of a plastic shaft to connect the linkage. Then, after a lot of playing with the geometry to make the longer shifter movement work with the shorter shaft rotation, I made a lever mount for connecting a heim joint.
d72d0a4ab26d475493276368fd146f76_zps4dd1-1.jpg



To finish the linkage, I mounted the shift arm (originally a Ford column shifter) with an opposing lever mount welded to it, and connected the two points with a connecting rod made from a piece of stainless brake tubing.
100_7679_zps6d917e13-1.jpg

851038389327460a83d70f09da31431b_zpsb357-1.jpg

100_7901_zpsc61d28ea-1.jpg



In the end, it shifts very easy and smooth!
100_7998_zps6dcfe4c1-1.jpg
 
You have skills... I notice the additional sprocket at the bottom bracket seems to be connected to the speedometer, and I assume it is there to adjust the chain line as well???
 
You have skills... I notice the additional sprocket at the bottom bracket seems to be connected to the speedometer, and I assume it is there to adjust the chain line as well???
Thanks Joel. Yes, it is to adjust the chain line but also to drive the tachometer. Just for fun, I converted a speedometer into a tachometer. By using the chain to drive the gauge, it only reads the RPMs of the pedals. If you're coasting down a hill, it goes to zero unlike a wheel driven speedometer.

Here's the gauge face:
100_7940_zps6763cafe.jpg
 
That is so bad ass! Man, I've been playing with bikes for ages, never knew of a transmission...mad skills bro, dig everything about yer build!
 
Amazing build! I love the tachometer and the stick shift on the Dana. I just picked up a Dana 3 Speed here in Pittsburgh two days ago and can't wait to mount it and see if it is working.
 
Back
Top