Hello Guys & Gals, I have run across a used Jerico transmission for sale and I need some help on looking for signs of trouble. It is currently out of the car and the guy tells me that it worked & shifted great a year and a half ago when he decided to take the car apart. He also tells me that the only reason for selling is to move up to a 5 speed. Now I know very little about transmissions and even less about a Jerico. Any help or advice you can give would be appreciated. It's being sold at a real good price (provided it isn't s**** inside) so I plan to go get it this evening before someone else does. Thanks again, KK
Call Jerico, ask them they are close to you in Charlotte I'd open it up inside a take a look, go to U tube and search for Jerico driven on the street...FUN FUN FUN
It's probably a dog ring trans (crash box). If so, it's not very "street friendly"... Like FEDER said, make sure it's the right trans for your application.
You might even try calling some of the dozens of race shops there in the Carolinas. I wouldn't necessarily call one of the "big time" shops, but I'm sure there are late model shops that you could maybe pick their brains or at least ask where you could find someone more knowledgeable about the Jericos. Seems like they used to use them in Cup cars on the road courses, ostensibly because of their durability. Of course with enough abuse, anything will break eventually. Maybe some stock car racers will see this thread and chime in. Good luck.
I would use it for a street car if possible. I'm building a street/strip 57 Chevy with no more than 450hp so it's more trans than I would need. On the other hand it would hopefully last me the life of the car. At the price, I will buy it whether I can use it or not. Did I mention that it's a really really good price? I just don't know how to identify problems with one. I spoke to the seller this morning and he said that he removed the cover last night after we spoke so I could see inside. I just don't need another paper weight.
Jerico makes several models of 4 speed transmissions. They are incredibly tough dog ring units, but not exactly an M21 to drive on the street. contact Jerico with the trans info. They will go through the box for 250 bucks (labor) and inspect it for you. Don't know where you are in NC, but they are in Concord NC. B.
If it is a street car you DO NOT want a drag race type trans unless you can live with double clutching and crashing gears and a lot of gear noise!!!!! I have a Jerico in my Comet,great trans for drag racing,not so great on the street! The Jerico used in road racing is a completely different style of trans,and they are built for up shifting and down shifting!Look for rolled over gear edges,loose shafts from bearing damage,shift fork bends or miss alignment ROY.
That's very helpful Roy. Thanks. When you say misalignment do you mean the way the gears line up with one another? Also, should I be able to spin it by hand, and should I/ can I, shift through all five while it's open? Thanks again
Like 65COMET said if its a DR-4 or a DR4-4 you will be miserable with it on the street. They make some interesting noises a**** a few other quirkes. The road race version would probably be decent on the street. You should find a serial number on the left side front near the area of the ears. Call Jerico with this number and they will tell you exactly what you have. If it's a Drag trans and your gonna flip it, PM me. I know someone that even buys broken ones for parts.
Just spoke to Jerico, and what a great bunch of guys. Lots of help. They told me pretty much the same thing about checking for radiused dogs & sliders. Also said to check for pitting on bottom of the teeth. They were able to identify it by serial number to a trans used for Winston cup. Could be an oval or road course ******. He suggested that the drag box was better unit for the street due to the hardness of the gears but said that with no more hp than I have I should be good either way. Thank you all again for your help. I'll let you guys know tomorrow what it looks like. KK
Heavy trucks have dog engagement, so do motorcycles. Driving a street car with a dog box isn't horrible, it just requires some acclimation. The biggest inconvenience is going to first from sitting in neutral. But, that's easier than with any of the old three speed transmissions with unsynchronized sliding gear first.
You might also want to find out what the gear ratios are. If it is a NASCAR box they could be really weird. If you sell it that will be one of the first questions someone will ask. Brian
Is this one of those cases where no one commenting is a bad sign? Like I said before, I know jack about a transmission.
Straight cut gears, *****en! it will wine like a scalded cat, dog ring shifting, so ever shift has to be a power shift. Next you will need to put a spool in the rear end and slicks so that driving your 57 will really be a pain in the ***! Rex
Karl;as far as the gears and sliders,etc.,it looks very nice,almost new!!! You really need to find out what the gearing is as some NASCAR stuff does NOT use a 1to1 fourth gear and they could have a weird gear spread through the first three too! My computer was down for a couple of days,just got back up!! ROY.
From your pictures, this trans looks to be in excellent condition. Any metallic grit in the bottom of the case? Any chipped teeth on the cluster (countershaft) gear? Any broken or fretted roller/ball bearings and their races? Dis***embly is required. JERICO should be able to supply a manual. From the middle picture, when the "dog" clutch is slid forward, it engages the input gear connecting it directly to the output shaft giving direct torque transfer from the engine to the driveshaft......1:1 ratio while in high.
Trans looks pretty good..check the ratios...Aside from the gear whine it can't be any worse than shifting a stock model A or a pre 50' Ford truck 4 spd as neither had ANY syncros...
As Cutaway AL said,motorcycles use dog engagement and don't need to be double clutched and will shift smoothly at part throttle.I thinking that might not relate to the larger gears of the Jerico???
Just because it looks SO NEAT it doesn't mean it is good for the street, the straight cut gears will howl!!! Ever ride in a car with a quick change? See the big space between the dog on the gear and the dogs on the shift ring? They are that way so that the ****** can be power shifted without the clutch, which is how racers drive them, NO CLUTCH, the only thing that keeps them in gear is a slight back angle cut between the matching dog rings, this angle, plus power, keeps them in gear. If you are trying to cruse down the road with a light or variable throttle the dog rings will bang back an forth and eventually it will come out of gear plus make more banging noises than a loose rod. These ******s are made for racing not street driving. If your 57 is meant to be cruised and driven on the street and you will be much happier with a M21 or a Richmond Gear or a Tremec even a BW T5. Rex
Thanks for the help guys. I would really like to use it but would like a bit of streetability. This thing may already be a beast to drive as it is. Not that it's a ton of power but I've built a 355ci with 10:1, WP Sportsman II heads, GM 140 cam, Scheifer Alum flywheel, and quad Dellorto carbs. Between the cam and light flywheel the thing revs and it revs quick. I bought a BW T-10 a while back and may end up running it. Sure would like to run the Jerico even if just for a month or two.
JUST DO IT , Dang man........... Its your car ,Put in the Jerrico AND DRIVE IT ...you will love it until you don't . Then just change it .... No big deal and just a few hours work THEN You can tell all of us the problems that YOU found to be true! Good luck ,keep us posted , let us know what ever you do.....
Hey , AFTER YOU do the Jerrico, I have a Doug Nash 4plus1 that you can try to compare it to. LOL just messing with ya....
I bought it last Friday. For $550 I wasn't about to leave there without it. It also has the H pattern Hurst shifter on it. To run it I'm going to have to come off the hip for another clutch kit. Just bought a Mc Leod for the Borg Warner bit it's a 10 spline input.
Put the Jerico in & try it. It may be ok for you, and may be too much. It is not like it is a Lenco. Easy enough to go back to a T10 or M21. At the very least you can make a few p***es with it. B.
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