LOL .How about changing a ring and pinion and a posi unit after it spit a spider gear tooth through the cover, between rounds at an NHRA event? ;-)
No doubt about. Stuck rules in the fun department. Unless you have a bad knee or leg the choosing a slush box over a stick is a boring no fun choice. A wide ratio Muncie M-20 has a 2.52 first gear and second and third are all closely spaced and a blast on the street . You can run tall gears like a 3.23 or 3.50 and still take off like a jack rabbit. 4th is tour highway gear so you have the best or both worlds. 5 speeds are cool but very pricy but in the Richmond it has a very low 3.37 FIRST gear ratio with 4th being 1 to 1 . So you get banzai off the line starts and low rom freeway cruising with a 2.90 -3.00 rear gear ratio. The problem is they don't shift as quick as a Muncie or t-10 . I'm sure some will disagree but I have raced both the Muncie and the Richmond and there is no comparison. The Muncie is clearly quicker and smoother shifting than the heavy Richmond. I don't know much about the Tremic 5 speed other than its heavy and expensive and I don't care for the ratio spread. The bottom line is Sticks RULE! Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
Back in 1969/70 I street raced my 69 Cutlass with the 4 speed against a number of 383 Roadrunners. I could almost always beat the 4 speed cars by a couple of lengths but the automatic cars usually got me by the same amount. I special ordered my car with one of the shortest option lists around 320 hp 350R 4 speed. 3.42 Posi and AM-FM multiplex radio. Ran it at Little River in 1969 when I was at Ft Hood.
I don't know about what you found with the Richmonds. They actually started out as the Doug Nash 4+1. It used the T10 shift knuckles and forks, plus the same exact sliders. I honestly never found a difference in any of them if the Hurst Super Shifter was properly adjusted and maintained.. Of course, I never drove a Richmond or Nash with synchros , so that could have been the difference.
We ran the best of all 3 worlds in our O/T 67 Firebird G/Gasser. Small block Chevy , Liberty prepped top loader 4 speed, Dana 60 rear. I would be leery of a T 5 after watching my son tear up a bunch of them behind a almost stock H.O. 5.0 in his fox body mustang. Torque is what kills them and what is an FE all about. TORQUE ! When I worked for the govt police training center. We had a fleet of Roush prepared T-Birds that had been converted to H.O 5.0's and had the world class T-5 . We kept 4 in stock in the parts room to replace the ones that got destroyed by students and they were not pulling hole shots. A good top loader with a good clutch that is adjusted correctly and a good shifter is a great transmission and a pleasure to drive. With your bad leg, think about a hydraulic clutch setup and a don't use a 3 finger pressure plate.
Hey HRP, Floor shift /column shift transmissions are nice, but for everyday use in stop and go traffic, an automatic transmission can't be excluded. Each has its advantages. Sometimes it is fun to just shift through the transmission gears manually...it takes you back to your younger years. I enjoyed learning on a floor shift manual 3 speed, but when we jumped to a C&O stick hydro, we have cruising and everyday driving stories coming out of our ears. No more missed shifts, no left leg cramping in heavy So Cal traffic, ease of mountain driving to the snow, etc. There were many years using a 4 speed, a 5 speed and yes, a 6 speed. But, for all of the later years of driving daily in traffic, an automatic has no competition. It just makes the congested drive easier on you, and your companion. One time, because of a freeway shooter south in the San Diego area, the I-5 south freeway traffic was down to a crawl. The 6 speed never got out of 2nd for 8 miles to the next exit at Las Pulgas. Normally, it takes about 10 minutes, but it took over 1.5 hours as the southbound lanes were down to one lane while being checked for the offenders. The transmission and clutch got more use than daily driving for a week. That was unpleasant. With the C&O hydro, yes, it does shift a little hard between gears, but if that is not what is to anyone’s liking, there are other mods to make it shift easier. Our friend has a modern version of the stick hydro automatic transmission in his fast car. The early 2000s BMW SMG and the current DCT transmissions get the job done well, too, but are fairly smooth in the driving aspect. Other brands have similar transmissions. So there are choices. Jnaki Your back and body will thank you for the automatic, but, daily driving a 4 speed sounds like fun, again. Getting stuck in traffic for miles, uphill and down just does not get it any more. If you live in a “hilly” area, brake starts are always happening at every stop. Tailgating, big, giant SUVs and trucks don’t make it any easier. Although, that is part of having to drive with a 3, 4, 5 speed in your car.
To be young again, so I was not the only one laying on the ground bench pressing manual transmissions in/out, the old iron chevy 3 speed was similar # to the aluminium 4 speeds, now have a lift, trans jack and it's a bitch to change th350's in my 60's hitting 70 shortly. I need to make a younger car friend for sure, brain somewhat still works, body not so much.
I like to know how every part of my car works, and how to take it apart and rebuild it. Manual trans, rear ends, engines, no problem. Only done one automatic, that was with a friends help and never fully understood all the valves, servos and what not. One reason I prefer a stick in a car I'll be messing with.
I love stick, however the carnage gets to be to much for me when racing. My coupe has a TCI strip 350 TH in it ,it is full manual with a custom made lightning rod style shifter. It is still very fun, and has been very reliable on the street and strip. Yanking the rods on the street keeps you busy, and you feel like you are really part of the car.
You make some valid points but take in consideration where you live traffic may be a huge part of your life,here in my home town sitting through 2 lights is about as bad as it gets and that's rare. My off topic daily pickup is automatic as is both my 32's & the Ranch Wagon has a 5-speed. I see the '65 as being more of a driver,it may end up replacing my daily as I do enjoy driving something that doesn't get lost in the sea of look alike cars & trucks. HRP
The plan is to document the build ,much like I did with the wagon & the Deuce pickup, the 32 was built in a short 6 months and the wagon took a long 7 years. HRP
1951 M1 pickup, what more modern tranny will work with "3 on the tree" and the flathead V8? Power for a truck but more highway speed friendly.
I was not the rich kid with the gravel, it was my best friends driveway as it was his car. Ah to be that young again!
I do love the HYDRO sticks! And for driving in traffic a stick sucks. But our hot rods are usually not daily drivers although my '58 Apache is. Fortunately I don't have to enter the heavy traffic on the freeway every day since I'm self-employed and have my own shop so daily driving is fun with my Muncie. I will have to admit I hate those heavy clutches but they do make a lot of good clutches these days including the The clutch that is in my truck right now. It's similar to the Centerforce in that it has very low pedal pressure but bites really really good. I don't need a radio in this truck since just shifting thru the close ratio gears is music to my ears. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I'll second the Centerforce clutch recommendation. I swapped out the long-style clutch in my '64 Comet I used to have for a Centerforce and was very happy with it. Low pedal effort and very good grip; I'm sold on them.... I'm like HRP; I live in a rural area and rarely get caught in traffic, but haven't yet found the clutch in my OT '13 5.0 Mustang to be that objectionable. If I lived in a congested urban area, I'd probably re-think the manual some but it'd be tough to give up the 'fun factor' a manual offers... and I have two bad knees.
Since you asked about 5spds and opened up the non traditional can I have been reading for the last week on other forums an on hear on the nv3500 used in s10,1500,ford and dodge trucks. They are big so they might look ugly in a hot rod build but if you can cover it l, it will do. Many like them and beat the crap out of them, but some don't.. I bought an Engine last month (Buick 430) and the man Said "All you need now is a m22, keep an eye out in the junk yard, their out there". I would of thouht they where all gone, told me to look at trucks but was not specific. What years and models did the m22 come in? Thanks Sent from my SM-J727T1 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
The only trucks they (may) have come in were big block ElCaminos, and they had to check the right option box when they were ordered. The misnomer about M-22's is they are hard to find, not cheap, but not hard to find.
To me it kind of comes down to are you trying to be "60's period correct", are you going to be doing a lot of highway driving and how much money do you want to spend? All three questions can lead you down different paths and the answers would not be the same for me. I've owned/driven plenty of four speed cars - had my share of Muncie four speeds, Ford top-loaded four speeds, etc.. If I was trying to stay period correct - I'd probably run an updated/built Top-Loader Ford four speed in your rig. But I'd be thinking really hard about some more modern options . . . if I had the $$$ to spend and wanted more driving flexibility. Most of us have had a car with 4.11 gears - and at 75 mph, you're just spinning your motor way too much (for decent length trips on the highway). In addition to wearing the engine out - you pay the fuel bill. If you really want to easily cruise at 75 mph - think about overdrive. You can still have some low gears for strip and stoplight fun - but you also don't have to spin the crap out of it on the highway - you get the best of both worlds. Once you get into the Tremec TKO style of transmissions - there are a lot of options. The latest Tremec the "Magnum 6 speed" is completely redesigned - it is a really nice transmission, shifts really smoothly and can take 700 Ft lbs of torque. You are not going to put that type of torque against most 60's 4 speeds for long (at least if you're abusing it at the strip). You can't believe how smooth they shift - just a pleasure to row the gears (like a new Corvette). So me - I'd drop a Magnum 6 speed in it faster than shit (as long as I don't mind spending the money). You have all the room in the world in a pickup . . . and it supports multiple shifter positions - so you can get it where you want it. Yes - I might spend a bit more on the front end, but I'll more than make it up in driveability, engine lifetime and fuel bills. So there yah have it - my vote (and who cares! LOL). D
Hello, I grew up shifting a LaSalle floor shift transmission in my flathead 40 Ford Sedan Delivery. When we needed a transmission to go with our 283/SBC in the 40 Willys coupe, we latched on to another LaSalle. It was what our savings could afford, not an early stick hydro from B&M. Later on in 1960, the C&O came out and we got a great deal for one of the first ones in a 58 Impala, conversions included, from a 3 speed to the stick hydro. Jnaki The C&O stick hydro made it much more enjoyable racing and cruising. No more clutch pedal action and brake starts on hills. If we were able to continue with the 671/SBC version of the 40 Willys coupe, it would have been with a new C&O or B&M stick hydro. Actually, a B&M was on order, but things happened...
My '31"A" Hiboy roadster has SBC using McLeod safety bell housing to adapt a Ford toploader 4 spd. with Hurst Shifter. Put a Hurst line loc on it for the times when I drag it, and discovered it also is great for those uphill starts from red lights and stop signs when some asshole has pulled right up on your bumperless ass. Planning to install one on my '40 coupe for just that reason. The roadster has 3.70 gears and with 30" rear tires turns around 3K @ 70, but that's OK as I don't drive it much over 50-60 miles one way cause it's a pure in your face hot rod, loud, fast and not a cruiser at all. Wears me out to drive it more than 100 or so miles in an afternoon. The '40 Ford coupe however has all the creature comforts and is a true cruiser. Mild build on 5.0 HO SBF, a T5 and 3.70 gear make for 2k@ 70mph and effortless 80-85 mph cruising, with no problem keeping up with the fast lane on the interstate. But I'm not at all comfortable with treating that T5 like I treat that toploader! Like Danny, I live in a small town and a traffic jam means waiting for the second time around on a traffic light, and presents no problem other than my impatience Hhowever I've gotten caught in a big jamup in ATL with the roadster in 90* plus weather and on I20 for road work in the '40 and it's no fun Both times I was beginning to think I was gonna have to pull over and rest my left leg when finally things opened up.
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