Have your ever driven a car with a non-synchromesh transmission? Or perhaps an old Alfa Romeo whose synchs have gone the way of Elvis as so many of them do? If so, then you’ll likely genuflect before the name Earl Thompson. He was the engineer who invented the  Synchro-mesh transmission while working for Cadillac in the ’20s. It took Thompson 12 years to perfect the mechanism which was introduced in Cadillac’s 1928 models, but even today few folks ever give much thought to how a synchromesh transmission works. Fortunately these days we have the Internet and that’s a resource of almost unlimited bounds. This video by Paul Cangialosi from 5speeds.com explains how synchros work, and makes me want to go out and have a cannoli after watching it. Check it out right after the jump.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXsRfbOiBhE[/youtube]

Source: YouTube