Spin Turn Knob Tutorial For R33

[ausdrift]

So I wanted a drift button for the handbrake for drift for my 33, but they arent commonly available. I was getting sick of taping it up at the track and wanted a button that looked good and worked. Not getting too far on the forums I decided to just get one and make it fit. The only other option was pay around $100 for a cusco item that includes an ugly blue alluminium handle: no thanks.

Descresion was the key, so I bought a black (matches the interior) KTS spin turn knob for a Silvia/180 and set to work. Sadly, while it fits a silvia easily, fitting it to an R33 requires modification. Probably why I couldnt buy it for a tenner in the first place. This might not be a textbook approach, but its what I did and it seems to work.

NOTE: This is a guide only, no responsibility taken if you f*** anything up: do at your own risk.

1, remove the handbrake handle

First off unbutton the vinal cover to get better access, then set to work pulling off the cushioned handle. You will soon find this near impossible. After much effort i resorted to carfully cutting it half its length from the underside of the handle, so it won't look too ugly afterwards. Using any tools I could, including flat head screw drivers, pliers and other long thin tools I finally managed to ply it off. The rubber handle cover grips the metal bar very well, so dont worry about any trouble when putting it back on. You might have some issues with the thin shiny metal ring that surrounds the button. It partially spits apart from the underside, so you can split it open a bit if you some room to move when removing the cushioned handle. I ended up pulling the whole handle off over the metal ring, as its attached to the metal handle unit. Dont worry about bending the metal too much, as some of it will be cut anyway. And yeah, you might hack some stuff up a little here, but if your drifting it it probably doesnt matter too much anyway.

2, Unhook the spring

Now that the handbrake handle cover is off, set about prepping it for the spin knob. There is a spring held on by 2 tabs part way down the handle. Use screw drivers to dissconnect them so that the handbrake button no longer uses the spring return function. Unhook and let it sit freely inside.

3, Cut away the metal button surround.

The reason why the spin turn knob wont go it in the first place is because there isnt enough space for it to jam in and move freely. To rectify this I ended up pulling the metal ring part near the button half out (you cant/dont pull it fully out as its part of the hand brake mechanism) and cutting almost 1cm of the metal off almost all the way around the circumfrance. You might even do it all the way, but thats what I did. Jam the knob in and adjust it using pliers, etc so it so that you can smoothly use the function of the handbrake (but just manually now) not how it worked with the spring. It shouldnt stick and it shouldnt come off easily if you pull it. Once you have achieved this, take it out one last time, put the handbrake handle back on, and refit the button. You might need to jam an screwdriver up from underneith through the split cushioned handle and through the metal underneith handle up so as to give the mechanism something to hold it steady so you can probably press on the button. Then fit the cushioned handle: it should fit tightly again over the metal handle, but you can superglue to bit you cut earlier if you wish.

4, Test to make sure everyting works, and BAM, there ya go, drift button function for 1/8th the price of the full Cusco set.

Now get out there and use it