17" Rims

These are my 17" Bandit by US Mags. These are the 17x8s. Totally changed the way the car handled. Handles like a modern car compared to the 15x7 rims that were on there. The ride is not harsh at all, rides good.

Richmond 5 speed driving impressions

1st gear is awesome.
Combined with the 3.08 rear gear, it takes off strong.
5th gear at 1:1, ~26" tire, 70mph is 2800rpm
Rips tires off at the track (wasnt all that proud of this run!!!!)

Shifting takes a little work. Have to sort of manhandle the transmission. Not a Honda 5 speed!! 

Richmond Street 5 Speed rebuild work

Overall, this is a sweet and easy setup to rebuild. A very nice piece.
Trans is the 3.27:1 first gear trans. Here is a link to the instructions for the transmission:
http://www.waterlifemagazine.com/HorsePowerMagazine/Richmond5SpeedManual.pdf

Here is a basic shot opened up:

Here is a good online picture of the the trans all laid out:
http://2loose.chevytalk.org/DougNashTrannyRebuild1.html

Here is what all was broken:
5th and reverse gear (in one setup): all of the keys for 5th/Reverse synchro were broken. That piece of key was all that was found- no other pieces were found of these keys.

Somebody had seen  these when it was opened up/drained of the fluid. If I wasnt in a hurry and didnt love the trans, probably would have returned this transmission. However, KO the seller was good about reimbursing me some of the cash. He offered to take it back as well.

On the cluster gear, reverse had a couple of teeth broken off. Probably from being shoved into reverse with that synchro screwed up. I ended up finding another one of these but chose to install it later.

Ended up replacing the following:
1- 5th gear synchro
2- 5th gear keys
3- all bearings (5 total) as they made noise too
4- 3/4th synchro and keys
5- ended up buying new cluster shaft
Best prices on parts was here:
http://libertytruckandauto.com/partinfo.php?id=8051500

Richmond 4+1 aka Richmond Street 5 Speed

I bought this:
http://forums.performanceyears.com/forums/showthread.php?t=750183

And it arrived:

It is exciting, however it makes some noise, grinds going into 5th gear, and will need torn apart. UGH. This is the JOY of hot rodding...

See the next post which ends up being another $1000 later. LOL

I broke the Saginaw!!

So, I broke the Saginaw. Went out and did a bunch of burnout one Sunday afternoon. Some REALLY good burnouts. Well, the last one of the day was a show stopper. Rev, Rev, Rev, dump clutch, GRINDDDD, Kerplunk! Well, it was fun while it lasted...

Here are some pics of the damage:

I think I broke it pretty good!!!

Subframe connectors

The connectors tuck nicely under the car!

Good fitment

If you look at where the connector attaches to the frame, you can see where I had to grind off metal to get the connector to slide over the frame. It would not fit correctly without doing this. Also: I ended up having to get 4in of the 3/8 24 thread pitch bolts instead of the 3.5in that are supplied. Where they attach and the frame widens, the 3.5in bolt is not long enough to engage the locking portion of the lock nut provided.

I used some 3/8in hollow steel bar found at Tractor supply to make these rods. This will strengthen the joint- should be no flex or bending of the frame or connector this way.

These do not sit any lower than my exhaust.

Underside of the car pics before paint, when I got an alignment