• DIY Shifter Boot

    The underside of Skylervan's original shiftboot. I've used a seam ripper (the gadget below) to remove the stitching from the wire around the bottom and also one side seam so the whole thing lies flat. Now I can make an accurate copy of it on new fabric.

    oldshiftboot_ed_2.jpg


    Although glove leather sure feels nice, I wanted something more practical and tougher ... and I also have a lot of outdoor fabric scraps hanging around (I sew my own llama pack panniers, driving harnesses, show halters, and any other bizarre thing my brain comes up with that nobody else has a use for). I ended up using some Taslanฎ, a tough, lightweight water-repellent nylon fabric that is brushed so the texture feels like a natural fabric, and also doesn't have any unnatural sheen to it. I was using the stuff probably over 15 years ago, so I'm sure it's been supplanted at least a couple of times at this point by other "brand names" that basically do the same thing anyway. You get the general idea.

    Important hint: Whatever fabric or leather you choose, make sure you check it out IN THE VAN before committing to using it. I had quite a few blues, two of which I was just sure would look great ... and they both sucked. The grey works very well, on the other hand ... despite my initial skepticism.

    Next important hint: This is really not something you want to be doing on someone else's sewing machine unless you're experienced with sewing on different types of fabric, or unless the owner of the machine is willing to help you out. Tougher (outdoor) fabrics and leather are another animal from the kinds of fabrics most home sewing machines are set up for. It ain't worth pissing off your mother/sister/girlfriend/wife etc. Heck, the machine owner might just sew it up for ya.

    To sew, first fold over and top-stitch the top "rim" (reference the OEM boot for how it's done), then do the side seams (start from the top edge and head down ... that way the part you see will line up; who cares whether the other part looks perfect?), THEN sew in the wire retainer. Make sure you really think hard about which side you're sewing on ... or you'll end up ripping it out and doing it over (go ahead, ask me how I know ... and I know better!!! :oops: )


    Here's the underside of the new shiftboot installed in the console box.

    shiftboot_underside_ed_1.jpg


    Here's a closer view. The black tabs are a light nylon web used for seam tape and binding; they are wrapped around the wire and then stitched (the ends on the other side are only as long as necessary; they don't come close to showing on top). They're soft and thus can't be felt through the boot from the top at all ... but wow, do they ever make a difference when you want to pull that shift boot off the console box the next time!!! If you haven't worked with nylon web before, find yourself a small soldering iron and a dispensable tip that you can dedicate to the task. After cutting the web about 1/8" longer than you want it, sear the cut edges (to keep them from unraveling) with the side of the soldering iron tip (to keep the edges straight). Yeah, I know about the match trick. It's hard to control and ends up looking really ugly. You won't like the results.

    shiftboot_underside_ed_2.jpg


    And here's what it looks like after final installation and being driven around for awhile. Not glove leather; also not bad at all (IMO), flexible yet stands up nicely instead of collapsing below see-level, and certainly nicer than the old holey one.

    newshiftboot_installed_ed.jpg

    I also made a deerskin shifter boot for Trustyvan using almost the same techniques. The deerskin has faded over time, but still looks decent. The thicker material stands up on the shift lever nicely, but it required stitching to a thinner fabric that would both wrap around the wire and also fit into the console clips. The spliced-in material does not show on the finished product.

    leather_shift_boot.jpg