Quote:
Originally Posted by Tcoat
Leverage and shift travel aside let's look at the ergonomics involved. A short shifter keeps your arm lower, the elbow closer to the body and your wrist and shoulder in a reasonably neutral position.
Every inch you raise that contact point on the shifter you raise the arm, force the elbow out, angle the wrist and shoulder.
Try it. Place your arm at shift lever height and position and then lift it 10"s straight up. If you do it right you will feel a pull in your shoulder. Add the highly repetitive nature of shifting and you increase the risk factor by a huge level.
If at work I could punch it up and give a risk rating but I know that it would be at the top of the scale and probably exceeds all OSHA guidelines if it was your job.
Something tells me that in a few years there will be a pile of ricers that will have some pretty sad rotator cuffs and they will have no clue what caused the problems.
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I don't get it...you won't be lifting the arm straight up at all, you will be angling up your forearm to a much better near 90 degree with the Humerus in a proper orientation of the Ulna and Radius compared to the too low and more extended stock height. A taller shift knob at level of the wheel center would put the knob closer in respect to the body and in a much more neutrally ergonomic position closer to the body - the elbow doesn't change position outward at all. This is assuming shifting with hand in a position with the thumb more on top like grabbing a vertical door handle and the shifting throw pattern is not changed for the worse. Seat position comes into play too - with lowered and more reclined seating position it becomes more ideal for a taller and closer shifter.
And actually both your hands spend almost all of the time on the steering wheel...so moving them down to the stock shifter will be worse and more stress involved on your body than the shorter and more properly positioned route right next to the wheel.