Take a look at the picture attached to this blog post. Note that the shifter has already been cut off. What do you think? I don't know what to think. I tend to run across some of these "repairs" every once in awhile. I understand that the splines on the shifter shaft can get damaged to the point where the shift lever slips. This usually happens because the shifter bolt is not tight enough to clamp the splines. What would make you weld the shifter to the shift shaft? I don't know. And this was not just tacked up so a quick grinding could remove the shifter if needed. Nope this was welded to be permanent. The thing is this was not a field fix. Someone decided "hell I will just weld this up and we are good to go". A quick decision that was very short sided. I don't know in the time it would take to get the welder set up I would have thought maybe I might need to get this off someday - there has got to be a better way. Drill and pin maybe? Most of these BIG REDS are over 30 years old now so the odds are in favor that someone in that time frame has made some questionable repairs. No big deal the motor was parted out without the shifter and shifter shaft. I always think of the next guy that will be working on my BIG REDS that I sell. I hope you all do the same.