Wondering if anyone has experience or info about either of these two transmissions.

The 5 speed can be shifted at higher RPM than the 6 speed with the OD gear, I'm talking about
normal synchros, not a faceplated deal, or other tooth engagement mods.

Torque capacity is evidently not the limiting factor with either because the gears are so big,
it is more the fact that the gears are really too massive for the size of the synchros (what I read anyway).

Everyone seems to like the T-56 of whatever version. It looks to me like the T-56 does have better synchros
than the Richmond, but the Richmond case and components are bigger and stronger.

Richmond says don't shift the 6-speed above 6500 but they don't say that about the 5-speed,
now the newer 5-speed OD, I have not read much about.

Every Car I've driven with an aftermarket 6 speed manual seems as though the sixth gear is a waste. I suppose if one were doing the Silver state Classic or similar the 6th gear might be useful. Maybe they've updated the ratios ?

Your not driving fast enough.....

I had a Mini Cooper with a 6-speed. After the second day, I NEVER used 5th. the difference in ratio meant only about a 200 rpm drop, and essentially no loss in power. That and the 4-5 shft bashed my knuckles into my Yeti cup and moved it enough to buy the passenger seat heat and turn it on. After discovering that, it was 4-6...

An OEM based transmission is going to be better than an aftermarket based transmission. The aftermarket just doesn't have the money to compete with OEM engineering requirements.

Hello Andy,
What engineering requirements are not met with the Richmonds ?

my brother says 5th and 6th gear in his 2010 challenger are useless at anything below 120mph.
i asked him how he knew this, and he just chuckled. knowing him, i'll wager my monthly check he has "been there-done that."

These anecdotes, what they are suggesting to me is that these factory transmissions were not "properly engineered".

They're engineered perfectly for their purpose: to maximize fuel economy on the EPA drive cycle. It's the same reason we've got 8-9-10 speed automatics instead of 3 speeds. Go back to the Corvette that had the solenoid that kicked the 1-2 shift to fourth gear in very specific circumstances, those being exactly how the EPA fuel economy test is run. VW took it a step too far when they changed the engine parameters when the computer sensed the EPA cycle in progress. The fact that nobody in the real world drives the way the drive cycle works means they seem crazy to those us that live and drive in the real world.

The Richmonds are not designed for a particular car in which the Engines power band, gearing, tire size, weight, torque etc. are all know factors. So the have to "guess" or pick what they think will be applicable to 100's if not 1000's of different applications.

Well I do appreciate the input but this is not going where I hoped it would.

I was hoping to find people who have driven Richmond 5 or 6 speeds, in whichever kind of street car.

The gear ratios is not an issue at all.

I do recognize that these trannies don't easily fit in A- or B- bodies, but that's still not the topic.

I'm interested in shift quality and hi-RPM shift capability.

How high can you reliably shift a synchro A833 ? I think they are the same rings used in the Richmond.

I bought a Doug Nash 5 speed for my Coronet back in 1988 so I was one of the first to have a 5 speed in a street driver Mopar.

How would you rate or comment the shifting compared to:

-T56

-A833

My Doug Nash is very clunky. Shifts like a tractor.

Thank you. Always appreciate your input and help.

What shifter mechanism do you have?

I have a Long Shifter that came with the Richmond I got. Does that make any difference?

Or is that the shifter everyone uses?

I got mine in a parts deal and it’s all still new in the box.

I have driven both in a multitude of different cars. The normal shifting is fine in both, little experience with the high RPM part (I don't abuse customers cars) but the few I have had to shifted fine at 5.5-6K. Again, these were very limited experiences and only shifts between 1st and 2nd.
In every case 6th gear was IMO useless.
I have shifted plenty of 833's at 6500, usually at WOT fanning the clutch never having an issue

I might also comment that in all cases with high RPM shifts we had installed the trans AND DIALED IN the bellhousing / scatter shield

m y friend installed a richmond 5 speed in a 71 challenger convert with a 604 hemi about 1998.
it was a feature car in Mopar collectors guide in may 2000.
we had to do a fair amount of cutting and welding ti install it.

i have a T56 magnum xl 6 speed trans in my supercharged 800rwhp 08 bullitt mustang.
the shifting differences are night and day between the 2.

I have the Hurst shifter with mine.
I've known other guys with Doug Nash (or Richmond) 5 speeds that also say they are very clunky. From what I've heard the issue is that Doug Nash used synchros that were too small for the weight of the 5 speed main cluster. Evidently there are people who now know how to fix that problem but I've never tried to have mine fixed.
I do have a buddy who got rid of his Richmond 5 speed and replaced it with a T56 based 6 speed and he says the difference in shifting is amazing. He used to tell me that his Richmond shifted okay but now he knows that it didn't. He was just used to it.
I don't know if Richmond ever fixed the clunky shifting design that they inherited from Doug Nash. I doubt that they would tell you on the phone so a person would need to speak to an independent transmission expert. The little bit of research I did on the subject in the past led me to believer that Richmond never really fixed the issue.