Keisler's new ROAD & TRACK 6-SPEED - CLUTCHLESS UP/DOWN SHIFT

[KEISLER]

Check this out. We debuted it at PRI last week. High torque (>1000 LB-FT), clutchless up & down shifting. This will put a smile on your face!



This will put a smile on your face! Check it out in more detail this Sunday Dec 27th 11:30AM eastern on FOX SPORTS Channel. There is a 30 min show on PRI, and I was asked to be on it. I said OK, as long as they stuck the cameraman in the passenger seat for a drive!

[Bill Howell]

Pretty cool stuff Shafi!

How much to upgrade a T-56 or do you just buy a new tranny?

How long will this last in a street car?

[Bad94]

>1000 LB-FT, will it hold up behind a duramax in a >3500lb car?

seriously though,

like bill asked how much??? i already have a t56 with some viper stuff. better off starting with a fresh trans?

how long between rebuilds? only clutchless usage id do is at the dragstrip

are you lifting full off the gas or just enough to slow the motor down on shifts?

[KEISLER]

Hey Guys,

As long as it's driven properly, which means you fully engage it in gear, with or without the clutch, it should last a long long time in a street car. The alloy used has the highest chrome/nickel/moly content used for gears/shafts, and is much much stronger than the 4615 nickel/moly used by the factory (which is much stronger than the generic 8620) - nearly 80% stronger if memory serves me right.

All we need is a donor T56 - non-functioning but complete.

I drove the Dakota R/T56 from Knoxville to Orlando for PRI. Plus drove it every day to PRI, beat the crap out of it, and gave some of the guys here rides (Jimi Day, Albert Melchoir) or let them drive it (Empire Mopars John and Pat). Drove it to the grocery store there to get eats and beer. Then I drove it back home to Knoxville - about 2000 miles in total.

I'm running Mobile 1 synthetic plus an additive - darn thing shift awesome.

Once I get pricing together, I'll post it in the advertisers section.

If you guys want to drop in for a ride, just let me know.

Shafi

[KEISLER]

>1000 LB-FT, will it hold up behind a duramax in a >3500lb car?

seriously though,

like bill asked how much??? i already have a t56 with some viper stuff. better off starting with a fresh trans?

how long between rebuilds? only clutchless usage id do is at the dragstrip

are you lifting full off the gas or just enough to slow the motor down on shifts?

Bad94,

I think it would live behind the duramax in a car - that would be killer. For a truck app, you'd need to add about 1.0 to the diff (3.90 - 4.88 for example)

You only need to lift throttle a very slight amount - just so the teeth can unlock. This happens in a split second as you can see. You can shift it even faster than I do - this was just my 2nd day driving the box and was taking it easy.

I'm thinking to put a spark retard box actuated by a momentary button in the ball so you could keep the pedal operation uninterrupted. What do you think?

Shafi

[ProdigyCustoms]

I came by the booth a couple times at PRI, then had to cut it a day short for a funeral and missed Saturday.

Do you think it will shift flat footed at 1000 TQ?

Call me tomorrow.

[Droolguy]

My questions...

1. How much does it cost?

2. How stiff are the clutchless shifts? (Am I going to need to really pound it in, or is smooth and quick sufficient)

3. How does it compare with the other super-high capacity trannies? (Tranzilla, Jericho... exct)

4. Can you... EDIT: Never mind, you already answered this question.

[KEISLER]

Do you think it will shift flat footed at 1000 TQ?

Hey Frank - sorry I missed you and would like to have demo'd the tranny for you. The engine will have to be momentarily decel - just for a split second - so you can shift. The decel does not have to be much, so your vehicle acceleration curve will have a slight plateau until you've engaged the next gear and engine rpm is increasing again. So you could go from 100% TP to say 98% -> shift -> back onto 100% TP

I might be back to Orlando next month with the truck. I'll call you tomorrow. - Shafi

[KEISLER]

My questions...

1. How much does it cost?

2. How stiff are the clutchless shifts? (Am I going to need to really pound it in, or is smooth and quick sufficient)

3. How does it compare with the other super-high capacity trannies? (Tranzilla, Jericho... exct)

4. Can you... EDIT: Never mind, you already answered this question.

Hi Droolguy -

I'll have pricing announced shortly.

Shifts are EASY, smooth and QUICK; In fact, I had a gal working our booth that weighs just 105lbs. She demo'd the tranny for a couple of editors - they couldn't believe their eyes. She's so small she has to put the seat all the way forward, the steering column down. She had never driven this type before and looked like a pro with 10 min of seat time.

I don't have experience with any of those transmissions, so I can't comment. In seeking the ultimate Road&Track transmission, it had to be totally streetable. Shift quality, effort, noise, packaging. I think we have nailed it. Especially 6th gear is really quiet - you won't hear it with *most* muscle car exhausts.

Shafi

[68sixspeed]

Can this do road course type downshifting without matching the rpm? (i.e. grab a gear lower when it's still up at 4000rpm.)

Can this setup be applied to the corvette t56's?

-Dan

[hotrdblder]

sounds killer.
not new by any means, liberty has been doing these to t-56's for a few years, maybe this is more affordable.?
btw, if using this on track or anywhere, LEARN HOW TO HEAL AND TOE DOWNSHIFT, PERIOD" that lock up downshifting can put you out of control in short order if driving aggressive. ie, on brakes hard coming into turn,and needing to downshift as well, the weight transfer from all this will make tail light and easy to spin.

[KEISLER]

Can this do road course type downshifting without matching the rpm? (i.e. grab a gear lower when it's still up at 4000rpm.)

Can this setup be applied to the corvette t56's?

-Dan

Hi 68sixspeed,

Yes, you can shift without speed matching. The speed gears are always spinning with the cluster gears, just like in the sychromesh version. The main difference is that you are quickly speed matching the speed gear with the mainshaft that is coupled to the driveshaft and diff, thus always turning while moving.

And yes, we can do Corvette, Camaro, TransAm, GTO, Mustang, Viper and Challenger, plus the other variants of T56 like Aston Martin, etc.

Shafi

[KEISLER]

sounds killer.
not new by any means, liberty has been doing these to t-56's for a few years, maybe this is more affordable.?
btw, if using this on track or anywhere, LEARN HOW TO HEAL AND TOE DOWNSHIFT, PERIOD" that lock up downshifting can put you out of control in short order if driving aggressive.

Hi Jake - I've heard that some companies are modifying the factory gears with face engagement rings by tack welding. I don't know that pricing, but I don't believe it can make a reliable gear because:

1. the factory T56 clutch gears are forged on as 1 piece with the gear blank; cutting and welding on an already heat treated part is not good - deformation, stress risers, etc will shorten life of the joint. It is tough to re-heatreat a part with reliable results.

2. the high helix angle gears are meant for street but not race; the tooth can be chipped off when placed under a lot of shock loading and continuous high load. The gears seen on our video are of a low helix angle, which makes them very strong, yet still acceptible for the street, especially in 4th and 6th (quietest 2 gears).

And YES, the driver technique is important so you don't have abrupt changes in wheel speed which can cause you to loose control - especially in a corner on a track. I had very little practice time with the transmission before making the video, so a good driver like yourself will be able to do better. The SAFE bet for anyone new to the transmission is to simply use the clutch on the up/downshifts until you become confident to run it clutchless.

All good questions and comments, folks. Thanks for checking it out.

Shafi

[KEISLER]

I forgot to mention something important that Jake asked me about (thanks Jake). The 5th and 6th gear ratios are closer:

0.88 5th (versus .74 stock)

0.77 6th (versus .5 stock for most, .63 in some)

These gears will keep you in the power band on straight-aways and you'll pull much stronger. Sounds like a Viagra commercial, but it's a fact.

[67 ls1 vert]

Seems like if this was used on a road course, if you let off to down shift and the rear tires were to skid to match engine and road speeds you would lose traction and cause the rear to slide in the corner loosing traction in the corner would make for slower track times.

I guess if you got really good with the timing this wouldn't happen. I drive a big rig with an 18 spd and its all about matching speed and road speed to get it to shift.

I might have missed it but can you still drive it with the clutch as you would a synchro trans or would you have to match the road and RPM to get it to work?

edit: Looks like you answered some of the questions you posted right before I posted. Sorry

[KEISLER]

... I might have missed it but can you still drive it with the clutch as you would a synchro trans or would you have to match the road and RPM to get it to work?

Hi 67 ls1 vert - you can use the clutch ANY time or ALL of the time. That's the nice part about it. When you use the clutch, it's smooth as normal.

[67 ls1 vert]

Thanks Shafi, good to know.

I got one more question since you are online talking about it.
I just bought your Magnum kit for my car and it has never been used. In fact you still have my drive shaft. What do you think about exchanging it? I dont know what your pricing is going to be set at but just a thought?

[KEISLER]

Thanks Shafi, good to know.

I got one more question since you are online talking about it.
I just bought your Magnum kit for my car and it has never been used. In fact you still have my drive shaft. What do you think about exchanging it? I dont know what your pricing is going to be set at but just a thought?

Thanks for purchasing the Magnum kit. I'm certain we can work something out to take this back on trade or find a new home for it in your area, possibly at one of our distributors in Huntington Beach or Sacremento, etc.

[67 ls1 vert]

If you wouldn't mind, when you finalize the details let me know by emailing me if you dont mind.

Thanks.

[Lowend]

It's about time someone did this...