Megabusa restoration: Paddle shift

I hate the gear change on a bike engine bike gear box combination. It has the advantage of a sequential shift however it comes at a cost. It is always a bit of a hit and miss with me as I am not good at changing down without clunking the box. Ideally you have to interrupt the power on the way up and you have to match the gearbox to engine speed on the way down by blipping the throttle. This type of box is usually referred to as a DOG box. If you want an explanation see:

http://www.dansmc.com/gearbox.htm

As the Bike engine/gearbox combination is usually under more strain when installed in a car, reliability can be an issue with these boxes. The way out of all this in my opinion is two fold:

1) Fit a paddle shift

2) Fit a Flatshifter

The Flatshifter is a computer/ECU that specifically adds to your existing ECU the capability of clutch less up and down shifts.

I have just completed the firs part of the challenge by installing a paddle shift from AB Racing. This paddle system is cable operated and gets a good reputation in the racing world.

Several parts had to be fabricated or modified:

* Engine mount bracket designed, fabricated and brass spacer for the gear leaver turned to restrain the cable at the engine end.
* Bracket at the steering column to restrain the cable at the other end as it is a push pull mechanical system.
* Modification of the gimbal mounting tube on the steering column as the slotted holes for my application (Austin Alegro column) are 90 degrees out.
* Nylon bush spacer as the paddle tube is 40mm ID and the Alegro column is 31.5mm. This part was turned on a lathe.
* New switches for the indicators, dip-main and horn had to be installed as the space taken up by the one piece unit from the Alegro is needed for the paddle shift.
* Old transmission tunnel parts to be removed and tunnel hole filled in. The weight saving in this operation alone is considerable.

* Shorten the steering column and weld on the quick release spigot.

Needless to say all this took some time and effort.

This exercise has at the minimum. a) Tidied up the horrible Westfield gear change in the tunnel
b) Provided a route for the possible Flatshifter. c) Added back the steering quick release at the correct distance for my driving position.