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View Full Version : Richmond 5 spd what is weak??



BRIAN
07-19-2005, 07:20 PM
What is weak link in the Richmond 5spd? Isn't it the old Nash under new name? I have a brand new one that came as a deal with something else and was curious why they get bashed?? Am I MISINFORMED?

chicane67
07-19-2005, 07:33 PM
Nash = current Richmond.

Weakness is that the cluster shaft is only supported by one side of the case and under load (like lots of power and/or high traction) it will bend the shafts enough to seperate them and to the point of blowing teeth off of second and third.

If the chassis it is going into wont see high HP/TQ, slicks and launching hard... its a great trans. Doing failure analysis for Richmond over the years, I have found this to be the only way to hurt this and the ROD six transmissions.

So, I guess you could say it was weak if you were running 700hp/700tq and launching a heavy car on slicks.....

David Pozzi
07-19-2005, 09:53 PM
Tom,
Isn't the G-Force tranny using the same case but different gears? They sure look the same. Or did G-Force "fix" the problem?

I put a Richmond five speed in my wife's 73 Camaro and I'm not worried since we won't drag race the car, plus we have a SB engine with light flywheel. The gears are close spaced, there is allways a perfect gear at hand. The Hurst shifter position is great too. Shifting is on the stiff side but it's a new tranny. It'll probably never shift as easily as the newer transmissions.

JodysTransmissions
07-20-2005, 03:16 AM
The weak link design in the Richmond 5 speed is their use of the Ford 5th gear strut keys. We have encountered many broken 5th gear strut keys on disassembly.

There is a center cylindrical bearing on the countershaft to support the load on the Richmond. That is what the large allen center bolt is for, check your case to verify this.

Yes, the G-Force Transmission utilizes the same case as the Nash/Richmond 5 speed.

Regards, Jody

David Pozzi
07-21-2005, 10:07 PM
Jody,
Yes, it has the center allen bolt.
By strut keys, do you mean the 3 keys on the syncro hub? My manual does not show anything named a "strut key"
Is there any way to improve this?

Does the 6 speed have the same thing? I have a Richmond six speed I'm going to install in my 67 Camaro behind a 427 SB. The application will be street and road course track days.
Thanks, David

JodysTransmissions
07-22-2005, 03:23 AM
David,

Yes, the strut keys are inside the 5th/rev synchro hub and slider assembly. The design is actually borrowed from the Ford ZF 5 speed transmission. I don't know of any upgrade for it.

The ROD 6 speed does not have this type of strut key in any of the three synchro assemblies. All three assemblies have been borrowed from the BW Super T10.

There are torque lock sliders (Richmond calls them "Roadrace Sliders") to eliminate gear hop-out on extreme road racing. I would make sure you at least have these in a roadrace vehicle. Also, there are many trick things to do to an ROD 6 speed for smoother shifting. But all these blueprinting mods require complete disassembly.

Regards, Jody

David Pozzi
07-22-2005, 05:47 PM
Jody,
Thanks for the info.
David

JodysTransmissions
07-22-2005, 06:38 PM
Jody,
Thanks for the info.
David

Happy shifting!

Regards, Jody

chicane67
07-25-2005, 10:52 AM
For the old schoolers..... (Like Dave-O)

Strut keys = dogs

Dogs are used with 'energizer springs' and are used in Sag, BW and Muncie transmissions of old, which some technology was transfered to later model units, like the T5 and others.