Toyota Repair: 1989 Celica GTS, fuel inj, shift fork

Question
Hi Ted,

You've been a great help in the past and I need your expertise.  My Celica GTS, 5 speed, 2.0 L fuel inj. with 150,000 miles had the clutch replaced a year ago.  I recently replaced the slave, but now the car makes a small noise and shifts hard from 1st to 2nd if you attempt to wind it out past 25 mph.  The car shifts into all other gears fluidly.  I only have the problem shifting from 1st to 2nd, shifting between 15 to 20 mph she's fine.  Also once the car has been driven for awhile it seems to shift a little quieter.  Could this be the synchros or should I also replace the master cylinder?  Also how difficult is it to replace the synchros?  

Answer
If there is no problem shifting into first gear from a stop you can eliminate the master cylinder as the problem.
Possibly a worn synchro ring, shift sleeve, shift fork and probably worn synchro teeth on the second gear.
A few years ago we used to repair transmissions so I know about these problems, we do not repair them anymore because for one thing, parts, gears etc. are extremely expensive and then there is the labor involved of taking the transmission apart, not to mention a ton of expensive special tools that are required to do this.
In your case I would recommend trying to locate a good used transmission, this will save you some money.
You can call the toyota dealer and see what's available in either remanufactured or new units, a reman unit will probably cost around $1,500.  You should be able to get a used one for about half of that.