Which shortshifter vs MSP ?
- Thread starter speedfrk
- Start date
hawaiian_msp
Member
- :
- Boosted Familia
kartboy... thats the only one I would recommend.
-mike
-mike
i like B&M.
B&M uses an aluminum ball joint......vs. the plastic one kartboy reuses.
this eliminates extra play that plastic joint causes.
BUT, kartboy has the shortest hight.
both reduce throw the same.
B&M vs. Stock:
http://www.msprotege.com/members/Dr.Sound/shifter/B&MvsStock.jpg
B&M uses an aluminum ball joint......vs. the plastic one kartboy reuses.
this eliminates extra play that plastic joint causes.
BUT, kartboy has the shortest hight.
both reduce throw the same.
B&M vs. Stock:
Last edited:
TWM Performance
Banned
TWM has a short shifter designed specifically for the MazdaSpeed Protege which reduces the throw by 35% and the knob height by 1 inch. Our Mazda Speed Protege shifter also allows use of the stock Mazda Speed shift knob since it is longer than the regular Protege shift knob. They're on sale right now, check it out: Mazda Speed Protege Short Shifter Salespeedfrk said:
Thanks,
Kevin
TWM Performance
Velocifero
Wham Bam thank you Ma'am
- :
- VRM MS6, Sunlight Silver MSP
Let me clear some things up about the 3 main SS available for our car:
1. TWM is the shortest throw distance, and slightly shorter height wise than stock. They also are the only ones using ball bearing bushings and I guarantee you won't find anything better. Customer service is great and they back their product 100%.
2. Kartrboy is a slightly longer throw distance and they are the shortest height wise. Good product, but a lot like stock in design and install. They stopped being a vendor here, but they have always had decent customer service.
3. B&M is the longest throw and the tallest in height, they do replace the urathane shift brackets with aluminum, but they are the hardest to install. I don't know anything about their customer service, being as I have never ordered from them.
Personally, I say the TWM hands down. Great quality and it feels great, the shift is so positive and I get nothing but envious compiments about it. I also have their weighted knob which is nice. I have installed and driven all three options on proteges. Not trying to be biased, since I own it, just giving you the facts as I have researched it. I have two friends that have B&M and want to take them out but it is too much of a pain in the ass. The Kartboy and TWM install just as easy as removing the stocker, except TWM includes spacers to drop the heat shield where Kartboy recommends cutting the heat shield to accomidate.
1. TWM is the shortest throw distance, and slightly shorter height wise than stock. They also are the only ones using ball bearing bushings and I guarantee you won't find anything better. Customer service is great and they back their product 100%.
2. Kartrboy is a slightly longer throw distance and they are the shortest height wise. Good product, but a lot like stock in design and install. They stopped being a vendor here, but they have always had decent customer service.
3. B&M is the longest throw and the tallest in height, they do replace the urathane shift brackets with aluminum, but they are the hardest to install. I don't know anything about their customer service, being as I have never ordered from them.
Personally, I say the TWM hands down. Great quality and it feels great, the shift is so positive and I get nothing but envious compiments about it. I also have their weighted knob which is nice. I have installed and driven all three options on proteges. Not trying to be biased, since I own it, just giving you the facts as I have researched it. I have two friends that have B&M and want to take them out but it is too much of a pain in the ass. The Kartboy and TWM install just as easy as removing the stocker, except TWM includes spacers to drop the heat shield where Kartboy recommends cutting the heat shield to accomidate.
EnjoyMinuteMaid
Member
do you really think the TWM feels significantly different than the B&M? how about the notchiness?
TWM Performance
Banned
Velocifero said:
Thank you for your kind words about our products and customer service, we try very hard to keep all of our customers 100% happy.
Kevin
TWM Performance
Velocifero
Wham Bam thank you Ma'am
- :
- VRM MS6, Sunlight Silver MSP
it can wear out the syncros faster if you beat on it alot.speedfrk said:
as far as the price of the TWM shifter, I think the quality far surpasses the price, and they do have a special right now anyways. My shifts feel great and I have had it on there for well over a year and it still feels like the day I put it on. Like I said before very positive shifts, no slop. I like the idea of TWMs ball bearing bushings, they are so much better than even the bronze oil bushings. The B&M compared to it still felt mushy and had more play, plus the longest throw. I tried them all before I bought mine and helped install a lot of them multiple times. Its funny when I drive my friend's speed with stock shifter because I usually miss third because I never put it in gear, the throw distance is noticable. I do recommend the poly shifter bushings either from TWM or Kartboy, even if you stay with the stocker you will notice a difference with those. I have the Kartboy's on there, TWM didn't offer them at the time (Kevin, feel free to throw me some for the publicity and I'll put them on the car). Main thing I didn't like about the Kartboy shifter was I felt like I was reaching too low, I am 6'3" and sit up straight at about even with the B pillar, bottom seat is all the way back and the Kartboy was just too short.
I recently sat in a new STi at the international autoshow and I would have to say that my shifter felt alot like the one they use. I don't really feel a notchiness but it is almost like you can feel it "click" into gear, not hard to get in or out of the gear. Off topic but you know whose shifter I was extremely disappointed in was the new GTIs. It felt like rubber crap, huge amounts of forward, lateral, even diagonal play. I didn't like that at all (I made up the part about the diagonal play).EnjoyMinuteMaid said:
Speedfrk, the best advice I could give you would be to try to find local guys with different options to feel what shifter works best for you. Thats how I shopped mine and thats how several friends ended up getting TWM after trying out mine.
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TWM Performance
Banned
Velocifero: Thanks for your comments!
As Velocifero pointed out the Mazda Protege and MazdaSpeed short shifters are on sale right now, you can save up to $40 with a shifter/knob combo. Be sure to check them out here: Mazda Protege Short Shifter Sale
Kevin
TWM Performance
As Velocifero pointed out the Mazda Protege and MazdaSpeed short shifters are on sale right now, you can save up to $40 with a shifter/knob combo. Be sure to check them out here: Mazda Protege Short Shifter Sale
Kevin
TWM Performance
EnjoyMinuteMaid
Member
Are your bushings identical to the Kartboy ones aside from the color? Also, what is up with the ball bearing bushings, and why are they better than the corksport bronzeoil ones? I have never heard of them but I have noticed the rubber pieces of crap that come on the stock shifter and plug into the ball at the bottom for the bolt to go through.
^ ball bearing bushing causes the least friction.
this matters especially when doing quick shifts.
there is also less resistance when shifting (since there is already more resistance from the shifter being longer on the bottom).
ALSO, stock ones (in cold weather) squeek, and drive you nuts.
this matters especially when doing quick shifts.
there is also less resistance when shifting (since there is already more resistance from the shifter being longer on the bottom).
ALSO, stock ones (in cold weather) squeek, and drive you nuts.
Stormtrooper77
Member
- :
- 2003.5 Mazdaspeed Protege
That TWM looks really nice! I just wish I had the $$$ right now.
TWM Performance
Banned
Essentially our bushings perform the same task as the Kartboy bushings, however we decided to make them out of a slightly softer polyurethane (only 5 durometer points softer) to reduce vibration. The overall feeling is the same once installed in the car, the soft rubbery feel of the original bushing is removed, however there is less vibration than with some other brands of polyurethane bushings on the market made of stiffer polyurethane.EnjoyMinuteMaid said:
The ball bearings in the base of the TWM short shifter are much smoother than regular bushings, regardless of the material.
We feel that the combination of the TWM shifter with ball bearings and our polyurethane bushings is the best overall solution for a smooth, direct shift feel. Our full combos for the Protege are available here: TWM Mazda Protege Short Shifters.
Thanks,
Kevin
TWM Performance
TWM Performance
Banned
mspHtown said:
To take advantage of the student discount, simply email a scan or digital picture of your valid student ID to studentdiscount@twmperformance.com, we will reply to your e-mail within 24 hours with your student discount code which can be used on top of the sales price we are currently offering.
Thanks,
Kevin
TWM Performance
siberiankiss
Member
- :
- blazing yellow MSP #1622
how long is the student discount going to be available?? this is so tempting...
