I would not use the thread lock. You may have a problem getting the shifter off. The guy that did my transmission overtighten the bolts and I broke the heads off two when I tried to remove them. Just put silicone around the edge of the transmission.
Dont use threadlocker. The sylicone you put around the base of the shifter should be sufficient. The actual sylicone will hold the bolts. Also, whatever you do not overtighten the shifter bolts. Dumbass me overtighten one bolt when I installed mine and stripped the thread...the tranny case is aluminum.
mine were a PITA to get off. i chose to put anti seize on them (the four 13MM bolts). whether or not that is cool to do or not, i dont know (i dont know of they tend to vibrate out or not).
Aluminum expands very easily and locks in the steel bolts when it heats up. It is very shock absorbent so it wont easily loosen the bolts. I've never heard of shifter bolts coming loose but if your not confortable get some locking washers and put them with your bolts.
Opinions all over the place. Anytime you have an appendage like a shifter hanging off the end of a piece of rotating equipment, you're gonna get vibration - which tends to loosen things - particularly the bolts that hold the shift handle to the shifter. I used Loctite on mine. Use the blue - it will hold things in place, but come lose with a socket or Allen wrench when the time comes.
I've got a B&M shifter, but I had to rig the stock Ford shift handle to work with it because the B&M handle sits too far forward in my application. Was interfering with my ability to get CD's into/out of the player when under cruise in 5th gear. The bolts holding the shifter base plate to tranny were Loctite'd with blue; plate sealed with a bit of Permatex Copper. I used lock washers on the shift handle but they vibrated loose twice; finally used Loctite on them as well WITH the lockwashers. She's still holding.
Just took off the stock Stang shift knob, and replaced it with the leather wrapped shift knob for a Cobra (new - $22 at my local Ford dealer). Gave that to myself for Christmas. I put the new one on; wrapped the old one up in the box. When I open it Christmas morning, I'll tell my wife 'this is what came off - the new one's on the car already'. Couldn't wait.
On the shifter bolts (I've installed a couple shifters a few times for various things)...just put them in real snug...I never had a problem...it really depends on how much silicone is around the bolt hole location on whether or not the silicone will "grab" the bolt or not...I never had one vibrate out...I'm sure loctite would be fine...the bolts are easy to break loose IMO...because you can use an extension to extend out of the console so you have "free room" to put some leverage into it...never a problem for me...
Now on the Pro 5.0 I installed on my 2000 GT...the plastic shifter handle bolts came loose on me quite often...you tighten them with an allen wrench...but they would come loose do to the vibration/constant shifting...put some blue/red loctite on those and tighten them down real snug and that should get you thru
Make sure the cup in the transmission (which is where the ball of the shifter into the trans goes) is still in its little "plate"...or you will have metal to metal contact and a sloppy shifter (moves in every direction while in gear)...it is like a $3 dollar plastic piece from www.50resto.com
Scrap the old gasket material off the transmission making sure to cover the inside of the transmission (paper towels will work) so it doesn't get inside...while doing the shifter install it would be a good idea to fill the trans with fluid if you know you need some or not...and reinstall your rubber shifter boot/cover to keep noise/vibration/dust to a lesser minimum...
Good Luck with the Pro 5.0...you will like it...it is my favorite shifter of all the ones I have tried...very stout feeling
I'm in agree-ance with the guys here who've put loctite on their shift bolts. Forget about vibrations loosening the bolts, what about the temperature changes coming from the tranny? Use the blue loctite as the previous posters said. If you really needed to undo the bolts for whatever reason, the blue loctite will let you. On my lunch breaks I like to stop by my favorite video arcade. I know all the guys who work there including the technician. He uses the blue loctite on all the bolts used to hold the joysticks down to the playing panel on the machines. He said it works great and is "non-permanent" so if the game needs to be repaired, loosening the bolts is no problem.
It came up somewhere in either this forum or another, but I distinctly remember reading about someone with a Mustang having the his Steeda Tri-ax shifter coming off in his hands in the parking lot of a McDonalds!
Remember, loctite is NOT like JB-Weld. It is workable.
I have had my Pro 5.0 shifter come off (I knew it was coming) but I decided to race the guy anyways...oopss...did I say that...I meant go for a nice Sunday drive
It was hard to explain to my friend why I missed 2nd gear (shifter handle came off...)..
I would use the red loctite...the pressure a game joystick goes thru is far less "worked" than a shifter on an automobile...especially one where the gears get banged threw and where vibration is normal...
Just tighten them down REAL good...don't be scared of it